At about 1442, a Cirrus SR-20 crashed into an apartment building in New York City. Both people on board were killed and the airplane was destroyed by impact forces and post-crash fire. There were no fatalities to anyone on the ground. The pilot and owner of the aircraft was New York Yankees player Cory Lidle; a California-based flight instructor was with him. The flight had taken off from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey and appeared to be sightseeing around Manhattan.
Five years ago, Raytheon hailed its new Premier I as the fastest, largest single-pilot business jet on the market. While that was and remains true today, the company's lightest jet was still very much a work in progress. The braking action was inconsistent at best. The baseline Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics package had plenty of unrealized capabilities. The biomorphic-inspired interior design was tres outré by business aircraft industry standards and it squandered available cabin space.
Labelmaster, a U.S.-based manufacturer of dangerous goods compliance products has repackaged is A.I.R. Shipper, Early 9 CFR, 49 CFR Government, RegStick and Compliance Network into affordable, convenient packages. The 2007 edition of A.I.R. Shipper contains important ICAO revisions. RegStick is a USB flash drive that holds the necessary information in a format that is easy to navigate for compliance with regulations for shipping dangerous goods.
Two ultra-small bidirectional antennas recently were introduced by Starling Advanced Communication Ltd. The MIJET, measuring just 30 inches in diameter by six inches high, is suitable for large, long-range business aircraft, as well as any wide- or narrow-body commercial aircraft. The MiniMIJET, with a 16-inch diameter and a height of four inches is designed for medium and small business aircraft.
PolyMax Hangar Floor Coating System is designed to withstand heavy wheeled traffic, abrasion, impact and spillage of aviation fluids. The three-coat system offers a clear epoxy primer with adhesion to concrete, a high-build pigmented intermediate coat to aid in impact resistance and a chemical resistant urethane finish for excellent abrasion and stain resistance, light reflectivity and resistance to ultra-violet degradation from direct sunlight. Price: Contact manufacturer PolyMax/Milamar Coatings 12005 N. Virginia Ave.
According to witnesses, the pilot of a Beech 19A Sport obtained a weather briefing before departing Auburn-Opelika Robert G. Pitts Airport in Auburn, Ala., but no flight plan was filed -- it was IFR at the time. The aircraft, registered to Sid Hall Enterprises, Inc., was being flown by a private pilot on a personal flight to Murfreesboro, Tenn. When it didn't arrive, the FAA notified the Civil Air Patrol. The airplane and body of the pilot were located two days later on Burgess Peak in Talladega National Forest in Guntertown, Ala., at an elevation of 1,787 feet.
Rockwell Collins recently introduced its Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) capable GPS-4000S. The new capability will be available in early 2007, according to the company. The GPS sensor and WAAS antenna will allow operators to use the GPS system without reliance on other navigation equipment for en route operations and approach procedures authorized for WAAS, such as RNAV (GPS) charts.
AS A PILOT, DIVER AND FATHER of three teenagers, there's adventure enough in my life. What I'm getting at here is food, which to me is more about fuel and company than it is about flavor or, I shiver, experimentation and discovery. I tend toward the familiar and simple. There's comfort in a BLT with cheese (burn the bacon, please), egg salad on rye with lettuce, tomato soup, and a New York strip, medium, with home fries and a green salad. Yum.
AircraftLogs has added new options that will allow users the opportunity to customize their subscriptions. Now customers can choose the AircraftLogs digital aircraft management system with or without fully digital maintenance logs. Whichever method the user chooses, the benefits of AircraftLogs' electronics flight records and logbooks, maintenance tracking and squawk management, and financial analysis tools are still available.
The new edition of the Principles of Helicopter Flight by Walter J. Wagtendonk, has added discussion on the NOTAR system and strakes, as well as the frequently misunderstood principles of airspeed and high-altitude operations. There is a review quiz at the end of each chapter, and the book concludes with a multiple-choice practice exam to ensure readers have grasped the helicopter aerodynamics they have just studied. The book is 320 pages and available in soft cover. Price: $24.95 Aviation Supplies & Academics, Inc. (ASA)
An Atlantic Airways BAe-146-200A, chartered by Aker Kvaerner, crashed after it overran the runway at the Stord-Sorstokken Airport in Norway. There were 12 passengers and four crew members onboard. A post-crash fire resulted in four fatalities -- three passengers and one crewmember. A pilot who had landed another aircraft earlier reported the weather conditions as good.
A Cessna 207 operated by Flight Alaska, Inc. collided with a river embankment during a landing approach to Tuntutuliak Airport, Alaska. The gravel runway is 1,772 feet long and is located at the edge of a river. Conditions were reported to be VFR, but as the pilot was attempting to land, rain and mist moved over the area reducing visibility to about one-quarter mile. This was the pilot's fourth landing attempt. The pilot received minor injuries; however, the aircraft received structural damage to the landing gear, fuselage and wings.
The Mystere-Falcon 50, type certified in March 1979 and first of a new generation of fuel-efficient Dassault Aviation tri-jets, always has been one of our favorite business aircraft. It has excellent standard-day runway performance, it offers transatlantic range and it's a joy to fly. But the original 3,700-pound-thrust AlliedSignal TFE731-3 engines were only flat-rated to 76°F (24.4°C) OAT sea level, thus impairing the aircraft's hot-and-high takeoff performance. Too, climb and cruise performance were less than best in class.
Iviation has released two i-Learn interactive computer-based learning courses for corporate, charter and commercial flight operations. The first two courses address human factors/crew resource management and aircraft icing. The company says that these courses are suitable for all size flight and charter operations that have a difficult time scheduling downtime, and will help CEOs and flight department managers determine what a pilot's knowledge level really is. By the end of 2007, iviation says it will release more than 40 i-Learn courses.
Flight Display Systems has introduced an innovative solution for adding cockpit panel space where none exists. The "Flipper" is a thin, small five-inch LCD that installs easily on most existing glareshields and flips into position when needed. When not in use the display flips to a horizontal stowed position using one-half inch of visual panel space. The screen can be viewed in the cockpit by both pilots. Sierra Industries has started an STC for the Flipper installation and a Flight Display Systems patent is pending.
At 2242 local time, a Beech C90A, French registration F-GVPD, was destroyed after impacting terrain during takeoff at La Veze Airport, Besancon, France. The pilot, copilot and two passengers, who were surgeons traveling to Amiens to collect an organ for transplant, were fatally injured. Local reports say that the aircraft clipped trees and crashed a short distance from the end of the runway and burst into flames.
It's 5:30 a.m., and you're taxiing to the assigned runway at a moderate-size regional airport you've navigated a dozen times before. There's been construction on the field since the last time you were here, through, and the taxiway layout has been temporarily altered.
The National Air and Space Museum and the Smithsonian Institution Research Information System are now offering online an expanded version of the Museum's Directory of Airplanes, Designers and Manufacturers. Features of the expanded directory include: -More than 34,000 individual aircraft and more than 6,600 aircraft manufacturers; -Ability to search by model or manufacturers using full or partial names; -Additional background notes; -Cross-references to assist in finding entries more easily.
FlightSafety International introduced Confident Flight, a full-flight simulator-based training course for business aircraft passengers designed to increase confidence and alleviate anxiety. The course will provide passengers with a basic understanding of the circumstances and related activities that can contribute to anxiety. The course touches on aircraft basic flying characteristics and aerodynamics, weather issues and challenges, ATC and the comprehensive training that flight crews receive.
At 1400 EDT, a Robinson R44 (HI-803CT) was destroyed after hitting the ground following a loss of control while maneuvering near Mano Negra, Province of Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic. The two commercial pilots and their two passengers were fatally injured. The helicopter was owned and operated by Helicosa of Santo Domingo, and was en route to the Puerto Plata International Airport from the Playa Grande golf resort. The weather conditions in the vicinity at the time of the accident are unknown.
*Jan. 21-24: NBAA Schedulers and Dispatchers Conference, Phoenix. www.nbaa.org *Jan. 25: NBAA Business Aviation Regional Forum, Scottsdale, Ariz. www.nbaa.org *Jan. 31-Feb. 1: Middle East Business Aviation (MEBA) Conference and Expo, Airport Expo Dubai, United Arab Emirates. www.dubaiairshow.org *Feb. 6-7: Asian Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (ABACE2007), Hong Kong. NBAA, 1200 18th St. N.W., Ste. 400, Washington, DC 20036. (202) 783-9000. www.nbaa.org *Feb. 7: ABACE Japan Regional Forum, Nagoya. www.nbaa.org
A Gulfstream II overran Runway 8 at Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport in Burbank, Calif., carrying five passengers and two crew. The aircraft was stopped by an Engineered Materials Arresting System (EMAS). There were no injuries to those onboard and minor damage to the aircraft. The NTSB retrieved the CVR, gathered radar data and was evaluating the performance of the EMAS during this incident.
An unregistered Air Trikes Tourist was destroyed when it impacted trees and terrain while maneuvering near Middlebury, Vt. It was VFR at the time and no flight plan was filed for the local flight. Two witnesses watched the accident airplane as it maneuvered and performed several takeoffs and landings for about one hour. They reported that the airplane "was flying up to high altitudes and cutting the engine." The airplane would glide lower, the engine would restart and the process was repeated. They also watched the airplane perform several steep banks at a low altitude.
Tdata has released Version 1.44 of its MTrax maintenance tracking software. New features include network file sharing and the ability to select a central file saving location for all users. This version also allows files to be read-only or tagged as exclusive. Operators will find the upgraded reports include "on condition" items and a two-tier data entry system. MTrax's one-year subscription is $749, which allows one user license and unlimited aircraft tracking, or operators can purchase two user licenses with unlimited aircraft tracking for $1,498.
An XM Satellite Weather Upgrade package for Flight Display Systems' Moving Map is now available. According to Flight Display Systems, this is the only Moving Map passenger information system that can provide real-time NEXRAD weather conditions, updated every five minutes. Live weather information is overlaid on top of rich topographical maps with city names and state borders. Weather is color-coded to indicate storm level severity. Maps are dynamically drawn 50-, 500- and 5,000-miles wide relative to the aircraft's present position.
