Also: Surf Air, General Atomics MQ-9B, 2024 Nikolsky Lectureship, Cops v Drones
Aurora's X-65 has been started under DARPA's Control of Revolutionary Aircraft with Novel Effectors (CRANE) program. The aircraft is a purpose-built testbed for demonstrating the effects of active flow control throughout a variety of flight envelopes and missions, testing the effects of the theory on tactical operations and performance-focused high-speed designs. NASA is once again soliciting names to be included aboard the upcoming VIPER moon mission, allowing Earthbound civilians a chance to get their name inscribed in spacefaring history. Much like the Perseverance Rover program, applications are accepted to have NASA enthusiasts' names added to a smal
An Alaska Airlines passenger's phone has been found more than a day after being sucked out the vacant emergency door in-flight, still operational and showing a baggage claim receipt. The phone had been pulled out rapidly at more than 16,000 feet, quite violently judging by the shredded remains of the power cable it was connected to. The phone was found by a party searching for the missing door and associated paneling, who also mentioned it was the second such cell phone the NTSB had recovered.
Though... No Air Races, Anywhere, Are Yet In Sight
Not letting an auspicious anniversary go to waste, the folks of the late and oft-lamented Reno Air Races, are still planning an airshow. Just not as speedy as we've been used to... SO.... the Reno Air Racing Association (RARA) is hosting an air show at Reno–Stead Airport from Friday, Oct. 4 to Sunday, Oct. 6. Headlining the event is an opportunity for fans to witness two military jet team demonstrations, featuring dual performances from the legendary United States Navy Blue Angels and the Canadian Royal Air Force Snowbirds.
A60 Is A Retractable Trike That Serves As, 'A Bridge Between Tradition And Modernity'
On the heels of the debut of the two-seat tandem Junkers A50 last year, the Junkers organization is also developing a side-by-side version that has been flying for several weeks. Junkers Aircraft describes its A60 as a contemporary adaptation of the classic A50 model. Inspired by the Rotax-powered A50, the A60 combines the aesthetics of that era with modern innovations. The A60 offers a retractable gear, a trike configuration and the snugger option of allowing the pilot and passenger to sit next to each other.
Door That Separated From Aircraft Has Been Located
As the NTSB recovered the offending door plug that bailed out/off an Alaskan Air Boeing 737 MAX 9, the legal situation surrounding potentially affected airframes remains in flux. NTSB investigators are currently examining the door plug from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 Boeing 737-9 MAX and will send it to the NTSB Materials Laboratory in Washington, DC for further examination. From a cursory exterior inspection, the door seems surprisingly intact.
Pre-empting the FAA’s issuance of an Emergency Airworthiness Directive, Alaska Airlines announced it would be grounding its collection of Boeing 737-9s or MAX 9s, until a raft of inspections. That is essentially what was directed by the FAA, too, which ordered that all MAX 9s with a ‘plugged’ mid-cabin exit undergo inspections before being returned to service.
All Maintenance Courses Are I.A. Renewal Accredited
Enstrom Helicopter Corporation has announced official dates for its 2024 maintenance training classes. Each course will run for five days, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Mechanics and pilots who join Enstrom’s training courses will learn all the subtle nuances of how an Enstrom helicopter operates. Instructors will emphasize inspection procedures, routine maintenance, overhaul, airframe and rotor system troubleshooting, main rotor tracking, and tail rotor balance procedures.
'See & Avoid’ Failure Belies Other Structural Misses in Tour Industry
An Australian helicopter tour crash has been updated with more recent findings, just over a year since the incident took place. On January 2nd, 2023, a pair of Eurocopter EC120B4 aircraft collided on the Gold Coast of Queensland, killing 4 and injuring 9 passengers. The incident was fairly well documented, thanks to the tourists aboard. While headlines focused on the interim report’s mention of cocaine traces in one of the pilots’ blood, a few other lessons of note arise. The pilot’s positive result was accompanied by no signs of chronic stimulant use, and the drug could have been taken up to 4 days before the accident flight.
NASA reminds us that the moderate Quadrantid meteor shower has been active since Dec. 28 and will continue to Jan. 12. The moon will wash out faint meteors, but the shower often produces bright "fireball" meteors. Look for brilliant Venus rising with a slim crescent moon in the southeast, in the hour before sunrise, on Monday, Jan. 8. The moon will appear very close to the bright red star Antares, appearing to pass in front of the star for observers in parts of the Western U.S. On Jan. 13 and 14, the crescent moon will be visible with Saturn for observers in the southwest for a couple of hours following sunset.
Also: Butterfly Prototype, New Airbus Toulouse Facility, New Haven Airport, Red Hawk Testing
The aviator whose airshow accident led to 11 deaths at a 2015 air show, has applied to the UK Civil Aviation Authority in the hopes of getting his license reinstated. The incident left a bad taste in many a British mouth, when Andrew Hill's Hawker Hunter jet crashed into a nearby highway during a failed loop maneuver. British media made quite a sensation of their over-hyped, breathless, coverage. Overpriced, offering meager performance, and burdened with a history of disappointment, have made it hard for those who inherited the Icon pro
From 2019 (YouTube Version): Yak 52s Have Been Replaced With Extra Aerobatic Airplanes For 2019
The Phillips 66 Aerostars have been performing together, side by side at around 250 mph, for more than a decade, and the story of how the team came to be is like so many other such stories ... it happened almost by accident. Team member Paul "Rocket" Hornick told that story to Aero-News at AirVenture 2019. Essentially, Harvey "Boss" Meek was looking to buy an aerobatic airplane, and answered an ad for a Pitts for sale. But through a sequence of events that you'll have to watch the video to learn, he wound up forming the Aerostars with Dave "Cupid" Monroe flyin
The Pilot Transmitted "We Got A Problem" Before Impacting Terrain
A Pilatus PC-12 was destroyed in an accident near Christoval, Texas on December 14th, 2023. The crash caused fatal injuries to pilot, passenger, and their 3 pets. The NTSB's preliminary report largely describes the various outcomes for the aircraft's debris, which was strewn through trees and terrain 15 miles south of their target airport.
Mercy Flight Southeast coordinates missions to fly organ transplant candidates, people involved in clinical trials, chemotherapy or other repetitive treatment, victims of abuse seeking relocation, families receiving help from Ronald McDonald Houses, Shriners Hospitals and many other charities, disabled or sick children to special summer camp programs, disaster relief and for many other humanitarian reasons.
Security Notice (SECNOT)
A SECNOT is a request originated by the Air Traffic Security Coordinator (ATSC) for an extensive communications search for aircraft involved, or suspected of being involved, in a security violation, or are considered a security risk. A SECNOT will include the aircraft identification, search area, and expiration time. The search area, as defined by the ATSC, could be a single airport, multiple airports, a radius of an airport or fix, or a route of flight. Once the expiration time has been reached, the SECNOT is considered to be canceled.
“The design of the A60 is not only a tribute to our historic A50, but also a bridge between tradition and modernity. We have worked carefully on every detail to create an aircraft that is unrivaled not only in performance but also in design."
Source: Dieter Morszeck, CEO at Junkers Aircraft, discussing the newest Junkers sport aircraft... the Side-By-Side A60.
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