AOPA News

Record-setting pilot receives additional honors

Barrington Irving, who in 2007 became the first African-American to fly around the world, received additional recognition of his achievements in February, which is designated Black History Month.

Boeing Field: Raising rents in a downturn?

King County, Wash., plans to raise land lease rental rates for tenants at Boeing Field. AOPA has emphasized that the increase does not reflect the economic hardships imposed by the recession.

AOPA, Calif. pilots speak up for Oceano airport

AOPA and California pilots are speaking out against a developer's unsolicited plan to close the Oceano County Airport in Grover Beach so that it could be converted into residential and commercial uses.

Obama to nominate retired Army general to head TSA

The White House will nominate Robert A. Harding, a retired major general with 33 years of Army experience, as head of the Transportation Security Administration, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced March 8.

Meeting could decide future of Vista Field

AOPA is urging area pilots and businesses to support Vista Field by attending a March 8 meeting that could decide the facility's future.

AVWEB

15 Years and Now 15 Grand Giveaways ... It's Your Chance to Win a Garmin Aera 510 Handheld GPS

Win a Garmina aera 510 handheld GPS as we celebrate our 15th Anniversary! All you have to do is click here to enter your name and e-mail address. (You only have to enter once, and you'll be entered in our prize drawings for the entire year — so if you've already entered, you're all set.)And no, we're not going to rent or sell your name, ever. Tell your friends, and invite them to sign up for AVweb so they can qualify for our 15 Grand Giveaways prize drawings, too. (We won't spam them, either — but we hope they will sign up for our newsletters.)Deadline for entries is 11:59pm Zulu time March 12, 2010.Click here to read the contest rules and enter.Congratulations to Rod Anson of Camperdown, Victoria (Australia), who won 100,000 Air BP Bravo Rewards Points! (click here to get your own Rewards Points from Air BP)

AVweb Insider Blog: Cub Love Explained

We're sorry to report that Paul Bertorelli is being treated for ADHS — advanced delusional hallucination syndrome. We're not sure if he's making progress, but you can be the judge of it by reading his latest post to the AVweb Insider blog. It has something to do with a Piper J-3C.

USA Today: Better Simulator Training Could Save Lives

More training for pilots on advanced simulators could help prevent crashes and save hundreds of lives, according to an analysis by USA Today. Many pilots today are trained on older simulators that can't effectively re-create the real behavior of aircraft during stalls, severe icing, upsets due to wind shear or wake encounters, and other extreme conditions, says a recent NTSB report. Loss of control was a factor in 73 percent of the 433 airline fatalities in the U.S. since 2000. (Note that the fatalities that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001, are not counted in accident statistics, since they resulted from a crime, not an accident.) Newer simulators created with research by the military and NASA are more effective, but there are no federal requirements for pilots to be trained on them.

NTSB: Glass Cockpits Do Not Improve Safety

An NTSB study shows glass cockpit technology has not significantly improved the safety of small light planes, the NTSB said Tuesday, and the board recommended changes, from training to maintenance reporting, to improve the statistics. While data collected between 2002 and 2008 showed fewer total accidents for those aircraft equipped with glass panels, that total came with a higher fatal accident rate and higher total fatal accidents. For the period from 2002-2008, conventionally equipped aircraft suffered 141 total accidents with 23 having a fatal outcome. Glass-equipped aircraft suffered 125 total accidents with 39 having a fatal outcome. But the board's study also found the mission profile for each type of equipment package and the characteristics of the pilot were different between the two platforms. Generally speaking, higher-time pilots were flying longer flights with glass. That said, the NTSB was able to use the data to offer six recommendations voiced at the meeting. Five of those were related to equipment-specific training and one applied directly to testing requirements.Related Content — NTSB Reports:NTSB Overview Report (PDF)Findings & Recommendations (PDF)Closing Comments (PDF)// -->

Airplane Thief Sentenced To Treatment Program

A 23-year-old man who stole a Cirrus SR22 in San Diego last month has pleaded guilty to a felony. Skye Turner was charged with using an airplane without the owner's permission. The court referred him to a new treatment program for mentally ill offenders that provides supervision and custody, the San Diego News Network reported this week. However, if he is not accepted into the program he could be sentenced to 120 days in jail instead. Turner, who is not a pilot but has had some training, stole the keys to the airplane on Feb. 18, just a few hours after a pilot in Austin, Texas, flew his Piper Dakota into a government building. Turner reportedly had been in a dispute with his girlfriend and threatened to crash the SR22 into the ocean, according to SDNN.

Aero-News

2010 National GA Award Winners Named

Awards Will Be Presented In Oshkosh By Administrator Babbitt For the past 47 years, the General Aviation Awards program and the FAA have recognized a small group of aviation professionals in the fields of flight instruction, aviation maintenance, avionics, and safety for their contributions to aviation, education, and flight safety.

NATA's Automated Risk Assessment Tool Launched At Safety Symposium

FAA Endorsed RA Tool Removes Subjectivity And Streamlines The Process The National Air Transportation Association (NATA) launched a tool which effectively combines safety management system-required risk assessment with convenience at the Air Charter Safety Foundation's 2010 Air Charter Safety Symposium on March 3.

Cessna Calls For Industry Unity To Defend Image Of Business Aviation

Cessna's Stangarone: Industry Needs To Constantly Communicate Its Value And Benefits Robert Stangarone, vice president of Corporate Communications for Cessna, said Tuesday at the British Business and General Aviation Association (BBGA) Annual Conference that the industry needs to keep communicating the value and benefits of business aviation.

Army Approaches Million Unmanned Flying Hours

About 90 Percent Of The Army's Unmanned Flying Hours Are In Support Of Combat The Army is fast approaching one million hours of unmanned flight with its unmanned aerial systems. "Right now it looks like we'll hit probably 1 million total hours sometime next month," said Col. Christopher Carlile, director, U.S. Army Unmanned Aircraft Systems Center of Excellence.

Devon & Cornwall Police Takes Delivery Of A New EC145 helicopter

Aircraft Customized For Law Enforcement Role The Devon & Cornwall Police took delivery of a new EC145 helicopter last Friday. The helo, ordered in September 2007, replaces another Eurocopter helicopter, a BK117 which has seen service for over 12 years.

	Congratulations to Jeff Moss!!!	Larry Stoddard	Tue Mar 09, 2010 11:26 pm
	P&WC PW615F course	Tracy Forrest	Tue Mar 09, 2010 9:36 pm
	CJP Annual Meeting 2010 - Save the date!	Steve Brecher	Tue Mar 09, 2010 2:28 pm
	Music in the cockpit	Ronnie Morgan	Tue Mar 09, 2010 1:53 pm
	CJP March Quiz: GPS Operations	John Hayes	Tue Mar 09, 2010 1:36 am

	Sun 'n Fun	Lakeland, FL	Apr 13-18, 2010
	Cessna Special Olympics Airlift	Lincoln, NE (KLNK)	Jul 17-24, 2010
	Airventure Oshkosh	Oshkosh, WI	Jul 26-Aug 1, 2010
	CJP Annual Meeting	Colorado Springs, CO	Sep 1-4, 2010
	NBAA 2010	Atlanta, GA	Oct 19-21, 2010