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FeaturedWe have a winner! United Airlines First Officer Eric Short was making his usual 1 a.m. arrival on a trip from San Francisco to Washington Dulles International Airport. But he had one more stop after that. With assistance from United, the stop was carefully coordinated by AOPA staffers on a mission: to inform Short that he was the winner of AOPA’s 2011 Crossover Classic sweepstakes. All the elements of the plan came together with the help of a network of willing accomplices. An AOPA staffer with connections at United learned of Short’s schedule. United’s Dulles Operations staff agreed to pick up Short right at his arrival gate, and then drive him to the Signature fixed-base operator on the field. It was only after the van pulled to a stop on the Signature apron that Short sensed things weren’t quite right. Read more and watch AOPA Live® >>
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Seattle Avionics announces free iPhone app
Seattle Avionics announced Voyager FreeFlight, a new flight-planning application for the Apple iPhone, at AOPA Aviation Summit on Sept. 22. Although it has some functions usable in flight, FreeFlight doesn’t have a moving map because it’s intended to be used for preflight planning, offering airport data, weather information, and planning capabilities. It’s not designed for the iPad, either. That’s because people don’t use cellphones in the same way they use tablets, explained Steve Podradchik, CEO and co-founder of Seattle Avionics. “The usage pattern is different. You always carry your phone with you—it’s your buddy.” Read more >>
Avidyne adds Multi-Touch to IFD540
Avidyne unveiled at AOPA Aviation Summit the addition of Multi-Touch functionality to the new IFD540 touch-screen FMS/GPS/Nav/Com that the company had announced in July. The IFD540 is designed to be a plug-and-play replacement for the Garmin GNS 530. What is Multi-Touch? "It’s the ability to pinch zoom," said Tom Harper, Avidyne marketing director. Read more >>
Garmin 400/500 series to work with Aspen Connected Panel
Aspen Avionics said at AOPA Aviation Summit that its Connected Panel concept will work with Garmin 400/500 series GPS units. With the addition of Aspen’s Connected Panel box and a partner iPad application, the user will be able to send flight plans wirelessly to the Garmin units. This means pilots could plan a flight on the iPad at home and simply hit a button to make it appear in their Garmin 430 or 530. Connected Panel is expected to launch by the end of the year.
Flight Design picks C4’s engine
At AOPA Aviation Summit, Flight Design announced its decision to go with Teledyne Continental Motors’ new, six-cylinder IO-360-AF engine in its recently announced four-seater, the C4. The engine, given the "AF" suffix because of its ability to use alternative fuels, will be rated at 180-horsepower and be able to use both 100LL avgas and auto fuel. “We remain committed to also offer a diesel engine operating on Jet A, but the decision on a heavy-fuel engine will come later,” said John Doman, Flight Design director of business development and global sales and marketing. Read more >>
WingX announces Zaon traffic support
Hilton Software, maker of WingX, said Sept. 22 that its iPad application will soon show traffic through a wireless connection with Zaon’s XRX PCAS system. The capability is expected to be available in October through WingX version 7. Read more >>
Aviation Summit Friday highlights
Make the most of the day at AOPA Aviation Summit by catching some of Friday’s highlights. Start the day with an update from FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt; then catch educational seminars such as “How to Save Your Life in an Aircraft Accident” and “Spin Myths.” Salute the centennial of Naval Aviation at the 12:30 p.m. luncheon, and party into the evening at the Rock ‘n Rally at Airportfest. Daily highlights include the exhibit hall and Airportfest, which open at 9 a.m. Educational seminars and the AOPA Learning Pavilion open at 10 a.m., and live performances by the Flying Musicians at Airportfest begin at 11 a.m. See the full three-day schedule.
Latest GA issues, adventures to air on AOPA Live
Get the latest from Cessna Aircraft and find out more about the epic flight to Greenland featured in the October issue of AOPA Pilot Sept. 23 on AOPA Live, which is streaming from AOPA Aviation Summit each day of the event. Watch the broadcast from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day, including a rebroadcast of the morning keynote at 1 p.m. Find the full schedule online. Attendees at Summit can catch the filming in person at the AOPA Live stage in the exhibit hall. AOPA Live is brought to you by United Technologies Corp.
Summit quick links
Flying GA to Summit
Schedule of events
Registration
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GA NEWS
Reno accident probe examines memory cards, telemetry
National Transportation Safety Board investigators on the scene of the Sept. 16 accident of Jimmy Leeward’s P-51 racing aircraft at the National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nev., said that memory cards found at the scene might provide key details of the accident sequence. Data from equipment on Leeward’s racer Galloping Ghost could help shed light on what caused the airplane to crash into the box seat area in front of the main grandstand, causing dozens of injuries and multiple fatalities. Read more >>
FAA proposes fine for Cessna Corvalis defects
The FAA has proposed a $2.4 million civil penalty against Cessna Aircraft Co. resulting from the separation in flight last December of carbon composite parts of a high-performance Corvalis’ wing. The agency said Cessna “failed to follow its FAA-approved quality control system when it manufactured the wings on the damaged airplane, as well as 82 additional parts,” in a Chihuahua, Mexico, factory. It said that “an FAA test pilot performing a production audit test flight in a Corvalis experienced a failure of the skin on the left wing. About seven feet of the left wing skin separated from the forward spar and damaged a fuel tank.” Read more >>
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Pilot helps homeowners assess Texas wildfire threat
When wildfires broke out earlier this month in Spicewood, Texas, Bernie and Joan Devine could not determine if their house was threatened. They were 1,600 miles away, visiting their son Jason Devine, who lives in Carlisle, Pa. Jason, a private pilot who flies out of Carlisle Airport, had no idea that another general aviation pilot would soon be able to put his parents’ fears to rest. Read more >>
Aerobatic artist honored by Smithsonian
Is she an up-and-coming aerobatic star or an up-and-coming artist? Lise Lemeland is both. The 300-hour pilot was chosen last year to exhibit three of her works, an oil painting and two mixed-media designs, in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, a branch of the National Air and Space Museum, at Washington Dulles International Airport. As you might expect, the works have an aviation theme, from airplanes performing aerobatics across a San Francisco terminal area chart to ghost aircraft in an aerobatic box. Read more >>
Entrepreneur to chair AOPA Foundation Board of Visitors
AOPA Foundation President Bruce Landsberg announced the appointment of Ned Bennett as the new chairman of the AOPA Foundation’s Board of Visitors Sept. 22. Bennett takes over the reins from Emeritus Russell Meyer Jr. Bennett is co-founder and executive vice chairman of the brokerage firm optionsXpress that was acquired by Charles Schwab on Sept. 1. In addition to starting optionsXpress, taking it public, and then merging it with Charles Schwab, Bennett has helped launch and turn around about a dozen businesses. Read more >>
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FAA issues special notice for satellite re-entry
NASA said that a falling satellite would probably miss North America on its predicted Sept. 23 re-entry to the atmosphere. The FAA nevertheless issued a special notice warning pilots “that a potential hazard may occur” due to the satellite’s descent path through Sept. 26. Read more >>
LogTen Pro version 6 released for iPad, iPhone, Mac
Coradine Aviation Systems announced this week the newest update to its flagship LogTen Pro electronic logbook software. The new version 6.0 will be available for Mac, iPhone, and iPad. The biggest feature of the release is the integration of Apple’s iCloud system, which will store data remotely. Read more >>
Remos launches dialed-back model
Remos has offered a lower-priced GXeLite, for $133,924, for pilots who don’t want to pay for all the bells and whistles available in the cockpits of more advanced Remos light sport aircraft. The aircraft can be ordered from Germany with a nine-week waiting time. They are used in daylight, visual conditions only, and have limited Dynon glass cockpit features as well as less expensive radios, compared to the higher-end Remos models. Read more >>
Scheyden unveils two new models
Scheyden Precision Eyewear recently added two new models to its product lineup. The Albatross and the Mustang add to Scheyden’s extensive aviation-minded offerings. Read more >>
| | AOPA Aircraft Financing Program offers NEW lower rates Our goal is to get pilots into the aircraft of their dreams. To help make aircraft ownership more attainable we just lowered our rates to make monthly payments more affordable. For more information, or to have a representative call you to discuss financing, go to www.aopa.org/loans. |
Pickup truck on floats
Cessna’s heavy hauler, the Caravan, is very popular in the backcountry of Canada and Alaska. This week, The Aviators shows us that with floats, the Caravan is a go-anywhere, do-anything kind of airplane. Watch AOPA Live >>
Hover Power: Fuel exhaustion
It’s hard to understand, especially in an aircraft that can just about land anywhere, but one type of accident that seems to happen over and over is running a helicopter out of fuel. The following accident happened almost nine years ago. At night on Oct. 15, 2002, a Schweizer 269C experienced an engine failure because of fuel exhaustion and was substantially damaged during the ensuing hard landing. The CFI was providing night VFR cross-country instruction to a student. They had discussed the low-fuel situation, but elected not to refuel because neither had a credit card. Read more >>
Reporting Points: Warm hearts, wagging tails
With all of the sadness that affected general aviation last weekend, it was nice to be in the midst of a small bright spot in Florence, S.C. That’s where the volunteers and pilots who sign up for rescue flights through Pilots N Paws met to transport dogs from a high-kill shelter to new homes in Virginia, Florida, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C. Read more >>
For daily news updates, see AOPA Online.
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Safety & Proficiency
Obstacle departure procedures: Not just for IFR flight
Before you land at an airport, it stands to reason that you have to depart one first. When visibility is low and the airport environment is unfamiliar, an obstacle departure procedure (ODP) can give you a little more peace of mind about reaching the en route environment safely. Do you know when you should fly an ODP or how to request it? What information pertaining to an ODP is vital to know before you crank the engine? Find out here with the Air Safety Institute’s safety quiz on obstacle departures, sponsored by the AOPA Insurance Agency. Just because you can’t see the terrain doesn’t mean it isn’t there. Take the quiz >>
Go beyond ‘direct to’ with VFR GPS course
These days, satellite navigation is so common that many pilots barely give it a second thought. Be that as it may, there’s more to using GPS well than just punching “direct” and following the magenta line. Whether you’re new to the game or just looking for a refresher, the Air Safety Institute’s free GPS for VFR Operations course will get you up to speed with great tips on flight planning, in-flight use, potential “gotchas,” and lots more. Get started >>
Nervous about your upcoming flight review?
A flight review can somewhat unnerve many pilots. After all, we’re human and generally don’t enjoy having to perform while someone scrutinizes our every move. But if you step back and understand that flight reviews are designed to make us safer pilots, they become an opportunity to learn and grow. Having the opportunity to test our mettle in the cockpit can become a chance to find out how to step up our flying game. The Air Safety Institute has compiled most of what you need to know, as pilots and instructors, in the Pilot’s Guide to the Flight Review Safety Advisor. Download it now >>
Leading Edge: What does it take?
As you’ve probably heard by now, general aviation is on the NTSB’s most wanted list. The GA accident rate is flat, and it is disproportionately high in the personal flight category relative to the estimated number of hours flown. One solution that comes up regularly is that “of reaching the unreachables.” For your consideration of the challenge, here is an informal review of a flight that took place last week at AOPA’s home base of Frederick, Md. Read more >>
Flight Instructor Refresher Clinics | Air Safety Institute Safety Seminars | |||||||||
For a complete schedule, see AOPA Online. Can’t make it in person? Sign up for the CFI Refresher Online. |
Topics vary—for details and a complete schedule, see AOPA Online. | |||||||||
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ADVOCACY
Associations gird to resist aviation user fees
The nation’s leading general aviation associations registered joint opposition to job-killing aviation user fees—and a potential new tax-collection bureaucracy—in President Barack Obama’s plan for stemming the twin crises of the federal deficit and stubborn unemployment. AOPA and eight other associations issued a joint statement warning of “devastating” consequences for aviation-industry jobs from a proposed $100-per-flight fee for those who use air traffic services. The association joined 26 other organizations, representing virtually the entire aviation community, in urging House and Senate leaders to resist any taxes—including those “disguised as user fees.” Read more >>
CFIs, students win training relief in California
California flight instruction providers who waited more than a year for relief from crippling regulatory burdens imposed under a 2009 education-reform law got the news they were waiting for Sept. 21, when Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill exempting them from its provisions. “Since we learned a year and a half ago about AB 48 and its unintended devastating consequences on the California flight training industry, AOPA has been continuously working to convince the legislature that the health of aviation in the state is vitally important to the health of the whole state economy,” said John Pfeifer, AOPA California regional representative. Read more >>
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AOPA expands commitment to state-level advocacy
AOPA is creating a new regional manager program as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen its presence at the state and local level, AOPA President Craig Fuller has announced. In the first significant change in its field representation program in decades, AOPA will create a new team of seven full-time regional managers, whose focus will be on building government relations and strong local aviation communities. To augment the efforts of these regional managers, AOPA will refocus its existing regional representative program on promoting and supporting aviation-related events. Read more >>
Senators urge FAA, EPA restraint on leaded-avgas rules
A letter from a group of senators to the administrators of the FAA and the Environmental Protection Agency urges the agencies not to use the rulemaking process to force the elimination of lead from aviation fuel before a suitable replacement is found. Sens. Mark Begich (D-Alaska), John Thune (R-S.D.), and 25 co-signers stressed the importance of the agencies working with the aviation sector and congressional General Aviation Caucus members in developing the fuel to replace leaded avgas. Read more >>
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LightSquared media tactics trigger firestorm
The chairman of the House aviation subcommittee has fired off a letter to the head of communications venture LightSquared over a company media campaign that blames the GPS industry for setbacks confronting the firm’s proposed wireless network. An ad by LightSquared published in the Sept. 14 edition of the Wall Street Journal carries a "very different tone" than was set by the company in June testimony before the subcommittee, said its chairman, Rep. Tom Petri (R-Wis.). "Apparently the new strategy being employed by LightSquared in its public relations campaign is to place all the blame on GPS," he wrote. Read more >>
Nevada pilot helped preserve GA access at Reno/Tahoe
AOPA awarded its highest honor for individuals Sept. 23 to Dr. Robert Larkin, a county commissioner in Washoe County, Nev., and volunteer for AOPA’s Airport Support Network at Reno/Tahoe International Airport. Commissioner Larkin was honored for his work to ensure that general aviation would continue to have access at Reno/Tahoe International. The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority took action last year to reduce and limit GA access at the airport by failing to renew the leases of two fixed-base operators and taking over rental of hangars there. Read more >>
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Pilot’s Bill of Rights hearing sought
Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) and 31 co-sponsors have requested a hearing for the Pilot’s Bill of Rights in the Senate Commerce Committee. The bill is designed to ensure pilots fairer treatment and more access to information in FAA enforcement actions, reform the appellate process, and improve the notam and medical certification processes. AOPA members are encouraged to contact committee leaders Jay Rockefeller (202/224-6472) and Kay Bailey Hutchison (202/224-5922) and express support for Inhofe’s request for a hearing. Download the letter >>
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Member Benefits
Clubs, partnerships make flying cheaper, safer
Sharing the costs of owning and maintaining an aircraft can put the airplane you’ve dreamed about within reach, and the increased flight activity can ward off safety concerns associated with the lack of use. AOPA’s subject report on flying clubs can guide you through the myriad questions that may arise if you decide to pull a group together. Plus, AOPA recently launched the Aircraft Partnership Program with the goal of making aircraft ownership safer and more affordable by helping AOPA members and nonmembers alike find people interested in co-owning aircraft.
Sporty’s founder talks dynamic partnership
This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of Sporty’s Pilot Shop. It also marks the fiftieth anniversary of Sporty’s Founder and Chairman Hal Shevers becoming a flight instructor. Shevers’ dedication to quality flight training has guided his company’s growth and success over the years. AOPA caught up with Shevers to ask him about Sporty’s long-time relationship with the association. Read more >>
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AOPA Career Opportunities
Ever dream of turning your passion for aviation into a career? We’re looking for a medical certification assistant, AOPA regional manager, associate editor–Web, associate editor–Web/ ePilot, production assistant–Web, application support engineer, .Net developer, aviation technical specialist, and manager of airspace and modernization. To learn more about other AOPA career opportunities, visit AOPA Online.
Community
Picture PerfectAOPA’s online photo gallery allows you to upload your own aviation photography as well as view, rate, and comment on others’ photos. Your favorite aviation images from AOPA Pilot are still available online through this new gallery. Take a look, and submit your own photos! | | |
Forums: My newest quest ... 1971 PA-28-235
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QUIZ ME!Here’s a question asked by an AOPA member who contacted our aviation services staff through the AOPA Pilot Information Center. Test your knowledge.
Question: I recently came across a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the amendment of Class D and E airspace at Martin State Airport near Baltimore, Md. What is an NPRM and how can I get involved in the process?
Answer: An NPRM is the second phase in the rulemaking process by which regulations are enacted, following the initiation of actions such as studies and public hearings. The key part of the NPRM is that it is only a notice, meaning that the associated proposed regulation has not yet been made into law. For example, the current NPRM for Martin State Airport can be found online, including instructions on how to comment on the proposal. AOPA regularly submits comments regarding NPRMs, and we encourage our members to do the same. If no comments are submitted for a given proposal, the associated agency, such as the FAA, can easily assume that the public either agrees with or doesn’t care about a proposed regulation. If you would like to submit a comment regarding a proposed rule, you can do so through the regulations.gov website—just look for the orange “Submit a Comment” button in the upper right corner of the Document Details page for a particular proposal
Got a question for our aviation services staff? The AOPA Pilot Information Center is a service available to all members as part of the annual dues. Call 800/USA-AOPA (800/872-2672), or email to [email protected]. |
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