Replaces OEM Lead Acid Design Concorde is pleased to announce that the popular Embraer 500 (Phenom 100) FAA approved STC SA01633WI has received ANAC validation in Brazil.

Cites Accident In Which Airplanes Were Directed Into Thunderstorms In a letter addressed to acting FAA Administrator Michael Huerta, the NTSB is recommending that the agency look into ways that real-time lightning displays can be offered to air traffic controllers.

SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Set To Launch May 19th The first U.S. commercial space flight is scheduled to launch this week from Cape Canaveral. Commercial launch company SpaceX has built a capsule that will go to the ISS and thus open the era of commercial space flight. The Falcon 9 rocket is on track to launch on Saturday, May 19, with a backup date of May 22. The rocket will carry the Dragon capsule into space, on a mission to deliver supplies of food and water to the International Space Station.

Total Sales Exceed $120 million, Including 3 Hawker 4000 Jets EBACE was a good show for Hawker Beechcraft, which announced Thursday that it secured orders for 11 aircraft – including three of its flagship Hawker 4000 super-midsize business jets, a Hawker 400XPR, six King Air 350i turboprops and a King Air 250.

Over 400 Workers, Officials, Others Show Support For GA Manufacturing Senators Mike Johanns and Ben Nelson joined GAMA and over 400 workers, state and local officials and aviation enthusiasts today at Duncan Aviation for a general aviation (GA) jobs rally. The rally was held inside Duncan Aviation’s new paint hangar at the Lincoln Airport.

Sailplanes Not In Contact With ATC Should Squawk 1202 In a notice issued on March 7, 2012, the FAA will now offer transponder code 1202 for glider pilots to use when not in contact with ATC. The new code will help ATC differentiate gliders, which have unique flight and maneuvering limitations, from other VFR traffic.

Company Producing Five Ready-To-Fly Airplanes Per Month On April 18th, 2012 The Airplane Factory received its S-LSA Airworthiness certificate for the first Sling LSA (N511NG), making it the latest LSA to come to market. The Sling began development in 2006 in South Africa, and over 60 airplanes have been delivered in other parts of the world, with over 100 orders received by the factory to date. This airplane is the first US-registered Sling.

Agrees To Take A New Look At Cargo Pilot Exclusion In a surprise move Thursday night, the FAA admitted that it "discovered errors" during the course of preparing its court papers. The FAA now says it is ready to provide the relief requested by the Independent Pilots Association (UPS pilots union), and will take another look at whether cargo pilots should be excluded from new rest rules published in December.

Aero-News: Quote of the Day ANN’s Quote of the Day usually derives from current news, though we reserve the right to pick quotes out of history that have a bearing on the day’s events and issues. Sometimes, you’ll find them timely and in keeping with the content of the day’s news… and sometimes, they’ll just be thought-provoking. Reader suggestions and comments are welcome… and if particularly intriguing, timely, or poignant, may themselves become future Quotes of the Day. Let us hear from you, folks! Aero-News Quote of the Day “To advocate for people to shoot down any object from U.S. airspace is irresponsible, dangerous and unlawful. Unmanned aerial systems are being designed to serve the public good.” Source: AUVSI President & CEO Michael Toscano.

Cites Newspaper Column, Television Drama The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) released a statement Friday from President & CEO Michael Toscano in response to recent depictions in the media that put the unlawful destruction of unmanned aerial systems in a positive light.

Also: Mama Bird Johnson, Lights out For LightSquared, New Cessnas and LearJets, Nextant 400, ACJs, MLX770 Certs, and Aero-Cat-tastrophe! The FAA has just released a report called ‘General Aviation Airports: A National Asset’, which was compiled following an 18-month study to capture the many diverse functions of general aviation (GA) airports. The first customer-built example of the new Onex single-place, folding-wing, aerobatic sport aircraft has flown for the first time. Bill Fisher of Jackson Tennessee flew his AeroVee powered, standard gear Onex on Thursday, May 10th. Bill received the fourth Onex kit sold by Sonex Aircraft, shipped on August 5, 2011. An Arizona court said it will allow a lawsuit against Australian kitplane manufacturer Jabiru Aircraft Company to go forward despite the fact that its headquartered on the other side of the planet. The Arizona state Court of Appeals said that because Jabiru clearly understood that its kits were being sold in the U.S. through a dealer and distribution network, the lawsuit could go forward in Arizona. By all accounts, Evelyn "Mama Bird" Johnson was an amazing woman. Born just six years after the Wright Brothers first flew, "Mama Bird" learned to fly when she was 34 years old and wound up logging over 57-thousand-six-hundred hours … or about 6-and-a-half years … of flight time.

“Systematic flaws in the procurement and deployment systems at TSA continue to plague the agency.” Source: OGR Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA).

One Hundred Percent Screening Will Be Required As Of December 3, 2012 The TSA announced Thursday it has set a deadline for passenger air carriers to conduct 100 percent cargo screening on international flights bound for the United States. Beginning December 3, 2012, all cargo shipments loaded on passenger aircraft must undergo screening for explosives, fulfilling a requirement of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act.

Race Officials Offer Preliminary Details About 2012 Race Prep ANN has received the following statement from Airventure Cup Race Organizers in regards to the 2012 Airventure Cup Race: Over the past week, there have been many posts on social media sites and web forums regarding the 2012 Airventure Cup Race. This statement is meant to clarify and correct some of the statements that were made, as well as provide the public with information regarding the fate of this year’s race. Last week, we were contacted by EAA officials announcing they would no longer support air racing, including the Airventure Cup. This move was a shock to us as much as it was the rest of the aviation community and we are still in the process of evaluating our options to continue the race. However, in an effort to clarify some of the misinformation that was shared in the public forums, we would like to offer the following facts…

Steel Workers Union Alleges Problems With Pinnacle’s DIP Financing The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York has granted final approval to Pinnacle Airlines Corp. for $74.3 million in debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing. The funding is being provided by Delta Air Lines.

Part Of The ‘Wings Of Freedom’ Tour Visiting Mountain View, CA The Collings Foundation will display a replica of Germany’s WWII operational jet fighter, the Me 262, during the “Wings of Freedom” tour stop at Moffett Federal Airfield in Mountain View, CA, May 18th-26th. Along with “White 1″, the display will feature a collection of rare WWII aircraft, including the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress “Nine O Nine” WWII Heavy Bomber, Consolidated B-24 Liberator “Witchcraft” WWII Heavy Bomber and P-51 Mustang. The aircraft will fly into Moffett Federal Airfield in Mountain View, CA.

Alleges Transportation Of Hazardous Materials The FAA is proposing a $395,850 civil penalty against US Airways for allegedly violating U.S. Department of Transportation Hazardous Materials Regulations.

Mission Concept Study Offered By Ball Aerospace A mission concept study has been submitted to NASA by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. for demonstrating a solar electric propulsion (SEP) technologies in space. Ball Aerospace was one of five companies awarded up to $600,000 by NASA in September 2011, to formulate a mission concept to demonstrate the solar electric propulsion technologies, capabilities, and infrastructure required for sustainable and affordable human presence in space.