Cessna will deliver the first Model 162 Skycatcher Light Sport Aircraft to the first customer of the model later this year. The customer, Rose Pelton, wife of the company’s chairman, president and CEO, will use the LSA to pursue her private pilot’s license. “When I first saw the Skycatcher mockup at Oshkosh in 2007, I […]
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Grand Forks Herald: Cirrus lays of 32 in Grand Forks
A story posted at the Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald reports that Cirrus is laying off 32 employee from its Grand Forks plant, and another 26 at its Duluth headquarters. From the story: “We had been staffed to a level higher than current demand and (Wednesday’s) changes are not a reflection of reduced demand,” Todd Simmons, […]
Glorious grassroots at Copperstate Fly-In
The Copperstate Fly-In was held in Casa Grande, Arizona this weekend. The event kicked off Thursday at 11 am and ran through Saturday at 5 pm. At the awards banquet on Saturday night it was reported that ticket sales were up more than 25% over 2008 (on 1.5 fewer days). Weather was glorious and the […]
Maid of the Seas: An ocean-inspired RV
You probably wouldn’t think of a Van’s RV as a seaplane, unless you saw the one owned by Mike Rossum of Longwood, Fla. Rossum, a retired Pan American World Airways pilot, describes his RV-7A as part flying aquarium, part history lesson. “I wanted a fun airplane after I retired,” he explains. The airplane made its […]
Siedenburg receives Master Pilot Award
DES MOINES, IOWA — Friends, family, and aviation supporters gathered at Elliott Aviation at the Des Moines International Airport on Thursday September 24 to see Paul Siedenburg receive the FAA’s Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award for more than 50 years of safe flying. Siedenburg’s career began in the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1943. He […]
Good coverage in the mainstream media
Pilot Journey has earned some decent aviation coverage in the mainstream media. CBS Atlanta’s Corinna Allen took a Discovery Flight (see video) with Dusty Scott from the Falcon Aviation Academy. Pilot Journey’s Discovery Flight program has enrolled more than 400 flight schools nationwide.
Larkins ranks #1 on 30 Under 30 list
I’ve know Jamail Larkins for about half his life. He’s a great guy. Smart, articulate, funny, good looking and a passionate pilot. So it shouldn’t have been a surprise when I opened my October 2009 issue of Inc. magazine at saw Jamail staring me down from page 3 (the Table of Contents – below) and […]
The Bowers ‘Namu II’ returns to Seattle
Most people remember the late Peter M. Bowers as the designer of experimental aircraft, an eminent aviation historian and the writer of “Of Wings & Things” in General Aviation News. He is perhaps best remembered for the single-place FlyBaby, but did you know that he also created a two-place mid-wing design in the 1970s? The […]
First customer completed RV-12 flies
Brad Stiefvater of Salem, S.D. became the first customer to complete and fly a Van’s Aircraft RV-12 kit. The September 19 flight took place in Madison, S.D. Brad reports the empty weight of his painted airplane is 727 pounds. Reported cost to build was $60,000. The RV-12 is Van’s entry into the Light Sport Aircraft […]