AOPA News
IFR Fix ADF Required
Pilots dont throw away your automatic direction finders just yet As many readers of the Jan 20 IFR Fix Take a left then a right discovered there was a typographical error in the notes to the Waterbury-Oxford ILS or LOC RWY 36 instrument approach procedure Instead of ADF Required it says AFD Required
FAA announces end of paper medical certificate applications
The good news is medical certificate applications submitted online should be processed more efficiently medical certification processing errors should be reduced and taxpayers should get a break on federal spending However the transition away from paper applications for medical certificates presents AOPA with some concerns for pilots who dont currently use computers
Barefoot Bandit needs new life flight plan judge says
Colton Harris-Moore the 20-year-old known as the Barefoot Bandit was sentenced Jan 27 to six-and-a-half years in prison and three years of supervised release for the seven felony charges he pleaded guilty to on June 17 2011 which included two counts of interstate transportation of a stolen aircraft and piloting an aircraft without a valid pilot certificate
AVWEB
X-47 Drone Testing Sparks Ethical Warfare Debate
Northrop Grummans X-47B drone may represent a major qualitative change in the conduct of hostilities according to the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross ICRC which reports to the Geneva Conventions The X-47B is entering tests to see it land on the deck of an aircraft carrier autonomously -- without in-cockpit or remote-pilot input That sort of capability is only a precursor to whats coming According to an Air Force report the improvements in drone technology will eventually give drones the capacity to make life-or-death decisions while engaged in battle And increasingly humans will no longer be in the loop but rather on the loop And that according to ICRC president Jacob Kellenberger may challenge international law
Border Patrol Planes Used To Smuggle Immigrants
Pilots have begun using small aircraft to smuggle illegal immigrants from the US-Mexico border to inland airports according to authorities who last week seized a Cessna from a Southern California airport and brought charges against one pilot It seems to be a new avenue theyre using Border Patrol Agent Adrian Corona told a local newspaper Federal prosecutors say 30-year-old Lino Rodriguez-Chavez used a Cessna rented from Hemet-Ryan Flight School in El Centro California to fly a group of illegal immigrants from a location near the border to Hemet airport The pilot appeared in court Monday entered a not guilty plea and was release on 20000 bond Multiple flights have been intercepted by El Centro Border Patrol agents in the past few years
Congress Funds FAA For A Few More Weeks
The Senate Thursday followed the House and approved a stop-gap funding measure that will carry the FAA through February 17 at current funding levels The temporary measure provides funds through airport taxes and precedes another vote on long-term funding which is expected to take place in February The temporary measure is the 23rd of its kind and it replaces another that was set to expire on January 31 The last long-term FAA reauthorization bill expired in 2007 For two weeks in 2011 Congress failed to provide either temporary or long term authorization for the FAA leading the agency to temporarily furlough thousands of workers and possibly tens of thousands of contractors Current reports suggest lawmakers are optimistic they can reach an agreement prior to the new February 17 deadline
Barefoot Bandit Anyone Else Would Have Died
In his court room appearances Colton Harris-Moore the late-teen who stole five airplanes as part of a two-year crime spree appeared to be remorseful but he saved his self-praise and color commentary for later according to new reports Emails Harris-Moore sent from prison were monitored by authorities and detailed in a memorandum filed by federal prosecutors ahead of a hearing scheduled to take place in a Seattle court Friday January 27 According to that document the young man referred to police and the prosecution as fools and swine among more colorful language Harris-Moores attorney argues the clips are representative of isolated emotions cherry-picked from personal correspondence to negatively impact her client As released the emails appear to show the young thief had a distinctly more positive opinion of himself and specifically of his piloting abilities
Question of the Week Weight Gain for LSAs
The possibility of an increase in the maximum weight for LSAs is being bandied about at the FAA How much should an LSA weighPlus Last week we asked AVweb readers about crosswind landings Do you crab or slip Click through to see the breakdown of answers
