CoronaVirus
Update 5-3-20: Can
I go flying? AOPA has a Covid-19 information page that has a
state by state listing for information about flying requirements. However,
AOPA mentions that you need to base your decision on the results of checking
mutliple resources. WMUR
has a special page loaded with info. AOPA
has a page for New Hampshire, but there is no specific info for aviation.
Perhaps we could
use a clear 4 bullet list from DiscoverBoating web site as a guideline
...
CoronaVirus
Update 5-1-20: AirVenture 2020
Cancelled The 68th annual
Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) AirVenture Oshkosh fly-in has been
cancelled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
..
Aerion
AS2 Supersonic Business Jet 4-25-20:
Aerion
Supersonic has unveiled a major design update for the AS2 business
jet. It is designed to supercruise with nonafterburning engines over ranges
around 5,000 nm at up to Mach 1.4, with a cabin large enough for 12 passengers.
Mach 1.4 is a little over 1,000 mph. That's pretty fast, but what about
the boom? "Aerion therefore aims to offer a boomless cruise capability
up to around Mach 1.2 (920 mph) by exploiting the Mach cutoff phenomenon
in which thicker air at lower altitude refracts the boom away from the
ground under particular atmospheric conditions." Work on the Aerion began
in 2004, the year after the Concorde retired, which flew at Mach 2.2 (1,687
mph).
..
Coronavirus
Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Payroll Support Program
(PSP)4-19-20:
Avweb
reports that the Federal government has agreed to give about a dozen
airlines somewhere around 5 billion dollars each. For some airlines the
money will be split be between loans and grants. For example: "United Airlines
announced on Wednesday that it expects to receive approximately $5.0 billion
from the federal government, about $3.5 billion of which will be a direct
grant with the remaining $1.5 being a low interest rate loan." The direct
grants require no pay back.
..
Boeing
Announces Phased-In Return To Commercial Production 4-17-20:
It looks like we're going to try and get back to work but the process seems
like it will be graduated in phases.
"Boeing
plans to resume production of its widebody commercial aircraft in the
Puget Sound area factories starting as early as April 20 following almost
a month-long shutdown in response to the COVID-19 pandemic."
...
CoronaVirus
Update 4-10-20:
What do you do with thousands of commercial jet aircraft when all the aircraft
are grounded? Not just in the United States, but on the whole planet? Avweb
just posted an incredible video from a YouTube Channel called Ishrion
Aviation. Ishrion Aviation also has a website. In the new mentality of
the Internet, Ishrion does not identify itself, at least it's not easy
to find. Whether that lack of identity is intentional or inadvertent remains
to be seen. Aside from that, the video is certainly an eye opener. One
thing for certain, the video wasn't made by someone running around with
a Go-Pro.
...
Inadvertent
Ejection 4-9-20:
As the saying goes, "You can't make up this stuff!" So, you are a contractor
for the French Air Force and to show appreciation for the work you do someone
decides to surprise you with a ride in a French Rafale fighter jet. According
to AviationWeek, the story describes a list of incredible oversights
that sounded conspicuous. The article continuous to make light of a malfunction
that stopped the pilot seats for being ejected when the passenger inadvertently
grabbed a handle for security that turned out to be the ejection handle...
oops? His seat belt was loose and his helmet was loose and came off when
he was ejected?
...
EAA
225 April 2020 Newsletter and Meeting Announcement
4-6-20: "Hello
Everyone, Due to the Covid-19 crisis across the country and right here
in NH and ME, EAA 225 will not be holding
any regular meetings and/or social events until the crisis has dissipated.
As soon as the chapter officers have tested the waters (so-to-speak) regarding
hold a virtual meeting, we will notify the members with instructions on
how to join in a meeting for April and onward as necessary. Thank
you for being patient.
Regards, Gerry"
2020
Aviation Weather 4-3-20:
What's the fastest way to get the weather status at Skyhaven? Simple, bookmark
the Skyhaven weather page and in two seconds you have the current weather
conditions in the Skyhaven and U.S. area. Why do I say two seconds? Because
there are no adds or outrageous automatic playing videos to bog or delay
your computer or Android/iPhone. Oh, how many hours of daylight left? Hint,
don't think or calculate, click on sun... bam! There it is. Try it, you'll
like it. (below sample from Skyhaven weather page)
Bookmark this link:
http://skyhavennh.com/weather.html#for
CoronaVirus
Update Southern Maine Aviation 4-1-20: Here's an
excerpt from a recent email from Southern Maine Aviation.
"Due to the ongoing
pandemic, we are limiting our operations until May 18th, 2020. These restrictions
may continue beyond May 18th due to health advisories and conditions described
by the CDC. Please use caution and be patient while we do our best
to meet everyone’s needs. Flight instructors can still be reached
by telephone or email to help with remote training or scheduling."
...
CoronaVirusUpdate
- AOPA "Should we still be flying?"
3-30-20: Covid-19
continues to spread. What should we do and where can we go gets more confusing
by the day. According to AOPA some airports are asking pilots not to land
there during the stay-at-home orders from governors and mayors but the
runways are still open. Should we still be flying during this pandemic?
AOPA ask a doctor that question and here's his answer:
...
New
Hampshire’s Stay-At-Home Order 3-26-20:
According
to NHPR website:
"Governor Chris Sununu issued a stay at home order on Thursday, March 26,
for New Hampshire residents, in effect until May 4th. He ordered
all non-essential businesses to close, starting at midnight Friday, March
27. The moves are part of the state's broader efforts to slow the spread
of the coronavirus in New Hampshire.
In a press briefing
on Thursday, Governor Sununu said essential businesses can stay open. These
include health care facilities, gas stations, grocery stores, convenience
stores, hardware stores, homeless shelters, food banks, animal health services,
restaurants, and breweries. A full list of essential and non-essential
businesses will be released by the governor on Friday, March 27."
..
CoronaVirus
Update Skyhaven Flying Club Meeting Cancelled 3-24-20:
Hello SFC Members, Based on the latest CDC and Government recommendations
we have decided not to go forward with this months meeting. If you would
like to fly 305 and are not familiar with the new equipment please reach
out to one of our CFI for some training. PLEASE, all be safe and take care
of one another. Thanks, Jamie
...
CoronaVirus
Update Southern Maine Aviation 3-18-20: Here's
an excerpt from a recent email from Southern Maine Aviation.
"All flight school
operations – dual instruction and aircraft rentals - are canceled until
approximately April 6th. Conditions will be monitored / evaluated
daily, and restrictions may be extended beyond this. We will restrict
the use of the facilities by non-essential personnel during this time.
Customers needing fuel and limited services will be provided for during
this time. Ground instruction, check rides, or hanging out in the
lobby will be temporarily suspended."
...
Opinion:
COVID-19. By The End Of May, Most World Airlines Will Be Bankrupt 3-17-20:
According
to Aviationweek.com, the lack of global unity with world governments
toward the global airline crisis would result in major bankruptcies. "By
the end of May-2020, most airlines in the world will be bankrupt. Coordinated
government and industry action is needed—now—if catastrophe is to be avoided.
Messages are mixed and frequently quite different. Each nation is adopting
the solution that appears best suited to it, right or wrong, without consideration
of its neighbors or trading partners. It was because of aviation’s central
role that the world’s governments convened in 1944 to establish a multilateral
framework for post-war aviation. A fully functioning airline system was
considered essential to future world peace and prosperity and coordination
was urgent."
..c.
EBACE
Canceled, AEA Postponed 3-16-20:
According
to AvWeb, Aviation events are closing or postponing events all over
the world as the pandemic virus threatens business and social events. "The
European Business Aviation Association and the National Business Aviation
Association, was scheduled for May 26-28 in Geneva but the uncertainty
surrounding the staging of such events, recent actions by the Swiss government
and concern for the health and safety of participants made it untenable.
The Aircraft Electronics Association recently postponed its convention
scheduled for March 24-27 in Nashville to a future undetermined
date and Sun ’n Fun has been postponed until at least May 5-10.
Several airshows in the southern part of the U.S. scheduled for
late March and early April have also been scrapped."
...
Sun
‘n Fun Postponed Until May 5-10 3-13-20:
According to
AvWeb, "Sun ‘n Fun has been postponed until May 5 to 10, 2020 on concerns
over the
spread of Covid-19. City authorities said Friday that a decision will be
made on April 17 on whether another postponement will be necessary
“depending on the virus and what happens between now and then.” The show
was originally scheduled for March 31 to April 5."
EAA
225 March 2020 Newsletter
3-9-20: "First meeting of the new
year
had roughly 10 in attendance. It’s evident that several members are still
away on their winter homes outside of New England. After viewing the latest
EAA Video members were updated from Peter B., on the upcoming Wings &
Wheels scheduled for June 6, 2020. The event continues to grow as one of
the areas EAA Chapter 225 big events of the year.."
2020
AOPA Sweepstakes RV-10 is Ready! 3-7-20:
AOPA reports that the RV-10 sweepstatkes aircraft for 2020 is ready.
New paint,
interior, instrument panel, for all practical purposes it's a new 4 place
aircraft. If I win I'm trying to decide what to do with it, (besides fly
around New England and stop at all the airports to say hello, and checkout
my new AOPA aircraft. Maybe I'll build a special plexiglass mini-hangar
next to the fence by the fuel farm on a 2 foot high platform so everyone
can see it as they drive by the airport.
..
VIP
TFR OVER SCRANTON, PA ON THURSDAY, MARCH 5, 2020 3-3-20:
A NOTAM has been published that will affect flight in the area during President
Trump's planned visit.
...
2020
Air Warfare Symposium 3-2-20:
"AFA's Air Warfare Symposium
is a premier event for the aerospace and defense industry geared toward
the professional development of Air Force officers, enlisted members, civilians,
retirees, and veterans. The symposium brings together the top leadership
of the Air Force as well as leaders in industry, academia, and government
officials to discuss the issues and challenges facing our Air Force today
and in the future." "Billionaire entrepreneur and SpaceX founder Elon Musk
has told the U.S. Air Force the fighter era is over. The really dangerous
future” is autonomous drone warfare, Musk said Feb. 28 during the annual
Air Warfare Symposium here. Musk said he does not necessarily like this
idea but it will become reality."
..
What
is a "Loyal-Wingman"? 2-27-20:
"Development of a loyal-wingman drone by Boeing in Australia may not be
a black program, but it is at least light gray." It is also called, "the
fighter-like Airpower Teaming System (ATS)." This autonomous drone is designed
to fly with one manned fighter jet in numbers of 4 to 14 drones per manned
fighter jet. So you're flying along in your F-15 fighter jet (as shown
in the video) and you look out the window (canopy) and see 14 unmanned
drones carrying various types of armament and are flying with you "autonomously"
and waiting for a command from you to perform a military tactical maneuver?
They can also be used to protect transport jets, missiles and probably
any vehicle in the sky. Here's
an article from aviationweek.com that I had to read twice, maybe three
times, before I understood just what the writer was talking about. The
whole project appears to be cloaked under The Royal Australian Air Force
(RAAF), which the service calls the Loyal Wingman–Advanced Development
Program.
..
Mission
Human Flight - The Dubai Jetman 2-24-20:
Everyone knows about the flying jetman Yves Rossi where he jumps off a
helicopter with his wing suit with four jet engines the size of which you
normally see on model jet RC aircraft. Well it looks like the next step
has been taken where another professional skydiver decides to take off
from a pier and hover around like Frankie Zapatta on his jet hover board,
and then climbs out at a steep rate of climb and flies around Dubai for
a few minutes then opens his parachute and lands on the pier with pinpoint
precision. I wonder if you need a FAA medical to do that?
Airbus
Unveils the Maveric BWB 2-19-20:
Airbus
introduced its Model Aircraft for Validation
and Experimentation of Robust Innovative Controls (MAVERIC) blended wing
body (BWB) technological demonstrator on Tuesday
at the 2020 Singapore Airshow. Apparently NASA, Boeing, Lockheed-Martin
and others are working on analizing the blended wing body. As everyone
knows, this is not the first time the BWB has been worked on. At
the AvWeb webpage article about this project a lively discussion follows
at the end of the article.
..
DARPA
Reveals LongShot Program 2-18-20:
DARPA, seeks to develop an air vehicle that can be deployed from existing
fighter jets or bombers and can carry air-to-air missiles (AAMs) to effectively
engage multiple adversary air threats at longer ranges. LongShot
program, can be deployed either externally from existing fighter jets
or internally from existing bombers.
..
CORA
Autonomous eVTOL 2-12-20:
Back in March of 2018 Popular Science did an article about CORA. Another
article recently showed up in Aviation News about the company showing the
aircraft at the Singapore Airshow. A company called Wisk which is described
as joint venture startup between Boeing and Kitty Hawk. Cora is a two-seat
autonomous vehicle powered by 12 boom-mounted independent lifting propellers
for vertical flight. Cora will be certified by the New Zealand Civil Aviation
Authority." Not only is the aircraft autonomous, Cora is designed to be
autonomous from the start. We are going straight to self-flying with two
seats, so it is not optionally piloted." Why am I thinking of George Jetson?
.
ULA
Launches ESA-NASA Solar Orbiter Spacecraft 2-10-20:
A United
Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral
Air Force Station on Feb. 9, sending a joint European-U.S. science spacecraft
on its way to study the Sun’s polar regions. The 189-ft tall (58-meter)
Atlas V was outfitted with a 4-meter diameter payload which is the first
launch of the year for ULA, a partnership of Lockheed Martin and Boeing.
The rocket is powered by a Russian-made, liquid-oxygen and kerosene-fueled
RD-180 engine...
more
:
As the saying goes, "You can't make up this stuff!" So, you are a contractor
for the French Air Force and to show appreciation for the work you do someone
decides to surprise you with a ride in a French Rafale fighter jet. 
holding
any regular meetings and/or social events until the crisis has dissipated.
As soon as the chapter officers have tested the waters (so-to-speak) regarding
hold a virtual meeting, we will notify the members with instructions on
how to join in a meeting for April and onward as necessary. Thank
you for being patient.
Larochelle the Alton Bay Ice Airport will not open this winter for 2020.
Warm weather conditions and bad ice formations with ice thickness' below
the required 12 inches have persisted with no improvement is sight.
the
aircraft at the Singapore Airshow. A company called Wisk which is described
as joint venture startup between Boeing and Kitty Hawk. Cora is a two-seat
autonomous vehicle powered by 12 boom-mounted independent lifting propellers
for vertical flight. Cora will be certified by the New Zealand Civil Aviation
Authority." Not only is the aircraft autonomous, Cora is designed to be
autonomous from the start. We are going straight to self-flying with two
seats, so it is not optionally piloted." Why am I thinking of George Jetson?