Robinson Helicopter Company delivered its 1,000th R-66 turbine helicopter. The light single was first introduced in 2007. The R-66 is lighter than its piston-engine counterpart, the R-44, and can haul up to 300 pounds of gear. It sells for $935,000.
Engineered Propulsion Systems (EPS) filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection, clearing the way for investors to take over the reins. The company is developing a type-certificated fuel-efficient 300 to 400 hp-class eight-cylinder aero engine for a variety of applications. It has already spent $60 million toward that goal.
An Aviat Aircraft company-operated Husky crashed in Wyoming during flight testing. The pilot was able to bail of the airplane after undisclosed issues rendered it presumably unflyable. The pilot was said to have suffered minor injuries. Aviat did not say what kinds of flight tests the plane was performing.
Continental Aerospace Technologies earned EASA certification for a 170 hp version of its turbodiesel engine, the CD-170. The powerplant is already planned for a diesel fuel-burning version of Tecnam’s popular P2010 single.
Special events commemorating the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II are going to happen despite the pandemic. The organizing group for the events, which will take place later this month and in September, said it has taken numerous measures to ensure the health and safety of those involved. Events will include memorials to lost veterans and flyovers of World War II vintage aircraft.
Aspen Avionics was acquired by the AIRO group, which has a number of aerospace companies in its portfolio. Aspen has been struggling with issues arising from spontaneous reboots of its primary and secondary flight displays, and the FAA recently issued an AD on the subject.
The second Cessna SkyCourier took to the skies earlier this week. The Textron Aviation product is a twin-engine turboprop utility plane that has generated a great deal of commercial interest. Textron expects to earn certification for the new plane by next year.
In the wake of the 737 Max certification scandal, the FAA has released the results of an internal survey of certification inspectors about the work they do, which found that many of them feel under pressure from superiors and manufacturers to downplay concerns about the products they are regulating.
Phillips 66 will convert a big San Francisco refinery into one that focuses on producing alternative bio fuels, which will cut the plant’s associated emissions by 50%, it said. The company plans to be producing more than 800 million gallons a year of renewable fuels starting in 2024.
Plane & Pilot’s weekly survey of our readers found, somewhat unsurprisingly, that the aviation community is split on the question of mask usage in small planes, with 52% feeling that everybody not in the plane who’s not in your pod should mask up, while 48% felt as though it should be totally up to each person in the plane to make that choice for themselves.
The United States House of Representatives has a bill in the works to provide Covid-19 relief to aviation businesses that have been hit hard by the pandemic. There’s a joint bill in the Senate. The future of the proposal is uncertain, as Congress struggles to come to terms with additional economic relief packages.
The Ninety-Nines, an organization of women pilots, has named Corbi Bulluck as its new president. Bulluck, who is a longtime professional pilot and instructor, will lead the organization that has more than 6,000 members. It was founded in 1929 and its first president was Amelia Earhart.
