A Boeing Stearman had a nose-over at Reagan National airport in Washington, D.C. today. Initial examination of the video of the plane landing from the ground indicate that the brakes locked up for some reason.
Posts Tagged General Aviation
Back on the early 2000′s these pictures were taken at the Sussex Airshow in Wantage Township, NJ. Franklin’s show was spectacular to see anywhere, but I think he took particular joy flying at such a small venue. He also liked to take full advantage of the sloping terrain to create breath-taking sight-lines in which he appeared to be flying so low he was going to impact the ground. He was an unbelievable showman and innovator. His tragic loss in 2005, along with friend and fellow performer Bobby Younkin, was heartbreaking.
Washington, DC — Today the National Transportation Safety Board adopted a study concluding that single engine airplanes equipped with glass cockpits had no better overall safety record than airplanes with conventional instrumentation.
The safety study, which was adopted unanimously by the Safety Board, was initiated more than a year ago to determine if light airplanes equipped with digital primary flight displays, often referred to as “glass cockpits,” were inherently safer than those equipped with conventional instruments.
The study, which looked at the accident rates of over 8,000 small piston-powered airplanes manufactured between 2002 and 2006, found that those equipped with glass cockpits had a higher fatal accident rate then similar aircraft with conventional instruments.
The Safety Board determined that because glass cockpits are both complex and vary from aircraft to aircraft in function, design and failure modes, pilots are not always provided with all of the information they need — both by aircraft manufacturers and the Federal Aviation Administration — to adequately understand the unique operational and functional details of the primary flight instruments in their airplanes.
NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman highlighted the role that training plays in preventing accidents involving these airplanes.
“As we discussed today, training is clearly one of the key components to reducing the accident rate of light planes equipped with glass cockpits, and this study clearly demonstrates the life and death importance of appropriate training on these complex systems,” said Hersman. “We know that while many pilots have thousands of hours of experience with conventional flight instruments, that alone is just not enough to prepare them to safely operate airplanes equipped with these glass cockpit features.”
Today, nearly all newly manufactured piston-powered light airplanes are equipped with digital primary flight displays. And the number of older airplanes being retrofitted with these systems continues to grow. “While the technological innovations and flight management
tools that glass cockpit equipped airplanes bring to the general aviation community should reduce the number of fatal accidents, we have not — unfortunately — seen that happen,” said Hersman. “The data tell us that equipment-specific training will save lives. To that end, we have adopted recommendations today responsive to that data recommendations on pilot knowledge testing standards, training, simulators, documentation and service difficulty reporting so that the potential safety improvements that these systems provide can be realized by the general aviation pilot community.”
Based on the study findings, the NTSB made six safety recommendations to the FAA:
1) enhance pilot knowledge and training requirements;
2) require manufacturers to provide pilots with information to better manage system failures;
3) incorporate training elements regarding electronic primary flight displays into training materials and aeronautical knowledge requirements;
4) incorporate training elements regarding electronic primary flight displays into initial and recurrent flight proficiency requirements for pilots of small light general aviation airplanes equipped with those systems, that address variations in equipment design and operations of such displays;
5) support equipment-specific pilot training programs by developing guidance for the use of glass cockpit simulators other than those that are approved by the FAA as flight training devices; and
6) inform the general aviation community about the importance of reporting malfunctions or defects with electronic flight, navigation and control systems through the Service Difficulty Reporting system.
The complete safety study will be available at www.ntsb.gov in several weeks.
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NTSB Media Contact: Peter Knudson
(202-314-6100)
The National Transportation Safety Board has transferred control of the investigation into yesterday’s crash of a small aircraft into an office building in Austin, Texas to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On the morning of February 18, 2010, a Piper PA-28 struck a 7-story building housing federal offices in Austin, Texas. The NTSB immediately initiated an investigation and dispatched a team of investigators to the scene.
Information developed about the circumstances of the crash since that time point toward an intentional act rather than an accident.
Last night, NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman consulted with the United States Attorney General, Eric Holder. They agreed that given the apparent criminal nature of the event, the primacy of this investigation should be transferred to the FBI. NTSB investigators will remain at the scene to assist the FBI.
All inquiries about the progress of the investigation should be directed to the FBI office in San Antonio at (210) 225-6741.
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NTSB Media Contact: Peter Knudson
(202) 557-1350
Washington Office
(202) 314-6100
Alaska attack on Supercub
Oct 20
Never forget to clean out your airplane after carrying fish. The bear made short work of this Supercub trying to get at the fish smell. Two new tires, plastic wrap and a lot of speed tape to get it flying again!
