February 6, 2013

By The AVweb Editorial Staff

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Derision of business aviation has been a common theme with the current administration when it discusses its goals to increase tax contributions by the wealthy, but both the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) and National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) say the remarks are not only unfair, they're wrong. "Politics in Washington continues to demonstrate that facts can be conveniently overlooked when one is trying to point fingers and score sound bites," said GAMA President Pete Bunce. "Their rhetoric is wrong and all it does is hurt general aviation companies and workers across this country." Both Bunce and NBAA President Ed Bolen noted that aircraft are one of thousands of durable items that qualify for depreciation schedules as a means of encouraging businesses to invest in new products. "The bottom line is that the White House's rhetoric about general aviation depreciation ignores established facts and long-standing tax policies related to business airplane ownership and use, does almost nothing to seriously address the nation's debt and has the potential to harm a great American industry in the process," said Bolen. Our Agents Are Pilots! Talk to pilots who value your airplane, even before they insure it. Aviation Insurance Resources (AIR-PROS.COM) will research your aircraft's market value before you buy, sell, trade, or renew. And we shop coverage options from all major aviation insurance markets to save you time and money — or expand coverage — for new owners, transitioning pilots, renters, FBOs — even flight schools. Call (877) 247‑7767. Or click here. "Good," "Evil" Robots Battle for Control of the Skies back to top  Cities, States, Industry Pile On Drone Debate Charlottesville, Va., says it's the first civic jurisdiction to pass a resolution opposing the use of unmanned aerial systems based on the "serious threat to the privacy and constitutional rights of the American people" it believes the widespread use of drones presents. The resolution by the Charlottesville city council calls for a two-year moratorium on the use of drones in Virginia and urges the state and the federal government to ban drones from being equipped with weapons in domestic airspace. The resolution came as Obama administration officials were defending drone strike policies against suspected terrorists abroad. The American Civil Liberties Union says nine states are considering legislation to restrict the use of drones. Meanwhile, those who want to use drones for commercial purposes continue to press for laws that will accommodate pilotless aircraft in the National Airspace System. While the focus on drones has generally been on their military and law-enforcement use, the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International says that's not where the money will be made. "Agriculture is going to be the big market," AUVSI Vice President Chris Mailey told Wired. He said drones developed during the 1990s in Japan now do most of that country's aerial spraying and there are many uses for drones down on the farm. "Spraying, watering -- there's a whole market for precision agriculture, and when you put that cost-benefit together, farmers will buy [drones]," he said. Hollywood has also jumped on the drone bandwagon. The Motion Picture Association of America says it can get better shots with less danger to film crews by using camera drones, and moviemakers are already using the technology extensively in countries that permit it. For instance, some of the spectacular sequences in the opening of the recent James Bond series release Skyfall were shot from drones. It's not just action movies that benefit from the versatility of drones, however. Some of the scenes in The Smurfs 2 were shot from drones in France. The Easy-to-Install IFD440 & IFD540 with Hybrid Touch The IFD440 & IFD540 are plug-and-play replacements for GNS430 and GNS530 Series navigators, providing powerful NAV, COM, and Map capabilities. Featuring a Hybrid Touch user interface, these new systems allow pilots to perform virtually all functions using dedicated knobs/buttons or via the touchscreen interface. Make the Easy Choice. Click for introductory pricing information. A Voice in Congress back to top  GA Groups Work To Expand Caucuses With a new Congress now in session in Washington, NBAA this week said now is the time for pilots around the country to contact their elected representatives and ask them to join the general aviation caucuses in the House and Senate. NBAA President Ed Bolen said the bipartisan groups "inform legislative debates by highlighting the value of general aviation in creating jobs, helping companies succeed, connecting communities and supporting humanitarian endeavors." Bolen said the groups helped to pass FAA reauthorization, the pilot's bill of rights, and bonus depreciation for airplane buyers. AOPA has posted a map on its website to show the status of elected officials in each state, and EAA also says it's vital that the caucus "has a large membership to draw upon to highlight important issues facing the GA industry." U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo., told AVweb back in 2011 that the House caucus worked hard to inform lawmakers about "hundreds of issues" regarding FAA reauthorization, which finally passed, after a five-year effort, in February 2012. Elected officials can be contacted through the USA.gov website. Trade Up to Clarity, Quiet, Comfort, and Value There's no better time to gain peak performance with Lightspeed Aviation headsets. Trade up your old headset and receive a generous credit towards the purchase of the model that best suits your needs. Start enhancing your flying today with Lightspeed performance and innovation. Click here for details. Dreamliner's Return to the Air — For Testing back to top  787 Test Flights Expected This Week Boeing has asked the FAA for permission to conduct test flights with a 787, and the FAA is expected to give the OK as early as this week, according to news reports on Tuesday. Boeing has not released any details about the purpose of the tests. The Seattle Times reported that sources said the initial flight tests will gather data on how the airplane's lithium-ion battery is affected by changes in temperature during the flight cycle as well as the impact of vibrations during landing and takeoff. The Times said Boeing may also be investigating a theory that moisture might have gotten inside the battery, contributing to the recent incidents. Meanwhile, Boeing may be facing demands for compensation from its airline customers if the fleet is grounded much longer. Over the weekend, Boeing said that it has formed teams "consisting of hundreds of engineering and technical experts" who are working around the clock to figure out what went wrong with the two 787s that experienced battery problems. They are also working to figure out what's necessary to get the fleet back to flight status. Sources told the Seattle Times that one fix Boeing is looking at closely is a way to strengthen the battery's ability to contain any internal overheating and to improve the venting system for hot liquid or gasses to exit the battery box. Even if progress is made, it will likely be weeks or months before the fleet is back in the air, according to the Times. Your FBO's Insurance Protects Them, Not You Most insurance carried by the FBO or aircraft owner protects their interests, not the renter's. That's why we created Avemco® Non-Owned Insurance. It could save you thousands in damages to a rental aircraft and thousands more in injury liability lawsuits and legal fees! Get your no-obligation quote and instant coverage now. Aero India: Asian Extravaganza This Week back to top  Aero India Opens The ninth edition of Aero India runs Feb. 6-10 at Air Force Station, Yelahanka, near Bangalore, and the growth of the show follows the increasing importance of India as a civilian and military aviation market. Hundreds of exhibitors and a major static display will be featured in the show. Most major manufacturers will be represented and there will be a daily airshow featuring some top acts, including the Russian Knights demo team with their Su-27 jets. While there is worldwide participation at the event, which is one of the largest in Asia, the show is also a chance to show off some of India's indigenous aviation products. For instance, India has embarked on a development project with Russia to build a fifth-generation fighter, and a mockup will be on display. India is building its own light attack aircraft called the Tejas and it's about to sign a deal with Dassault to license-build 126 Rafale fighters for the Indian air force. On the GA side, Mahindra Aerospace has continued to make progress with development of the turboprop GA-10 utility aircraft that it manufactures through GippsAero in Australia. Professional Piloting Available from AVweb Bookstore. Three books on professional piloting skills by Les Kumpula of Embry-Riddle University for the commercial pilot with high career aspirations — and for current airline and corporate pilots who want more of the whys of what we do. Advanced Airmanship | Book: $34.95, eBook $31.45 Aerodynamic Principles | Book: $56.95, eBook $51.25 Flight Technique Analysis | Book: $56.95, eBook $51.25 Call (800) 780‑4115 or click here for more information. New on AVweb.com back to top  AVweb Insider Blog: TEL False Alarm Following a provocative article in Mother Jones magazine, the UK press went after Innospec, the principal supplier of tetraethyl lead for 100LL. Although some news reports said Innospec would end TEL production by the end of the year, Paul Bertorelli says on the AVweb Insider blog that the announcement is a false alarm. The company is phasing out TEL for automotive use but pledges to continue manufacturing it as long as it's required for avgas. Read more and join the conversation. Brainteasers Quiz #180: Regulation Oscura Before flight, every pilot must plow through a spaghetti bog of regulations designed to enhance safety by potentially scaring the flyer to stay on the ground. But you won't scare easily once you ace this quiz. Take the quiz. More Brainteasers Is Your A&P Keeping Secrets? Learn to recognize maintenance issues and take action before they turn into something big. Light Plane Maintenance™ shows you how. Click here to learn more — and get a gift when you subscribe. Who's Where back to top  Lyons at Avionyx Peter Lyons Peter Lyons is the new president of Avionyx, a Costa Rica-based engineering services provider for avionics manufacturers. He founded Aspen Avionics and was its first CEO. He left Aspen last year. Markise New Chief Pilot The Nebraska Department of Aeronautics has hired Rob Markise as its chief pilot. Markise was formerly a captain with Air Wisconsin. Who's Where? You Tell Us Get a promotion or a new job? Your colleagues want to know about it, and AVwebBiz can get the word out. Drop us a line about the staff appointment, with a nice recent photo, and we'll do our best to include it in our new section, "Who's Where." The items will be permanently archived on AVweb for future reference, too. Looking for Low-Cost, Yet Effective, Marketing Options? Let AVweb assist your company in creating effective direct-response marketing campaigns to generate leads. No other digital aviation news media reaches more qualified subscribers more often. Text messages in newsletters combined with online banners reach over 255,000 readers monthly and deliver more new users to sponsor sites weekly than most print publications do monthly. Click now for details. The Top Reporter on Our Crack Staff ... Is You! back to top  AVweb's Newstips Address ... Our best stories start with you. If you've heard something 255,000 pilots might want to know about, tell us. Submit news tips via email to newstips@avweb.com. You're a part of our team ... often, the best part. AVweb Video: Look, Listen, Laugh and Learn back to top  Video: Pardo's Push -- McDonnell F4 Phantom Original, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos "Pardo's push" of March 10, 1967 was preceded by a similar event. In 1952, fighter ace Robbie Risner pushed fellow flyer Joe Logan 60 miles. The two men were flying F-86 Sabre jets and successfully cleared hostile territory, but Logan bailed out over water, was tangled in his canopy lines, and drowned. Risner was deemed a hero, but by Pardo's account, pilots were not encouraged to partake in similar activities. Pardo's push may have saved the lives of pilot Earl Aman and his weapons system officer, Bob Houghton. But it would be decades before their efforts were recognized by the Air Force. Bob Pardo and Steve Wayne eventually earned the Silver Star for the act. Pardo was later quoted saying that they'd gotten Earl and Bob back, and that's all they wanted. Don't see a video screen? Try disabling ad blockers and refreshing this page. If that doesn't work, click here to watch on YouTube Names Behind the News back to top  Meet the AVwebBiz Team AVwebBiz is a weekly summary of the latest business aviation news, articles, products, features, and events featured on AVweb, the world's premier independent aviation news resource. The AVwebBiz team is: Publisher Tom Bliss Editorial Director, Aviation Publications Paul Bertorelli Editor-in-Chief Russ Niles Webmaster Scott Simmons Contributing Editors Mary Grady Glenn Pew Contributors Kevin Lane-Cummings Ad Coordinator Karen Lund Avionics Editor Larry Anglisano Have a product or service to advertise on AVweb? Your advertising can reach over 225,000 loyal AVwebFlash, AVwebBiz, and AVweb home page readers every week. Over 80% of our readers are active pilots and aircraft owners. That's why our advertisers grow with us, year after year. For ad rates and scheduling, click here or contact Tom Bliss, via e-mail or via telephone [(480) 525-7481]. Click here to send a letter to the editor. (Please let us know if your letter is not intended for publication.) Comments or questions about the news should be sent here. 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