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From Multi-Engine Turboprop Communiqué # ME-TP-007

Date: January 2018 ATA 23 – Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and Flight Data Recorder (FDR) 90-Day Underwater Locator Beacon (ULB) In 2015, the FAA revised Technical Standard Order (TSO) C121a for ULBs. TSO C121b was released to provide standards for ULBs with a battery capable of lasting for 90 days after activation. At the same…

For Science’s Sake

For Science’s Sake

UW’s King Air 200T is the only atmospheric research aircraft in the National Science Foundation-supported fleet operated by a university The University of Wyoming owns two Beechcraft King Air aircraft – a 1977 King Air 200T and a 1983 King Air B200 – operated by the Department of Atmospheric Science and based at Laramie Regional…

MELs and the Part 91 King Air Owner-Operator

You are looking forward to taking your King Air out for a flight – the weather is clear, and your passengers are just as excited to get in the air as you are. However, during your preflight walkaround, you notice that one of your strobe lights is not working. Uh oh! There’s a possibility you…

Aviation Issues: News Update

Tax Reform Bill Signed into Law Commended for Aviation-related Provisions The new tax overhaul package referred to as the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” was signed into law by President Trump on December 22, 2017. Two key provisions that aviation leaders are praising are the immediate expensing of both factory-new and pre-owned (used) aircraft, as…

Ask the Expert: Rambling Replies

Ask the Expert: Rambling Replies

When readers send a question to me or Kim Blonigen, our editor, I try to respond directly without delay. Some questions concern a specific item that affects so few operators that publishing the reply here in my monthly column would merely be wasting ink. However, some questions lend themselves to a wider audience. This month…

Beechcraft’s First Light Twin

Beechcraft’s First Light Twin

Impressed by the success of Piper’s PA-23 Apache and Cessna’s Model 310, in 1956 Beech Aircraft Corporation entered the emerging light twin-engine market with its Model 95 Travel Air. In postwar America, general aviation’s “Golden Age” was born in the late 1940s and by the early 1950s was maturing rapidly, attracting thousands of would-be aviators…

Value Added: Garmin Announces Approval of Additional G5 Electronic Flight Instrument Capabilities

Garmin announced it has received Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approval of additional G5 electronic flight instrument capabilities, including the installation of G5 in place of an existing directional gyro (DG) or horizontal situational indicator (HSI) in select certified fixed-wing general aviation aircraft. When paired with select VHF NAV/COMMs or…

Value Added: Blackhawk Names Western Aircraft as Authorized Dealer

Blackhawk Modifications, Inc. recently welcomed Western Aircraft to their global network of Authorized Dealers. Located in Boise, Idaho, Western Aircraft is an FAA authorized service center, certified aircraft repair station (FE6R532N), and worldwide distributor of parts and avionics for many of the world’s top aircraft manufacturers and OEMs including Beechcraft. The addition of Western Aircraft…

Value Added: Advent’s eABS Receives STC for King Air 300/300LW Variants

Advent Aircraft Systems continues to increase the aircraft count certified to accept its groundbreaking anti-skid braking technology. The FAA has granted an STC for the Advent eABS™ for all King Air 300 and 300LW aircraft. These aircraft variants join the King Air B300 and B200 variants that were STC’d in February 2016 and June 2017…

Value Added: LED Lighting Provider PWI Partners with Rose Aircraft Services

PWI announced they have made Rose Aircraft, a premier FBO operating in Mena, Arkansas, as an Authorized Installation Center for their products. The products that will be available by Rose Aircraft include PWI’s latest offering of LED reading lights, which feature PWI-exclusive, heat-reducing technology that allows the lights to run cooler than incandescent and competitors’…