Toy airplanes are often a child’s first introduction to aviation, but did you know that a toy helicopter is what inspired the Wright brothers?
FAA
FAA Invests $16.5 Million to Boost Runway Safety with Vehicle Transponders
To bolster runway safety, the FAA is investing $16.5 million to equip 1,900 airport vehicles with transponders. This initiative, accelerated by a recent ground collision at LaGuardia, aims to give air traffic controllers full visibility of all airfield surface traffic.
FAA To Replace Towers Across The Country
The agency will replace eight towers and TRACONs, as well as invest more than $85 million to upgrade contract towers.
Questions from the Cockpit: Slow to the Party
Kimberly, the spouse of a pilot-in-training in Arizona, asks: With all the changes in aviation over the last few decades, how has the current training of pilots changed, compared to previous generations?
Maintenance: Is Less More? Or Just Less?
Should the FAA extend annual inspection rules? Explore how changing maintenance intervals could solve mechanic shortages while reducing maintenance-induced risks.
First Phase of NOTAM Overhaul Completed
The FAA has retired the legacy USNS as the first phase of a critical NOTAM system overhaul aimed at modernizing flight safety and preventing nationwide outages.
More Eyes in the Sky: FAA Plans Expansion of Weather Cameras
Spurred by the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 and the new Air Traffic Control System initiative, the FAA plans to add 64 new weather cameras at airports in the National Airspace System by the end of 2028. This is in addition to the previously planned installation of 160 additional weather camera sites by 2031.
Florida Bans Use of ADS-B for General Aviation Landing Fees
Signed by Governor Ron DeSantis April 23, the new law goes into effect July 1, 2026.
New Edition of the Aviation Weather Handbook Released
New content is added on icing, radar interpretation (including chaff), and space weather, while outdated tools are replaced with modern resources, such as the Graphical Forecast for Aviation (GFA), giving pilots access to the most relevant, real-world weather information available today.