The Aspiring Pilot

RFD's spectacular lineup for Airfest 2011 and Hero nominations

If you're an aviation buff, geek or even slightly interested, the 2011 Rockford International Airport Airfest air show is THE place to be this year. As I wrote about in my Chicago General Aviation Examiner column a short while back, the lineup was looking pretty impressive! Since then, the lineup has continued to grow, especially on the static display side! 

The show now features over 50 static display aircraft, a record for the show! Some of the aircraft that will be on static display from the US Military are 3 F/A-18's, 2 F-16's, 2 Navy Helicopters, the P-3 Orion 'Sub Hunter', E-6 'Looking Glass, KC-135 Stratotanker, 3 T-34's, 2 T-38's as well as 2 A-10 Warthogs that were just reconfirmed. The prior two were withdrawn by the military for use in real-world operations. RFD was able to acquire 2 more A-10's from a different unit. 

Civilian aircraft on static display will be an American Airlines B737-800, Delta 757-200, UPS A300F, Fed-Ex DC-10 along with multiple helicopters, business jets and smaller general aviation aircraft.  

Add in the aerial performances by the US Navy Blue Angels, the Golden Knights AND Leap Frog Parachute teams and a dozen other performers and this show should, by far, be the best Airfest to date at RFD. 

The show is June 4th and 5th, 11Am until 5PM (gates open 9Am) at Rockford International airport. Visit the site for more information and tickets.

Also, part of the Centennial of Naval Aviation that the airshow is celebrating, RFD is looking to recognize local heroes, military or civilian before and during the show. Any military servicemember (current or retired) that has 'contributed to the defense of the country' or any public servant (police officer, fire fighter, teacher, etc.) that acted for the 'extraordinary betterment of the community' is elligible for nomination. You can see more information, the nomination application and the reward for those selected under my Chicago General Aviation Examiner article. 

Hopefully, I'll see you there! 

Piper cancels distribution agreement for PiperSport LSA

PiperSport in flight

Photo: by ben.fitzgerald via flickr.com

Sad news for fans of the PiperSport light sport aircraft.  Piper announced today that they were cancelling their distribution partnership with Czech Sport Aircraft to distribute their LSA as the PiperSport.  My full article on the press release can be found at my General Aviation Examiner site here. 

I did email Piper for additional details on the reasons behind the cancellation, particularly what the actual differences cited; however, they have not responded as of yet.  I am curious on if Piper may be considering designing and manufacturing their own LSA in the future, once the LSA market stabilizes and matures; however, that's purely speculation.  The PiperSport did seem to have a decent social media following as mentioned in my article.

The PiperSport was one of the nicer LSA aircraft and seemed to fit the Piper family well.  It's possible the redesign of the PiperJet to the Altaire may have played a roll as well, especially in this tight economy.  If Piper answers any of my questions, I'll be sure to update the Examiner.com article and let you all know.  As for now, there are still other LSA's on the market and in design, so the LSA segment should not suffer too large of a setback, especially since Czech Sport Aircraft can still manufacture and distribute the airplane, albeit without the PiperSport moniker.  

Small plane crashes into fitness club in Naperville, IL.

from my Chicago General Aviation Examiner

A small airplane, Piper PA-32R Lance, crashed into the Naperville Xsport Fitness building at 2780 Fitness Dr.  The airplane hit one of the decorative towers on the corners of the building and came to rest inside the tower.  The airplane, tail number N3402Q, had just departed Naper Aero Club Airport (LL10), a private field and was destined for Pittsburgh.    (Full Story Here) 

AOPA's 2010 Sweepstakes plane to attend Midwest LSA expo

Coincidently, when I write about the new 2011 AOPA sweepstakes plane, I find out that the 2010 sweepstakes plane, the Remos GX will be at the 2nd Annual Midwest LSA Expo.  I did a quick write up of the plane coming to the expo along with some other LSA's that will be on display at my Chicago General Aviation Examiner page. 

I'm trying to see if there is a way to make it down there to interview the pilot of the plane Jill Tallman as well as interview and write up reviews of as many of the planes as I can.  Would be a great way to establish contacts in the LSA industry for future news and articles.   

I'm very interested in these LSA aircraft, though I'd love to own a 4-seater, just for family trips, but still, I think that LSA's haven't even started to make a dent in the aviation field.  I still foresee them helping to slowly make general aviation more affordable. 

'Crossover Classic Skylane' - AOPA's 2011 sweepstakes airplane

See my National General Aviation Examiner article for the full details, but this is definitely one airplane I would LOVE to have! It just sounds amazing.  Just a quick excerpt of the performance expected of the 182 once the modifications are completed:

...The first step will be completed by Air Plains, and will be a replacement of the C-182's engine with a factory remanufactured Teledyne Continental Motors IO-550D engine.  This modification will take the Skylane from the factory 230HP to 300HP, a dramatic improvement of @30%.  According to Air Plains website, cruise speed increases from 145MPH up to 180-185MPH and rate of climb increases from 1,000FPM to 1,700-1,800FPM at sea level.  The service ceiling also improves from around 18,000' to 24,000'.

Add in the instruments, interior, etc. as well as the amazing paint jobs they place on their sweepstakes planes, and this will be an amazing aircraft! I'm looking forward to it making a stop in the Chicago area sometime next year so I can photograph it, write about it, and maybe, even get a courtesy media ride on it! 

Ride 'em cowboy! New saddle seat concept for airlines

Okay, just looking at the picture above, I can immediately say, I don't think so.  These seats are a concept introduced by Aviointeriors, an Italian company specialising in airplane interior designing.  Current 'space' in economy between seats is a whopping 28 inches, these seats will bring that down to 23 inches.  5 more inches per row, so on a 32 row airplane for example, this will add @160 inches of space, or the ability to add 6 more rows of seats, 6 wide so 36 more fare paying passengers.  

The 'SkyRider' seats (as they're called) are only recommended for short-haul flights of less than two hours.  Still, looking at the picture, it doesn't look all that comfortable, even for 'less than two hours.'  So far, no airlines have said they're adding these seats; however, the FAA said that the it appears the seats WILL meet FAA safety requirements.  

Some considerations are that airplane manufactures will have to demonstrate that the extra added capacity will leave the airplane within the evacuation timeframe as well as other factors.  I view this as one more step toward airplanes truly becoming a way to herd passengers from one location to another, without a care about customer service, comfort, but all for the extra revenue generated.  

It is still a step above the 'standing' passenger concept suggested by Ryanair's CEO, but it's virtually at that level. Add the fact the there's even less room for underseat bags (and most likely no additional room for carry-ons above) and the airlines get to check even more bags and charge for those as well.  

It's time to let the airlines know, enough is enough, do not support this new seat concept.  Me, if the idea keeps moving forward, I'll be looking at general aviation at getting around.  Rent or enter a partnership on a Cessna and I'll fly myself around, no more TSA hassles at the airport terminal, no more schedules, and MUCH more comfort.