Posts by CalPilots
FAA 45-day comment period on Airspace
Did you know? 11 rules affecting airspace proposed in August? It is amazing how efficient the FAA can be at times. In August 2015, the FAA posted 11 proposed rules to the Federal Register regarding airspace. Did you know that? Until Sept. 1, I didn’t either. On each proposed rule is a 45-day comment period.…
Read MoreFLIGHT ADVISORY GPS Interference Testing 25-27 Aug 2015 Ridgecrest, CA.
Notice Number: NOTC6150 FLIGHT ADVISORY GPS Interference Testing CHLK GPS 15-09 25 – 27 August 2015 Ridgecrest, California Additional information available at the download link below: https://www.faasafety.gov/files/notices/2015/Aug/CHLK_15-09_GPS_Flight_Advisory.pdf
Read MoreAirports Are Important
CalPilots Editor’s Note: Airports are much more than parking lots for aircraft –
VAN NUYS — The Los Angeles Fire Department is ramping up its aerial firefighting arsenal for a busy brush fire season.
On Thursday afternoon, the Fire Department received two Canadian Super Scooper firefighting airplanes that are now based at Van Nuys Airport. Super Scoopers are amphibious and fight fires by collecting water from lakes then dropping that water onto fires from above.
Read More2015 Big Bear Air Fair
Welcome to the 2015 Big Bear Air Fair!
The Big Bear City Airport is pleased to welcome you to its 2015 Air Fair! This exciting event is a longstanding tradition in the community. For more than thirty years, the airport has welcomed audiences young and old to experience the thrill of aviation.
Read MoreCalifornia Modifies Proposed UAV Trespass Bill
Would Consider Any Flight Under 350 Feet As A Violation
The California general assembly is considering a modified UAV trespass bill that would make any flight over private property at an altitude under 350 feet a violation of the state’s trespassing law.
Read MoreHeads Up – Pilot Reports Of UAS Sightings On The Rise
Pilot reports of unmanned aerial systems have topped 650 so far this year – well over the 238 reported for all of 2014, the FAA said this week. The agency said there was a big jump in sightings this summer, with 138 pilot reports in June and 137 in July. Meanwhile, there were just 52 reports for the June-July 2014 period. The sightings were at altitudes up to 10,000 feet and came from a variety of aircraft, from large air carriers to helicopters, the FAA said. On Wednesday, a medical helicopter reported having to maneuver to avoid a UAS while flying at 1,000 feet AGL. Over the summer, unmanned aircraft interfering with aerial firefighting operations prompted the FAA and the National Interagency Fire Center to issue a warning to UAS flyers to stay clear of fires, reminding them that unsafe operations could result in jail time and fines up to $25,000. The FAA, while wrangling with forming UAS safety rules in the personal and commercial sectors, has attempted to curtail problems with similar public safety announcements for airports and sports venues.
Read MoreNew Catalina Air Show In The Works
Organizing an airshow is always a big job, but the folks working to put on the next Catalina Air Show, set for October 2016, face some extra challenges. The show is held on a small resort island, 26 miles off the coast of southern California, meaning any support gear that can’t be flown over has to come on the ferry. And the island’s only runway sits on a small mountain site, with steep drop-offs at both ends. To make the airshow work, the organizers have established the show box just offshore, above the harbor, well in sight of all the coastal restaurants, boaters, beachgoers and tourists. “That means our audience is not at the airport, but in the resort area at Avalon,” says Jeff Herold, who is heading up the show planning. “So we can’t charge admission to the show — we have to find other ways to make it work.”
FLIGHT ADVISORY – GPS Interference Testing – Ridgecrest, CA
FLIGHT ADVISORY – GPS Interference Testing – CHLK GPS 15-08 – 11-27 August 2015 – Ridgecrest, California Centered at 360822N1173846W or the BTY214059 The entire flight advisory may be accessed and downloaded at the following address: https://www.faasafety.gov/files/notices/2015/Aug/CHLK_15-08_GPS_Flight_Advisory.pdf
Read MoreMojave Mile to host Bonneville racers
With hundreds of participants left hanging after the cancellation of this year’s Bonneville Speed Week, organizers of the event managed to secure another location for the annual event, moving it temporarily to the Mojave Air and Space Port, home of the Mojave Mile speed trials.
Scheduled for this weekend, Speed Week had attracted more than 550 entries from all over the globe – racers bent on testing their hot rods, streamliners, and motorcycles on the salt of Bonneville. Even after the announcement of Speed Week’s cancellation last month, enough of the people who had entered still wanted to race, so officials at the Southern California Timing Association searched for an alternative venue.
Read MoreStereotypically atypical
Everybody knows that people who are into aviation are rich. They’re spoiled, self-absorbed, 1%-ers who have no regard for what it takes to get by in the real world. Heck, airplanes cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and that’s just for the small ones. Yep, pilots and aircraft owners are filthy rich scum who do…
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