January 30 issue of Flight School Business
| VOL. 14-ISSUE 3-January 30, 2024 |
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TRAINING TRENDS
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| Training goes electric at California flight school |
| Nonprofit aviation education and flight school organization New Vision Aviation can now provide flight training in the group's four Pipistrel Electro trainers thanks to an eight-year public-private collaboration to prove electric aircraft can be suitable for flight training. This means the Fresno, California-based flight school now can offer flight training in the four electric aircraft it acquired in 2018. (Photo courtesy New Vision Aviation) READ MORE › |
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NEWS
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| AOPA provides support, recommendations on MOSAIC |
| On January 22, AOPA delivered comments on the FAA's proposed rule that would expand light sport aircraft and sport pilot regulations. AOPA seeks an increase in the maximum stalling speed to a standard 61 knots with safety-enhancing devices but at minimum an increase to 58 knots; and an increase in seating capacity to four for all expanded categories including helicopters, gyroplanes, and others. The FAA now will review and respond to the more than 1,300 comments received on this proposed rule.
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| Van's Aircraft reports progress toward reorganization |
| Van's Aircraft pledged January 20 to close the loop soon with customers awaiting word on new prices for kits that include engines. The company announced that "65 percent of eligible kit orders have been renewed at the adjusted price," reported to be about 30 percent higher than the price originally agreed to, though at least one customer has reported a much higher number: a 54-percent increase over the agreed-upon price for an RV-10 kit, according to a court filing submitted by that customer.
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| Jet mods for Cirrus piston fleet |
| Cirrus rolled out the seventh generation of its piston single earlier in January, and the new model has more similarities with the SF50 Vision Jet than ever. Avionics, control placement, warning systems, and a cabin redesign make the piston and jet cockpits nearly identical. "We want to make our product lines so similar that transitioning between them is seamless," said Ivy McIver, Cirrus executive director and SR product manager.
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| New flight school opens in Reading, Pennsylvania |
| After many years working in airport maintenance, Steve Kunkel was ready to branch out into flight training. His new flight school, Top Flight, is set to open February 1 at Reading Regional Airport (RDG) in Reading, Pennsylvania. Top Flight has five certificated flight instructors and two aircraft, a Piper Cherokee and a Cessna 172, ready to serve new customers, according to the Reading Eagle. The flight school held a grand opening on January 20.
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POLL
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| Results |
| In the January 16, 2024, issue, we wanted to know if you or anyone at your airport had ever experienced a laser strike. Here are the results.
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MARKETING
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| Live video |
| How can you leverage live video streams on Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube to bring in some more customers? It's easier than you think, and the key is to be authentic. William Woodbury walks you through the process. READ MORE > |
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QUICK TIP
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| When do you know it's time to expand your operation? Felipe Santiago, director of operations for Aviator Zone Academy in Miami, says two sure signs are when you run out of ramp space and office space. Santiago discusses other factors that should be considered when expanding a flight school in this video from AOPA's You Can Fly. |
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SAFETY
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| Is final clear? |
| The runway is an airplane's most critical component, which makes it an airport's busiest area. Help your customers stay safe near the runway environment with the AOPA Air Safety Institute's online course, Runway Safety. The course provides FAA Wings credit and is optimized for the iPad. See the course here. |
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