The Cheapskate's Guide to Getting Your Pilot's License

CalPilots

Are you a wanna-be pilot, but daunted at the numbers you hear when you ask what it costs to learn to fly? There’s no doubt about it — money is often a deciding factor in making the decision to pursue a pilot’s license. That’s why Mike Arman, a pilot since 1978 and an advanced ground…

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Flabob to double amount of hangar space

CalPilots

FLABOBRialto’s loss is Flabob’s gain! Rialto unfortunately lost an airport, but as a result, Flabob gained a bunch of hangars and other airport related items. Flabob’s “briar patch” hangars have been torn down, grading has begun, and asphalt will soon be laid west of the gas pump in preparation for the erection of a whole slew of new hangars–some 65 to eventually be available to house planes at Flabob…doubling the hangar space now offered.

The hangars and other equipment were donated by the city of Rialto. L67 was closed this past Sept. 18. On Oct. 8, Flabob officials were notified that they were the recipient of most of the hangars and equipment offered through Rialto’s “Disposition of

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Expect heavy FAA drone regulations

CalPilots

DroneBy year’s end, the Federal Aviation Administration will unveil proposed rules that apply to anyone flying a small drone that’s even remotely for business purposes.

The FAA is leaning toward strict oversight, according to several people in the drone business who have met with the FAA to discuss regulations.

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Turboprop planes at SLO airport to be replaced with jets

CalPilots

San Luis ObispoSkyWest Airlines, which operates daily flights out of San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport (SLO), is removing all of its turboprop aircraft from service and replacing them with regional jets.

Skywest Inc. aims to “improve SkyWest’s overall efficiency and long-term profitability,” according to a statement released by the Utah-based company. As well, the company noted that retirement of the 30-seat Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia fleet is due in part to “increased costs and challenges associated with new (FAA) FAR117 flight and duty rules.” The rules, implemented in January 2014, were established to give commercial pilots more rest between flights in an effort to combat fatigue.

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San Luis Obispo – Development Around Airport in Question

San Luis ObispoReferendum may derail SLO City Council vote to override airport commission Kevin P. Rice is organizing a campaign against the City Council’s possible override of the safety plan for development around the airport

Kevin P. Rice, a San Luis Obispo resident and frequent City Council critic, is mounting a campaign against an expected council vote to override the Airport Land Use Commission’s safety plan, which limits the city’s future growth.

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Drone sightings near airports, aircraft up dramatically

CalPilots

DroneWASHINGTON — More than a million small drone aircraft have been sold in the past few years, and a growing number of them are turning up in the skies near airports and airliners, posing a risk of collision. Reports of drone sightings near other planes, helicopters and airfields are reaching the government almost daily, say federal and industry officials.

It’s a sharp increase from just two years ago when such reports were still unusual.

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Santa Monica versus the FAA over airport

CalPilots

SMO3The Santa Monica Airport has long been embattled. City officials and nearby residents have made no secret of the fact that they are weary of it, especially as larger and larger private jets take off from and land on its single runway. Neighbors, some living no more than 300 feet from the runway, worry over safety, noise, and air pollution. The city has been in and out of court for decades, dueling with the Federal Aviation Administration — which oversees the city’s compliance with federal rules on aircraft and airport operations — for the right to close the airport or curtail its activities.

Now, the City Council has bypassed the courts and gone to its voters. Measure LC, which asserts that it is up to the City Council to decide how to manage the airport and whether to close all or part of it, passed decisively on Tuesday.
lRelated Your 405 exit is closed, but will Metro or Caltrans tell you?

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Google to take over much of Moffett Field

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Moffett Blimp HangarMountain View, CA – In a deal that promises to restore Moffett Field’s beloved Hangar One, Google on Monday said it would spend more than $200 million to rehab that and two other hangars, create an educational center and assume management for much of the historic air base, drawing cheers from preservationists.

Saying it will use the airfield to conduct research in space exploration, aviation, robotics and other emerging technologies, Google’s subsidiary, Planetary Ventures, also agreed to pay NASA $1.16 billion to rent about 1,000 acres on the site from the federal agency over the next 60 years.

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SMO vote disappointing to GA advocates

CalPilots

A city sponsored ballot initiative — Measure LC — has passed in Santa Monica, Calif., leaving the future of Santa Monica Municipal Airport (SMO) in the hands of the City Council. The measure passed with 59% of voters saying “yes” with 90% of precincts reporting Tuesday. At the same time, voters rejected a separate measure…

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