Gyroplane pioneer dies from injuries
Don Farrington, 69, who produced the only gyroplane currently certified in the United States, died April 23 of injuries sustained in an April 13 accident in Lakeland, Florida.
Farrington was flying an Air & Space 18A gyroplane in the traffic pattern at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport. It was an evening flight after activities for the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In had ended for the day. He was flying brief patterns while waiting to give a demonstration flight to a customer.
The NTSB said the aircraft was on crosswind and started a right turn. It then leveled and began another right turn. Banking continued until the rotor blades were nearly vertical. The gyroplane slid sideways to the ground at a high sink rate. A witness said the fuselage was not distorted by the impact. A company official said that the NTSB has so far found nothing wrong with the aircraft's controls.
Farrington was the owner of Air & Space America at West Kentucky Airpark in Paducah, Kentucky. A retired Pan Am captain and former military pilot, he also owned the airpark that at one time was named for him. Company officials said that development of future aircraft will continue.
Stearman pilot leaves plane near North Pole
Although he made aviation history, Gustavus "Gus" McLeod left two friends behind: his pilot buddy and his biplane.
On April 17, under a bright sun with clear skies and light winds, McLeod circled his 1939 PT-17 Stearman open-cockpit biplane around the geographic North Pole three times. Later, McLeod, 45, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, and his support plane landed on a patch of ice at a National Science Foundation base camp about 36 miles from the Pole.
McLeod buried the ashes of his pilot friend Doug Duff, who was planning on making the trip with him before his traffic reporting airplane went down in 1998.
Besides suffering a touch of frostbite from below-zero temperatures, McLeod faced some huge obstacles. He endured blizzard conditions, engine problems, and malfunctioning radios and GPS receivers, and was nearly lost several times.
After circling the Pole and making a couple of refueling stops, McLeod's troubled engine failed on final approach to a weather station. He fell short of the runway, causing the struts to crack from the hard landing. McLeod had to leave the damaged biplane behind and return home on a commercial flight.
At press time discussions were under way about retrieving the airplane from an ice floe that is moving an estimated 12 miles a day. "I left two friends at the Pole," McLeod said, "Doug Duff and my airplane."
To find out more about McLeod's adventure, visit his Web site ( www.northpole2000.com).
Improved Aviat 110 Special attracts sales
When Aviat Aircraft presented its Monocoupe 110 prototype to dealers in February, the dealers requested changes in the design. It was back to the drawing board, so to speak, and now the new, improved Aviat 110 Special is attracting orders again.
Sales of the aerobatic trainer had been stopped while changes were made to improve the airplane's stability and control characteristics. The new prototype flew for the first time in April. Now first deliveries are planned for September instead of June.
Improvements include a large reduction in adverse yaw, a larger vertical fin and rudder, and lighter control forces. There were also improvements to the interior (see " Fast Eddie and the Deuce Coupe," April Pilot). One dealer who had ordered only one 110 Special and had canceled prior to the improvements now has placed a new order for four of the aircraft.
Another work in progress at Aviat is the Millennium Swift. Construction of a prototype heralding the return of the Globe Swift will begin in June. The aircraft will have considerable improvements over the original model, making it much faster and sleeker. Production of the Swift should start next year.
Van's Aircraft official, son lost in RV-9A crash
Van's Aircraft General Manager William Benedict and his son, Jeremy, died in the crash of an RV-9A prototype on April 13 near Pettigrew, Arkansas.
A preliminary report by the NTSB said witnesses reported hearing an aircraft circle the area for 10 to 15 minutes prior to the accident. The witnesses estimated that visibility was less than 400 feet in fog. The aircraft struck a 60-foot tree about 18 feet below its top, at an elevation of 1,940 feet msl.
Benedict was well known to customers from his work at airshows and fly-ins. He had been with the company for eight years, and was the brother-in-law of Dick VanGrunsven, Van's founder and president. Benedict was also the designer of the company's Web site ( www.vansaircraft.com).
Company officials said the tricycle-gear, 140-kt prototype kit aircraft will be replaced by a 160-kt preproduction prototype already under construction and expected to be completed this month.
Two-year-old satellite photos of the secret military facility at Groom Lake, north of Las Vegas, have been published, according to Aviation Week and Space Technology. You can see the nation's best-kept secret for yourself on the Internet ( www.aviationnow.com). Actually, satellite photos of the base, where captured Russian aircraft have been tested, were circulating in the 1980s. A vendor demonstrated a computerized photo analysis work station at a meeting of the Air Force Association a decade ago that included satellite photos of Groom Lake. One journalist measured the combination paved and dry-lake runway overrun at 24,000 feet. The length was needed to test development of a nuclear-powered airplane, but the idea was abandoned because the aircraft was too heavy.
Lasar gains impulse couplings
Unison Industries has added a new addition to its line of Lasar (limited authority spark advance regulator) electronic engine control systems.
The new Lasar Bush Kit adds impulse couplings to the system, allowing the engine to start when there is not enough electrical power to activate the electronic ignition.
The Bush Kit was endorsed by Swiss pilot Hans Georg Schmid, who used it on his 48,308-nm journey to circumnavigate the globe for a second time on April 29. Schmid brought his Long-EZ to Sun 'n Fun on the way to completing his second lap around the world.
His trip has made him eligible to apply for some 80 general aviation world records.
ExxonMobil introduced a new piston-engine aviation oil at the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In in Lakeland, Florida. Exxon Aviation Oil Elite is a semisynthetic, ashless-dispersant 20W-50 viscosity oil that contains the antiwear/antiscuffing additives required for certain Lycoming engines. ExxonMobil is promoting Elite by sponsoring the Exxon Flyin' Tiger, a highly modified Van's RV that broke the 3,000-meter time-to-climb record at last year's EAA AirVenture Fly-In at Oshkosh. FBOs may order the new Elite after June 1 by calling 888/ 228-4437 and selecting option 9.
Engine failure foils Bohannon's record attempt
Bruce Bohannon, who holds the world C-1b climb record to 3,000 meters (approximately 10,000 feet), failed in his second attempt at the 6,000-meter record during the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In when his Exxon Flyin' Tiger aircraft experienced a catastrophic engine failure while climbing through 10,000 feet.
Bohannon took off from Florida's Lakeland Linder Regional Airport at 11 a.m. on April 10 and injected nitrous oxide into the engine during the entire climb to boost engine performance. He heard the engine hiccup at 8,000 feet.
"I chose to ignore it and go on," Bohannon said. He said that at 10,000 feet he was four seconds ahead of the climb profile he needed to set the record - then the Mattituck-Lycoming IO-540 engine failed catastrophically, spraying the windshield with oil.
"That was pretty much the end of that run," said Bohannon, who declared an emergency and returned to Lakeland, where he made a successful dead-stick landing on the runway. Bohannon, who first attempted the 6,000-meter record at the Copperstate Fly-In in Phoenix last October, plans to try again during Oshkosh.
Lancair has introduced a new turbocharged version of its Columbia 300 fixed-gear certified single. The new Columbia 400 will be equipped with a Continental TSIO-550 engine. Speeds are expected to be around 220 KTAS at FL180 and 240 KTAS at FL240. The price has not been set but is expected to fall in the range of $360,000 to $380,000. The prototype should be available for display at EAA AirVenture 2000 this summer. In other news, Lancair said it now has 110 orders for the Lancair 300. For more information, visit the Web site ( www.flycolumbia.com) or call 541/318-1144.
Cessna rolls out 100th Citation Excel
Calling it a "significant achievement," Cessna recently celebrated the rollout of its one hundredth Citation Excel from the company's Wichita production facility.
In 30 months the company went from producing one airplane every 25 days to producing a jet every three days. "This is the fastest production-line acceleration in the history of the Citation program," Cessna President Charlie Johnson said. "Teamwork and an unwavering commitment to the program are to be credited for the attainment of this milestone."
The popular business jet was introduced in 1994 and granted FAA type certification four years later. Today, more than 70 have entered service, logging more than 15,000 flight hours.
In related news, an FAA supplemental type certificate has been granted for installation of Safe Flight's N 1 computer in the Excel. The computer displays real-time target thrust settings for takeoff, climb, cruise, and go-around. Safe Flight officials said the computer lowers the risk of engine damage, reduces repair costs, and extends operating life.
Futuristic Lancair instrument panel shown at Sun 'n Fun
Many pilots attending the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In got to see what the general aviation instrument panel of the future may look like.
At the Lancair exhibit the traditional instrument panel in a Lancair Columbia 300 fuselage display had been replaced with two large liquid-crystal displays from Avrotech. In conjunction with software writer Avidyne, the result is an extremely readable "glass cockpit." Instead of the traditional "sacred six" layout with additional navigation, system monitoring, and engine instruments aligned in rows across the pilot's and copilot's panels, pilots saw two 6-by-12-inch LCD screens.
The left screen displays a television-like picture of an artificial horizon (AH) and a horizontal situation indicator (HSI). The AH display has command bars so flight director inputs can be displayed, as well as a vertical-tape display showing airspeed on the left side of the AH (with continuous digital airspeed and groundspeed readouts) and altitude (also with numerical readouts) on the right side. Immediately below the AH is an HSI. Dedicating 6 by 12 inches of panel space directly in front of the pilot to the two primary flight instruments, and adding only the pertinent data from the secondary flight instruments, results in an instrument scan requiring very little eye movement.
A second LCD panel occupies the middle third of the available panel space. This screen can be used to display navigation chart and terrain data, as well as lightning activity, TCAD, Skywatch, TCAS, and datalink information. The datalink capabilities open up the possibility of real-time weather information and message and communication links. - Steven W. Ells
Futuristic Adam M-309 unveiled
Adam Aircraft Industries of Denver unveiled its version of the twin-engine airplane of the future on April 5 in Mojave, California.
The unveiling at Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites hangar and the short flight demonstration that followed culminated seven months of work by the Adam and Scaled Composites staffs, as well as major component suppliers Teledyne Continental Motors, Hartzell Propellers, Garmin International, Meggitt Avionics, and Vision Microsystems.
In September 1999, Adam officials met with Burt Rutan and asked him to build a proof-of-concept airplane. The airplane had to be a low wing and have two reciprocating engines in a centerline thrust configuration, à la a Cessna Skymaster. Not only did Rutan and his staff design an airplane that fit the somewhat skimpy guidelines specified by Adam, Rutan developed and used "single cure" composite structure manufacturing methods for the wing outer panels, horizontal stabilizer, flaperons, and rudders.
This "very advanced component manufacturing" method should speed the airplane's certification process, said Rutan. All this took place over a seven-month period. No discrepancies were noted on the airplane's initial flight, according to Adam officials.
The Adam M-309 is a six-place pressurized airplane with projected cruise speeds of 230 kt at 20,000 ft and an economy cruise range of 1,500 nm including IFR reserves.
The M-309 is projected to have a useful load of 2,020 pounds with a gross weight of 5,400 pounds. Power is from two turbocharged Continental TSIO-550-G engines. The flying proof-of-concept airplane has Hartzell full-feathering three-blade propellers. Although there were no cowl flaps or landing gear doors installed on the proof-of-concept airplane, Scaled Composites Project Engineer Dave Shaw said the airplane had experienced no rear engine cooling problems in the 19 hours it has flown.
Stall speed at gross weight with landing gear and flaps down is projected to be 69 kt. Estimated rate of climb will be 2,150 fpm at gross weight. Single-engine rate of climb is 600 fpm with the landing gear up or 200 fpm with the gear down. The cabin features a top-pivoting door above the wing that allows access to the cabin area between the first and second seat rows. Cabin measurements are 9.8 feet long by 4.5 feet wide, and 4.25 feet high. Baggage can be stowed in a forward baggage area or behind the rear seats.
Flight controls are conventional with the exception of full-span, narrow-chord flaperons in place of conventional flaps and ailerons. Side sticks replace control yokes.
When asked about the price of the M-309, neither Rick Adam nor John Knudsen, AAI president, would comment. When asked if they were taking orders, the answer was, "No." Adam, a successful businessman, says that the present plan is to start producing certified M-309 airplanes in 2003. The M-309 will be built at a new production facility at Centennial Airport near Denver. For more information, contact Adam Aircraft Industries at 303/779-5140. - SWE
Gulfstream Aerospace has produced 100 Gulfstream V business aircraft and 400 Gulfstream IV aircraft. There are 79 already in customer service. The company has a combined $3.5 billion backlog for the G-V and G-IV-SP models. The G-V is the company's long-range, large-cabin model.
Micco Aircraft to equip SP series with UPSAT Avionics
The newly certified 200-horsepower Micco SP20 and its recently announced higher-powered stablemate, the 260-hp SP26, will now be equipped with a standard Apollo avionics package from UPS Aviation Technologies. (Micco had previously contracted with Honeywell to install the Bendix/King Silver Crown Plus line of avionics.)
The VFR package for the Micco airplanes will include the UPSAT Apollo GX65 VFR GPS/com and SL70 transponder. The IFR package swaps the GX65 for an IFR approach-approved GX60 GPS/com and an SL30 nav/com.
The Apollo MX20 multifunction display is optional in both packages. Micco has 34 orders for the SP20; the SP26 is in the flight-test stage.
Company President Dewitt Beckett believes that the SP26 will begin deliveries in August. Aerobatic certification will come later and will be retroactive for airplanes sold prior to that time.
Price for the SP26 will be $199,500 for the VFR version and $225,000 for the IFR version. For more information, see the UPSAT Web site ( www.upsat.com) or the Micco site ( www.miccoair.com).
Squawk Sheet
FAA issues TCM crankshaft priority letter AD
The FAA officially issued priority letter AD 2000-08-51 in late April, mandating crankshaft material inspections on more than 1,000 Teledyne Continental Motors crankshafts. FAA investigators determined that anomalies in materials are the apparent cause of failures in certain crankshafts. TCM crankshafts manufactured between April 1, 1998, and March 31, 2000, installed in new, remanufactured, or field-overhauled engines are affected. Also, TCM issued a new mandatory service bulletin (MSB-00-5A) that revises the engines and crankshafts affected by the AD. TCM will provide the tools necessary for the material inspection free of charge and has vowed to cover the cost of parts and labor associated with the inspection and any required repairs. For more information, a copy of the new TCM mandatory service bulletin, and a copy of the AD, visit AOPA Online ( www.aopa.org/whatsnew/regulatory/regtcmcrank_material.html).
Mooney unveils product support, financing enhancements
Mooney Aircraft now offers Mooney Flight Support, a comprehensive warranty and customer support program intended to enhance warranty benefits and provide owners with significantly increased technical support.
As part of the program, technical support hours are being extended to 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., 365 days a year, and Mooney tech reps will serve as a single point of contact regardless of whether a part or component is warrantied by Mooney or a supplier. Aircraft-on-ground (AOG) in-stock parts will be shipped as late as 8 p.m. for next-day delivery.
The program also includes six free 40-point, four-hour inspections and oil changes for the original owner during the two-year warranty period.
"This program is designed to catch warranty problems before they occur," said Mooney President Chris Dopp. "It will also facilitate trend monitoring."
Finally, Mooney will reimburse owners for some travel expenses if their aircraft breaks down away from home and cannot be immediately repaired.
"A customer who buys a $300,000, $400,000, or $500,000 aircraft expects product support commensurate with the purchase," Dopp explained. Mooney Flight Support will be available beginning this month, when Mooney's recently announced 5-percent midyear price increase takes effect. Through its dealer network and AirFleet Capitol, Mooney is also offering special financing with interest rates below prime for all 2000 models. - Michael P. Collins
Diamond accepting DA40 deposits
Diamond Aircraft at Sun 'n Fun began accepting deposits on its new four-place DA40 Diamond Star, which is nearing certification in Europe under JAR 23. That's expected this month, with FAA certification to follow; 25 of the aircraft are slated for U.S. delivery next spring, with another 75 to 100 deliveries by the end of 2001.
Diamond is now accepting $5,000 deposits that are refundable if the aircraft does not have FAA IFR certification by March 2001. Initially the aircraft will be manufactured in Austria; eventually, assembly will move to Diamond's plant in Canada, although much of the composite structure will continue to be madein Austria.
In addition, Diamond will establish a network of regional distribution centers in the United States. None have been named, but Diamond's Errol Bader said the company was talking with eight prospects. As many as five DA40s will circulate among dealers this fall for demonstration flights. - MPC
AOPA members in the news
Lauren Kessler, AOPA 355367, of Eugene, Oregon, has published The Happy Bottom Riding Club: The Life and Times of Pancho Barnes, which was to be available in bookstores in late May.
Carl Austin, AOPA 690669, owner of Aerosphere, an aviation consulting, training, and publishing company in Harwood, Maryland, has launched a Web site and online magazine for lovers of things that fly, from Apollos to Zeppelins. The site ( www.aerosphere.com) features original articles and news for the aerospace enthusiast; an art and photo gallery; and flight planning and weather for pilots. Subscriptions to the magazine are free.
John Geyman, AOPA 290279, has published Flight as a Lifetime Passion, an aviation memoir. Modest about his 4,300 flight hours, Geyman focuses instead on what flying has meant to him, highlighting experiences he has had - soaring, hang gliding, aircraft ownership - and lessons he has learned during his 40 years of flying. The book is available for $14.95 plus $3 shipping (Washington residents add $1.29 tax) from Avian Ridge Books, 53 Avian Ridge Lane, Friday Harbor, Washington 98250.
Ann L. Cooper, AOPA 1144827, of Beaver Creek, Ohio, has written How High She Flies, the story of Women Airforce Service pilot Dorothy Swain Lewis, a pioneer who paved the way for women military pilots. The book is available for $34.95 from Aviatrix Publishing, Post Office Box 485, Arlington Heights, Illinois 60006-0485; or visit the Web site ( www.womanpilot.com).
Robert Luther, AOPA 993604, of Hazel Green, Alabama, drew upon his 45 years of GA experience when he wrote his novel, Skybolt. In the story, grass-roots aviators fight to save a small Georgia airport from greedy developers and unscrupulous lawyers. The book is available for $19.95 plus $2.50 shipping from Centurion Publishers, Post Office Box 248, Hazel Green, Alabama 35750.
Dave Jackson, AOPA 877047, has been named president of the San Diego-based King Schools. He previously was vice president for video production. Early in his career he was producer of ABC's Wide World of Flying.
Greg Brown, AOPA 640529, of Fountain Hills, Arizona, has been named the 2000 Industry/FAA National Flight Instructor of the Year. "Few people enter flight instructing with this sort of outcome in mind - certainly I'd never have guessed it could possibly happen to me," Brown said. "Rather, most CFIs are driven simply by the fun of working with people we like, to share common enthusiasm about the uncommonly rewarding activity of flying." The award is the top honor presented to an instructor each year under a cooperative industry/FAA program. Brown is the author of The Savvy Flight Instructor, The Turbine Pilot's Flight Manual, and Job Hunting for Pilots. He is a contributing writer to AOPA Flight Training.
Norm DeWitt, AOPA 281766, of Atherton, California, recently won first place in the Championships of the Americas aerobatic contest in Chandler, Arizona. He flew a Zivko Edge 540 airplane.
Degradation of GPS signals stopped
Making good on a promise made in 1996, President Bill Clinton stopped the intentional degradation of GPS signals by the Pentagon at midnight on May 1, six years earlier than planned. AOPA, which has long supported the move as a step toward precision GPS approaches, applauded the action.
Although the removal of selective availability, as the degradation method is called, does not permit precision approaches, it signals an important step along the way. What it does do, AOPA officials said in a letter to the White House National Security Council, is to help pilots better determine their location on the airport surface. It will also minimize false alarms given by terrain-avoidance systems.
Finally, removal of selective availability improves the performance of local and wide-area augmentation systems that will be used for precision approaches in the future.
Galaxy Aerospace is increasing the pace of customer deliveries that it began in January. The second delivery went to Lions Air, a Swiss charter firm. Lions Air currently has two Astra SPX mid-size jets in service. A third SPX was to be added in May, while the firm expects to take delivery of a second Galaxy in October. Galaxy Aerospace is delivering one aircraft per month and will increase that to two per month this summer.
Museum planned for aviation cadets
From 1917 until the end of the Vietnam conflict, an aviation cadet program churned out pilots for the U.S. Army Air Corps and its successor, the Air Force. Many of these pilots later were active in general aviation or went on to aviation careers.
The Aviation Cadet Museum plans to build a facility near Eureka Springs, Arkansas, to preserve the history of the cadet program. Through hands-on exhibits, visitors will be able to experience the life of an aviation cadet, and even fly an aircraft simulator. The 118,000-square-foot facility is estimated to cost $14 million, and museum officials said that they hope construction can begin next year.
The museum will host the second international Flying/Aviation Cadet convention this November 8 through 11 in Branson, Missouri.
For more information, contact the Aviation Cadet Museum at 542 CR 2073, Eureka Springs, Arkansas 72632; telephone 501/253-5008; or visit the Web site ( www.aviationcadet.com).
Garmin introduces GPS/cell phone
At the Aircraft Electronics Association meeting in Reno during May, Garmin International introduced a cell phone that contains a GPS moving map. NavTalk Pilot, as the product is called, should be available next month and sell for $2,495.
The NavTalk Pilot GPS receiver technology and software are the same found on the Garmin GPS III Pilot.
Through an alliance with AirCell, a company that provides air-to-ground communications for general aviation pilots, Garmin's cell phone can be used either in the air or on the ground.
The unit boasts several additional features. The unit can be wired into the aircraft's audio panel. Using databases on CD-Rom disks, additional ground and coastal information can be loaded into NavTalk. There is also an emergency dialing feature that allows the user to easily call 911 or air traffic control facilities. An internal phone book holds 100 names and numbers. For information, visit the Web site ( www.garmin.com/products/navtalkpilot/spec.html).
Other news from AEA
The Flite Guide 3000 was introduced into the electronic kneeboard competition by ADR products. This portable 9.6-by-6.3-by-1.1-inch Pentium processor-based touch-screen device allows the pilot to view electronic charts and checklists, and connects with most GPS devices to provide moving-map displays. The list price is $6,995.
AirCell, the in-flight cellular telephone company, says that it now offers coverage for half of the United States. By the end of the year, the company expects to achieve 95-percent coverage.
Airshow of Tustin, California, announced the company's Airshow Network, which provides up-to-the-minute news, stocks, weather, and sports directly to the aircraft.
Avidyne unveiled its FlightMax 850, an enhanced ground-proximity warning system. This joins the 450, 650, and 750 FlightMax models.
Avionics Innovations says that its DVD player should gain PMA approval late this year.
Comair Aviation recently opened a new fixed-base operation at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. Boasting a 40,000-square-foot hangar, the $8 million project was designed to provide a wide variety of aviation services. These include a flight-planning room, sleeping quarters, a conference room, overnight hangar space, and deicing capabilities. Comair is a subsidiary of Comair, Delta Connection. For more information, call Comair at 859/767-3500.
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