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Updated 7/28
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Updated 7/27
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Updated 7/31
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Updated 7/28
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Updated 7/25
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Updated 7/28
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| Top stories: |  |  Tuesday at AirVenture, AOPA joined forces with leaders from EAA, NBAA, GAMA, Cessna Aircraft Company, and Cirrus Design Corporation to present a forum on the very real threat of user fees for general aviation. More
| |  In a special ceremony Thursday, Eclipse Aviation received its provisional type certificate for the Eclipse 500 jet. More
| |  After much anticipation in the industry, Cessna Aircraft showed off its light sport aircraft proof-of-concept model in Aeroshell Square Monday morning. More
| |  FAA Administrator Marion Blakey promised pilots longer-running medicals and a new FAA funding system that won't "stifle the GA community," during her annual speech at Oshkosh Wednesday. More
| | Cirrus Design has announced a turbonormalized option for the SR22 to give it better thin-air performance. More | | Today's Feature: Light sport industry on track, except for flight schools
Far more models have been introduced, 38 light sport models in all, than was expected when the new category of aircraft was created, but flight schools have been slow to incorporate them into their fleets. That's the opinion of one of the top leaders in the sportplane movement, Ron Wagner, who heads the Experimental Aircraft Association sport pilot team, manages the sportplane display at the Oshkosh AirVenture Mall, and manages a national tour each year for sportplane manufacturers to show their aircraft. One of those tours ended up in Pennsylvania and then continued to AOPA headquarters in Frederick, Maryland. "The rental fleet is slow to introduce it. The support isn't there at flight schools, while manufacturers are ahead of schedule," he said. Wagner said the addition of Cessna to the light sport market adds credibility to the sport movement, and that, in turn, aids all manufacturers. "Cessna will get the flight schools' interest," Wagner added. He estimated more than a dozen light sport aircraft were sold at Oshkosh this week during AirVenture, which ends Sunday.  Almost no one interviewed believes that Cessna is "just studying the market" with the introduction of its proof-of-concept aircraft. That aircraft will first fly later this year. Cessna has decided to proceed, most believe. More
Glass takes retrofit, experimental market by storm The jet-set goes center stage at AirVenture 2006 Win a Six in '06 makes Oshkosh debut GPSMap 496: The first AOPA Pilot test flight | |
Updated Monday, July 31, 2006 2:22:34 PM
