Calendar of Events
February 2024
www.inflightusa.com
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To list your group’s event on a space available basis, please send your event notice with date, time, place w/city and state, contact name, and phone number to: Calendar, In Flight USA, P.O. Box 5402, San Mateo, Calif. 94402, or email 3rdavenue@embarqmail.com. Note: Calendar includes only information available by our press date, Friday, Feb. 2. Confirm the status before attending.
FEBRUARY
Sat. & Sun. 3
6 11 16 16 — 18 17
18
24
25 27 — 29 29
MARCH
Sat. & Sun. 1—2 1—3 2
6 7 7—8 9
16
16 — 17 17
Q Atwater, CA: Tours of the VC9C Presidential Aircraft, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Castle Air Museum, (209) 723-2178, castleairmuseum.org. Q Chino, CA: Hangar Talk/Flying Demo, 10:30 a.m., Planes of Fame Air Museum, (909) 597-3722, planesoffame.org. Q Vacaville, CA: Cup of Joe, 9 to 11 a.m., Rowland Freedom Center, (707) 449-3402, rowlandfreedomcenter.org Q Hollister, CA: Antique Aircraft Display & Fly-In, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Frazier Lake Airpark, (408) 835-1694, frazierlake.com. Q Chino, CA: Kilroy Coffee Klatch, 9 a.m. to noon, Planes of Fame Air Museum, (909) 597-7576. Q Las Vegas, NV: Super Bowl Thunderbirds Fly-Over, Allegiant Stadium. Q Miami, FL: U.S. Corporate Aviation Summit, venue TBA, aeropodium.com. Q Buckeye, AZ: Buckeye Air Fair, gates Fri. 9 a.m/Sat. & Sun. 10 a.m., Buckeye Municipal Airport, (623) 349-6000, buckeyeaz.gov. Q Riverside, CA: Aircraft Display Day Fly-In, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Flabob Airport, (951) 683-2309, flabob.org. Q Hayward, CA: Aircraft Display Day, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Hayward Executive Airport, (510) 280-4111. Q Daytona, FL: Daytona 500 Thunderbirds Fly-Over, Daytona Int’l. Speedway, (800) 748-7467, daytonainternationalspeedway.com. Q San Diego, CA: Historic Aircraft Display, noon to 2 p.m., MontgomeryGibbs Field, (619) 301-2530. Q Riverside, CA: Aircraft Display Day, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m, Riverside Municipal Airport, (951) 312-4832. Q Novato, CA: Planes & Coffee, SkyShare Terminal, Gnoss Field, (415) 897-2403, skyshare.com. Q Laredo, TX: Stars & Stripes Air Show Spectacular, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Laredo Int’l. Airport, (956) 722-0589, wbclaredo.org. Q Anaheim, CA: HAI Heli-Expo, Anaheim Convention Center. (703) 683-4646, heliexpo.com. Q London, UK: Aviation Developments in Finance, Leasing and Insurance, aeropodium.com.
Q Atwater, CA: Tours of the VC9C Presidential Aircraft, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Castle Air Museum, (209) 723-2178, castleairmuseum.org. Q Tavares, FL: Planes, Tunes & BBQ, Fri. 4 p.m./Sat. 11 a.m., Wooton Park, Lake Dora, (352) 742-6176, tavares.org. Q Tucson, AZ: Thunder & Lightning over Arizona, Davis-Monthan AFB. Q Casa Grande, AZ: Cactus Antique Fly-In, gates 8 a.m., Casa Grande Municipal Airport, cactusflyin.org. Q Chino, CA: Hangar Talk/Flying Demo, 10:30 a.m., Planes of Fame Air Museum, (909) 597-3722, planesoffame.org. Q Vacaville, CA: Cup of Joe, 9 to 11 a.m., Rowland Freedom Center, (707) 449-3402, rowlandfreedomcenter.org Q Hollister, CA: Antique Aircraft Display & Fly-In, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Frazier Lake Airpark, (408) 835-1694, frazierlake.com. Q Chino, CA: Kilroy Coffee Klatch, 9 a.m. to noon, Planes of Fame Air Museum, (909) 597-7576. Q Santa Rosa, CA: Hot Dog Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Pacific Coast Air Museum, Sonoma County Airport, (707) 575-7900, pacificcoastairmuseum.org. Q Miami Beach, FL: PBEXPO, Miami Beach Convention Center, pbexpo.org. Registration now open. Q El Centro, CA: NAF El Centro Air Show, gates 9 a.m., tickets (760) 339-2559, elcentroairshow.com. Q Yuma, AZ: MCAS Yuma Air Show, gates 9 a.m., yumaairshow.com. Q Del Rio, TX: “Fiesta of Flight” Open House, Airshow and STEAM Expo, Laughlin AFB, laughlin.af.mil Q Burnet, TX: Bluebonnet Air Show, gates 9 a.m., Burnet Municipal Airport, bluebonnetairshow.com. Q Riverside, CA: Aircraft Display Day Fly-In, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Flabob Airport, (951) 683-2309, flabob.org. Q Hayward, CA: Aircraft Display Day, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Hayward Executive Airport, (510) 280-4111. Q Santa Rosa, CA: Open Cockpit Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Pacific Coast Air Museum, Sonoma County Airport, (707) 575-7900, pacificcoastairmuseum.org. Q Petaluma, CA: Petaluma Display Days, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Petaluma Municipal Airport, (707) 778-4404. Q Fairfield, CA: Wings over Solano Open House & Air Show, gates 9 a.m., Travis AFB, travis.af.mil. Q San Diego, CA: Historic Aircraft Display, noon to 2 p.m., MontgomeryGibbs Field, (619) 301-2530.
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COVER STORY
P
By Bert Botta
In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
THE PHOENIX IS RISING AND IT’S PJP!
JP is the Private Jet Pilots associated band of brother and sister aviators that Jeff Phoenix Coursey, a private jet pilot himself, has created. This is a tip of the iceberg interview I did with him recently. It’s an update on PJP, what it is doing to improve the lives of corporate jet and charter industry pilots and what the future of PJP holds for the entire aviation industry. Bert Botta: Jeff, tell us your story! Jeff Coursey: I’ve been Flying since I was a kid. My dad wanted to get his pilot’s license while in the Navy so aviation was in the family business. Sometime after I moved to Florida, my dad started a charter company. One day I went to his house and asked him, “How do you do this charter thing?” He tossed me a phone book and said, “Make some calls.” So I opened the book and the first phone number I called, a lady answered and I sold my first charter! And I sold another one later that day. Fast forward to the next 10 years. They were a blur of literally miraculous connections with people who saw and felt my pas-
sion for private aviation and for making it as safe, fun and profitable as possible. In the beginning, I was flying for a guy, 28 days per month, doing the maximum amount of charter time. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was being trained in a way that would shape my future. It was an indoctrination that stuck with me, the importance of coming up with a structure, the pre-flight, the cockpit pre-checks, making sure your co-pilot
learns all these duties, recognizing each other’s duties and strengths and more. We’ve got a lot of fresh talent in the pilot pool and that kind of basic training is hugely missing these days amidst this present-day pilot-hiring surge. Many of the new-hire pilots have serious deficiencies. That’s why we’re seeing those airport overruns, mishaps, collisions and miscommunications. We’re lacking standardization, or if it is taught, it’s not being practiced, for
February 2024
whatever reason. BB: Why PJP and how did you go from the early years to PJP? JC: I found my niche in contract flying. Back in the day we had to climb the ladder. We had to serve. We had to sell ourselves to get an opportunity. And the opportunities would change instantly. Fast forward to today where aviation is in the Santa Claus era. All these kids are getting Global 7500, G600 type ratings for free, with little experience, and minimum time. They’re total newbies. It’s like, “Here, we need you so we’re sending you to school to get your Global or G600 type rating.” One day somebody would show up who would do my job cheaper and there went my gig. After a few of these, I had enough – enough of relying on the whims of companies and people. BB: Did that lead to PJP? JC: Kind of. My contract gig was taking off. The wife of one of the guys I met along the way started a charter company and they brought me on board. I figured we’d sell charters and we’ll match a pilot and flight attendant up with the airContinued on Page 10
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Volume 40, Number 6
650-358-9908 • Fax: 650-358-9254 • E-mail: vickie@inflightusa.com • www.inflightusa.com
COVER STORY
ON THE COVER FEATURED EVENT
THE PHOENIX IS RISING AND IT’S PJP
GEARING UP FOR HELI EXPO 2024 IN ANAHEIM
By Bert Botta Page 4
By Cameron Rolfe Page 45
NEWS ERAU Eagle Honored for Maintenance Technician Workforce Development ............................................................................11 Centennial Airport Foundation’s Runway 5K ............................13 Sun ‘n Fun Opening Day Concert with Trace Adkins ..............16 Textron Aviation’s Commitment to Empowering Youth ............18 Supernal Debuts eVTOL Product Concept at CES 2024 ..........21 Clay Lacy, Overair Partner to Introduce Advanced Air Mobility ..22 Van’s Aircraft Report Progress Toward Reorganization ..........24 Training Goes Electric at New Vision Aviation..........................25 EAA Supports MOSAIC Proposal to Increase Opportunities ..26 EAA Virtual Ultralight Days Return Feb. 20-22 ..........................30 Education Center Becomes Focal Point for Aviation Learning34 Top Airshow Performers Commit to AirVenture 2024 ..............35 Yawman Arrow Sim, Now Available in U.S.................................36 AOPA Celebrates Excellence in Flight Training ........................38 All-Star Airshow Set to Celebrate Reno Air Racing 60th Anniversary..............................................................................39 Schweiss Doors Introduces Non-Electric Hydraulic Pump ....42
February 2024
Cover Photo Courtesy Private Jet Pilots
FEATURES & SPECIAL SECTIONS Editorial: A Couple of Good Government Moves for GA By Vickie Buonocore ......................................................6 AOPA Editorial: Fill’er Up: Keeping Aviation Fuel Accessible By Mark Baker, President and CEO ..............8 You Heard It Here First! Beware… By Jarod Flohr ................................................................9 Patriot’s Jet Team: Grassroots Team Puts Youth First By Annamarie Buonocore ..............................................14 Earning Their Wings Author Addresses Females in the Military By Mark Rhodes ..............................................19 NASA, L-M Roll Out X-59 Quiet Supersonic Aircraft By Larry E. Nazimek ......................................................27 Reliable Robotics: Historic Piloting from the Ground By Annamarie Buonocore ..............................................28
COLUMNS Homebuilder’s Workshop: Van’s Aircraft Bankruptcy Thoughts By Ed Wischmeyer ......................................32 Goodies & Gadgets: Fresh Up the Plane and the Hangar ............................................................40
DEPARTMENTS
Calendar of Events ........................................................3 Classifieds ....................................................................48 Index of Advertisers ....................................................50 In last month’s edition of In Flight USA, our cover story featured the important work of Warriors in Need and an in-depth interview with Mr. Ben Ingram, a veteran who runs the organization along with his Southern California-based aircraft cleaning company. Unfortunately, we referred to Mr. Ingram as Bill. We extend our apologies and regret the error. To read the feature story interview, please visit our website, inflightusa.com.
6
In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
February 2024
A COUPLE OF GOOD GOVERNMENT MOVES FOR GA
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any times, government agencies that run general aviation airports make rules and laws that negatively impact GA airports and pilots. Sometimes those decisions are made by people who are not pilots, are not familiar with aviation and don’t understand or value what aviation brings to a community. Take Santa Clara County in Northern California, for example, that prematurely banned the sale of leaded fuels at its local airports, without providing for a suitable alternative, putting pilots in danger and forcing many of them to fly to other counties for fuel before flying home to their Santa Clara airport. Mark Baker, President and CEO of AOPA recently stated: “I have faced no bigger issue in my time at AOPA than the need for a safe transition to an unleaded future. I will never defend lead, but I will vigorously advocate for a smart transition that does not negatively impact the current fleet. “This is not a matter of politics; it’s a matter of safety. I don’t have to tell you the potential catastrophic impact of using the wrong fuel. But there is a blatant disregard for safety by a local government body in California that is prohibiting the sale of 100LL before we have a replacement fuel that can be used by all aircraft (looking at you, Santa Clara County).” Then there is Washington State that carried the bill, H.B.1554 sponsored by state Rep. Beth Doglio (D-District 22), that was introduced in Jan. 2023 with the goal of reducing public health and environmental impacts from lead by prohibiting the sale and distribution of 100LL aviation fuel in phases beginning in 2026, with additional prohibitions in 2028, with a statewide ban effective in 2030. In a letter to the House Environment and Energy Committee dated Jan. 29, AOPA Northwest Mountain Regional Manager Brad Schuster shared AOPA’s concern that the bill’s premature phasing out of leaded avgas before a suitable alternative is available will do nothing to speed up achieving a lead-free aviation fleet and will cause immediate and severe economic impacts on the communities that rely on the airports affected by the bill. In addition, Schuster testified at a public hearing that although the aviation community shares the goal of removing lead from avgas in a safe and smart transition, the bill has the potential to introduce safety risks on pilots whose aircraft
Zamperini Field seems to be a valued community asset by Torrance City Councilmembers who recently voted down a proposal to study transforming the popular general aviation airport to a master-planned community of homes. (Courtesy City of Torrance)
Long Beach is offering a fuel subsidy program to help pilots transition from leaded to unleaded fuel. (Courtesy Long Beach Airport)
require leaded avgas. Following AOPA’s first testimony, language prohibiting sales of 100LL was removed; however, the imposition of environmental-related regulations and fines on airports remained. In May of 2023, a similar situation arose in New Mexico and again AOPA stepped up. New Mexico S.B.238 proposed a leaded aviation fuel sale ban to begin Jan. 1, 2028. It failed. The failure of these proposed bills indicates that New Mexico and Washington (after some education from aviation pros) see the importance of a safe and smart transition to an unleaded fuel and understand the FAA, AOPA, and the industry are working diligently to find a replacement fuel for the more than 200,000 aircraft in the fleet. Perhaps Long Beach is onto something – thinking out of the box – by offering a fuel subsidy program to help pilots transition from leaded to unleaded fuel. In its latest move to accelerate the transition of aviation fuel, also known as avgas, at Long Beach Airport (LGB) from leaded to unleaded, the City Council on Jan. 23 approved with a 9 to 0 vote to implement a new subsidy program to offset unleaded fuel costs for Continued on Page 7
NATA PROMOTES BERRY TO VICE PRESIDENT OF EDUCATION AND SAFETY
February 2024
On Jan. 8, NATA announced a key leadership change with the promotion of Steve Berry to Vice President of Education and Safety. “Steve has contributed greatly to NATA’s success over the past several years, building on his wealth of industry knowledge to help advance NATA’s education and training programs as well as the overall safety of the industry,” stated NATA COO Keith DeBerry. Steve Berry first served as NATA’s Training and Content Manager before being promoted to Manager of Fuel Quality and Safety and most recently to Managing Director of Safety and Training. In his new role as Vice President, Berry leads the strategic vision for and oversight
Editorial
Continued from Page 6 general aviation users. The program will not apply to commercial and business jets, which already use unleaded fuel. “By subsidizing the transition to unleaded fuel, Long Beach Airport is leading the way on this pressing national issue,” said Mayor Rex Richardson. “We began down this path in Oct. 2022 and we are proud to take this next step. We know this environmental issue is of great concern to our community and we’re proud to play a leading role in enacting change in the aviation industry.” Unleaded 94-grade fuel (UL94) has been available at Long Beach Airport since August 2023 through Signature Aviation at Aeroplex, a fixed-base operator and fuel provider. The sale price of UL94 for consumers can be $2 to $4 more per gallon than leaded 100-grade fuel (100LL) varieties, but the Unleaded Aviation Fuel Subsidy Program will allow fuel providers to sell unleaded varieties at the same price as 100LL. It is envisioned that the cost of unleaded avgas will decrease over time as demand increases. The Unleaded Aviation Fuel Subsidy Program will encourage this process. With the City Council approval, Airport staff will begin working with fuel providers to implement the program, with $200,000 in reimbursements available for fuel expenses, covered by Airport revenue. “We appreciate City Council’s support in taking local actions to reduce lead emissions far in advance of the goal set by the federal government,” said Airport Director Cynthia Guidry. “We are actively listening to our community and committed to being an environmental leader.”
www.inflightusa.com
KEEP YOUR HEAD IN THE CLOUDS.
Steve Berry has been promoted to Vice President of Education and Safety at NATA. (Courtesy NATA)
of NATA’s education and safety initiatives, including the Safety 1st Training Center Continued on Page 9 Critical thought leads to questioning why UL94 is so much more expensive that 100LL… not adding lead makes the fuel more expensive. Obviously, there are complex scientific processes that probably account for the expense of producing fuel without lead. Coupled with safety concerns… not all engine and fuel systems can use UL94. Yet, credit to the Long Beach city officials who are trying to find reasonably safe solutions. And while we’re in Southern California and recognizing good efforts by government officials, how about Torrance? On Jan. 23 the Torrance City Council dismissed a land use study that threatened Zamperini Field. Residents have complained about noise from the airport, which eventually led the City Council to consider a proposed land use study that could have transformed the popular general aviation airport to a master-planned community of homes. Plenty of pilots and aviation and airport enthusiasts made their objections and concerns known. The council declined to move forward with the study, instead deciding to allow a noise mitigation plan to continue in an effort to appease residents. The proposed study was downed by a 6-1 vote. The council did entertain a suggested by Councilmember Sharon Kalani to bring residents, airport users and supporters together to discuss a 10-year visionary plan that would ensure the airport continues to thrive within the community. That idea – a visionary plan that includes the airport – is a step in a good direction. It indicates the Torrance City Council heard pilots’ concerns, values the airport and wants to keep is going strong.
We’ll be your feet on the ground. Being a member of AOPA is more than a huge list of pilot benefits. Joining AOPA empowers general aviation with a louder voice, keeping skies safer and open to pilots everywhere.
Amplify your power to fly. Join AOPA today.
AOPA.org/Join
7
8
FILL’ER UP: KEEPING AVIATION FUEL ACCESSIBLE WHILE FINDING ITS ALTERNATIVE In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
By Mark Baker
AOPA President and CEO
Flying season is about to heat up. While much of the South basks in a bit of warmth all year round, my friends in the Midwest and Northeast will soon shake off some of the frost and we’ll all take advantage of increasing daylight. As good flying weather rolls in and fly-in season picks up, it becomes all systems go. It is for me! While the skies are becoming increasingly busy, this shared passion for flight comes with a shared responsibility to protect it. We all have a role to play in making sure that nothing gets in the way of this great pursuit of ours. We need to keep airports open and accessible, ensure that airport and FBO fees are transparent and fair, and protect access to airspace. Central to our collective effort to protect our freedom to fly is making sure that aviation fuel remains accessible, no matter where you fly and what you fly. As I am sure you know, general aviation is in the middle of a transition to a fully unleaded future. Progress is being made with some higher-octane unleaded
fuels for the entire general aviation fleet. Where a major battle is being waged, however, is with those airports and sponsors that want to impede our safe and smart transition by prematurely banning 100LL, which is needed to fly so many airplanes in our fleet, including those that perform valuable missions like search and rescue, law enforcement, disaster relief, and agricultural support. In my travels around the country, I’m often asked: “Will I be able to get the fuel I need to fly my airplane?” From our standpoint, the answer is yes. It must be. When it comes to supporting these important missions, AOPA has always been a hands-on organization, rolling up our sleeves on behalf of you and the entire GA community. We don’t just report on issues, we get involved. Support doesn’t get more hands-on than what we have been doing with a Beechcraft Baron in Ada, Oklahoma. You may have read about the twinengine Beechcraft Baron we’ve been flying as a demonstration of unleaded fuels, to show the GA community that authorized unleaded fuel is safe, effective, and as easy
on the engine as 100LL. GAMI G100UL in the left tank, 100LL in the right. (Before I go any further, I need to thank our good friends and donors Greg Herrick and Dan Shewmaker for their tremendous support in allowing us to fly the Baron.) GAMI received supplemental type certificate authorization for use of its fuel, G100UL, in all piston airplanes in 2022 and has been working hard toward commercialization – all the logistical requirements to get the fuel from formulation to your airport and tank. Mind you, we don’t back one fuel or just one approval pathway — progress is also being made through the PAFI pathway. We support who will get us to the finish line, and we will fly with other fuels as they are authorized. I was fortunate to take the Baron aloft for some time out of GAMI’s headquarters in Ada, and the engine just hummed. But it’s not just me in the flight deck. A few fellow AOPA pilots (whom I’m sure you know) have taken the yoke and I’d like to share their thoughts on flying the Baron: Mike Filucci, chief flight instructor:
February 2024
“Flying with the Baron has been no different than flying with 100LL. We’ve been monitoring instruments and CHT and EGT have all been normal, and the airplane has been performing just fine. I’m happy to be part of this project that will help us transition to all unleaded fuels.” Dave Hirschman, editor at large: “The orange color is strange, and unleaded G100UL aviation fuel smells different than avgas. But perhaps the surprising part is that flying with G100UL is exactly the same. The AOPA Baron performs identically with G100UL feeding the left engine and avgas on the right side. The transition to GA’s unleaded future is underway, and the AOPA Baron seems to indicate there won’t be any reduction in aircraft performance.” Luz Beattie, director of flight operations: “I’ve had an awesome opportunity to be part of this Baron project to demonstrate 100UL fuel. We ran the whole gamut of exercises and analysis to engine shutdown and start. Needless to say, all without a hiccup and no change in performance from 100LL to 100UL.” So far, I’m happy to say it’s been blue skies with G100UL.
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“YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST!” …BEWARE!
February 2024
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By Jerod Flohr
ecently, it was reported by one of the world’s most major news networks that a major U.S. airline had “a piece of the plane wall detach mid-air.” The aircraft subject to this crazy anomaly? A Boeing 747 Max-9… yeah, if you’re reading this you likely know (especially by now) what really happened. You also know that the “747 Max9” doesn’t even exist, though it would probably be one heck of a jet! To be clear, I’m certainly not undermining the gravity of the issue, thank goodness nobody was hurt, and the issue has since been addressed and corrected. That being said, if you’ve been in the aviation industry for longer than 10 minutes, you are well used to the “mainstream media” getting pretty much everything wrong when it comes to reporting incidents/accidents… remember “Sum Ting Wong” and his fellow copilots? What an unfortunate but well-deserved slap that was, all in the name of getting the work out fast! How do we deal with this misinformation as aviation professionals (besides making fun of it, as you know I do on my Instagram page)? I’d say the best thing to do is try to stay positive, get the facts, and do our best to correct and guide the public when they look to us for the answers. Though it’s tough for each of us not to speculate what happened in each inci-
www.inflightusa.com
dent, it’s best to drive home the fact that we should always wait for the final report before jumping to conclusions. With so many looking to get “views,” “follows,” and “clicks” through any means necessary, it’s good to remember that the “quickest news” is pretty much never the “most accurate news.” I noticed while posting my satire regarding this event on my social media accounts, though meant to be funny and assuming everyone following me knows that 1) I make aviation jokes and memes almost daily, 2) most of my followers are in the aviation industry, there were a fair amount of people who seemed to take what I posted as the actual news of this event (judging by the number of comments and messages received from people “correcting” me on “what really happened”). This was unfortunate and obviously went in the face of my satirical reason for posting! You cannot win them all, but what it made me realize is that people do listen to us, and they expect us to be correct, even when we are obviously joking around. No, I’m not going to stop making fun of myself and other aviation professionals, but I do believe I will be a bit clearer when posting something so full of misinformation. The public trusts us to keep them safe and to be truthful when they ask our opinions on these matters. The best thing we can do is have the facts before we spout off, and if we don’t... we can spread Continued on Page 12
NATA Promotes Berry
Continued from Page 7 and Safety 1st onSITE. Berry also represents the interests of aviation businesses at industry meetings and hearings, serving on the Energy Institute’s Aviation Committee, the ATA 103 Working Group, National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) 407 and 418 Technical Committees, the Aviation Insurance Association Safety Committee, NATA’s Safety Committee, and the Association’s GA Fuel Handling Subcommittee. In addition, Berry is instrumental in working with industry partners to develop and promote safe fueling practices under www.preventmisfueling.com, Eliminate Aviation Gasoline Lead Emissions (EAGLE), and other initiatives. “I am proud to serve with the NATA Executive team in furthering the Association’s collaboration with talented aviation business leaders and allied groups
to foster the leadership of our member organizations in evolving general aviation safety and education,” stated NATA Vice President of Education and Safety Steve Berry. “I look forward to continuing to improve our current Safety 1st training program offerings, while working with our strategic partners to advance the use of data and technology in making the GA ramp a safer, smarter space.” “Steve leads by example, takes every opportunity to learn, and finds ways to share that knowledge for the greater good. His extensive industry experience and expertise are key to promoting and elevating organizational education and safety. We are thrilled to benefit from Steve’s guidance in his new role as Vice President,” stated NATA President and CEO Curt Castagna. For more information about NATA, please visit www.nata.aero or view NATA’s Social Media Channels.
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In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
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plane that’s for sale or being chartered. That was about the time that Facebook got started. I created a nice profile and an email for a pilot friend of mine. Then I added a couple of other Facebook buddies I was friends with. I saw that the name Private Jet Pilots was available so I grabbed it. I added 10 of my buddies in there. I called them and said, “Hey, man, I created this Facebook group. I’m going to use this thing to let you know when I need a pilot instead of calling you one by one. I’ll tag you guys. Let me know if that works.” It went like this. “Hey, Timmy, are you available for a flight tomorrow, 9 a.m.?” “Hey, Mike, are you available for this trip?” Or I would send them a text. This thing was on fire. We had more work than we could handle! If I couldn’t get it done, Tim would get it. If Tim couldn’t do it, we’d give it to Mike. Soon it wasn’t phone calls, just tag notifications. The tag would read, “I need a Challenger 604 guy.” And a G5 guy.” And then they just started coming. “Hey, man, I heard about this PJP thing! What you got?” Now we’ve got over 500-badged members. We’ve got a lot of programs we’re releasing. One that’s especially important is the empty leg program. In order to help out the industry any pilot, flight attendant, mechanic or operator could take advantage of these empty legs. The badge is necessary for accountability because flight crews are leery to just let anyone onboard. We’ve got to make sure we know who’s riding with us. BB: Talk about the overall quality of the new-hire pilot group? JC: I’ve worked with people who were asking my advice who to hire. They didn’t pay attention, they hired a flake and they ended up in a catastrophe. I’d like to see a third-party service that can come in and diplomatically say, “Here’s your little evaluation sheet; we’d like to work on this kind of stuff with you, like in-flight training.” This would be especially helpful now that we have so many new, inexperienced people. The FAA doesn’t offer anything like this. They just want to test you on this, test you on that. Their tests offer zero usable value. When I’m flying a G550, the check airman typically asks me, “Hey, what’s the Class B airspace VFR requirements in a Cessna 172?” That’s totally irrelevant to my aircraft! BB: What’s Next? JC: PJP is on the rise. It took time to find our identity, but we focused on service and that service was relationship based.
February 2024 We nurtured the relationships and now it’s a business and an association. We want to be a resource center where a pilot can connect to the right person or place. BB: Talk about the pilot shortage. JC: I think we have an experience shortage, not a pilot shortage. BB: Isn’t it almost the same thing? JC: Maybe. We also have a training shortage. There are a lot of pilots out there, but too often they’re not hireable. Even after getting some training, some people just don’t have the natural ability. I’ve flown with pilots who never get comfortable. They’re continually wiping the sweat off their hands, bouncing their feet on the pedals; they’re often stressed out, anticipating the landing. There are a lot of people that don’t have a good internal compass, that situational, spatial awareness. They’re missing something and nobody taught them to do their scan, or whatever it takes to know where you are on the map at all times. BB: What are you currently working on? JC: I’m focusing on flight crews, pilots, flight attendants, mechanics, operators, those people. That’s what I’m building an app for because there’s a real deficiency in serving these people. The crews aren’t insured, they don’t have a billing setup, they don’t have a contract so they’re not really a contract crew. They’re freelancers and with the market down, they’re getting hosed. If they had a contract, they’d know what they’ll be paid. We’re not running a business, we’re not being professional. Our new app will start by assembling the trip. It will create the contracts, so the crew and passenger will be able commit to each other; they’ll check a box and digitally sign an agreement. The agreement has the day rate, the aircraft type, the location, simple basics. They both agree to the terms. Eventually we might work into it a payment platform for the pilots. BB: What about the pay discrepancy between commercial and private? JC: We should be making half a million dollars a year, but the problem is marketing. Airline top dogs are making $330,000 to $500,000 a year but we’re not. I want to help the pilots make money. We’re not doing that because the competition is fierce. Too many pilots looking for a gig will slit their wrists to take your G600 job for $120,000 a year. We don’t have a pilot shortage, we’ve got a talent shortage of top-quality people. To bridge that gap it’s going to take an industry awareness of marketability. If you’re a 10-year veteran with 5,000 hours, the line should be drawn there. Continued on Page 12
EAGLE HONORED FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO AVIATION MAINTENANCE TECHNICIAN WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
February 2024
By Melanie Azam ERAU
When Embry Riddle Aeronautical University student Moritz “Mo” Conrads began working as an aircraft maintenance technician (AMT) at Spirit Airlines in 2016, he never imagined he’d quickly work his way up to becoming a senior maintenance manager at the company.
Embry‑Riddle Worldwide graduate student Moritz “Mo” Conrads juggles his graduate studies with his job as senior maintenance manager of Spirit Airlines operations in Orlando, Fla. Conrads is also a Spirit Airlines’ recruiting manager for aircraft maintenance technicians. (Moritz “Mo” Conrads)
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“My five-year plan keeps getting thrown out the window,” said Conrads. “ I would have never believed that I would be where I am now, managing 100 technicians.” Conrads’ contributions to the field of aircraft maintenance – including the recruitment and mentoring of fellow technicians – also led to him being named a 2023 recipient of the Aircraft Maintenance Technology’s 40 Under 40 Maintenance Professionals Award, after being nominated by Spirit. “I feel very honored and thankful,” said Conrads, who works at Spirit Airlines’ operation based out of the Orlando International Airport in Florida. He is also a recruiting manager for the company. “ I’m glad AMTs are being recognized for their hard work, and I hope it encourages others.” That commitment to excellence and lifelong learning is what is currently driving Conrads in his pursuit of a Master of Business Administration in Aviation degree through Embry‑Riddle’s Worldwide Campus. “I was doing some self-reflecting
and looking at future goals, and I decided I was ready for the next challenge,” said Conrads. “Embry‑Riddle fits my schedule and allows me to be able to fulfill my daily work duties. The flexibility definitely works in my favor.” That flexibility was critical this past year, he said, when he was busy juggling
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schoolwork with moving to a new city, planning his wedding and learning his new job in Orlando. Conrads said he also likes the MBA degree’s focus on aviation because it relates so well to his career and interests. “Other students in the program are Continued on Page 13
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Founder ..................................................................................................................Ciro Buonocore Publisher/Editor................................................................................................Victoria Buonocore Managing Editor..........................................................................................Annamarie Buonocore Production Editors ............................................................................Anne Dobbins, Steve Pastis Associate Editors .................................... Nicholas A. Veronico, Sagar Pathak, Paul T. Glessner Staff Contributors ............................................S. Mark Rhodes, Larry Nazimek, Lea Buonocore Columnists ..................Stuart Faber, Eric McCarthy, Ed Wischmeyer, Marilyn Dash, Ed Downs Copy Editing ............................................................................................................Sally Gersbach Advertising Sales Manager ........................................Ed Downs (650) 358-9908, (918) 873-0280 In Flight USA is published each month by In Flight Publishing. It is circulated throughout the continental United States. Business matters, advertising and editorial concerns should be addressed to In Flight USA, P.O. Box 5402, San Mateo, Calif. 94402 or by calling (650) 358-9908–fax (650) 358-9254. Copyright © 2008 In Flight Publishing. In Flight USA is not responsible for any action taken by any person as a result of reading any part of any issue. The pieces are written for information, entertainment and suggestion – not recommendation. The pursuit of flight or any action reflected by this paper is the responsibility of the individual and not of this paper, its staff or contributors. Opinions expressed are those of the individual author, and not necessarily those of In Flight USA. All editorial and advertising matter in this edition is copyrighted. Reproduction in any way is strictly prohibited without written permission of the publisher. In Flight USA is not liable or in any way responsible for the condition or airworthiness of any aircraft advertised for sale in any edition. By law the airworthiness of any aircraft sold is the responsiblity of the seller and buyer.
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Continued from Page 10 The money should be such and such. When you do a contract, the contract rate should be so much for this seat and it should be so much for the other seat. Too often a company will use a PIC as an SIC, hoping to get a lower rate. BB: Are BizAv pilots tempted to jump ship to the airlines because of BizAv shortcomings? JC: Absolutely. The private jet guys are being poached. The airlines have a pre- signing bonus. You get time off, you get a schedule, you get a life, you get a home base. BB: What about the regionals hiring new pilots with 1,500 hours? They get a year or so in the right seat, get maybe 2,000 hours and they upgrade to Captain. That experience shortfall is going to increase the safety risk. Do you think it’s going to get worse? Because they’re hiring a new CFI the minute he scribbles the 1,500th hour in his log. Then he or she flies for a year or two, logs 2,000 hours or so and boom, upgrades to captain! He’s sitting in the left seat with 2,000 hours of questionable experience with another newly recruited 1,500-hour CFI type in the right seat. When the stuff inevitably hits the fan, they’re looking at each other for answers. Their combined experience is zip! How’s that going to work out, safety-wise? JC: The FAA could be doing a much better job with this stuff. They’re like a sloppy cleanup group. They don’t even hire a pilot/administrator. Administrators should hold an ATP and have a type rating, some kind of relevant experience. There are so many things that the FAA can do that would help. They could verify the crew. For example, your flight plan can’t be filed unless the ATP license number is verified in the database. That would eventually link the database to the PIC. This would tell if this person’s current, this person is qualified, this person’s a PIC in the airplane. BB: Talk about security or the lack
February 2024 of it in private aviation. JC: We’re next on the terrorist hit list. We have so many easy access areas for terrorists. We can just walk up to the airplane at the FBO. But we also don’t want to lose our freedoms. I like my passengers to be able to pull up to the airplane, but we should have a dual secure gate. We should have a process there with some kind of check and balance system. Then there’s the no-fly list. Tell me one captain that gets a copy of the no-fly list. Has this guy or passenger been vetted? There’s a lot of stuff missing that we could put into play. BB: Ok Jeff, let’s bring this in for a landing. How do you see PJP affecting the future of Biz AV? JC: I think PJP is going to grow into a resource center. I see all BizAv flight crews belonging to PJP as the association grows. They’ve been crying out for some kind of unity. But we don’t want to unionize it. What we want to do is associate it. We want to bring value to the pilot sector. We also want to raise safety. I see PJP as an excellent safety tool if used properly. I think PJP is in a mid-life growth cycle. It’s very communal. If you were here from inception, in 2014, it’s been a sweet spot for pilots because it’s connected us and helped us build relationships. You’re no longer on the road alone. You can make a post or check in like, “Hey, I’m out here in no man’s land, anyone here?” And somebody’s like, “Yeah, I’m over here, let’s get together for golf or dinner tonight.” It’s also a huge help if a pilot has a maintenance issue – to be able to get parts or a fix. BB: Thanks for this, Jeff. It gives us a lot to think about. It also tells me that you’ve done your homework, thinking about ways to improve the total lifestyle of our corporate aviators. Thanks so much for your time. I’ll be back with more of the original interview in the Winter issue of our sister magazine, BizAvJets. (Learn more about PJP at www.privatejetpilots.com)
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You Heard it Here First
Continued from Page 9 the word that we just aren’t quite sure, and we’d rather wait for official reports instead of speculating. There is still a sizable section of the population who are genuinely afraid of flying, no matter how safe it’s proven to be. Sensationalism over truth in the news is alive and well when it comes to aviation.
As for the final thought, I am just an aviation enthusiast making memes and jokes to hopefully make people laugh. But, if real deal journalists are this careless in reporting aviation news, sure makes me wonder about the validity of other topics being reported. Fly safe and keep your heads in the clouds!
CENTENNIAL AIRPORT FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES UPCOMING RUNWAY 5K
February 2024
Just in time to fulfill New Year’s resolutions, the Centennial Airport Foundation announced registration is now open for the Centennial Airport Runway 5K presented by Signature Aviation. The race, which will take place on Taxiway D and Runway 10/28, is set for 9 a.m. on Saturday, June 1, 2024 at the Centennial Airport in Englewood, Colo.. The race will benefit the Centennial Airport Foundation, a designated 501(c)3 organization that provides scholarships and other support to those who are working towards a career in aviation. The unique event at one of the busiest airports in the country will allow runners the opportunity to “take off” on an actual runway with some of the best views of the Front Range in the Denver metropolitan area. In addition to a limited-edition race hat, runners will receive admission to Wings Over the Rockies Exploration of Flight on race day and, upon completion of the race, a finisher medal.
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We can sell co-operative ownership in your aircraft. Put your aircraft to work when you’re not using it! Registration is now open for Centennial Airport Foundation’s 5K Run, which will take place on Taxiway D and Runway 10/28, on Saturday, June 1, 2024. (Courtesy Centennial Airport Foundation)
Wings Over the Rockies will also be offering $6 admission for spectators on race day who wish to cheer on their favorite runner and explore the aviation and space exhibits they have to offer. Limited race entries are available so interested runners are encouraged to sign up right away at www.centennialair port5k.com.
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Eagle Honored Contributions Continued from Page 11 also involved in aviation, so we share similar interests and knowledge of the industry, and we can use each other’s strengths,” he said. “ We talk about realworld problems and possible solutions that I can potentially use at work.”
Mentoring Fellow Technicians
Conrads initially became interested in aviation as a child, frequently flying from the U.S. to visit family in Germany. “I was born near Munich, Germany, and my dad worked in the printing press industry,” said Conrads, who grew up near Naperville, Ill. “I am mechanically inclined and was always interested in how things worked.” Conrads started working as a technician at Spirit Airlines in Chicago. After just two years, he moved into a supervisor position at Baltimore-Washington International Airport. A year later, he was promoted to line maintenance manager. Through his new supervisory roles, he has learned that he enjoys teaching and mentoring other AMTs, especially ones new to the field. “I teach the people I bring onboard and mentor them to make sure they are doing the right thing and are well-rounded mechanics,” said Conrads. “ I try to share some of my experiences with
them.” There is a high need for aviation maintenance technicians, especially with many reaching retirement age in the coming years. According to the Boeing Pilot and Technician Outlook, approximately 690,000 new aviation maintenance technicians will be needed by 2040. “AMTs are the backbone. If we can’t do the work, the planes can’t fly,” said Conrads. “We shine on night shifts, ensuring planes are serviced and airworthy every morning.” As one of Spirit’s AMT recruiting managers, Conrads said he tries to find AMTs with the right culture and mindset for the airline. “I’m looking for AMTs that want to learn and are trying to be better from the time they clock in to the time they clock out,” he said. “I want to be in that mentoring position to help as many people as I can.” One of his favorite things about working in aviation maintenance is how AMTs work together to overcome any challenges. “The hard part about the job is dealing with the unknowns, like weather and other difficult scenarios that you can’t control,” he said. “But that is when the team aspect comes in. You never really feel alone, and even if it is a long day, we get the job done together.”
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PATRIOT’S JET TEAM: A GRASSROOTS CIVILIAN TEAM THAT PUTS YOUTH FIRST
In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
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CConvair onvair RB-36H PPeacemaker eacemaker AH-1W CCobra Cobr obraa obr
Castle Air Museum, adjacent to CCastle Castle astle Airport (MER) is in its 41st ye year ar of oper operation, ation, and has become the W West est CCoast’s oast’s lar largest gest static display of vintage military air craft dating back fr om the aircraft from late 1930’ s. With over 80 air craft in the collection 1930’s. aircraft and mor moree due soon, such as the LLockheed ockheed FF-117 -117 Nighthawk and FFA-18 A-18 Blue Angel Air craft, the Aircraft, Museum is situated on 31 acr es, 25 of which ar acres, aree curr ently occupied by air craft. TThe he most currently aircraft. comprehensive compr ehensive collection of WWII Bombers, from fr om the Douglas B-18 Bolo to the mammoth CConvair onvair RB-36 PPeacemaker, eacemaker, B-52D SStratofortress tratofortress DQG )% $DUGYDUN )RU WKH ƓJKWHU IDQ \RX ZLOO DQG )% $DUGYDUN )RU WKH ƓJKWHU IDQ \RX ZLOO view air craft fr om the LLockheed ockheed FF-80 -80 to the aircraft from General Gener al Dynamics FF-16A -16A FFighting ighting FFalcon. alcon. TThe he Museum is located at 5050 Santa FFee Dr Dr.,., Atwater,, CCAA 95301, and open daily 9 am to 4 Atwater pm, with last admission admission to the Air craft Exhibit Aircraft Gr ounds at 3:15 daily Grounds daily.. For more more information, ple ase call 209-723-2178 For please or visit www .castleairmuseum.org. www.castleairmuseum.org.
Boeing B-52D
SH-60B Se ahawk Seahawk
FFA-18 A-18 Blue Angel 2
FF-15A -15A and F-16A F-16A
The Patriot’s Jet Team, based in Byron, Calif., is gearing up for another exciting airshow season. (Courtesy Patriot’s Jet Team)
I
By Annamarie Buonocore
t is always an adventure when we sit down for an update with Randy Howell of the Patriot’s Jet Team based in Byron, Calif. When most aviation enthusiasts think of a professional jet team, they think of military teams such as the Air Force Thunderbirds or the Navy Blue Angels. While those teams are amazing, the story of this grassroots civilian jet team that started as one man’s dream is truly inspiring. In Flight USA has sat down with Howell and his assistant Ginger several times. As of late, the team has won awards for their work in the nonprofit sector and all the ways they are bringing more youth into aviation. This is their latest update. In Flight USA: Give us a little bit of a refresher about what you have been doing lately. Patriots Jet Team: In the past, we have talked about all the avenues of aviation that we participate in for our business and for foundation work, and we basically have the airshow with the six-ship L39 and the Patriot’s Jet Team. We also do movies with the Cinajet, and we have two airplanes that are L39s set up with large cameras in the front and an operator in the backseat. We shoot movies and aerial shots for corporate airline work, and we’ve got the upset UPRT training program where we teach airline and corporate pilots to recover from an upset in the airplane or loss-of- control in flight. According to the FAA, this is the number one cause of fatalities in the airlines, in corporate aviation, and in general aviation. If you get pulled upside down due to turbulence or in a high-altitude stall due to weather phenomena or anomalies with auto flights, or if you get rolled upside down, we teach the mantra of “push, roll, power” to recover from that situation. We
do five hours of ground school followed by a one-hour flight in the L39, followed by a one- hour flight in the Savor Liner, which is a side-by-side corporate jet that we use with CRM and the crew concept. This is a typical corporate airplane we use in order to teach pilots how to recover, and it seems pretty simple: “push, roll, power, stabilize;” however, it takes a lot of practice to build that muscle memory, so that it is the immediate action to push, roll, and add power, rather than pulling like most pilots will do in a startled situation. IF USA: It sounds like it could be a big panic for somebody going through an upset, so it is very good that you provide that kind of training. How are things going out at Byron, at the airport, and in your hangar at Byron? I can see that there is quite a bit of development out there. PJT: Yes, the Byron Airport is growing, and it is great to see there are quite a few electronic flight vehicles that are being tested out at Byron. We are a little bit off of the beaten path around the populated areas, and we are really lucky that there is an area out here that can do the testing of the drones and the electric vehicles primarily. There are several hangars that have been made for them and several more are being sent right now for the companies, so that is the big growth. The skydive operation, the glider operation, and of course our operation, The Patriot’s Jet Team, will operate out of Byron, so it is growing and we eventually hope to see longer runways out at Byron to accommodate larger airplanes. IF USA: Yes, that is very important. So how are things going with the Patriot’s Jet Team formation? PJT: We still have our pilots flying in the Sacoys. We have two Sucoy 26s. I have one myself and a buddy of mine who is my wingman has the other. We do Continued on Page 16
February 2024
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SUN ‘N FUN 2024 OPENING DAY CONCERT WITH TRACE ADKINS AND SARA EVANS
Sun ‘n Fun 2024 will kick off with an unforgettable opening day concert on Tuesday, April 9, 2024, at 6 p.m., as country music legends Trace Adkins and Sara Evans take the stage on the Warbird Ramp at the Sun ‘n Fun Aerospace Expo’s 50th Fly-In Celebration! This incredible line-up is included with your Sun ‘n Fun daily admission, priced at $45 per person. Secure tickets now at flysnf.org and be part of the kickoff celebration for Sun ‘n Fun’s 50th FlyIn! Get ready to soar into an evening of country tunes and aviation magic! Sun ‘n Fun also announced 24 reasons to attend this year, April 9-14 in Lakeland, Fla. 1. Unforgettable Opening Day Concert – Join Trace Adkins with special guest Sara Evans for an electrifying per-
In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
formance on Tuesday, April 9. 2. Unique Warbirds – Witness a variety of one-of-a-kind warbirds on display. 3. Mesmerizing Fireworks – Enjoy a spectacular fireworks display on Wednesday AND Saturday night. 4. Ride Hops are Back – Experience the thrill of flying in different airplanes. 5. Debut of the Ghost Squadron – See the Ghost Squadron for the FIRST TIME EVER with the Mig 29 at Sun ‘n Fun. 6. Tora Tora Tora returns to Sun ‘n Fun – Come see Tora Tora Tora and all of the great civilian airshow performers. 7. Exclusive Airshow Pit Access – Get up close for performer meet and greets in the Airshow Pit. 8. Sun ‘n Fun Echo of Champions – Celebrate 50 years of past Reserve and
Patriot’s Jet Team
Continued from Page 14 the airshow routine in the 26s. They are probably the best acrobatic airplanes ever built, and I love flying it. We will be doing more airshows in the Sucoys next year. Sucoy West and the Patriot’s Jet Team are still the jet acrobatic teams, and the shows are 26 minutes long. It is very exciting; similar to the blue sunburst, however, it is quite different. Our airplanes are quite tight, so we can always keep jets in front of the crowd. There is no down time. It is 26 minutes of highenergy flying. After Covid, the airshow industry slowed a bit, but now it is starting to pick up some steam, and we expect to have a really good season here for 2024. 2024 will be our 22nd season as The Patriot’s Jet Team, and we are really looking forward to that. IF USA: Wow, that is exciting! I understand that you just participated in San Francisco’s fleet week. What was that experience like? I know it was not your first time doing it, but tell us a little bit about that experience? PJT: We just finished San Francisco Fleet Week as the last show of our season, and I believe this is our 19th year doing a Fleet Week performance as the Patriot’s. I used to have a Mig 17 team, the Stolimigs, and we performed for some years at fleet week prior to the Patriot’s forming in 2003. We expect to fly at Fleet Week in 2024 and future seasons, as Fleet Week is one of my favorite shows. It’s just amazing to be able to perform in front of millions of people right there in downtown San Francisco over the bay, which is one of the best settings for an
airshow or that any pilot could imagine. IF USA: Well, that is beautiful and just fantastic. What other airshows are you looking forward to in 2024? PJT: We are hoping to do the Travis Air Force Base Airshow. We will do the Nascar show in Sonoma and several other small airshows in Northern California. There is one over the 4th of July weekend, and we will just have to see how that goes. We (went) to our ICAS convention in Las Vegas in the first part of December and (began) booking shows for the 2024 season in Las Vegas. We have about 15 different shows we are approaching, and we will see what comes out of that. We would like to get six or eight airshows during the 2024 season. If we do six or eight airshows, it usually takes four to five weeks for each show, so that is a pretty full schedule for us. IF USA: Are you still operating on sponsorship funding, and have you found any good sponsors for the year? PJT: We’ve got a couple of small sponsors right now, but we are always looking for more sponsors, and if someone is wanting to get their name out there or make a household name, especially in California, as well as across the country or across the globe on social media, this is a great place to do it. We would love to find another sponsor for the whole season, (the 2024 season) however, we also have the opportunity to do a one-off airshow for a smaller sponsor just in a particular location. IF USA: The last time I was out at your hangar, it looked like you were doing some work with high school and college
February 2024
Grand Champion aircraft. 9. Return of the International Tent – Meet old and new friends from around the world! 10. Future ‘n Flight Plaza – Discover pathways to your aviation career in this NEW dedicated area. 11. Teachers’ Pre-Flight Experience – Get the tools to bring aviation to your classroom! 12. Innovation Showcase – Explore cutting-edge aerospace innovations from new companies in the new Future ‘n Flight Plaza. 13. Innovation Preview – Be the first to hear exciting announcements from the Continued on Page 18 Official Sun ‘n Fun poster. (Courtesy Sun ‘n Fun)
students. Are you still working with youth and bringing them into aviation? PJT: Absolutely! We have the Patriot’s Jet Team Foundation that is meant to educate youth across our country in aviation and STEM-related career paths, so we have many programs with the students. We’ve got the introduction to aviation program that we run every Thursday throughout the year, which is an eight-week program for kids. We give them an overall idea of what types of career paths are available in aviation, and that could be from a dispatcher to a pilot. There are so many avenues in aviation. When I say pilot, that could be a commercial airline pilot, a cargo pilot, a military pilot, a flight instructor, or what have you. There are many different avenues that you can choose as a pilot or other aviation professional. Venues to select from in that field are endless. We not only talk about aviation but aerospace as well, and we have given out 24 scholarships so far this year for young men and women in high school 15-18 years old. We have given 24 other scholarships, and these scholarships take a young man or woman who has never flown before, but they have an interest in becoming a pilot, so the funding we give them covers them for their private pilot ground school, as well as all their books, and taking the FAA written test. It gives them about 17 hours of flight time, and by the time they finish that plane time, they will have soloed in an airplane by themselves, which is a good opportunity for them. Some of them do 8-10 hours, some of them do 16 hours, and then the remainder of their flight time
available, they can either do some more dual flying or some solo flying. It is a great opportunity for young people to get that kickstart into an aviation career, and in 2023, we started giving out engineering scholarships. We just gave out four engineering scholarships for kids that are wanting to go into engineering, not necessarily aerospace engineering, but any type of engineering, and we will give out $5,000 scholarships to help them with paying for their education as they exit high school and go into a university. IF USA: That is great! Are you working on any other projects at the hangar, or it sounds like you’ve got the jet team and the youth going and that is all going really well. Are there any other updates or anything else you would like to share with our readers? PJT: I would really like to get across the foundation piece of course, but also we need funding to stay alive and to continue flying in front of millions of people, and anybody who is interested in partnering with the Patriot’s Jet Team in sponsorship, we welcome you. We would really be interested in speaking to them and for them to send a note to patroitsjetteam.com and to submit info there. We would be happy to get in touch with them and share some ideas of what we can do for them on a sponsorship level. It is best to contact Ginger and she can provide them a lot of information. Email her at ginger@patriotsjettem.com. IF USA: Thank you and have a great 2024 season!
February 2024
www.inflightusa.com
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FOSTERING FUTURES: TEXTRON AVIATION'S COMMITMENT TO EMPOWERING YOUTH WITH SPECIAL NEEDS THROUGH PROJECT LIFE In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
As children with special needs grow, the fear of the real world can become a looming wall, like a tidal wave getting ready to swallow them. Finding a community can help them connect to others and allow them to develop a sense of identity, as well as feel they’re a part of something larger than themselves. Project LIFE, launched in 2007, is impacting lives in Wichita, Kansas, and across the nation. This comprehensive program combines classroom and life
skill education with authentic work experiences to prepare students with special needs for a self-determined future. Textron Aviation works with many local schools as part of our commitment to providing students with experience and exposure to aviation and advanced manufacturing careers. In that effort, two students were recently selected as part of Project LIFE to support our Human Resources Talent Acquisition and Experimental Engineering departments
February 2024
for a semester. Embracing Hands-On Learning Michael Dyer and Connor Whyte, both students at Maize High School with a love for sports and the outdoors, underwent administrative interviews and a skills day where their strengths were assessed before they were selected to participate in the program. Grounded in support from family and program managers, both students learned hard work and important quali-
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ties from an early age that prepared them for their roles at Textron Aviation. “I look up to my family. My mom is someone I admire because she’s been supportive of me and has always been there for me,” says Whyte. Nervousness is a feeling that comes with starting any new job – an influx of Continued on Page 19
Sun ‘n Fun
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Michael Dyer said he loved learning new skills at Textron Aviation. (Courtesy Textron Aviation)
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world of aviation on Opening Day. 14. Enhanced Youth Activities – Engage in enhanced Junior ACE’s youth activities. 15. New Exhibitors – More than 500 exhibitors offering more aviation products and services than ever before. 16. Family Oasis – Relax in an airconditioned tent designed for families to unwind. 17. Fly-In Early Package – New bundled aircraft camping and ticket offer. 18. Effortless Navigation – Find your way easily with new way-finding signs around the campus. 19. Shaded Resting Spots – Take refuge from the sun in newly added shaded areas. 20. More places to sit – Rest and relax with more picnic tables and benches across the campus. 21. Convenient Charging Stations – Stay powered up with multiple charging stations. 22. Accessible Water Stations – Refill your bottles at convenient water stations. 23. Re-vamped Museum Exhibits – Explore improved exhibits at the Florida Air Museum. 24. Aviation-Themed Playground – Excite the little ones with a new aviationthemed playground at the Florida Air Museum. More details about Sun ‘n Fun will follow in the next several weeks. Visit flysnf.org for information at tickets.
WITH EARNING THEIR WINGS AUTHOR SARAH PERRY MYERS TRACES THE INFLUENCE AND ORIGINS OF FEMALE MILITARY IN THE U.S. MILITARY February 2024
www.inflightusa.com
E
By Mark Rhodes
arning Their Wings: The WASPS of World War II and the Fight for Veteran Recognition (University of North Carolina Press) is author Sarah Parry Myers’ account of the birth of the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) program begun in 1943. The WASP program was an attempt by the U.S. Army Air Corp to allow male pilots to be deployed for combat operations overseas and have women pilots handle non-combat, domestic flying. As might be expected, considering the times, female applicants were obliged to pay for their own transportation, training and uniforms. Despite their service, these women were denied military status and benefits until 1977. Author Myers, a Professor in the History Department at Messiah University, crafts a bittersweet and fascinating narrative of a mostly forgotten episode of World War II, shedding light on the dashing women who helped power the U.S. through WWII and also helped provide the inspiration for U.S. Women’s Military aviation. Professor Myers was nice enough to participate in an email interview about her work, the challenges faced by these pioneering female aviators and the legacy of the WASP’s on U.S. Military History. In Flight USA: What was the chain of events that led to the formation of the WASPs? Sarah Parry Myers: “Two experienced and highly skilled women pilots, Jackie Cochran and Nancy Love, approached the Army Air Corps in 1940 about the possibility of the military utilizing women pilots. Their ideas were rejected at that time, although First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt advocated for the U.S.
government’s utilization of women pilots in her “My Day” column in newspapers
Fostering Futures
Continued from Page 18 new information and faces – but it was Michael’s excitement that pushed him through. “I was nervous because it was going to be new for me. I was also excited to see the opportunities I would discover here and the people I would get to meet,” says Dyer. This fall, students and educators from multiple middle and high schools visited Textron Aviation to celebrate National Manufacturing Day. Throughout the day, students learned about engineering, supply chain, fabrica-
tion, tooling, automation, assembly and much more. Interns Michael and Connor were integral in supporting the event. “I loved being a part of manufacturing day,” says Whyte. “Everyone is so supportive of us. It was a great opportunity for us to be there putting materials together for visiting students.”
Looking Toward The Future
Throughout their time spent as interns, both Michael and Connor learned important skills that they will be able to apply to the real world such as working
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across the country. She called American women pilots a ‘weapon waiting to be
used.’ In early 1942, months after Pearl Harbor, General Arnold reconsidered and decided to create two separate women pilot programs led by Cochran and Love. Cochran’s program was for women with fewer flying hours, while Love’s program was for pilots with a wider range of experiences and more flying hours. Those in the latter program flew in the Ferrying Division. Eventually, these two programs merged to form the WASP.” IF USA: Did the resistance to the WASPS generate from concerns that women were not up to the demands of flying sophisticated military aircraft or from concerns that women could not acclimate to military lifestyle or culture? SPM: “The concerns of Army Air Force military officials, including General Hap Arnold, were initially about women’s intellectual, physical, and emotional abilities to fly military aircraft. Arnold himself admitted that he did not know ‘whether a slip of a young girl could fight the controls of a B-17 in the heavy weather they would naturally encounter in operational flying.’ Yet ultimately, the AAF deemed the WASP successful and skilled military pilots. Some aspects of the American public, including media coverage and Congressional representatives, were concerned about the WASP disrupting military culture. This concern was not confined to the WASP, but rather was a wartime concern of women’s presence in the military and in jobs previously restricted to men. WASP Director Jackie Cochran worked to restrict the media’s image of the WASP because she wanted to dispel these fears about gender. Publicity was so restricted that many WASP talked about returning home and their own neighbors and comContinued on Page 20
on computers, marking parts, cycle counting those parts and learning how to put parts away, among other things. Helping others is a way we foster community and instill a sense of belonging in our lives. You can see that desire on Michael and Connor’s faces and in their work – pointed into the future. “I’m looking forward to seeing what my future brings,” says Dyer. “I love learning new jobs at Textron Aviation, and I’m willing to learn more jobs someday.” Following the internship, both students plan to prepare for new opportuni-
ties at Epic Sports and Wichita State University (WSU). Additionally, Michael loves playing basketball for the Special Olympics and Connor continues to cheer for the Kansas Jayhawks. We pride ourselves in taking an active role in the communities we call home. We’re dedicated to promoting wellbeing, fostering a sense of belonging and connectivity within our communities, and giving back through sponsorships, developmental opportunities and educational programs. Learn more about life at Textron Aviation at txtav.com/careers.
(Courtesy UNC PRESS)
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Plans are firming as a squadron of DC-3 variants representing World War II and Cold War vintage aircraft will ‘cross the pond’ from the U.S. to the U.K., cross the English Channel to Normandy, France with the European contingent, then fly on to Germany, Italy and beyond. This effort is dubbed the ² /HJDF\ 7RXU ³ focusing on both the LEGACY of these WWII veterans and the legendary aircraft that served as the backbone to multiple war campaigns. Beginning with the May 13 kickoff week in the Northeast U.S., the aircraft must complete six total flight legs to Europe involving crew rest, refueling, proper maintenance, formation planning, and logistics. &DQ \RX LPDJLQH" It will take the squadron 15 days, close to 3,000 nautical miles, approx. 15 hours of flight time, 120 gallons of oil, more than 1,400 gallons of fuel each, and 90 plus crew to make this historic transatlantic journey. The ' 'D\ 6TXDGURQ, a nonprofit organization, is raising funds for this mission and inviting YOU to the kickoff events in May! For more details, visit the mission webpage below and/or email: GLUHFWRU#GGD\VTXDGURQ RUJ.
Earning Their Wings
*HW LQYROYHG ZLWK WKH ' 'D\ 6TXDGURQµV /HJDF\ 7RXU
In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
Continued from Page 19 munity had never heard of the WASP program.” IF USA: You document many skep- tics regarding the WASP program but were there any individuals who championed their cause and helped them get the recognition and support they needed to be successful in their role during World War II? SPM: “Yes, several high-ranking AAF and government officials, including General Arnold and Secretary of War Henry Stimson felt so strongly about the success and importance of the WASP that they testified in Congress on behalf of the women pilots. Arnold worked directly with WASP Director Jackie Cochran to ensure WASP success in their roles and he approved the continuous expansion of WASP assignments during the course of the war. At the end of the WASP program, heads of different divisions, i.e., the Western Flying Training Command, were required to write assessment reports of the WASP. Overwhelmingly, they all confirmed that the WASP were successful and necessary for the war effort.” IF USA: Was there an individual in the WASPs who captured the public imagination to alert and educate the public about the necessity of this program to the War Effort? SPM: “During the war, most of the WASP were professionals in that they focused more on their assignments and performing well, instead of on promoting the WASP program. Even during the 1944 Congressional debate over whether or not to grant the WASP military status, most of the WASP stayed out of the media debates and focused on their work. There was a female pilot, Teresa James, who captured the public imagination, although this was not her original intent. James was in Nancy Love’s original program, the Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS), because she was a highly-skilled pilot with hundreds of flying hours who had been a barnstormer before the war. During the war, she delivered a PT-17 for a Hollywood film, Ladies Courageous. The AAF received a request for the plane’s delivery from the film’s producers. During that trip, James met comedian Bob Hope who introduced her to other celebrities like Marlene Dietrich. This garnered a small amount of media attention to the WASP program. The other memorable WASP in the American public’s mind, if there were any, would have been Shirley Slade who appeared on the cover of Life magazine’s July 19, 1943 issue. Slade was a trainee at Avenger Field in Sweetwater, Texas at the time and this cover story featured photographs and a discussion of WASP training.” IF USA: What were the reasons for
February 2024
the holdout of granting Military Status to the WASPS until 1977 and what triggered the idea that they should get some recognition finally? SPM: “This is a complicated question that I answer more thoroughly in my book, but I’ll tackle the overview here. The bottom line was that the WASP were the only women’s unit during World War II that was not performing primarily traditional work. That, coupled with societal fears of women taking jobs from men ultimately led Congress to decline passing the 1944 bill that would have granted military status to the WASP. These fears coincided with the conclusion of the Civilian Pilot Training Program and the release of a Hollywood movie about women pilots. The civilian male instructors of the CPTP feared the draft and the Hollywood movie depicted women pilots as unprofessional. This imagery was powerful in the minds of Congressional representatives. Keep in mind that they listened to these images over the voices of the commanding General of the Army Air Force (Hap Arnold) and Secretary of War Henry Stimson who testified about the importance of the WASP program and its military nature. After 1944, there was not any strong movement among the WASP to fight for military status. It wasn’t until the 1960s when they started to organize themselves through their veteran organization, The Order of Fifinella. With the assistance of Bruce Arnold, General Hap Arnold’s son, and Senator Barry Goldwater, the WASP garnered political connections to show Congress that they were organized as military during the war.” IF USA: Did this work have any impact on you personally or inspire you in your own life? SPM: “I found the stories of the WASP inspiring. These were women who were interested in fields – aviation and military – that were not considered mainstream or typical for women at the time. Their professionalism and drive to perform to the best of their ability are qualities that I aspire to personally. I wish that the American public knew some of the WASP by name, or at least the names of leaders Jackie Cochran and Nancy Love. When polled, the American public is typically unable to give the name of even one female veteran in U.S. history. Likewise, Amelia Earhart is the most well-known female pilot in the U.S., despite the fact that she was nowhere near as accomplished as Cochran or Love or most of the WASP in terms of aviation records or military flying. Cochran, for example, held more speed and distance records than any other pilot at the time of her death in 1980.”
SUPERNAL DEBUTS EVTOL PRODUCT CONCEPT AT CES 2024
February 2024
www.inflightusa.com
Supernal LLC – Hyundai Motor Group’s Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) company – on Jan. 10 unveiled S-A2, its electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicle product concept at Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2024. The pilot-plus-four-passenger vehicle marks the latest milestone in Supernal’s roadmap to commercialize safe, efficient and affordable everyday passenger air travel. S-A2 builds on the Company’s vision concept, S-A1, which it debuted at CES 2020, bringing together the innovative aerospace engineering and Hyundai Motor Group automotive aesthetic design to create a new mode of transportation to get people in urban areas from point A to point B faster. Supernal will achieve commercial aviation safety levels and enable affordable manufacturing of its vehicles as it prepares to enter the market in 2028. “From the beginning, Supernal has been on a mission to create the right product and the right market at the right time,” said Jaiwon Shin, president of Hyundai Motor Group and CEO of Supernal. “The unveiling of S-A2 demonstrates our unwavering commitment to deliver on that mission with a safe, efficient vehicle design that provides a clear path to market entry. By leveraging our talented 600person team, the vast technical and business capabilities of Hyundai Motor Group and trusted aviation suppliers around the world, Supernal is ready to deliver a new era of flight.”
Technical Components
S-A2 is a V-tail aircraft designed to cruise 120 miles-per-hour at a 1,500-foot altitude to meet typical city operation needs of 25- to 40-mile trips, initially. It features a distributed electric propulsion architecture and has eight all-tilting rotors. At entry into service, Supernal’s vehicle will operate as quietly as a dish-
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Luc Donckerwolke, president, chief design officer and chief creative officer, Hyundai Motor Group. Drawing on experience from designing “smart cars” with similar efficient footprints and recent award-winning electric vehicles, Hyundai Motor Group’s designers also incorporated the latest in passenger experience and automotive design best-practices into S-A2.
Supernal at CES 2024
Hyundai Motor Group’s Advanced Air Mobility company – on Jan. 10 unveiled S-A2, its electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicle product concept at Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2024 in Las Vegas. (Courtesy Hyundai Motor Group)
washer: 65 dB in vertical take-off and landing phases and 45 dB while cruising horizontally. The vehicle is designed with a priority on safety and a focus on sustainability and passenger comfort. Engineered to achieve the global commercial aviation standard of safety, it has a robust airframe structure including redundant components in critical systems such as powertrain, flight controls and avionics. The all-tilting rotor configuration will power the vehicle through both the vertical-lift and horizontal-cruise phases of flight with unique efficiency. To maintain superior quality while also being cost-effective, the vehicle will be manufactured leveraging Hyundai’s mass production capability. “Supernal’s product concept vehicle is the result of the creativity and hard work of our world-class team. S-A2 is designed to take full advantage of emerging electric powertrain advancements that will define the next generation of aviation,” said Ben Diachun, chief technology officer, Supernal. “From here, we will develop this concept into a revolutionary commercial product.” As Supernal continues to optimize its vehicle for certification, mass produc-
tion and expanded use cases, the Company is also focused on interior modularity and battery upgradability. This includes the ability to replace the battery module as technology advances.
Aesthetic Design
Supernal’s engineering teams partnered with Hyundai Motor Group’s automotive designers on S-A2’s aesthetics – blending design with functionality – that will attract aviation operators and create the preferred AAM passenger experience. Different color palettes and materials delineate distinct pilot and passenger sections of the vehicle. Aviation-grade, energy-absorbing components are integrated into the seat frames, and contribute to the overall clean, minimalist design. Lighting transitions throughout phases of flight allow the cabin to feel larger and to provide visual cues, such as where to enter and exit the vehicle. “S-A2 is a true representation of ‘auto meets aero.’ Drawing on the competence of Supernal’s top aerospace engineers and Hyundai Motor Group’s worldrenowned automotive designers to create human-centric design that maximizes passenger experience and safety,” said
S-A2 was on display within the Supernal Vertiport exhibition at CES 2024, Jan. 9-12 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The future “transportation hub” brought together Supernal’s holistic vision for AAM, placing S-A2 in an operational setting. Attendees had the opportunity to see the vehicle product concept, take a simulated flight above the city of Los Angeles, learn about potential flight networks and the technology to support them, as well as understand how vertiports and other transportation modes will create quicker and easier metropolitan journeys. Vertiports represent a key element for AAM commercialization, serving as the origin, transfer and destination points for eVTOL aircraft operations and existing modes of transportation. Quiet electric flight will enable vertiports to be in cities, at airports and elsewhere for seamless integration with existing transit options. Combined with air traffic control improvements and advanced microweather forecasting, S-A2 and vertiports will facilitate mobility far beyond what existing and projected ground infrastructure can deliver. Visit Hyundia’ Supernal’s website (https://www.supernal.aero/) for more information about Supernal’s CES 2024 exhibition and S-A2 visuals. See a video about the Supernal at Hyundai Motor Group’s website, www.hyundaimotor group.com.
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CLAY LACY AVIATION AND OVERAIR PARTNER TO INTRODUCE ADVANCED AIR MOBILITY TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Flight USA Celebrating 38 Years
Overair, an emerging global leader in advanced air mobility (AAM) and developer of all-electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, on Jan. 24 announced a new strategic collaboration with leading private jet management company, fixed-base operator (FBO), and infrastructure developer Clay Lacy Aviation to establish emission-free, ultraquiet electric aviation operations throughout the Southern California region. The companies will work together to develop a concept of operations for Overair’s Butterfly eVTOL aircraft, which begins testing in early 2024 following the completion of Overair’s first full-scale prototype last year, as well as other advanced aircraft. Overair and Clay Lacy plan to develop electric charging facilities at Clay Lacy’s FBO locations at John Wayne Airport in Orange County and Van Nuys Airport, located in Los Angeles. Finally, the partnership will explore the establishment of new vertiport facilities and services across Southern California. “Advanced air mobility (AAM) is
February 2024
Spun out of Karem Aircraft in 2020, the Santa Ana, California-based company announced the design of its vehicle, Butterfly, in 2021. Butterfly is a breakthrough electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. Butterfly's proprietary technologies, derived from the Overair team's decades of aerospace experience, create critical power reserves using today's commercially available battery cells, which translate into advances in safety and a superior experience for riders and communities. (Courtesy Overair)
an ideal addition to Southern California’s transportation network, creating a new option for fast, safe, and quiet transportation in the region,” said Valerie Manning, Chief Commercial Officer at Overair. “We have been working with our partners at Clay Lacy for over a year and are delighted to announce our shared plan. We are confident that this strategic collaboration will leverage our respective
strengths to create an AAM network that will positively impact local residents and visitors alike.” Per the agreement, Clay Lacy will focus on development of charging infrastructure and aircraft operation logistics. Overair will bring expertise in aircraft integration, maintenance, certification, user and vertiport software integration, flight path planning and public awareness
building to the collaboration. “Ultra-quiet all-electric aircraft bring the promise of convenient and efficient transportation, easing traffic congestion and reducing travel times,” said Scott Cutshall, SVP Strategy and Sustainability at Clay Lacy. “This collaboration with the Overair team brings us one step closer to better serving the residents and communities in Southern California.” This partnership is the latest of several AAM infrastructure initiatives announced by Overair recently, including partnerships with India’s JetSetGo, the City of Arlington and DFW International Airport in North Texas, and several agreements with South Korean partners. “As we continue to make strides developing Butterfly, we’re also focused on partnering with infrastructure leaders to ensure that operations using this new mode of transit can be scaled quickly and efficiently,” said John Criezis, head of mobility operations at Overair. To learn more about Overair and its Butterfly aircraft, please visit www.Overair.com. To learn more about Clay Lacy, visit claylacy.com.
See the AAction ction aatt www www.superbreezy.com .superbreezy.com or call us at (509) 453-3 453-3412 412 The Super Br Breezy eezy features features a full fullyy co covered vered fuselage that drastically drastically reduces reduces dr drag, ag, increases increases per performance, formance, and enhances the handling ccharacteristics haracteristics enor enormously. mously. L`] ]f_af] o] hj]^]j ak l`] +.( D ]j ak l`] +.( Dqq[geaf_ hYjYdd]d nYdn]$ Yk l`]j] ak fg j]hdY[]e]fl ^gj \akhdY[]e]fl$ Yf\ o] n] f]n]j `Y\ lgg L`] ]f_af] o] hj]^]j ak l`] +.( Dq[geaf_ hYjYdd]d nYdn]$ Yk l`]j] ak fg j]hdY[]e]fl ^gj \akhdY[]e]fl$ Yf\ o] n] f]n]j `Y\ lgg em[` hgo]j L`] Yaj ^jYe] [Yf Z] ]Ykadq Y\bmkl]\ ^gj Yfq ]f_af]$ oaf_$ gj dYf\af_ _]Yj [gfÚ_mjYlagf \]kaj]\& O`Yl[`Y _gl7 em[` hgo]j L`] Yaj ^jYe] [Yf Z] ]Ykadq Y\bmkl]\ ^gj Yfq ]f_af]$ oaf_$ gj dYf\af_ _]Yj [gfÚ_mjYlagf \]kaj]\& O`Yl[`Y _gl7
Fax: 415-898-5155 www.tjair.com Email: tjair@tjair.com
351 Airport Road #3 Novato, CA 94945 415-898-5151
1981 PIPER ARCHER II PRICE SLASHED! California plane most of its life. Maintained by the northern California Piper Service center for decades. Same owner for 30 years. Call TJ directly at 415/786-5151.
2008 TECNAM P2002 SIERRA Stylish Sierra de luxe. Special Light Sport (SLSA) can be used for flight training. Looked after in recent years by light-sport specialist/master Rotax mechanic.
1980 CESSNA 421C Cessna Aircraft’s finest example of a piston engine corporate airplane. This well maintained Golden Eagle III is a no-excuses low-time airplane that is beautiful to look at and fly. Pressurized and air conditioned, it can easily and comfortably accommodate a family of six at up to 240 mph… Faster than a 90 series King Air. Cosmetically beautiful inside and out.
1966 BEECHCRAFT C33A DEBONAIR One of those hard-to-find gems from Beech Aircraft. She really will cruise at 200 mph and haul 1177 lbs useful load. There are few airplanes that have the prestige and glamour of a 33 series Beech. Call TJ for details!
1985 SOCATA TB-20 TRINIDAD Price reduced! Wow! 1500 hour Trinidad with 300 hour engine. Like new Hartzell 3-blade scimitar propeller. Air conditioning that works and a 1100 lb. useful load to carry four people in comfort. Extra wide cabin with two doors and great visibility. Arguably the best piston engine in a light airplane. 86 gallons of "go forever" fuel.
1978 PIPER TURBO ARROW III 10K cut from price! Fly high, fast and affordably. Recommended cruise 172 kts. Useable fuel 73 gallons.
1967 MOONEY M20C These airplanes have always been fast for their horsepower. No exception here. The plane has all kinds of additional value modifications and upgrades. Very nice paint and interior condition. A ship you would be proud to fly!
2004 LANCAIR IV-PT INCREDIBLE PERFORMANCE! Super fast. Super high-flying in pressurized turbine-engine comfort with 750 horses. What happens when you buy a jet? You have to sell your turbo-prop. Even a gorgeous one like this.
1976 CESSNA T310R Cruise comfortably at over 200 kts. Climb at 1700 ft./min. Over 1600 lbs. useful. Twin engine safety and comfort. Has had only three owners. Check this one out soon!
1965 PIPER CHEROKEE 180 SALE PENDING. Easy to fly, affordable platform to build time. Interior dated but in really good condition. Very nice paint. Entire life in dry northern California. See picture of clean fuselage innards at www.tjair.com. Remarkably good useful load (1121 lbs).
2005 TECNAM P2002 SIERRA Price reduced! This stylish Special Light Sport Aircraft is a joy to fly with responsive controls and great visibility with the sliding canopy. Made by one of the oldest light plane manufacturers, the popular P2002 Sierra is still in production. Copious and fantastic records.
1956 BEECHCRAFT E50 TWIN BONANZA If a classic, big, brawny, powerful, roomy, impressive, easy to fly plane with convenient entry interests you, we've got one. Shows very well inside and out. TJ Aircraft Sales can help with your aircraft needs. We are a full service aircraft sales business operating in Marin County, CA, since 1986. We principally represent single-engine piston airplanes and are Socata specialists. We also provide help in setting up partnerships, consulting, appraising, purchasing/renting hangars, repossessions and more. Please call us with your aircaft questions. All specifications and representations are believed to be accurate to the best knowledge of the seller. However, it is the buyer’s responsibility to verify all information prior to purchase.
T. J. Neff
Phone: 415-898-5151
www.tjair.com
Email: tjair@tjair.com
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VAN'S AIRCRAFT REPORTS PROGRESS TOWARD REORGANIZATION; ENGINE NEGOTIATIONS ONGOING
V
In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
By Jim Moore AOPA
an’s Aircraft pledged on Jan. 20 to close the loop soon with customers awaiting word on new prices for kits that include engines. The company, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December, announced Jan. 20 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. Hundreds more have filed claims, while the company has shipped nearly 100 kits to customers who agreed to pay higher prices. The company has been serving contract-related notices to about 4,800 customers who had paid deposits on products not yet delivered at the time of the bankruptcy filing, and has estimated that 70 percent of those contracts (many customers purchased multiple kits) would need to be updated with new, higher pricing to facilitate a successful reorganization. A detailed plan for that reorganization is due to the court in early March, and will be subject to review and court approval. (Creditors, including customers, will have an opportunity to vote on accepting or rejecting the reorganization plan after it is filed, though a final decision will be made by the judge.) Weather that closed the company offices for three days in January delayed work finalizing offers still to be made to hundreds of customers who ordered engines, avionics, or propellers supplied by other manufacturers along with their aircraft kits, the company noted in the latest online update: “The planning that is currently underway includes a look at scheduling, lead times, payments, pricing, customer deposits, and more. We are working to have our plans shared by the end of next week with those customers who have open orders for engines, propellers and avionics kits.” Another group of more than 1,800 customers has been or will soon be notified of which laser-cut parts were included in their purchase, and what options they have. The laser-cut parts issue has been costly for the company, which conducted extensive testing and determined that the cracks found in dimples around laser-cut holes in parts made by an outside vendor do not compromise the part’s
February 2024
On Jan. 27, Van’s posted the following notice:
Update For Customers With Open Engine/Powerplant, Propeller And Avionics Kit Orders
Van’s Aircraft pledged on Jan. 20 to close the loop soon with customers awaiting word on new prices for kits that include engines. (Chris Rose, Courtesy AOPA)
integrity or service life. Many customers have requested replacements, and the company, after initially offering to replace all such parts, has determined it would selectively offer replacements, depending on the loads to which a given part was subjected. “These individual communications will ramp up over the next several weeks. All affected customers will be sent an email containing an individualized list of affected parts for each kit they have received,” the company reported on the laser-cut parts issue. “These part lists are specific to each customer kit, based on inventory on the date that specific kit was packed for shipment. Along with that communication each customer will have the opportunity to select which parts they wish to receive as replacements, and view the associated costs where applicable.” More than 250 creditors, many if not most of them customers, based on the dollar values, had filed claims in the case as of Jan. 24, according to the online docket that also includes court documents, transcripts, and instructions on how to file a claim. A Feb. 12 deadline has been set by the court to file claims, though Van’s has extended that deadline for customers being offered a chance to pay higher prices for their purchases, telling the court it will allow each customer at least 30 days to file a claim if the new pricing is rejected, and join the pool of unsecured creditors who will need to wait for months, at least, to learn how much money they will recover. One customer, Stephen Allcock of Maryland, filed an objection with the court to the company’s move to reject existing customer contracts pending acceptance of new pricing. Allcock’s Jan. 22 filing notes that he received the letter with just over a week to consider the new terms being offered for the $68,476 RV–10 kit that he had paid for in full, at the company’s request, in July. In addition to objecting to the tight deadline, Allcock argued that he, as a customer who has paid in full, should be treated differently:
When Van’s filed for Chapter 11 protection in early December, many of our customers had open orders and deposits on various Van’s airframe kits and third-party items including engines, propellers, avionics kits, and powerplant kits. Several weeks ago, Van’s sent notice to customers with deposits on aircraft kits stating that these orders contained terms, conditions, and pricing that Van’s could not perform and that these orders needed to be modified or canceled. The deadline to modify or reject those orders was Jan. 31, 2024. Since that notice, the rate of customer reorders has been high and we appreciate our customers’ support and engagement. Over the past several weeks, we have been working through open customer orders and related deposits on hundreds of third-party items. In the next few days, we will begin sending official notices to customers with these open orders, informing them of the price changes that Van’s is making on each order. The official notice each customer receives will contain a link to a web portal where each customer can review their specific price increase. Customers who receive these notices will be given 14 days to decide whether to accept or reject these modified orders. We realize that many customers with orders for Van’s airframe kits who (were) facing the Jan. 31 deadline also have open orders for third-party items. Some of those customers have been waiting to see what their cost increases will be on these third-party items before deciding whether to modify or reject their airframe kit orders. If you receive an official notice to modify or reject a third-party item order and you have not yet decided to modify or reject your airframe kit order, your deadline to modify or reject your airframe kit order is extended to the same date by which you must decide to modify or reject your third-party item order. Below is a summary of the approximate price increase by major group type on third-party components. If you accept our modified offer, Van’s will apply 100 percent of your prior deposit(s) toward the same product(s) on your revised order. • Hartzell propellers: 3 percent increase to the original order price. (Due to special accommodations made by Hartzell, Van’s was able to keep this increase to a minimum.) • Sensenich propellers: 6 percent increase to the original order price. • MT propellers: 6 percent increase to the original order price. • RV-12/12iS Avionics Kits: 6 percent increase to the original order price. • RV-12/12iS Powerplant Kits: 6 percent increase to the original order price. • Lycoming: either a 12 percent increase to the original order price, or 2024 pricing, whichever is lower. We know these price increases create hardship for our customers. However, without taking these steps and making these price changes, there simply is not a feasible path forward for Van’s Aircraft. Increasing these prices allows us to remain in business to provide parts, kits, and support for the thousands of builders and owners of Van’s products, and to be around to support each of you for years to come.
“I am objecting on the basis that I am a fully paid-up customer and not someone with just a deposit with [Van’s Aircraft]–I believe that this should allow the court to consider my case differently as I do not owe any further money based on a legally binding contract from [Van’s] with myself for the purchase of kits,” Allcock wrote. “To be clear – I do want to continue building the airplane and I am hoping to continue to do so at the previously agreed price as I am a fully paid up customer but if for some reason my logic does not work for the court then I will reluctantly proceed with the additional funding request from [Van’s Aircraft] when I can afford to find the additional $36,889.06. This is a request from [Van’s Aircraft] to increase my pur-
chase price by 53.8 [percent] – an outrageous ask in my opinion.” While the judge has not yet ruled on Allcock’s objection, bankruptcy law typically allows debtors, such as Van’s Aircraft, to reject contracts that have not been completed, which generally leaves the other party to the contract with an unsecured claim for damages for the breach of the contract. Company officials cited a longstanding practice of selling kits for less than they cost the company to produce among the factors that precipitated the bankruptcy. Editor’s Note: This is an ongoing story. Please visit Van’s Aircraft (vansaircraft.com) or the AOPA website (aopa.org) for updates.
TRAINING GOES ELECTRIC AT NEW VISION AVIATION, FAA GRANTS SLSA APPROVAL
February 2024
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www.inflightusa.com
By Niki Britton AOPA
onprofit 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. Located at the Fresno Chandler Executive Airport, New Vision Aviation, headed by President and CEO Joseph Oldham, has provided flight training and aviation industry education to young people from disadvantaged communities in the San Joaquin Valley in California since 2018. New Vision Aviation has been training students in its Cessna 150, Cessna 172, and Interstate Cadet, and now, thanks to the FAA special light sport aircraft exemption, can finally use its fleet of electric Pipistrel Alpha Electros for flight training. Oldham is a general aviation pilot with a background in electric transportation who started the Sustainable Aviation Project (SAP), which received a milliondollar county transportation authority grant in 2016. New Vision Aviation was created to implement and complete the project. “The idea was we would buy four Pipistrel Alpha Electros, which at the time were the first production electric airplanes in the world, and then set up a network of chargers, kind of like what is done for electric cars, at Mendota to the west, Fresno Chandler Airport right here in the center, … and then Reedley Airport off to the east,” Oldham said. The aircraft were delivered in March of 2018, FAA regulations that do not allow for electric powerplants in light sport aircraft precluded the use of those aircraft for flight training. “The problem with using these aircraft was one word in the federal code of regulations,” Oldham explained. “The definition of a light sport aircraft says it has a single reciprocating engine if powered, and unfortunately, an electric motor is not a reciprocating engine, and so that one word, reciprocating, was keeping us from using these aircraft for what they were for, which was training.” Prior to issuing the exemption, the FAA told Oldham to gather data that proved the aircraft were safe. To get started, Pipistrel provided data loggers that plugged into the aircraft’s onboard computer to record flight data. That data went
25
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STCs Now Available at www.G100UL.com New Vision Aviation’s fleet of four Pipistrel Alpha Electro trainers at the Fresno Chandler Executive Airport. (Courtesy of New Vision Aviation and AOPA)
back to Pipistrel, where it was analyzed and put into charts that showed battery and other performance parameters. The process required Oldham to fly one of the aircraft for 100 hours to gather data, which proved difficult considering he was only able to get about 40 minutes of flight time on a full charge. Eventually an engineer from another company working on electric aircraft suggested flying at a speed to optimize lift over drag, instead of what Pipistrel recommended for cruise speed, and eventually Oldham was able to achieve an hour plus of flight time per charge, making the 100-hour mark more attainable. The FAA also dispatched an engineer to run specific tests with the aircraft, working in collaboration with Pipistrel to ensure the flights weren’t damaging the system in any way. “They sent one of their test pilots out and he flew with me for about three days in the airplane gathering data,” Oldham said. “They published several reports internally about their experiences with the airplanes, so it was a really good, great collaboration…and that’s been, I think, probably the best part of this whole thing, is just kind of meeting all the people that are interested in electric aviation…that’s been the coolest thing to do.” Oldham submitted the petition in September of 2019 and in June of 2023, the FAA reached out to let him know it was working on the petition and needed him to make a few small corrections. On Jan. 22, Oldham finally received the news that his petition for exemption had been granted. Before New Vision Aviation can begin training with the Pipistrel fleet, the aircraft need to go through an annual inspection and be recertified by an FAA designated airworthiness representative. In the meantime, Oldham says the condition of the aircraft batteries needs to be analyzed, and some may need replacing. He hopes to have at least one of the aircraft ready to fly in 30 days.
Rebates and Incentives Available for Early Adopters!
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26
EAA SUPPORTS MOSAIC PROPOSAL TO INCREASE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PILOTS, NEW RECREATIONAL AIRCRAFT
In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
DIVORCE-PATERNITY DOMESTIC VIOLENCE KNOW YOUR RIGHTS!
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February 2024
EAA on Jan. 22 urged the FAA to move forward with its rule proposal titled MOSAIC (Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certification). EAA notes that the new rule will significantly benefit general aviation – expanding the capability, size, and scope of aircraft that can be built utilizing industry consensus standards and aircraft that can be flown while exercising Sport Pilot privileges. Other major aviation organizations, including AOPA, NBAA, and NATA, are co-signers with EAA on its comments to the FAA’s NPRM (Notice of Proposed Rulemaking). In submitting its comments, EAA emphasized that MOSAIC builds on 20 years of safety and success since the introduction of the sport pilot and lightsport aircraft regulations in 2004. “For a decade, EAA has offered ideas to the FAA on safely expanding the potential of sport pilot and light-sport aircraft, and those innovations are the genesis of the MOSAIC concept,” said Jack J. Pelton, EAA CEO and Chairman of the Board. “With MOSAIC, EAA’s initial ideas have been encompassed in an initiative that will maintain elevated levels of safety while expanding access to training aircraft and foster innovation, as well as bringing economic growth and workforce development into the aviation community. EAA has also brought forward suggestions for minor modifications that would make MOSAIC in its final version even more effective.” Among the areas where EAA recommended enhancements to the proposal: • Slightly increasing stall speed • Allowing sport pilots to fly with up to three passengers • Providing alternate means to verify
night vision minimums for sport pilots to earn a night-flying endorsement • Maintaining existing requirements and structure for light-sport aircraft repair certificates “All of EAA’s recommendations consider safety as the priority, while envisioning pathways to take full advantage of opportunities that MOSAIC can provide for increased growth and vitality of recreational aviation,” Pelton said. The FAA will now review the thousands of comments it has received during the just-concluded public comment period. The agency is expected to issue a final rule sometime in 2024 or early 2025. See the entire comment document at eaa.org or directly at https://www.eaa. org/~/media/0cbfb393d341470e8342c56 b26662001.ashx.
Redbird Flight (Redbird) on Jan. 22 launched its annual State of Flight Training Survey via the company’s website. Now in its fourth year, the survey aims to gather valuable insights into the health of the flight training industry from a range of stakeholders, including flight training organizations, designated pilot examiners, independent flight instrucContinued on Page 27
Redbird Flight launched its annual State of Flight Training Survey via the company’s website (redbirdflight.com) and will accept responses through Feb. 23. (Courtesy Redbird)
The FAA has defined light-sport aircraft as simple-to-operate, easy-to-fly aircraft. EAA on Jan. 22 urged the FAA to move forward with its rule proposal titled MOSAIC, saying it will significantly benefit general aviation – expanding the capability, size, and scope of aircraft that can be built utilizing industry consensus standards and aircraft that can be flown while exercising Sport Pilot privileges. (Courtesy EAA)
REDBIRD OPENS FOURTH ANNUAL STATE OF FLIGHT TRAINING SURVEY
February 2024
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NASA, LOCKHEED-MARTIN ROLL OUT THE X-59 QUIET SUPERSONIC AIRCRAFT www.inflightusa.com
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By Larry E. Nazimek
n Friday, Jan. 12, 2024, NASA and Lockheed-Martin rolled out the X-59 from a hangar at the Skunk Works in Palmdale, Calif. The X59 is the result of the QUESST (Quiet Supersonic Technology) mission. It will provide data that could change the rules that ban supersonic flight over land by proving that a sonic boom (shock wave to engineers) can be reduced to a barelyaudible “sonic thump” heard on the ground. Shock waves are produced by aircraft moving faster than the speed of sound, and when the shock waves hit the Earth, a sonic boom is heard and windows shake. It can be quite disturbing to the population, since it happens suddenly and without warning. In most countries, supersonic flight is prohibited over land. This played a major role in killing the Super Sonic Transport/SST. The Russian SST was the Tu-144 in operation from 1968 to 1999 and the British-French Concorde from 1969 to 2003. There was a campaign for the U.S. to build an SST, but it never came about. A patriotic campaign included stickers, “Let’s Build an American SST.” Congress killed the project in 1997, and what remains is the mockup. It went to a museum in Kissimmee, Florida, and is now in the restoration facility at the Museum of Flight in Seattle. Military aircraft may only fly supersonic overland in certain places, where they must log the time and location of the start and end of their run. The ceremony was opened by John Clark, Vice-President and General Manager of the Lockheed-Martin Skunk Works. “We’re honored to be a part of this journey to shape the future of supersonic
A souvenir boarding pass for the X-59 first flight. Image courtesy of NASA and Larry Nazimek. (Courtesy Larry Nazimek) travel over land alongside NASA and our suppliers.” He remarked that they were unaccustomed to having so many people there, since the Skunk Works is the location for highly classified projects. In the roll out ceremony, NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy, a retired Air Force pilot and astronaut, proclaimed: “This is a major accomplishment made possible only through the hard work and ingenuity from NASA and the entire X-59 Team. In just a few short years we’ve gone from an ambitious concept to reality. NASA’s X-59 will help change the way we travel, bringing us closer together in much less time.” The plane is 99.7 feet long with a wingspan of 29.5 feet. The first third of the plane is the thin tapered nose, designed to break up the shock waves that would ordinarily result in a sonic boom. Due to this configuration, the cockpit is almost halfway down the length of the aircraft. It does not have a forwardfacing windshield. Instead, the Quesst team developed the eXternal Vision System, a series of high-resolution cameras feeding a 4K monitor in the cockpit. The team also designed the aircraft with its engine mounted on top and gave it
a smooth underside to help keep shock waves from merging behind the aircraft and causing a sonic boom. The engine they selected is a modified GE F414, the type that powers the FA-18F Super Hornet. The goal is to fly at Mach 1.4 (925 mph at 55,000 feet), with the afterburner operating for 10 minutes! The first flights will take place at the Palmdale Airport before transferring to NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center (Edwards AFB) that will serve as its base of operations. After these tests, the aircraft will conduct testing at five to-be-determined communities. They want to fly over places that are not too close to major airports, because the people there would already be accustomed to noise. For these trials, the X-59 will make some 60 flights at each location, where they will be collecting input about the sound the plane generates and how people perceive it. NASA will provide that data to the FAA and international regulators. The public will be notified of the tests, so that they will not be surprised by anything they might hear or feel. The public can get souvenir “boarding passes” for the X-59’s first flight by going to: https://www3.nasa.gov/flight log/. When you sign up for the flight, your
NASA's X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft unveiled. (Courtesy of NASA)
NASA's X-59 is more than 99 feet long with a wingspan of 29.5 feet. (Courtesy of Yahoo News name will be digitized and downloaded
NASA's X-59 sits on the ramp at Skunk Works in Palmdale, Calif. (Courtesy of NASA) onto a storage device that will be carried personally by the pilot on that flight. The X-59 will play a major roll in the history and progress of aviation and the future of air travel.
Redbird Opens Fourth Annual State of Flight Training Survey Continued from Page 26 tors, active and lapsed student pilots, prospective student pilots, and active and lapsed pilots. The survey and report the company produces each year serve as vital tools for industry stakeholders, giving them actionable data to make informed decisions that positively impact flight training businesses and their customers. Over the years, the collected data have proven instrumental in distinguishing lasting trends from statistical anomalies, sup-
porting decision-makers in their longterm strategic planning. Redbird launched the inaugural survey in 2021 to provide insights to flight training providers and their customers about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry. Since then, the company’s annual reports have covered the industry’s recovery and shifting focus from broad macroeconomic challenges to operational efficiencies. Whereas early survey responses reflected concerns over national and local restrictions on flight
training, student enrollment rates, and general economic uncertainty, last year’s report indicated a renewed concentration on issues such as aircraft maintenance and access to training aircraft and designated pilot examiners. Redbird will release the results of this year’s survey at the 2024 Redbird Migration Flight Training Conference, scheduled for March 5-6 at the Lone Star Flight Museum in Houston, Texas. The company will summarize its initial takeaways from the survey data in a keynote
presentation. For more information about the conference, visit the Redbird Migration event page (https://migration .redbirdflight.com). Redbird encourages all learners, pilots, flight instructors, and flight training organizations to complete the State of Flight Training Survey. Participants can access the survey on the State of Flight Training website (https://simulators.red birdflight.com/state-of-flight-training). The company will accept responses until Feb. 23, 2024.
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HISTORIC AVIATION MILESTONE REACHED NEAR SILICON VALLEY THE STORY OF RELIABLE ROBOTICS In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
W
By Annamarie Buonocore
ith all things considered, it wasn’t that long ago when the Wright Brothers took their first flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The achievements of aviators over the last century have been wondrous, leading to a great industry full of American patriotism. In 2024, we entered the age of artificial intelligence – a new industrial revolution – that will take the world to the next level of technology. Over the last couple of years, we have heard about chatbots and self-driving cars. Some have dared to dream bigger and think about self-flying planes. A Silicon Valley-based company recently flew a self-flying Cessna 208 Caravan from the Hollister Airport in Hollister, Calif. History was made in November of 2023 when the aircraft was piloted from the ground 50 miles away. Could this revolutionize flying in the long term? We interviewed Robert Rose, the CEO of Reliable Robotics, to learn more. In Flight USA: How did you end up in the aviation industry in the first place? Robert Rose: I had two grandfathers who flew in World War II. Aviation was on both sides of the family. One was an instructor pilot, and the other was deployed to fly over Italy and Southern Germany. The latter flew transport planes in Korea, so I heard a lot of flying stories growing up. There was always this expectation that I would be a pilot one day too. My father was an aircraft maintenance officer in Vietnam. My mother was also involved in aviation and got her pilot’s license when I was in high school. Actually, flying with my mom is where I got the most flying experience. She taught me how to fly and gave me an appreciation for flying. We did Civil Air Patrol together, and I was going to take flying lessons, but it’s an expensive thing to do for a kid, so I put that dream on hold. It wasn’t until much, much later in my career that I got back into flying lessons. But I was really struck by the lack of automation in these systems and how much human control they really required behind the scenes. I started doing research during the evenings and on the weekends to find out why we didn’t have more autonomy in aircraft systems. I asked myself why we don’t have autopilots that can do landings, taxis, and takeoffs. It was in researching the answers to those questions that I decided someone needed to start a company that focuses on
Silicon Valley-based Reliable Robotics recently flew a self-flying Cessna 208 Caravan from the Hollister Airport in Hollister, Calif. History was made in November of 2023 when the aircraft was piloted from the ground 50 miles away. (Courtesy Reliable Robotics) automation in aviation so that we can improve safety and have more people experience the joys of aviation. Prior to co-founding Reliable Robotics, I worked on the Tesla Autopilot and the Falcon 9 spacecraft, which are also automated systems. IF USA: Are you the sole founder of Reliable Robotics or are there several founders? RR: My main co-founder, Jureg Frefel, and I worked together at SpaceX. I have known him for 13 or 14 years. At SpaceX, I managed the software development team, and he managed the avionics computing team. His team built the computers, and my team did the software. There was always a lot of back and forth on why they couldn’t build faster computers and why we couldn’t write better code. We met in the middle, and it all worked out well in the end. That is how we came together to start Reliable Robotics. IF USA: How long has Reliable Robotics been around? RR: We officially started in the summer of 2017. IF USA: Do you like being based in Silicon Valley? RR: Yes, it has been great. Jureg was down in Southern California, and I convinced him to come up here. Before all of the tech and silicon companies were here, there was a lot of aviation in the South Bay. There is a long history of aircraft development and testing over here at Moffett Field and NASAAMES research facility. There are not a whole lot of places in the world where you have a high concentration of people who know
how to build aviation systems. You have pockets in LA, Seattle, and then the Bay Area. Wichita is good for general aviation manufacturing, but if you want to combine it with the technology know-how, those west coast cities are basically your choices. IF USA: Which aircraft have you automated, just the Cessna 172? RR: We’ve automated two aircraft actually. We started with the Cessna 172 in September of 2019, and it took several months until we were comfortable flying it without the pilot on board. Then we shifted gears and focused on the Cessna Caravan, the 208 B. The Cessna 208 program began right around the same time we flew the Cessna 172 uncrewed in 2019. We did our first fully automated landing with a pilot on board the Cessna 208 in 2019. After years of safety research, it culminated with this recent November flight of the 208 where we were comfortable taking the pilot out of the plane and remotely operating the aircraft from our control center 50 miles away. In the control center, you can hear all of the things the aircraft can hear on the radio. If another airplane calls out their position on the radio, you hear it. You can see on the screen where that other airplane is. You can communicate with them as if you were in the plane. IF USA: Do you plan to do this with other aircraft? Electric aircraft? RR: Yes, the technology is adaptable to many kinds of aircraft, and we plan to license it out. It can certainly be done with electric aircraft. We would just have to customize certain things, but that is definitely in the plans.
February 2024
IF USA: Tell me a little bit about how it works from the control room. What are the remote pilots doing to make this work? RR: Sophisticated jet aircraft of today have flight navigation systems, and I realize these systems are not perfect. They allow you to program the flight trajectory. The concept is important because we’re building on that concept. We have built a flight-management system that allows you to tell it where you want the aircraft to fly. It knows taxi, takeoff, and landing. You’re essentially programming waypoints, speeds you want the aircraft to be at during those waypoints, and things of that nature. In the control center, that is the interface we’re giving you as the remote pilot. You’re using a flightmanagement system. We also give you a headset, so you can record your voice, and it is broadcast outside the aircraft. Surrounding aircraft don’t even notice the difference. You sound like any other aircraft. You’re just not sitting in the plane, and you don’t have the engine noise drowning out your microphone. In the control center, you can hear all of the things the aircraft can hear on the radio. If another airplane calls out their position on the radio, you hear it. You can see on the screen where that other airplane is. You can communicate with them as if you were in the plane. IF USA: Do you contract with any specific companies to build systems for them? RR: I cannot mention specific relationships, but we do have partnerships with manufacturers, airline operations, and component manufacturers. We can’t do this all ourselves, so we need to partner with aircraft manufacturers, communication system developers, motor developers, and other vendors. We’re pulling that all together, and the main thing we’re adding is the certification basis for how you tie them all together. IF USA: How do you envision the future workforce for piloting? Will it be like Uber where people can take jobs as they please? RR: Let me just say that we’re developing the technology for this, and we plan to license it out to companies who will handle the hiring, so I don’t have any plans for that myself. Operators can choose how they would like to operate it. Our system is designed to be operated from a control center. For the foreseeable future, pilots in the operating cenContinued on Page 30
February 2024
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EAA VIRTUAL ULTRALIGHT DAYS RETURN ON FEB. 20-22
Building on the previous years’ successes, EAA Virtual Ultralight Days returns for a third year on Feb. 20-22 with three days of webinars focused on the lighter side of aviation. The 15 total webinars – five on each of the three days – run from 1-8:15 p.m. (Central time) each day. The webinars are based on the highly successful format used during the previous EAA Virtual Ultralight Days, EAA Homebuilders Week, and EAA’s popular webinar series. Well-known subject matter experts in the ultralight community will present each live session with question-and-answer periods to address specific questions. “Ultralight flying remains as one of the most accessible forms of recreational flight
In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
Ultralight vehicles have long been an affordable way to experience the 3-dimensional freedom and exhilaration of the sky. Join EAA staff member and ultralight and lightplane guru Timm Bogenhagen Feb. 20-22 as he discusses the simple rules of Part 103 and tips for getting started. See the entire line-up of virtual discussions at eaa.org/ultralightdays. (Courtesy EAA)
while also being one of the purest,” said Timm Bogenhagen, EAA Ultralight and
The Story of Reliable Robotics Continued from Page 28 ter will have to be certified by the FAA. I would not call this a gig job. This is not something that you are going to do from home. You will have to go through extensive training, similar to what a commercial pilot has to go through. IF USA: So they would have to have a pilot’s license. RR: Yes, they would. IF USA: How will this affect air traffic control? RR: It wouldn’t affect their operations at all. They’re listening to the radio, and they hear us talking on the radio. Pilots in our control center have a pushto-talk button just like you have on an airplane. The system is digitizing your voice, and the aircraft decodes the digital message. It gets broadcast out over the VHF radio. You can reach the surrounding miles they would reach. It’s just like sitting inside the cockpit. For ATC, it’s nice because there is no change to the operation. It follows all the same procedures as other aircraft. The one nuance, and I think this is an advantage, the remote pilots can call ATC on the phone. They can talk to them that way. That is a hard thing to do if you lose radio communications inside the aircraft. Because you programmed the aircraft, you can tell ATC exactly what that aircraft is going to do. You can give specific times and altitudes, and I see this as a great advantage. In the regular system, ATC has to make assumptions about what you might do. It is a lot of work on their part to insure this does not lead to airspace conflicts. IF USA: What was the historic flight experience like for you as the founder? RR: Yes, we flew the plane from
Hollister Airport, just south of San Jose. The pilot, Danah Tommalieh, ran the operation from Mountain View, which is about 50 miles away. She was communicating with the aircraft over satellite. It was pretty uneventful, and that is exactly what we wanted. We had practiced for years putting this together and had run hundreds if not thousands of simulation sessions with Dana to make sure she was prepared to handle the operation. We ran millions if not billions of simulations of the flight control system. We wanted to make sure it could handle all of the conditions it could encounter. We had many emergency response procedures planned. We had redundancy in the system switched to an entire backup channel. We didn’t need to use any of that. Everything went completely normal, and that was what we had hoped for. IF USA: How many people have been working on this? How many are remote pilots? RR: We have two people who are remote pilots. In our company overall, a quarter of our employees are pilots. A lot of people over here are excited about aviation. We have about 100 employees, about half of those are based in the Bay Area and centered around Mountain View. IF USA: What are your goals for next year at this time? RR: I think it’s still going to take time to get everything certified. We have a long way to go. Our certification plan has been accepted by the FAA, and that took over four years. That was a significant achievement. Now we have to deliver on this system, and that is going to be a lot of work. We’re working to get this system into a number of Caravans across the United States. Then we plan to
Light Plane Community Manager. “Virtual Ultralight Days provides a free avenue to
expand into other aircraft. I think the system has great applicability to many cargo and passenger aircraft. The military is very interested in what we’re doing. We’re studying how to adapt the system to large, multi-engine jet aircraft. This would be a game changer for the Air Force. I think it’s going to improve safety and flexibility of aircraft. Our system will ultimately allow many aircraft to become automated. IF USA: Do you think you will get into rotorcraft or helicopters? RR: It could happen in the future, but at the moment, we are focused on fixed wing. It gets kind of technical, but there is nothing about our system that precludes us from getting into rotorcraft in the future. We will consider it, but we’re not actively working on it right now. IF USA: Do you consider yourself teaching AI how to fly? RR: “Teaching” is a strong word because this is not AI. Really, what we’re doing is codifying the rules that people use to fly aircraft. For example, when there is loss of engine thrust, you have to learn the best glide ratio. As a human pilot, you learn this in books and by watching videos. Then you train and demonstrate it to a CFI and DPI that you can respond quickly enough. In an automated system, demonstrating it once is not good enough. It means describing the situation in great detail and then writing code to ensure it can respond correctly each and every time. It takes a lot more work to automate a system than to teach a human. Human beings are remarkable in their adaptability. But on the flip side, we are not perfect, and sometimes we get into situations that can be hazardous. IF USA: The drone community
February 2024
introduce more people to this segment of aviation and grow the knowledge of those already part of this community.” Topics covered will include how to get started in ultralights; how-to instructions on a variety of ultralight aircraft like fixed-wing, powered parachutes, powered paragliders, and weight-shift trikes; and overall informative topics on maintenance, airport operations, safety inspections, and more. All sessions are free of charge to everyone, with the archived video presentations available to EAA members afterward. Pre-registration is encouraged, with registration links and additional schedule information available at EAA.org/UltralightDays.
talks about flying passengers in larger drones. Do you see yourself in competition or integration with them? RR: People have to understand that there is a great difference between the regulatory environment for small drones and the regulatory environment for aircraft. There is a huge step in the processes and the level of rigor to put an aircraft that can carry people into the sky or any type of aircraft that can carry more than a few thousand pounds. There are big differences in the amount of weight aircraft can carry. I never subscribed to the belief that anything in the small drone community would become applicable to larger aircraft. There might be some airspace issues that might be applicable, but the reliability and safety issues are totally different, and that has to be integrated from day one. IF USA: Do you think all planes will be pilotless in the future? RR: I would not say pilotless because we still have pilots, they’re just in control centers instead of in cockpits. There is still great oversight needed due to the way the airspace system works. Due to the nature of evolving emergencies, there will always be situations where you want a human being involved in the decisions that could result in a hazard. If you have to choose between two bad things, you will want a human being involved in that decision. People need to understand how long it will take to make this commonplace. Aviation does not have a reputation for doing things quickly. It will not happen overnight. It just doesn’t work that way. It will take many years. IF USA: Thank you!
February 2024
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In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
February 2024
Homebuilder’s Workshop By Ed Wischmeyer
VAN’S AIRCRAFT BANKRUPTCY THOUGHTS
Many of us have been saddened by Van’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy. I first met Van about the time that the RV-6 came out way back when, and my first airplane was an RV-4. I’ve observed him over the years, and I hold him in high regard. Van’s (Aircraft) has always worked to sell products at a very attractive price. The story goes that at one point, Van himself was filling one-quart containers of something, maybe ProSeal, from a 55 gallon drum to keep the price down for builders. At one point, I was looking to buy a damaged Glasair Sportsman. It needed one wing replaced, but the cost of just one wing was more than the cost of an entire RV-6 kit. But there have been problems. A QuickBuild kit sub-sub-contractor in the Philippines screwed up a priming process, resulting in QuickBuild kits that were returned by customers. Van’s attempted to keep up with increasing kit demand with laser cut parts, a more expensive process, but that led to cracks around rivet holes when dimpled. Worse, recent kits have been sold at unsustainable prices. There’s lots more to it, but I’ve not had the heart to follow the details. So we will see. Even at a 30 percent price increase, if that’s how things shake out, Van’s kits will still be a good value.
•••••
Replica aircraft have always had an attraction. For example, there have been numerous P-51 replicas, and I still remember how wonderful it was to have a press flight in a Thunder Mustang. At low altitudes, it would out-perform a real P-51D, and the ailerons were delightfully light, even at high speed.
There have also been a number of one-of-a-kind replicas. Jack Bally built the marvelous B-17 replica, a single seater with four, Hirth F-30 two-stroke engines. Not practical in any sense of the word, but oh, so cool. Most recently was a B-29 replica by Tom Hodgson using Honda Fit engines. In case of an engine out, the props do not feather, but there are brakes to stop a prop from windmilling. This two-seater has outer wing panels from a Cessna something or other, maybe a 210, and has flown once. The video shows the takeoff and a number of low passes, but not the landing. The next flight will be in the spring. By the way, his day job is flying a bizjet. Speaking of replicas, the charming ScaleBirds P-36 continues its development, but progress has not been swift as the developers all have day jobs. I’d build mine as a Curtis Model 75 with fixed gear, though – save the weight and the chance of forgetting the gear. I’ve not flown retractable gear since forever. (http://scalebirds.com) Also in the works is an SR-71, and yes, you heard that right. It is a 55 percent, carbon fiber, two-seater, commissioned by a billionaire to fly at airshows. “Within the bizarrely fast time of five years, we went from 3D scan to execution, to ready for take off.” (www.orangeaerospace.com/about-us/projects/scaledlockheed-sr-71). And yes, they’re in the Netherlands. I’d love to have them build me a Westland Whirlwind replica…. Some years back in Calgary, Alberta, I saw a replica of an Avro Arrow, an amazing delta wing interceptor from Canada. No word on progress of the replica, but it’s worth looking up the original CF-105. Politics being what they were, and sadly sometimes still are, and
maybe with U.S. meddling, the program was cancelled, and the prototypes destroyed. All that was saved is a forward fuselage and cockpit section.
•••••
The RV-9A has spent entirely too much time in the hangar over the last month due to a combination of low clouds, high winds, and minor upper respiratory ailments. And my favorite CFII has moved out of the area. However, I did corral some buddies to ride shotgun so I could hand fly five LPV approaches and one LPV approach on autopilot. The first approach was ridiculously bad, but the last one was up to CFII standards. However, it wasn’t up to ATP standards. Then again, my ATP ratings are for multi-engine, and the RV-9A is a single. And the RV-9A is hard to hand fly because it is light and reacts enthusiastically to every gust, and because there is a tremendous lag in the manifold pressure gauge, making it hard to set the power. Excuses, I know, but what’s your RV-9A experience? In flying the RV-9A, there are really four kinds of currency to maintain. Hand flying from the left seat and the right are two, hand flying IFR makes three, and keeping up the glass cockpit IFR makes four. Arguably hand flying IFR from the right seat makes five, but… I keep track of currency on the iPhone in addition to in the logbook, and I also keep track of TSA and CFI renewal dates, condition (annual) inspection dates, transponder/encoder, and all those legal requirements. But I also keep track of go-arounds, holding patterns, and circling approaches, things that are important for real world currency.
•••••
There’s another kind of currency, too – climbing into the RV-9A. If you do it right, it’s easy and can be done no hands.
But if your knees are arthritic and failing… and the upcoming MRI will tell the story. Looks like the alternatives are suck it up and do nothing – the unacceptable alternative – medial meniscus trim, or knee replacement, the nuclear option. Also, I just got glasses to handle one diopter of astigmatism in each eye that has recently accrued. I’m still adjusting to them, but the distance vision is again razor sharp. The bottom half is perfect for reading and, happily, works well for looking at the instrument panel. Instrument flying is so much easier when those undersized instruments in a glass cockpit are in sharp focus.
•••••
Back in 1991, the FAA came out with their “Five Hazardous Attitudes.” Although those were right on for accident analysis, they were useless for teaching safety. After all, if some pilot had an attitude of not respecting authority, how much would that pilot care about “five hazardous attitudes?” YouTuber Nathan Ballard has come up with five new ones in a fun video, complete with the font that Apple used on the original Macintosh. He only has 550 subscribers, but this video is recommended (www.youtube.com/watch?v=PedG_EJR XCA).
•••••
Here’s a fascinating quote from Les Abend via Flying Magazine on the web: “Because in an emergency situation a flood of adrenalin can cause a state of paralysis where logical reasoning is suppressed. According to [Gary] Reeves, a medical study compared this adrenalin influx to a blood-alcohol level 50 percent above the legal driving limit.” Wow…
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EAA EDUCATION CENTER BECOMES FOCAL POINT FOR AVIATION LEARNING
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In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
The EAA Education Center in Oshkosh, which opened in July 2022 as a center for aviation learning for young people as well as experienced pilots, is looking forward to additional growth in 2024 after already serving thousands of aviation enthusiasts of all ages. The $6.2 million Education Center
is now completely funded after a final $600,000 matching grant from the James C. Ray Foundation was met in late December. The 30,000-square-foot facility at the EAA’s Aviation Center in Oshkosh was completely financed with private donations through the EAA Aviation Foundation.
“Approximately five years ago, this was merely a dream – to create a place where young people could be inspired by the world of flight while current pilots could build their existing skills,” said Jack J. Pelton, EAA’s CEO and Chairman of the Board. “Having now seen what has occurred here in just 18
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EAA’s $6.2 million Education Center is now completely funded after a final $600,000 matching grant from the James C. Ray Foundation was met and now administrators are looking toward additional growth in 2024. (Courtesy EAA) months, we know what the support of those who believed in the dream has created, expanding the possibilities for people of all ages within EAA’s aviation community based here at Oshkosh.” The Education Center is evenly divided between the Pilot Proficiency Center and the Youth Education Center. Regular classes and activities take place in each area, year-round. In the Pilot Proficiency Center over the past year, those events included: • A full week of pilot proficiency courses during EAAAirVenture Oshkosh • Hundreds attending the national Redbird Migration conference • The National Intercollegiate Flying Association SAFECON competition in Oshkosh for the first time • Regular open simulator sessions that allow current pilots to build flying skills on Redbird simulators Meanwhile, the Youth Education Center has brought in thousands of young people for such events as: • Area STEM-focused classes and charter schools seeking technologybased curriculum • Hundreds of school field trips and aviation exploration days, as well as halfdays for homeschool students • Two at-capacity “Girls on the Fly” sessions for young women interested in the science of flight • EAA’s own Air Academy and GirlVenture programs for young people each summer “As we close out the initial fundraising portion for the EAA Education Center’s existence, its success shows what is still possible to support EAA’s mission of growing participation in aviation,” said Margaret Brill, EAA Aviation Foundation vice president. “There are many more opportunities that we will be exploring in 2024 to connect with even more people interested in the world of flight.” Learn more at eaa.org.
TOP AIR SHOW PERFORMERS COMMIT TO EAA AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH 2024 February 2024
Some of the world’s top air show performers have made commitments to fly at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2024 – the World’s Greatest Aviation Celebration – as part of the afternoon and night air show lineups. Performers at the 71st EAA fly-in convention, scheduled for July 22-28 at Wittman Regional Airport, include aerobatic champions and longtime Oshkosh favorites. The event features nine air shows over seven days, including night air shows on July 24 and 27. Daily afternoon air shows are presented by Daher and Pratt & Whitney, while night air shows are presented by Covington Aircraft (July 24) and PenFed (July 27). “Whether it’s during the afternoon or night air shows at Oshkosh, the performers who fly here are headliners who are
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among the best in the world,” said Rick Larsen, EAA’s vice president of communities and member programs, who coordinates AirVenture features and attractions. “The air show community knows that the AirVenture crowds are the most knowledgeable anywhere, and appreciate the skill and precision necessary to fly these aircraft to the edge. That brings out the best in these pilots and creates unforgettable memories every year at Oshkosh.” Among the performers and aircraft already on the schedule include: • Vicky Benzing (P-51) • Bob Carlton (Jetfox twin-engine sailplane) • Class of ’45 (Corsair/P-51) • Susan Dacy (Stearman) • Kyle Fowler (Long-EZ) • Kyle Franklin (Super Cub)
• Michael Goulian (Extra) • RJ Gritter (Decathlon) • Greg Koontz (Decathlon) • Nathan Hammond (Super Chipmunk) • Rob Holland (MXS-RH) • Jerry Kerby (T-28) • Lee Lauderback (P-51) • Jarrod Lindemann (Jet Waco) • David Martin • Jim Peitz (F-33 Bonanza) • Red Bull Air Force (Kirby Chambliss, Kevin Coleman, Aaron Fitzgerald) • Ken Reider (RV-8) • Bill Stein (Edge 540) • Philipp Steinbach (GB1 Gamebird) • Skip Stewart (Prometheus 2) • Titan Aerobatic Team (T-6s) • Scott Urschel (BO-105 helicopter) • Bernie Vasquez • Patty Wagstaff (Extra 330SC)
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Among the many performers slated for AirVenture in July, Skip Steward will perform. (Courtesy EAA AirVenture) • Matt Younkin (Beech 18) Along with these early confirmations, many more performers will be announced, including some only-in-Oshkosh performers and aircraft. Exact days for each performer and complete daily air show lineups will be announced as they are finalized. Visit the EAAAirVenture website for up-to-date information: eaa.org/airventure.
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HME WATCH OFFERING ATC ANALOG FLIGHT WATCH In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
HMEWatch is offering excellent prices on their long established Professional Flight Watch line. They are offering an excellent clearance sale to make room on new models coming out later this year. Take advantage of these high quality models while they last at really great pricing. There are a number of different models and colors offering both, Metal Bracelet models starting at a low $139.95, as well as high-quality Rubber/Neoprene bands at at only $119.95. The ATP model is an all digital multi-function watch offering multiple alarms, stopwatch, as well as countdown time, multiple city “World-Time” covering every time zone on the planet, a thermometer, as well as an altime-
ter/barometer. These popular full-featured models are at a new price, starting at $74.95! There are four versions of the “ATP,” a larger all black plastic with either a regular LCD display or a reverse LCD display; the other, slightly smaller, offers a metal case and yellow rubber strap. The HMEWatch A.T.C. Aviator watch is an all analog, high-quality aviator watch offered in multiple styles. This model features a 60-minute chronograph, date window and a second-hour indicator to show a constant display of a second time zone whether it be your home, destination or as most use it, G.M.T./Zulu Time. This second large hand is a 12hour hand teaming up with a 24-hour Subdial indicator. There is also a simple, optional
instant-reset for the Chrono, where an instant push of the lower right mode button resets the chrono, no more having to stop the chrono before resetting it if that is your wish. To add, there is also a functional E6B calculator Bezel on each model. The A.T.C. (Aviator TimepieceChrono) comes in either all-stainless with a stainless steel bracelet or a stainless steel body with a polyurethane strap. HME Watch offers all models, including the P.U. strap model with a deploy clasp instead of the lower price “Tang-Buckle” found on most watches. In keeping up with styles today, this is a fairly large watch, 43mm diameter by 13mm thick. Weight is about normal for a stainless steel model. Take advantage of these special prices while stock lasts. Also, they are
The Yawman Arrow, a revolutionary new compact controller for virtual flying, is now available in the United States. Exclusively available for purchase at yawmanflight.com and Sporty’s Pilot Shop, the controller combines a complex yoke, throttle quadrant and mechanicallylinked rudder pedals together in a handheld package. Priced at $249, less than just one piece of advanced sim hardware. “This has been a methodical journey to bring together all the familiar pieces of flight simulation hardware into an ultramobile form factor without compromising the virtual flying experience,” said Yawman co-founder Thomas Nield. “We have achieved that and we are excited to deliver it to the simming community.” Designed, manufactured and packaged in the USA and crafted by simmers for simmers, the Arrow will be the primary controller on simmers’ Windows or Apple laptop, desktop or Android tablet. Packed with everything virtual aviators need for the most advanced simulators, the Arrow is designed to be with simmers wherever they want to fly. The Arrow delivers an entirely new type of experience never available before to simmers: • Take a sim on the road with a gaming laptop or Android tablet – works great on airplanes, trains, in hotels and coffee shops • Pull on a VR headset and keep all controls close at hand • Cast to a TV from a laptop and fly from the comfort of the couch • Grab a quick flight before dinner or on a break • Free up desk space with a minimalist sim setup with no compromise in
functionality • Use it for real-world flight familiarization, preparation and training without complex hardware The patented Yawman is full of flight sim firsts: The technology inside the Arrow unlocks intuitive rudder control with mechanically-linked triggers that make flight possible in the toughest of simulated crosswinds, adding adept maneuverability while taxiing. The integrated trim wheel gives you the realism that’s previously only been available on larger and more expensive hardware. “We’ve brought a deliberate precision to Yawman, making it a multi-function controller that requires no additional configuration software to maximize its plug-and-play utility,” said Nield. The Arrow is designed for aircraft of all shapes and sizes: from small general aviation aircraft with individual engine controls to helicopters that rely on cyclic, anti-torque and collective all the way to high-performance fighter jets and the most advanced jetliners with automatic or manual trim systems. While the Arrow is infinitely configurable with its multi-press capability, both starter and advanced profiles – designed for different aircraft types – will help get users up and flying quickly, getting the most from the Yawman Arrow. Every function of the Arrow is intended to work seamlessly with the most modern flight simulation platforms. In the coming weeks, the Arrow will be available for deliveries outside the U.S., pending international certifications.
Yawman Arrow Development Timeline
February 2024
offering well under retail on Citizen EcoDrive Pilot watch models, as well. Contact HME at 323-464-6660 or go to www.hmewatch.com to view their fine line of aviator timepieces.
YAWMAN ARROW, NOW AVAILABLE IN THE U.S. • January 2021 – Initial prototyping • May 2021 ¬– Yawman formed • August 2021 – USA supplier selection • 2022 – Design refinement • January 2023 – Yawman emerges from stealth • June 2023 – Public debut at FSExpo in Houston • August 2023 – Patent approval from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office • December 2023 – Production begins in the USA
More about the Yawman Arrow
In addition to controls in pitch, roll and yaw, the Arrow includes a total of seven fully-programmable axes, plus two unique vernier-style engine controls like those found on some small piston-powered aircraft. Those same controls are also perfect for deploying large jet spoilers and thrust reversers. The integrated trim wheel maximizes your realism, along with two shoulder bumper buttons, a five-button D-pad, a five-way hat switch for independent viewing angles and video recording, and a multifunction six pack of programmable buttons that allow for endless combinations to control everything from autopilot functions to aircraft systems. The Arrow is fully compatible with Microsoft Flight Simulator on PC, Laminar Research X-Plane on PC and macOS, Infinite Flight for Android, Lockheed Martin Prepar3D, DCS World
The Arrow is designed for aircraft of all shapes and sizes: from small general aviation aircraft with individual engine controls to helicopters that rely on cyclic, anti-torque and collective all the way to high-performance fighter jets and the most advanced jetliners with automatic or manual trim systems. (Courtesy Yawman) – and more – as well as non-simulation games that support HID joystick controls. The Arrow is not compatible with iOS devices or Xbox. The Arrow requires one available USB port and weighs 7.83 ounces or 222 g, ideal for comfortable short or longhaul flying and easy portability, with no need for batteries or charging. Based in Carmel, Indiana Yawman LLC is the creation of three passionate aviation professionals: Brothers Thomas and Dwight Nield, both aviation and airline veterans, and real-world aviation media founder Jon Ostrower. The Arrow is Yawman’s first product as it builds a portfolio of unique devices for virtual aviation and beyond. To learn more about Yawman and the Arrow, visit yawmanflight.com.
February 2024
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DISCOVER FLYING 1$3$ 9$//(< *2/'(1 *$7( $ -867 299 0,.( 60,7+ $9,$7,21 1$3$ 707-345-6526
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AOPA CELEBRATES EXCELLENCE IN FLIGHT TRAINING THROUGH 2024 FLIGHT TRAINING EXPERIENCE AWARD WINNERS
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In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
February 2024
REGIONAL WINNERS Flight Schools
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association’s 2024 Flight Training Experience Survey received thousands of submissions from students and pilots across the country. Six flight schools and six flight instructors were chosen as the most excellent in their respective region. The Flight Training Experience survey asked student pilots, newly minted pilots, and pilots pursuing advanced ratings or taking a flight review for feedback about the quality of their flight training and instruction experience. The survey gave respondents the opportunity to highlight the best parts of their flight training and identify where flight schools and instructors may want to make improvements. Of the regional winners, one flight school and one flight instructor will be recognized as the nation’s best, announced at Redbird Migration, a flight training conference hosted March 5 and 6
at the Lone Star Flight Museum in Houston. “This year we have seen something similar to past years,” Chris Moser, AOPA’s senior director of flight training education, said. “The emphasis was on how much the best schools and instructors made their customers feel like family. Whether through creating a warm or welcoming atmosphere, or simply just being there when the client needs them, I am excited to hear about the strong community that is being built right from the start.” The Flight Training Experience Survey has helped the AOPA You Can Fly team recognize superior flight training professionals since 2012. AOPA’s You Can Fly program is dedicated to building the pilot community by creating programs for flying clubs, rusty pilots, and high school students who need support with their aviation goals.
AeroLEDs has announced the receipt of FAA Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) No. SA04837NY. This new STC certifies the type design data necessary to pave the way for installation of a diverse range of critical lighting components on hundreds of Part 23 aircraft models. Lights listed on this STC include: position lights, navigation lights, strobe lights, and beacon lights. This comprehensive approval combined with AeroLEDs existing STC No. SA02386AK for LED landing and taxi lights, ensures that Part 23 aircraft operators can now benefit from a complete suite of advanced LED lighting solutions. Enhanced Visibility and Safety: AeroLEDs’ position lights, navigation
lights, strobe lights, and beacon lights offer enhanced visibility and safety, contributing to improved situational awareness for both pilots and ground personnel. Advanced LED Technology: AeroLEDs deliver superior brightness, durability, reliability, and energy efficiency compared to traditional lighting systems. Streamlined Maintenance: With reduced maintenance requirements and extended lifespan, AeroLEDs’ LED lighting solutions contribute to overall ease of installation, operational efficiency, minimizing downtime and associated costs. AeroLEDs remains at the forefront of aviation lighting innovation, continu-
ously striving to provide top tier quality solutions that elevate safety standards within the industry. “We are incredibly pleased to announce this FAA-STC approval for our trusted Navigation and Anti-Collision lighting systems. The extensive AML provides a solid foundation for installation on hundreds of Part 23 aircraft variants. This certification truly underscores our commitment to providing all pilots with premium lighting solutions that enhance aircraft safety and efficiency,” said Ryan Edmark, Director of Sales. AeroLEDs extends an invitation to aviation enthusiasts, operators, and industry stakeholders to discover the advantages of incorporating LED light-
Banyan Air Service has announced the opening of its first satellite MRO facility in St. Augustine, Florida. Located at the Northeast Florida Regional Airport (KSGJ), this new facility will be exclusive to HondaJet maintenance and avionics support and compliment their Fort Lauderdale MRO. The expansion is a direct response to
the increased demands for Banyan’s HondaJet MRO services. The new facility will be fully equipped to handle inspections, modifications, avionics upgrades, and AOG support. The additional location in North Florida will help Banyan provide faster response times to AOG situations as well as increasing capacity to accommodate the growing
HondaJet fleet of 253 aircraft. “We are excited to open this new Continued on Page 43
Central Southwest: Code 1 Flight Training / Wills Point, Texas Eastern: Air Ventures Flying School / Pawtucket, Rhode Island Great Lakes: Pilot Flight Training Courses / Lake in the Hills, Illinois Pacific: Mike Smith Aviation / Napa, California Southern: Aviator Zone Academy / Miami, Florida Western: Copper City Aviation Services LLC / Bisbee, Arizona
Flight Instructors
Central Southwest: Norm Rathje / Wills Point, Texas Eastern: Malinda (Lin) Caywood / Frederick, Maryland Great Lakes: Ernest Boys / Lake in the Hills, Illinois Pacific: Margaret Watt / Hollister, California
Mike Smith Aviation states they go above and beyond your expectations to help you achieve your aviation goals. Mike Smith Aviation fills the need for a customer centric flight school and maintenance facility. Located in Napa, Calif., AOPA recently named Mike Smith Aviation excellent in the Pacific region, based on survey results. (Courtesy Mike Smith Aviation)
Southern: Kurt Belsten / Melbourne, Florida Western: Kerry Constable / Scottsdale, Arizona Learn more at aopa.org.
AEROLEDS ACHIEVES FAA-STC APPROVAL FOR LED NAVIGATION, STROBE, POSITION AND BEACON LIGHTING SOLUTIONS ON PART 23 AIRCRAFT
AeroLED’s new STC certifies the type design data necessary to pave the way for installation of a diverse range of critical lighting components on hundreds of Part 23 aircraft models. (Courtesy AeroLEDs)
ing solutions for their aircraft, customers, or fleets. Learn more at www.AeroLEDS.com.
BANYAN EXPANDS FOOTPRINT IN FLORIDA WITH NEW MRO FACILITY IN ST. AUGUSTINE Banyan Air Service opened of its first satellite MRO facility in St. Augustine, Florida last month to meet growing demands for services to his fleet of 253 HondaJets. (Courtesy Banyan)
RENO AIR RACING ASSOCIATION CELEBRATES 60TH ANNIVERSARY WITH ALL-STAR AIR SHOW
February 2024
To commemorate its storied 60 years of history and pageantry in Reno, the Reno Air Racing Association (RARA) is hosting an air show at Reno-Stead Airport from Friday, Oct. 4 to Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024. Headlining the event is an incredible and rare opportunity for fans to witness not one, but two military jet team demonstrations, featuring dual performances from the legendary United States Navy Blue Angels and the Canadian Royal Air Force Snowbirds. Additionally, fans can expect to see the United States Air Force F-16 Viper Demo, as well as a lineup of firstclass civilian acts. The celebration will mark RARA’s 60th anniversary in Reno as it continues its mission to honor our military and support aviation and STEM education. Tickets will be available soon and attendees are encouraged to sign up for news on the RARA website, airrace.org. “We’re proud of the legacy we’ve established for the past 60 years here in Reno. As always, our mission is focused on making the world of aviation accessible to the community while also helping to inspire the future generation to pursue careers in aviation,” said Fred Telling, RARA CEO. “This will be our first air show without racing in Reno and we’re looking forward to celebrating 60 amazing years with the community where
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The Blue Angels and Snowbirds will headline aerial demonstration lineup, along with static aircraft displays and more, commemorating 60 years of history at the Reno-Stead Airport Oct. 4-6, 2024. (Poster image courtesy RARA)
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Unlimited Air Racing we reborn in 1964.” Along with incredible air show acts, RARA is bringing back its STEM Discovery Zone and static aircraft displays for those who may have missed them at the final National Championship Air Races in Reno. Static aircraft displays will include a worldclass lineup of aircraft ranging from vintage to military and more, while visitors to the STEM Discovery Zone can immerse themselves in educational aviation activities. Exclusive merchandise honoring RARA’s 60th anniversary will also be on sale. “Our air show line up this year is awesome. Hosting both the Blue Angels and Snowbirds will be a privilege for our organization and a thrilling experience for the fans. The F-16 Viper Demo is also incredible, plus we’re hard at work putting together an exciting lineup of civilian performances, along with other surprises. It’s going to be remarkably entertaining for all attendees,” said Tony Logoteta, RARA COO. “It’s been a wonderful 60 years in Reno and this air show is the perfect way for us to celebrate.” A final decision on the future home for the National Championship Air Races is expected to be announced in the first quarter of 2024. For more information and ways to support the organization, visit www.airrace.org.
2024 PACIFIC COAST DREAM MACHINES SHOW GROUNDED BY PERMITTING DELAYS
Organizers of the Pacific Coast Dream Machines announced on Jan. 22 that there will be no 2024 Pacific Coast Dream Machines Event this Spring due to delays in the permitting process through the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The Board said, “With a heavy heart we must inform you that our beloved Pacific Coast Dream Machines Event will not be moving forward this year. After seven months of pre-planning, we must cancel the event due to aberrant delays in the permitting process with the FAA. We are no longer able to continue moving forward for a 2024 event at the Half Moon Bay Airport.” This decision does not come lightly, but with the event show date just three months away, the financial risk of pro-
ceeding is becoming too great since there is still a possibility that the permit may be denied. The Pacific Coast Dream Machines is a charitable fundraiser for the Coastside Adult Day Health Center. Since the event is held at an active airport, organizers must work with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to get an event approval. Considerations include ensuring the safety of patrons and aircraft, and keeping the active airfield open. Regulations continue to evolve; the committee has worked hard to be nimble to meet any new requirements put forth by the FAA. Regarding the possibility of any future Dream Machines event, the planning committee is working to explore options for receiving an FAA response within a useful time frame in future
years. The Pacific Coast Dream Machines committee is hopeful for a return in 2025 in order to ensure that this cherished event has a long-lasting future within the Coastal community and as a fundraiser for the Coastside Adult Day Health Center. “The leadership group wants again to thank all the many volunteers who continue to be so critical to the function and success of our event these many years. We hope to see you there again.” Those interested in helping to offset our financial loss as a result of canceling this year’s event can make a tax-deductible donation to support the work of the Coastside Adult Day Health Center. Please send checks to the Coastside Adult Day Health Center, 925 Main St., Suite A, Half Moon Bay CA 94019. Donations
P-51 Mustangs were a huge draw at the Pacific Coast Dream Machine show every year. The show has been canceled this year due to FAA permitting delays. (Courtesy Pacific Coast Dream Machines/Miramar Events) can also be made securely online at https://www.coastsideadultdayhealth.org /contribute. Continued support is greatly appreciated.
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In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
February 2024
One of the truly great things about being an aviation buff is the number of “Goodies and Gadgets” available to play OODIES with. Here In Flight USA has collected a few new ones worthy of your consideration. AND ADGETS Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co. has been the supplier that aircraft builders, owners, pilots, and aviation businesses have depended on since 1965. They carry a wide
selection of aircraft parts, building materials, avionics, and pilot supplies, all of which are offered on their website (www.aircraftspruce.com) and in the famous Aircraft Spruce catalog, now over 1,000-pages available for download or for free in print. You can depend on Aircraft Spruce for prompt shipping and competitive pricing on all orders.
PRODUCTS TO FRESHEN UP THE PLANE AND HANGAR FROM AIRCRAFT SPRUCE
Winter months are a good time to freshen things up around the hangar and in or around your aircraft. Aircraft Spruce is featuring many cleaning products to meet the cleaning needs of aircraft owners and hangar users. But first, Alaska pilots and aviation enthusiasts, take note: Aircraft Spruce has relocated to a new 24,000-square-foot distribution center in Palmer. Stop in and say hello if you’re in the area… or make Alaska your next flying adventure!
Aircraft Spruce Alaska Has Moved
Aircraft Spruce opened a new 24,000-square-foot distribution center in Palmer, AK on Nov. 13, 2023. The additional space this new distribution center provides will enable the Aircraft Spruce team to continue to increase their local inventory to provide optimum service to their customers throughout Alaska. “Our team in Alaska is excited about the move to the state-of-the-art warehouse in Palmer, which will facilitate efficient processing of critical customer orders each day for same day shipment,” said owner Jim Irwin, in a statement recently released. “In addition, we now have a new, larger showroom and retail store for customers who prefer to come in and shop with us. We hope to see you at our new location soon!” The new Alaska facility is located at 1692 N. Aircraft Spruce Circle, Palmer, AK and can be reached by telephone at 907373-5300 or toll free at 866-565-7722. The nearest airport is Palmer Municipal Airport with FAA identifier PAQ.
Grypshon Grypmat Plus NonSlip Anti-Static Tool Mat
The Grypmat is created by a U.S. Air Force veteran and is the inspired solution to problems he encountered as a mechanic working on the aircrafts day
after day. Revolutionize your workflow with the Grypmat! Working on cars, aircraft, motorcycles, boats, heavy machines, or doing projects around the house – a Grypmat is the DIY-er and mechanic’s best friend. Get a GRYP today. The Grypmat Plus’s bright color options help you stay organized and lets you easily see your tools, hammers, wrenches, sockets, drill bits, nuts, bolts, and whatever else you might be working with and provides a visual management system. With Grip ability, the Grypmat can grip to any surface up to a 70-degree angle, with no magnets! Make any space your workspace with a Grypmat – it goes where toolboxes can’t and magnetic trays won’t! Heat and Chemical Resistant and Easy to Clean – A little bit of soap and water will make it new again. For tougher messes, you can even use brake cleaner. Heat and Chemical Resistant, the Plus is heat resistant up to 350-degrees, can stand up to chemicals like brake cleaner, gasoline, and engine oil. Plus it’s anti-static. The units come in orange or green, and in various sizes, including small (9”x4.25”x1”) selling for $18.95, medium (9”x7.5”x1”) selling for $28.95 and large (16.75”x9.25”x1”) selling for $47.95.
Extreme Simple Green Aircraft Cleaner
Extreme Simple Green, Simple Green’s new aircraft and precision cleaning product, cuts through tough, built up grease, oil, dirt, pollution, insect residue and impact soils. Extreme Simple Green gets its superior cleaning from a unique “triple play” cleaning formula. Two high performance surfactants and a new generation grease lifter/cutter combine to get the soil away from the aircraft surface quickly and then keep it away so that it can be cleanly rinsed away. Extreme Simple Green’s speed of grease cutting and its high capacity to hold grease, oil and soils in solution during
cleaning and rinsing time are the keys to performance. This equals fast cleaning and no-redeposition, but Extreme Simple Green is also able to go into oil/water separators and have oil break from solution. Extreme Simple Green’s safety upon aircraft materials and precision cleaning surfaces comes from a combination of proven anti-corrosion agents. A time tested coupling agent allows these to work together to battle corrosion and hydrogen embrittlement. These same qualities make Extreme Simple Green safe to put through pressure washing equipment, rack wash systems, dip tanks and parts washers, without any equipment damage. The components of Extreme Simple Green are all low-toxicity compounds and the product contains no “solvents”. This leads to an excellent worker’s safety environment. All of the components are biodegradable, so Extreme Simple Green won’t accumulate in the environment and rinse-waste can be handled by standard waste water treatment methods. Extreme Simple Green meets or exceeds current and reasonably anticipated VOC requirements. It also contains no Clean Air Act Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs), nor is it a RCRA hazardous waste in and of itself when disposed. The Cleaner comes in 32-ounce spray ($13.50), 1-gallon jugs ($19.95), 5gallon jugs ($92.85) and 55-gallon barrels ($645.00).
ECT HFC423 Hangar Floor Cleaner
Designed for use with all Hangar Floor surfaces, the E C T- H a n g a r Floor Cleaner is a highly concentrated low foam floor cleaner, effective to remove difficult soils associated with aircraft hangars. Can also be used for all other routine cleaning. ECT-Hangar Floor Cleaner is a cleaner-concentrate and can be diluted 1 oz per gallon of water(1:128) for everyday cleaning. Use 4oz per gallon of water for heavily soiled areas(1:32) or neat for
spot treating. ECT-Hangar Floor Cleaner can be used with all conventional cleaning methods, including, automatic floor scrubbing, mop & bucket and pressure washing. The cleaner comes in three sizes, one gallon ($17.50); 5 gallons ($73.75); and a 55-gallon drum ($697.00).
Flyboys Pivot Atlas Case – Fits iPad 10th Gen – Black / Black
The PIVOT A22A is an elegant, robust case designed specifically for the iPad (10th generation). Connect the A22A case quickly and securely to mounts and accessories using the patented PIVOT universal mounting system. Be confident with 360-degree protection from drops, impacts, and scratches. The upgraded PIVOT Folio Cover provides superior screen protection when in transit and increased impact resistance on corners and edges. Additionally, the Folio Cover offers quick-viewing support in landscape orientation with a selection of viewing positions. Use the Folio Cover in combination with the PIVOT Kickstand for viewing with enhanced stability and a wide range of adjustable viewing angles. The PIVOT Kickstand is reinforced with internal ribs for strength and offers 120degrees of adjustability in landscape orientation, as well as table-top viewing in both landscape and portrait orientation. Each unit sells for $144.99.
Aircraft Spruce Upcoming Events
Find Aircraft Spruce at the following events next month: • AOPA Fly-In at the Buckeye Air Fair (Buckeye, AZ), Feb. 16-18 (booth 36) • FSANA 2024 Conference and Trade Show, Las Vegas, NV, Feb. 21-24 • Northwest Aviation Conference and Trade Show, Puyallup, WA, Feb. 24-25 • HAI Heli Expo, Anaheim, CA, Feb. 27-29
February 2024
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AOPA’S AIR SAFETY INSTITUTE RELEASES NEW REAL PILOT STORY
In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association’s Air Safety Institute (ASI) has released a new episode in its popular Real Pilot Story video series. In the latest video, Real Pilot Story: Trouble Over Paradise, Cessna Caravan pilot Ken Allen experiences piercing pain to the right side of his head during an otherwise routine flight. A quick-thinking passenger pulls Ken from the cockpit, stopping the ensuing nosedive, and radios ATC for help. “In this real pilot story, it’s here that this extraordinary event becomes especially intriguing,” explains AOPA Air Safety Institute Senior Director Paul Deres. “Air traffic controller at Fort Pierce Tower, Chip Flores, quickly and calmly instructed the passenger to level the wings and start a slow descent while Chip’s team coordinated with Palm Beach Tower,” continued Deres. “As luck would have it, Palm Beach air traffic controller and flight instructor Robert ‘Bobby’ Morgan was on duty that day and was able to guide the accidental pilot to a safe landing,” Deres concluded. The National Air Traffic Controllers
February 2024
AOPA’s ASI has released a new episode in its popular Real Pilot Story video series where a quick-thinking passenger pulls the pilot from the cockpit, stopping the ensuing nosedive, and radios ATC for help. (Courtesy AOPA/ASI)
Association (NATCA) presented Chip and Bobby the 2023 President’s Award for their heroic efforts. ASI’s Real Pilot Story series allows pilots to share their encounters with a dilemma so others can benefit – while comfortable on the ground – from lessons learned the hard way in flight. View the real pilot story at https://www.aopa.org/training-and-safety/online-learning/real-pilot-stories/trouble-over-paradise .
SCHWEISS DOORS INTRODUCES CAPABILITY TO OPERATE HYDRAULIC DOORS WITHOUT ELECTRICITY
Become a U A %GTVKƂGF #KTETCHV $TQMGT
Designed to Put You in Business in 2 Weeks as a U A Aircraft Broker! Contact Annamarie Buonocore at (650) 504-8549 or annamarie@usaaircraft.com
The new compact, cordless drilloperated hydraulic pump from Schweiss Doors, will open and close a hydraulic door (up to 24 by 12 feet) on a mobile container, food truck, show booth or storage unit quickly and easily with any cordless drill or by hand. The drill-driven compact hydraulic pump system provides all the benefits of a Schweiss hydraulic door – strength, security and full access to inside space – without the need for power. For more information, visit www.bifold.com.
A new compact, cordless drill-operated hydraulic pump from Schweiss Doors will open and close a smaller hydraulic door on a mobile container, food truck, show booth or storage unit. (Courtesy Schweiss Doors)
Check In Flight USA’s online calendarfor upcoming aviation events... www.inflightusa.com
NEW PARTNERSHIP ANNOUNCED BETWEEN JSFIRM.COM AND ASIAN WOMEN IN AEROSPACE AND AVIATION
February 2024
Asian Women in Aerospace and Aviation Inc. has joined JSfirm.com’s Job Distribution Network. Asian Women in Aerospace and Aviation Inc. (AWAA) is a nonprofit organization founded by Anh-Thu Nguyen to encourage the participation of Asian girls in aerospace and aviation. Overall, the mission of AWAA is to help young girls nourish their dreams in reaching for the sky, where they can be empowered and their potential realized. AWAA also focuses on overcoming the underrepresented Asian female professionals in the aviation and aerospace industries. “It’s such an honor and a great opportunity for AWAA to partner with JSfirm.com and further support the mission of AWAA to encourage, engage, and empower the next generation of Asian
female engineers, pilots, and STEM professionals.” Founder of AWAA, Anh-Thu Nguyen said. “This partnership represents a significant step forward in promoting diversity and equal access to opportunities within the aerospace and aviation sectors.” Laurie Elliott, Partnership Manager for JSfirm.com said. Members of Asian Women in Aerospace and Aviation Inc. (AWAA) can now explore open career opportunities directly on AWAA’s website. To view this job postings page, visit: https://awa2.org/careers Any aviation schools, programs, or associations interested in becoming a JSfirm.com Job Distribution Partner can contact Laurie directly at laurie@jsfirm.com.
EXCITING CHANGES IN TECH INTRODUCED AT MCFARLANE AVIATION!
Over the past 12 months, a McFarlane Aviation team has been working diligently towards migrating from their 30-year-old legacy software to Infor-Syteline Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP - Cloud based). This transition represents a substantial upgrade, allowing McFarlane to elevate the level of service they provide to both valued customers and suppliers. On Jan. 29, McFarlane began using their new ERP system. For additional information and exciting promotions on their products, visit McFarlane Aviation’s website, www.mcfarlaneaviation.com. “Our commitment to improving efficiency and speed remains unwavering,
ensuring you continue to receive the exceptional service you have come to expect from McFarlane,” said President Scott Still. If you have questions or concerns Still invites customers to contact them at sales@mcfarlaneaviation.com, purchasingteam@mcfarlaneaviation.com, or call toll free 1-800-544-8594. “As we embrace this exciting chapter, we extend our thanks for your support of McFarlane throughout the years,” Still said. “We are genuinely invested in you, our valued customers, and look forward to delivering even greater value.”
Banyan Expands Footprint
Continued from Page 38 facility and have the opportunity to grow our existing MRO services,” says Charlie Amento, VP/Director of MRO Services. “This will help us better serve our customers outside of South Florida and allow for additional employment opportunities.” Banyan Air Service was founded in 1979 and has since become a leader in the aviation industry. The new facility will be staffed with experienced technicians
43
www.inflightusa.com
and will provide the same quality of service that Banyan is known for at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport. Open for business mid-January, Banyan provides HondaJet AOG support from this site with Banyan teammates that are committed to providing quality service to HondaJet owners and operators. For more information, visit www.banyanair.com.
American Aircraft Sales Co. 70 YEARS IN BUSINESS–NEW LOCATION LD
SO
2016 Cessna Skylane 182T 1180 TTSN, Garmin G1000 NXI, GFC 700 A/P, like new!
2005 Cessna 172S Skyhawk 497 SMOH, 5,800 TTSN, Hangar kept & like new................................................ $249,950
LD
SO
1979 Cessna Skyhawk
1978 Piper Archer II 181
180 HP Garmin 650 GPS S-TEC 50 A/P 3400 TTSN 1500 SNEW engine...............$159,950
Garmin 650 GPS and GTX 435 IFR with A/P 1600 SFRMAN.......................$99,950
1973 Cessna 150L 1277 SNEW Engine, 3200 TTSN, nice paint/interior..............................................$42,500
1980 Cessna TR182 Skylane New updated metal instrument panel ........................................................$210,000
2002 Cessna 182T Skylane 3000 TTSN, Nice original paint & interior ..........................................................$289,950
1980 Cessna Skyhawk 172N Recently restored, California Airplane ...................................................$139,950
LD
SO
1979 Grumman Tiger
1983 Piper Turbo Saratoga
Hangar kept and super nice, Garmin IFR with STEC30 A/P.............................................$119,950
Restored to New…............................$279,950
1983 Piper Turbo Senica II
60 hours since new engine, Nice paint, NDH..............................................$74,950
1978 Cessna 152 Low time engines, Garmin Avionics.
AIRCRAFT WANTED! Robert Coutches Cell - (510) 783-2711 • (925) 449-5151 550 Airway Blvd. • Livermore, CA 94551• Livermore Airport (KLVK)
www.americanaircraft.net
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In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
AIRCRAFT FOR SALE
RESTORATIONS
American Aircraft Sales, Livermore Airport, CA, americanaircraft.net, cell (510) 783-2711, (925) 449-5151. 3/13
Iconic Aircraft Restoration. Repairs, refurbishments, parts fabricated, consulting at reasonable rates. The Wright Experience, (540) 379-9092. 8/21
From Trade-ins to Aircraft Management, financing and appraisals. T.J. Aircraft Sales, Novato, CA, (415) 8985151, tjair.com. 3/13
AirplanesUSA Aircraft Sales, San Carlos, CA, Airport, (650) 394-7610, airplanesusa.com. 1/16
Custom aircraft & high-quality composite parts. Aviation Composites, Sandersville, GA, (937) 243-7303. 1/22
JETS Small Manned Aerial Radar Target, Model 1. Tiny jet aircraft, long-range tank. SMART-1, Tucson, AZ, (202) 2132400, smart-1.us. 5/21
SPORT/ULTRALIGHTS RV12i5. Total performance perfected. Easy to build, fly and own. Van's Aircraft www.vansaircraft.com. 11/18 Bristell LSA 915 Turbo, 180 mph @18,000. Bristell Aircraft, (516) 6581847. bristellaircraft.com. 2/24
HELICOPTORS 5 Bell 212s 1996-1991, current maintenance, one owner. Bell 412, 33017 SN, 0 engine OH. Hudson Flight Limited, (806) 662-5823, or (971) 241-8473.6/20
STOL The STOL Super Breezy with fully covered fuselage. Yakima Aerosport, (509) 453-3412, superbreezy.com. 5/23
Savannah S, premier light-sport STOL platform. Flight4U, LLC, Napa, CA, (707) 485-2644, Jeff@flight4u.biz. 9/23
AIRCRAFT SALES AIDS Aviation Sales & Marketing by ABCI. Ideal for a startup or side hustle in the aviation industry. (702) 987-1679 or aviationsalestraining.com/startup. 1/21
FLIGHT INSTRUCTION Sunshine Flyers. Flight & tailwheel instruction, rentals, mountain flying, and aerobatics., Auburn, CA, (530) 820-3442, sunshineflyersaviation@gmail.com. 3/20 Arizona Type Ratings CE-500/CE-525 type ratings or recurrent. Insurance approved, staff examiner. arizonatyperatings.com, (602) 614-7994. 9309:TFN Recurrent pilot training and services. L/D Aerospace, Grace Passmore, (916) 790-0501, idaerospace.com. 1/22
All parts available to rebuild 1936 Rearwin Sportster. In Northern California. Contact Sue Harmuth at suewilldooo@ outlook.com. 22801:TFN
FBOs Serving the GA Community since 1981. Wisconsin Aviation, Watertown Municipal Airport, WI, (920) 261-4567, WisconsinAviation.com. 3/13 World's largest network of FBOs with over 200 locations offering consistent, exceptional service. Signature Flight Support, signatureflight.com. 4/23
Full-service center. Vista Aviation, Whiteman Airport, Pacoima, CA, (818) 896-5224, vistaair.com 9/23
AVIONICS Avionics for Every Mission. All major brands. Airtronics, Calaveras County Airport, CA, airtronicsavionics.com, (209) 736-9400. 11/14 Basic installs to complete panel and glass retrofits. Great service and value pricing. Pacific Coast Avionics, (800) 353-0370, PCA.aero. 7/15
Update your avionics. FAA-Certified repair station. Treasure Coast Avionics, Ft. Pierce, FL, (772) 464-3148, treasurecoastavionics.com. 2/23
AIRCRAFT PARTS Keeping "classic" aircraft flying since 1946. Univair Aircraft Corp., Aurora, CO, (888) 433-5433, univair.com. 3/21 Iconic Aircraft Restoration for all the classics. Reasonable rates. The Wright Experience, (540) 347-1909. 2/23
SAVAGE Magneto Service since 1946. Hayward, CA, (510) 782-7081, 2/23 Wingtips with total lighting solutions, aveoengineering.com. 9/23
PROPELLERS Aviation wood, composite or metal propellers. Sensenich, (813) 752-3711, (717) 569-0435 or sensenich.com. 4/21
XL Aviation - Aircraft Maintenance. Custom-tailored programs for all aircraft. Livermore, CA, (925) 961-6135, xlaviationtailwheel.com. 8/20
AVIATION SAFETY
Get ahead of your daily in-flight risks with SAFETYLINQ flight risk assessment. argus.aero/safetylinq. 1/22
AIRCRAFT FINANCING Get Top Retail Value for Your Aircraft! Sell now! Find your dream aircraft! Shop now! Become an area broker with one of the largest networks in the U.S.! Visit our USA Aircraft Brokers page on Facebook or visit usaaircraft.com. 9/23
INSURANCE Specializing in personal, business and charter aircraft. Best price, coverage & customer service. Zanette Aircraft Insurance Center, (650) 593-3030, (888) 723-3358. 10/06 Insurance solutions for all aviation-related services. Business Aviation Insurance, bizavins.com, (925) 825-1900. 7/20
AVIATION CONSULTANTS Informed, accurate aircraft appraisals. jetvaluesjeremy.com, (636) 751-3987. 7/20
Complete Aviation Sales & Marketing Services. Use Promo Code "INFLIGHT" to save 10%. AviationBusinessComsultants. com/Lab, (702) 987-1679. 4/23
PILOT SUPPLIES No cheap imitation watches at HME! Special pricing on ATP series multifunctional watches with Altimeter. To order or for information, (323) 464-6660 or hmewatch.com. 11/16
Aircraft Spruce & Specialty. Free 700page catalog, Corona, CA, & Peachtree City, GA, aircraftspruce.com. 10/06 Protective covers for every make and model. Bruce's Custom Covers, Morgan Hill, CA, (800) 777-6405, (408) 7383959, aircraftcovers.com. 10/19
See what you are missing with new models from Rosen Sunvisor Systems. rosenvisor.com, (800) 284-7677. 7/20
Apparel as unique as your journey. Discounts to members. AOPA Pilot Gear, aopapilotgear.com. 9/21
OXYGEN SUPPLIES
InPhones with pilot keypad. Convenience at one low price! Only $199/year. (650) 504-8549, (408) 234-0045. 10/21
Cannula or Mask? For aicraft service ceilings to FL180 & FL250. Ask "The Oxygen Lady," info@aviationoxygen.com 2/23
AVIATION RESOURCES
Mountain Bike, Full-size, pilot-friendly, rugged. FLATBIKE, flatbike.com. 10/18
Emergency services, group trips, consulting services. BizAvJets, Inc., Business Aviation Services, bizavjets.com, (702) 465-2027. 10/20
Fly for fun or career. Discovery flights, pilot training, AOPA Distinguished Flight School & Cessna Pilot Center. Smith Aviation Napa, Napa County Airport, (707) 345-6526, mikesmithaviation.com. 4/22
MAINTENANCE/INSPECTIONS
Home of GAMIjectors® fuel injectors! STCs and PMAs on over 300 different engine models! General Aviation Modifications, Ada, OK, (888) 3594264, (580) 436-4833, gami.inc. 3/23
Innovative aviation safety solutions and Parachute Recovery Systems for a variety of aircraft, including for sport, UAVs, more. AviationSafetyResources.com. 2/22
Quality aircraft since 1948. Volare Air, a TECNAM dealership, (940) 800-8020, volareair.aero. 1/23
Historically significant 1950s-era aircraft for sale or trade. All in restorable condition with minimum corrosion. Inventory includes a Piasecki XHJP-1 and a Sikorsky S-55. American Helicopter Museum, West Chester, PA. Contact info@americanhelicopter.museum for more information. 231000.TFN
Aircraft Fuel Cell Repair, hartwigfuelcell. com. 2/09
Wherever business takes you. Navigate It. (575) 615-2091, vatit.com. 10/21 4720:TFN
FUEL Fuel Cells. Repair, overhaul or new. New tanks with 10-year warranty. Hartwig
Scheduling Software that connects to your flight department. Simple, affordable. airplanemanager.com. 9/22
SERVICES Divorce-Paternity Cases. Contact Lawyers for Men's Rights, (213) 384-
February 2024
8886, www.mensrightslawyers.com. Offices of Stuart J. Faber. 4/10
New Pocket guide to avoid pain & stiffness during travel by a leading pain expert. "Pain-Free Vacation/Travel," (980) 785-8128, goptfirst@gmail.com. 2/4
Left Seat Pilot Medical Solutions. A confidential solution for pilot medical certification. Free FAA medical consultations. Left Seat, (800) 699-4457. 1/21
SoCal pilot desires Turbine/Jet SIC time. Comm/Instru/Multi-Eng with SIC for Gulfstream G-IV and scores of hours in the Citation V560. Many years of aircraft design/flight test/aerospace industry experience. Willing to travel as needed (and for repositioning). Contact Paul at (562) 714-6686 or ptglessner@ aol.com. 23700:TFN
Aero & Marine Tax Pros Legally avoid sales tax on your aircraft purchase. In El Grove, CA, (916) 691-9192, aeromarinetaxpros.com. 18500:TFN
Global Aircraft Group. USPAP bank values for all aircraft, aircraft management, insurance claims & certified aircraft appraisals. Mark Parry, (855) 6GBL- AIR, (413) 335-7507. 4/22
HANGARS/TIEDOWNS One-piece doors. Hydraulic or bifold. Schweissdoors.com, (800) 746-8273.1/15 Aviation Building Systems, custom designed hangars. R&M Steel Co., Caldwell, ID, (208) 454-1800, aviationbuildingsystem. com, (866) 454-1800. 51217:TFN
HOMES/AIRPARKS New Runway & Taxiway Homesites Available in amentity-rich community, Granbury, TX. From $179,900. Pecan Plantation, AviationHomesites. com, (833) 273-2159. 2/24 Lakeside, energy-efficient Oasis in Burson, CA. Visit 12615brandy.com for photos and a virtual tour. 2/24
BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES Become an Aircraft Broker — #1 Largest USA Network of Aircraft Start with USA’s proved system for listing and selling everything from highperformance single-engine airplanes, cabin class through jets, and helicopters & jet fractional shares. Includes multi-million-dollar inventory to start. Complete turn-key proved system. No experience necessary. Will train. Licensed USA Aircraft brokerage.
Call (504) 723-5566 or visit Business Opportunity Section at usaaircraft.com. 4208:TFN
Free avgas 100LL and free tie-down parking in exchange for help with projects for an airport in Southern California. Email: wignot@hotmail.com. 23600:TFN
ART/VIDEOS/GIFTS Specializing in aviation photography. horizontalrain.com. 1/15
Need a gift? Give a ride in an open cockpit biplane. WACO Air Museum, Troy, Ohio, wacoairmuseum.org, (937) 335-9226. 20601:TFN Fly By Wire Air, a one-stop site for aviators. flybywireair.com. 4/21
Aces High Aviation & Military Art. (800) 528-0887, aceshighgallery.com. 10/21 Shirts Made to Fly. Unique, original fabrics embedded with your sectional chart. Save 20% with "INFLIGHT20" code. PilotQuarters.com. 2/24
PUBLICATIONS Avionics Checklists & Quick Reference gudes. Available in book, card & new iPad editions. qref.com. 8/14
SEAK, Expert Witness Directory, by Bert Botta for aviation accidents and incidents. (415) 320-9811, bert@bertbotta. com, bertbotta.com. 4/22 "Ghosts," Phil Makanna's legendary warbird calendars are back! Visit ghosts. com, (800) 331-8231. 2/23
PILOT POSITION WANTED
HELP WANTED IN FLIGHT USA, the leading source of general aviation news, seeks writers and photographers to cover all aspects of aviation. Send an SASE for writer’s guidelines to: In Flight USA, P.O. Box 5402, San Mateo, CA 94402. TFN
Oakland Aviation Museum recruiting volunteers. Oakland, CA, (510) 638-7100, oaklandaviationmuseum.org. 12/23
MUSEUMS Rowland Freedom Center Vacaville, CA, (707) 449-3402 rowlandfreedomcenter.org Castle Air Museum World's largest static display of vintage military aircraft from late 1930s. Atwater, CA, (209) 723-2178 castleairmuseum.org Wings of Honor Museum Walnut Ridge, AR, (800) 584-5575 wingsofhonor.org Wings of History Air Museum San Martin, CA, (408) 683-2290 wingsofhistory.org Planes of Fame Air Museum Chino, CA, (909) 597-3722 planesoffame.org Pacific Coast Air Museum Santa Rosa, CA, (707) 575-7900 pacificcoastairmuseum.org Oakland Aviation Museum Oakland, CA, (510) 638-7100 oaklandaviationmuseum.org
ORGANIZATIONS List your non-profit club or organization FREE on a space available basis. Send information to: 3rdavenue@embarqmail.com Wings of Rescue Flying Animals to Safety wingsofrescue.org Please donate NOW! Aircraft Owners & Pilots Assn. aopa.org
DONATIONS Needed! Non-profit youth aviation program teaching High School kids to build a Zenith 750 Cruzer — then learn to fly in it! It’s 70% completed. Need a usable O-200 engine to make kids’ dreams come true! Full value tax benefit. Bill (818) 634-9762. 4/23
February 2024
M
By Cameron Rolfe
ROTORHEADS LAND IN ANAHEIM www.inflightusa.com
ore than 14,000 “hover lovers” from 97 countries will head to the Anaheim Convention Center (across the street from Disneyland) the last week of February to see 600 exhibitors and attend 130 events as they rally together every four years there to champion the much maligned and underrepresented world of helicopters. Seventy helicopters will be on display from every manufacture. The big fly-in begins the weekend of the Feb. 24th, with the exhibit hall opening Tuesday, the 27th and running three days, until Thursday, Feb. 29th. Helicopters in the prototype and design stages will be displayed, as well as everything from single seat home-built helicopters to huge helicopters able to carry more than 30 passengers, or thousand-gallon water dumping firefighting helicopters. Medical, law enforcement, and helicopters designed just for sightseeing companies will be displayed. Personal helicopters will be displayed and many, such as the Enstrom Helicopter Corporation will let you sit in their helicopters, scan their newly designed video instrument display, and imagine what it would be like to own and fly one of the easiest to fly and safest helicopters targeted to the general public. Schweizer Helicopters is back, as well as
the very popular Robinson, and Cabri will be showing their basic trainer. Another big draw is career day. New helicopter pilots and mechanics bring their resumes and logbooks as helicopter companies seek out new hires. The demand for helicopter pilots is high, as well as for mechanics that desire to enter the tightly defined world of helicopter maintenance. Classroom presentations are given all week with instruction on the latest flight safety operations, to dealing with airport personnel; helping fixed-wing pilots who don’t understand the incredi-
ble maneuverability of helicopters, to FAA regulations that don’t apply to helicopters such as the ability to safely fly low, or fly opposite flight patterns then airplanes. (The FAA approves, recommends, and regulates that helicopters approach airports low, from the opposite direction of airplanes, and fly directly to a taxiway or parking location.) In-flight emergencies for airplane pilots include long lists of items to check, with the bottom line designed to keep the airplane in the air. A helicopter pilot’s inflight problems are usually simply solved
Hydroplane has been chosen as one of six winners of highly selective Department of the Navy Phase 1 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Funding to develop its hydrogen fuel cell powerplant for ground power use cases. “This win is an incredibly important development for Hydroplane,” says Hydroplane CEO Dr. Anita Sengupta. “We are in a position to bring hydrogen fueled electric ground-based power units to market rapidly. This greatly appreciated funding allows us to accelerate our mission to simultaneously help the environment and make the United States safer through energy independence.” The funding award will enable
Hydroplane to develop a compact and lightweight hydrogen fuel cell-based ground power unit (GPU) and auxiliary power unit (APU) for department of Navy use cases. The new product can also be deployed at airports around the county and globe to replace diesel powered GPUs, furthering the company’s mission to reduce end-to-end aviation sector carbon emissions. Hydroplane has previously received two U.S. Air Force (USAF) Agility Prime Small Business Technology Transfer contracts, partnered with the University of Houston, received a California Energy Commission CalTestBed voucher to conduct testing and accelerate commercial-
ization, and raised private funds to develop from the ground up and demonstrate a hydrogen fuel cell based electric powerplant for single engine aircraft. Development is well underway on Hydroplane’s modular 200-kW (270 hp) hydrogen fuel cell powerplant for the general aviation, regional transportation, and urban air mobility markets. The company’s novel electric propulsion powerplant will replace combustion-piston driven engines in currently certified, experimental, and future aircraft as well as ground-based power systems. Learn more about Hydroplane at www.hydroplaneaero.com.
Heli Expo 2024 takes place in Anaheim, Calif. Feb. 24-29, featuring 600 exhibitors and 130 events. (Courtesy Heli Expo)
45
with the slogan, “ Land and Live.” Airplane pilots are looking for an emergency landing area that is 1,500-feet long, flat and hard. Helicopter pilots are looking for an area the size of a tennis court. Whereas 90 percent of airplanes are certificated to fly into clouds and areas of low visibility, just the opposite is true of helicopters. On many occasions, helicopter pilots have landed in fields, roads, parking lots, even mountain tops, waiting for the weather to pass. With airplanes restricted to altitudes over 1,000 feet, helicopters routinely fly lower than that. Traversing at 500 to 800 feet above the ground, helicopter pilots with their distinctive sound and configuration are juicy targets for noise complaints from the community. When offered a choice between a truck rumbling past their home, or the sound of a mosquito in their bedroom at 2 a.m., which would they prefer? A higher altitude generates a larger noise “ footprint.” Take heed, airplane pilots… community groups demanding you fly higher does not mitigate noise complaints, it just increases the duration of the noise. Disneyland guests headed into the park on Thursday afternoon after 4 p.m., often stop and watch one helicopter after another take off in quick succession, headed for home. For more information visit the Heli Expo 2024 website, www.heliexpo.com.
HYDROPLANE WINS SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH FUNDING FROM U.S. NAVY FOR HYDROGEN GROUND POWER POWERPLANT DEVELOPMENT
Hydroplane is developing a modular Hydrogen Fuel Cell Power Plant for General Aviation, Urban Air Mobility and Vertical Lift platforms. Their unique design addresses PEM thermal management, durability, and cost for the aircraft owner/operator. (Courtesy Hydroplane)
Visit In Flight USA for the latest aviation news... www.inflightusa.com
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In Flight USA Celebrating 39 Years
February 2024
AD INDEX 4 Paws Aviation....................4
FEBRUARY 2024
ABCI ..................................17
Castle Air Museum............14
LD Aerospace ....................14
Airplanes USA A/C Sales....6
Center for Freedom & Flight..8
Mike Smith Aviation..........37
Airtronics............................31
Flabob ................................42
Aircraft Spruce ..................15 Airport Shoppe ..................25 American Aircraft ..............43
AOPA....................................7 Arizona Type Ratings ........20
Bristell Aircraft ..................21 Bruce's Custom Cover ......41
BTA Consulting ................26
CB SkyShare......................13
D-Day Sqaudron ................20
Fly By Wire........................14 GAMI ................................25
Hartwig ................................3 Hiller Aviation Museum ....2 HME Watches ....................34
Lawyers for Men’s Rights 26
Legacy ................................47
Mountain High Oxygen ......3
Oakland Aviation Museum11 Pacific Coast Avionics ......10
R&M ..................................12
Schweiss Doors..................32 Threshold............................33
TJ Aircraft Sales ................23
Treasure Coast Avionics ....12
Univair..................................9 USA Aircraft Brokers ........13
Pacific Oil Cooler ................9
USAA/C Brokers Franchise....42
Pilot Medical Solutions ....46
XL Aviation ........................35
Pecan Plantation ................29
Pilot Quarters ....................48 QREF Media......................18
Vans Aircraft ........................6
Yakima Aerosport ..............22
Zanette Insurance ................5
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