Merger shows aviation industry on road to recovery

By John Nolan, October 25, 2010 Springfield News-Sun

PIQUA — Tailwind Technologies Inc.’s purchase of an engine accessories manufacturer to complement Hartzell Propeller Inc. could get a boost, now that the piston-powered aircraft industry is starting to recover from a three-year slump.

Tailwind Technologies on Sept. 30 completed the purchase of what was then known as Kelly Aerospace Energy Systems LLC, of Montgomery, Ala., for an undisclosed sum. Tailwind, the Piqua-based parent of Hartzell Propeller, has renamed Kelly Aerospace as Hartzell Engine Technologies and structured it as a sister company to Hartzell Propeller.

It is part of a trend in the aviation industry that allows component suppliers to expand their business by offering a broader menu of parts and services to aircraft manufacturers, industry analyst Brian Foley said.

The piston-powered aircraft industry is showing signs of beginning at least a modest recovery after a severe worldwide slump that saw deliveries of planes for general aviation fall by 65 percent from 2007, as the recession took hold. Industry billings for general aviation airplanes have increased for two consecutive quarters, according to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association.

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Lumpkin County (9A0) host an “Airport Day”

Contact:
Jimmy Berrong Chairman 706-864-6473
Jerry Morris Secretary 706 864-5902
Lumpkin County Airport Committee

Guy Wimpy Day Honors Local Aviator
October 14 (Dahlonega, GA) – Local aviation pioneer A.G. (Guy) Wimpy will be honored on Saturday, October 23 from 10 am to 2 pm at the Lumpkin County Wimpys Airport. Guy Wimpy Day includes helicopter displays, Lumpkin County Sheriff and Fire Department exhibits, and free EAA (Experimental Aircraft Association) Young Eagle airplane rides for kids ages 8 to 17.

“Guy Wimpy and his family provided a great gift for Lumpkin County when they dedicated this parcel of land as a public airport in 1966,” said Jimmy Berrong, Chairman of the Lumpkin County Airport Committee. Berrong said many young (and “older”) student pilots earned their wings at this airfield. Today, this is the only public airport on the GA 400 corridor outside of the Hwy 285 loop around Atlanta. Visitors and businesses use the airport as well as local pilots who maintain airplanes here year round.

At 10 a.m., guest of honor Kathleen Billie Wimpy, Guy’s spouse of 41 years, will arrive via airplane and accept her place as guest of honor at the opening ceremony. Guy, who passed away in 1985, and Billie served Dahlonega and Lumpkin County in several civic and social capacities and were crowned Gold Rush King & Queen in 1981. Billie is 89 years old and still enjoys flying, as she often did with her husband both for business and leisure.

Guy Wimpy bought his first airplane in 1941. Over the next 26 years, he logged more than 10,000 hours of flying time, which according to Berrong is a remarkable amount of time for a general aviation pilot, even today.

Guy’s legacy, his love of flying, continues to be passed to people of all ages in this community event.

The Army National Guard, Emory Air Ambulance, and the Georgia State Patrol all will have helicopters on display. The Civil Air Patrol will have an aircraft and volunteers on hand. Local pilots are donating their time, planes, and fuel for the Young Eagle Rides. Parents should bring proof of age for riders and will need to sign a waiver at the event.

Free hot dogs and drinks will be served starting at 11 a.m. In case of rain, the event will take place Sunday, October 24th, from 1pm to 5pm.

Guy Wimpy Airport Day is organized and sponsored by Friends of Lumpkin County Airport. No public money or tax dollars are used for this event.

http://www.teamrv.us/

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SPINS, IMPOSSIBLE TURNS: REAL-WORLD EMERGENCIES DISSECTED.

The AOPA Summit will host a “Spin Myths” forum with Garmin International test pilot Tom Carr and master aerobatic instructor Rich Stowell Nov. 11 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

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Another Emergency Interstate Landing

Story by www.wave3.com

By Marisela Burgos – bio | email
Posted by Charles Gazaway – email

LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) – Early Friday morning, emergency crews remained on the scene of a small plane that made an emergency landing on the Watterson Expressway near Taylorsville Road.

The plane, a Piper PA-28, landed in the westbound lanes of the Watterson just west of the Taylorsville Road ramp shortly after 11 p.m. Thursday. Four people were reported to be onboard, but no injuries were reported.

The aircraft came to a stop on the grassy shoulder of the interstate off the driving lane. Traffic on westbound Watterson was flowing using the outside lanes.

According the FAA website, the registered owner of the plane is Benjamin Price of Fisherville, KY. It is not known if Price was onboard the aircraft at the time of the emergency landing.

Kathleen Bergan, communications manager of the FAA Southern region, said initial reports indicate Bowman Field was the plane’s intended destination. Bergan said the FAA is investigating and the National Transportation Safety Board has notified of the crash.

www.Wave3.com

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FAA fails to act on many NTSB recommendations

By Richie Duchon
News21
Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Every year, planes crash in accidents that could have been avoided.

Ice can build up on the wings of a plane like it did in 1997 when a plane trying to land at the Detroit airport lost speed and crashed, killing all 29 on board.

The problem might be a poor repair job. That was the case in 2005 when the right wing fell off of a Chalk’s Ocean Airways flight just after takeoff from Miami. Two crew members and all 18 passengers died.

And then there are the times when a pilot is just too exhausted to fly and does so anyway. That is what investigators believe happened in 2004 when a Corporate Airlines plane crashed short of the runway in Kirksville, Mo.

The Federal Aviation Administration lists pilot error as the leading cause of plane accidents, but an analysis of accident data by News21, a national university student reporting project, and the Washington-based Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit investigative journalism organization, shows that the major causes of air accidents include ice buildup on aircraft, risks on runways, faulty aircraft maintenance and overtired pilots.

For four decades, the National Transportation Safety Board has urged the FAA to take steps to reduce the likelihood of these kinds of accidents, issuing more than 520 recommendations.

But in many cases those recommendations have gone unmet, according to a review of accident data and government documents and interviews with dozens of industry and safety specialists.

Recommendations languish for many reasons: The process of changing rules is long and complex; industries resist expensive fixes; unions fight changes in work requirements; and sometimes years of research and product development are needed.

But many believe that the biggest cause of delay lies with the FAA itself.

Icing conditions

Tricia Coffman still breaks down in tears when she remembers the phone call telling her that her husband died in a plane crash in Pueblo, Colo., along with seven others in 2005.

“Losing him can’t be for nothing,” she thought. So she joined the National Air Disaster Alliance Foundation, a group that represents survivors and family members of aviation accidents.

Coffman learned that a similar accident had taken place 10 years earlier. When American Eagle Flight 4184 – in a holding pattern over Chicago O’Hare International Airport for 30 minutes – began its descent, the right wing made a dramatic dip, and the plane crashed in Roselawn, Ind., killing all 68 people on board. NTSB investigators said the crash was caused by the plane flying into freezing rain.

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