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April 11, 2011

Stranger Than Parody? FAA Demands ANN 'Stop Writing' About Them

FAA Spokesperson Can't Quite Grasp The Concept of Parody

Under the heading of "we can't make stuff up that's this crazy," ANN finds itself in the midst of a genuine 'WTF' moment (to use colloquial Internet parlance). Shortly after noon this day (Monday), ANN Editor-In-Chief Jim Campbell got a phone call from a person claiming to be calling on behalf of the Administrator of the FAA. The initial tone was serious and somewhat stern... and the caller claimed to be Sasha Johnson, currently the FAA Assistant Administrator for Communications.

We're Gonna Swim Across That River And Strangle Jules Bergman

Thirty years ago I was a young college student trying to work my way through Embry-Riddle in Daytona Beach, and being a life-long space-buff I had seen every US manned spaceflight launch on TV. As such, I was determined to be down at "The Cape" to witness, first-hand, the launch of the first Space Shuttle.

ANN Daily Aero-Briefing: 04.11.11

SwiftFuel will be demonstrated in Europe this week.
AgustaWestland and Boeing celebrate milestone deliveries.
And Wisconsin Air pilots drop out of ASAP.

ANN Daily Touch-And-Go: 04.11.11

SwiftFuel will be demonstrated in Europe this week.
AgustaWestland and Boeing celebrate milestone deliveries.
And Wisconsin Air pilots drop out of ASAP.

More AERO-Casts

ANN Special Feature: Pilot Training Reform - 04.11.11

CFI Bob Miller of Over The Airwaves agrees to participate in SAFE's upcoming Pilot Training Reform Symposium, which he has criticized, and tells us why.

FMI:

More AERO-Casts

Aero-News Featured Aero-Casts For Monday 04.11.11

ANN Daily Touch-And-Go: 04.11.11 (ANN's Short-Form Daily News Program) ANN Daily Aero-Briefing: 04.11.11 (ANN's Long-Form Daily News Program) ANN Special Feature: Pilot Training Reform - 04.11.11 (ANN Special Report, with CFI Bob Miller)

EADS North America Expands Space And Related Product Activities In The U.S.

Industry Veteran To Lead The Company's Expanded Initiative

EADS North America announced Thursday that it has further integrated and expanded the company's Space and related product activities in the U.S., supporting government agencies, private sector customers and academia.

Declared Emergency But Passed Up Smaller Airport For One With Better MX Options

Second-guessing any pilot's decision making process is a tough gig... but this is a case where a pilot may have not have been quite cautious enough in selecting a location for an emergency landing. According to the NTSB, the pilot of a Malbu Mirage was being vectored to a small airport by ATC after declaring an emergency due to power issues, but thereafter decided to divert to a larger field with better facilities and the availability of a mechanic. The subsequent landing at Greenwood Le-Fore Airport did not go so well and the aircraft was significantly damaged though both occupants were uninjured.

Hopes To Have Re-Engined Aircraft Flying By October 2015

Airbus officials said this week that they can get their re-engined A320neo flying as early as six months ahead of their previously-announced schedule.

Planes To Be Permanently Assigned To Virgina Pending Environmental Study

Following a successful test run in March 2010 and approval by Air Combat Command officials, the first of several T-38 Talons from Holloman Air Force Base, NM, arrived at Langley AFB, VA, April 1 for the beginning of the 1st Operations Group's T-38 Adversary Air Program.

Improvents Made To Launch Bar To Increase Range Of Motion

With U.S. Marine Corps test pilot Lt. Col. Matt "Opie" Taylor at the controls, CF-1 completed functional checks and performed the first test hookup of the F-35C to the catapult.

Cathay Pacific Orders 15 Of The Wide-Body Airliners

Airbus’ A330-300 has surpassed the 500-order mark with Cathay Pacific Airways’ firm order last month for 15 additional A330-300s. The new airplanes will join the carrier’s existing A330 fleet for services across the Asia-Pacific region.

Boeing, Qatar Airways Announce Order for 5 777s

Qatar Commitment To The Aircraft "Significant"

Qatar Airways announced orders for three 777 Freighters and two 777-300ERs on Thursday. The orders are valued at $1.4 billion at list prices.

ATR's Presence In Russia And The CIS Countries Growing

The Russian carrier UTair and regional turboprop manufacturer ATR announced the signature of a contract for the purchase of 20 ATR 72-500s. The announcement of the deal, valued at US $ 426 million, took place in Kiev on Thursday.

A Novel Attempt To Improve The Flight Training Experience

Many people have been putting some serious brain power to work in order to conceive of ideas that might help to improve, even revolutionize, the flight training experience. One of the resulting efforts is called Flyvie. Using video recording technology, in concert with specialized software and GPS positioning, Flyvie offers some intriguing possibilities to make the flight training experience more valuable... in retrospect.

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Aero-TV: Spidertracks -- Real-Time Aircraft Tracking

Iridium-Based Flight Tracker Offers Added Safety And Utility

It's a novel and intriguing program... Nearly real-time tracking for your aircraft... available 24/7 to those who need to know where you are... in good times and bad.

More Videos

Aero-TV: Flyvie Flight Recorder -- Enhancing the Flight Training Experience

A Novel Attempt To Improve The Flight Training Experience

Iridium-Based Flight Tracker Offers Added Safety And Utility

It's a novel and intriguing program... Nearly real-time tracking for your aircraft... available 24/7 to those who need to know where you are... in good times and bad. Spidertracks sends your location in real-time from the spider in your aircraft through the Iridium satellite network, and displays the track of your flight on the Aviator website. Should the worst happen and you have an accident, Spidertracks will automatically send out SOS alerts to the people you have allowed/selected.

ANN Completes Post-Production Distribution Of AEA 2011 NPI Coverage

Aero-TV's "Three Hours of Non-Stop Aero-Geekery" at AEA 2011 Turned Out GREAT

The INTENSE programming involved in documenting 32 separate New Product Introductions at each year's AEA Convention and Tradeshow are one of the most trying times in our year... but also the most fun. Working in concert, once again, with the talented staff of the Aircraft electronics Association, ANN and Aero-TV documented over 30 rapid-fire new product presentation for live webcast and has now broken each of them down into the shorter, separate segments so that viewers with specific interest can get to the product that most interests them... right away.

Klyde Bemoans Those Pesky Passengers...

FMI: www.klydemorris.com

Will Be Installed In Company's Bell 429

San Juan Regional AirCare will integrate Becker Avionics’ DVCS6100 Digital Audio System into their new Bell 429 helicopter.

Helicopter Based On X2 Technology Demonstrator Aircraft

Prototype airframes for the Sikorsky S-97 Raider will be built by Aurora Flight Sciences, the company said in a news release Tuesday.

Helicopter Responds To Distress Message Written In The Sand

A group of Navy pilots and air crewmen who were training at Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF), Barking Sands, Kauai, Hawaii responded to a call for help and rescued two women on Kauai's Kalalau Beach in Na Pali Coast Park, April 7.

Columbia Helicopters Expands Facilities In Aurora, OR

Columbia Helicopters (CHI), which for 26-years has operated the Model 234 aircraft (the civilian version of the CH47 Chinook), has broken ground for the expansion of its T55 engine maintenance capabilities to include a T55-714 engine test cell.

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (04.11.11): Inner Marker

Inner Marker A marker beacon used with an ILS (CAT II) precision approach located between the middle marker and the end of the ILS runway, transmitting a radiation pattern keyed at six dots per second and indicating to the pilot, both aurally and visually, that he/she is at the designated decision height (DH), normally 100 feet above the touchdown zone elevation, on the ILS CAT II approach. It also marks progress during a CAT III approach.

Aero-Linx: Evolution Cockpit Chronicles Most corporate blogs are a little lacking in terms of real info and impact... but here's one that we have enjoyed a great deal. This is the blog started by retired AOPA Boss, Phil Boyer, to chat up his experience with the Aspen Evolution system retrofitted into his Beech A36. With some interesting insights, it is recommended reading for those looking to check into the Aspen glass panel retrofit program from a guy with an extensive GA background.

"We are pleased to join Sikorsky's team to develop the S-97 Raider prototype... Our demonstrated success in rapid prototyping and our experience in transitioning prototype programs into production were key factors in Sikorsky's decision to select Aurora for this high priority development program." Source: John Langford, Aurora Flight Sciences' President, on the announcment that AFS will build prototype airframes for the Sikorsky S-97 Raider.