Also: AEA 3Q-20 Report, ARTEX ELT 4000, Textron Denies 'Fictitious' Bid, AEROCOR Acquires BlueMAX

Our friends at the FAI tell us they are in discussions with Hong Kong-based Adventure Air Race Company limited, regarding the development of an air race series to replace the discontinued and long-lamented Red Bull Air Race championship. Adventure Air Race reportedly has the endorsement of Red Bull for this project, which will be called the World Championship Air Race. Adventure Air Race reached out to the FAI to discuss the provision of safety officers and other technical support for the WCAR. This support

Also: AEA 3Q-20 Report, ARTEX ELT 4000, Textron Denies 'Fictitious' Bid, AEROCOR Acquires BlueMAX

Our friends at the FAI tell us they are in discussions with Hong Kong-based Adventure Air Race Company limited, regarding the development of an air race series to replace the discontinued and long-lamented Red Bull Air Race championship. Adventure Air Race reportedly has the endorsement of Red Bull for this project, which will be called the World Championship Air Race. Adventure Air Race reached out to the FAI to discuss the provision of safety officers and other technical support for the WCAR. This support

Virgin Orbit Repositions Vehicle For Launch Demo 2 Mission

Virgin Orbit has posted an update in which they detail the efforts to initiate their pre-launch operations phase for the Launch Demo 2 mission. At last report, the Launch Demo 2 rocket was in the midst of final integration on the shop floor, with the VO team working to incorporate the upgraded NewtonThree engine that will power LauncherOne’s main stage. As expected, they were able to take advantage of the lessons learned from the previous LauncherOne and finish all that work in short order. With LauncherOne buttoned up from nose to tail, they hit the road again to transport the rocket up to Mojave Air and Space Port.

First Group Completes Their Initial Training At Airbus’ Flight Academy Europe

Proudly wearing their newly-pinned wings, a group of pilot cadets have become the first to graduate from Airbus’ Ab-Initio Pilot Cadet Training Program. These cadets underwent their first phase of training at Airbus Flight Academy Europe in Angoulême, France, which included over 750 hours in ground school, plus 200 hours of flight instruction. They will now transfer to the Airbus Training Centre in Toulouse, for jet orientation and multi-crew cockpit cooperation courses, where they can follow upwith a Type Rating.

From 2014: Aerovate's Kondor Shows Off A Unique Prop Technology

While at the 2014 Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) convention, ANN CEO and Editor-In-Chief, Jim Campbell came across something called a “passive variable pitch propeller.” Andrew Kondor, the president of Aerovate, Inc. accepted the task of explaining to Jim what it’s all about. He said it’s a propeller that changes pitch without the use of electronics or hydraulics. You’ll have to watch the video to get the full story, but Kondor explained it senses

More Than 12,000 Aviation Terms, Acronyms, And Phrases And Nearly 500 Illustrations

If you want to learn more (and faster) than ANN's Aero-Term of the day, here's the book for you... The Seventh Edition of Dale Crane’s Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms contains more than 12,000 accurate, aviation-specific terms and definitions. This reference collects all of the terms in Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations, glossaries from FAA handbooks, advisory circulars, the Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM) and Pilot/Controller Glossary, as well as definitions not found in government publications.

DroneSense Software Platform Adds Support For All Autel EVO Series Drones

Autel Robotics and DroneSense are undertaking a partnership that will allow UAS teams to utilize the full suite of DroneSense capabilities to meet the needs of public safety operators with Autel EVO Series aircraft. “Autel has developed the EVO II Dual with Public Safety applications in mind, featuring a short 30-second deployment time, the highest optical resolution available in a non-military application, a secure data policy, and best-in-class flight times,” says John Kuch, retired Fairfax County Police Department.

Drones v Drugs... Guess Who's Going To Win? In support of United States Southern Command's (SOUTHCOM) counter narcotics operations in the Eastern Pacific, Martin UAV successfully demonstrated the shipboard integration of its V-BAT UAS, as well as its maritime capabilities, from Oct. 6, 2019 to July 31, 2020. Support for the mission included the highly visible Enhanced Counter Narcotics Operations, which began on April 1, and was kicked off by the President of the United States.

The Engine Partially Lost Power And RPM Declined From 2,400 To 1,700

On October 15, 2020, about 1615 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 152, N6585L sustained substantial damage when it was involved in an accident near South Hill, Washington. The pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot reported that he had purchased the airplane 8 days prior to the accident via an online auction. The airplane was parked outside and partially covered for several years prior to the purchase. The pilot said that he worked on the airplane to facilitate an engine run, which included draining the fuel from wing fuel tanks and the airframe fuel filter, of which he observed a small

AD 2020-22-15 Requires An Inspection Of The Overwing Floor Beams

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all The Boeing Company Model DC-10-10 and DC-10-10F airplanes, Model DC-10-15 airplanes, Model DC-10-30 and DC10-30F (KC-10A and KDC-10) airplanes, Model DC-10-40 and DC-10-40F airplanes, Model MD10-10F and MD-10-30F airplanes, and Model MD-11 and MD-11F airplanes. This AD was prompted by reports of cracked floor beams and floor beam supports in the area of the overwing exit doors located at certain stations (STA). This AD requires an inspection of the overwing floor beams for any repair, repetitive inspections of the overwing floor beams and floor beam supports at certain STA on the left and right sides for any crack, and ap

AD 2020-23-08 Requires Limiting The Service Life Of The LPC Rotor Blades

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Rolls-Royce Deutschland Ltd & Co KG (RRD) Tay 611-8C model turbofan engines. This AD was prompted by reports of low-pressure compressor (LPC) rotor blade retention lug failure. This AD requires limiting the service life of the LPC rotor blades based on the number of dry-film lubricant (DFL) reapplications. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products. This  AD is effective December 18, 2020.

Aero Linx: Women in Corporate Aviation Women in Corporate Aviation, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, is a group of aviation professionals, including flight department personnel, FBO managers, writers, students, training center professional and many others who work together to promote opportunities for women in aviation. From our first meeting at the Women in Aviation Conference 1993 to our growing organization today, we have networked and promoted career opportunities in business aviation. We are mentors and role models to the next generation of aviation professionals.

Visual Climb Over Airport (VCOA) A departure option for an IFR aircraft, operating in visual meteorological conditions equal to or greater than the specified visibility and ceiling, to visually conduct climbing turns over the airport to the published “climb-to” altitude from which to proceed with the instrument portion of the departure. VCOA procedures are developed to avoid obstacles greater than 3 statute miles from the departure end of the runway as an alternative to complying with climb gradients greater than 200 feet per nautical mile. Pilots are responsible to advise ATC as early as possible of the intent to fly the VCOA option prior to departure. These textual procedures are publis

"We’ve done a hell of a lot these past few months as we worked to improve our probability for success, including modifications to our main engine assembly, the hot-fire and vibration testing of our engines, cryoload tests, full system check-outs, aircraft inspection, flight software qualification, and more. And what’s remarkable is we’ve done all this in the context of a global pandemic." Source: From a Virgon Orbit update, in which they detail some of the prep they are undertaking in advance of the upcoming Demo 2 mission which should fly before the end of the year.