I don't think anyone can argue that Cirrus co-founder Alan Klapmeier is an aviation genius. He started an airplane making company from scratch that with only two main models has dominated the piston single market for years. That company is currently working on a very promising VLJ prospect with several hundred pre-orders. Though Klapmeier is no longer with Cirrus, they are still going strong. The Duluth News Tribune mentioned Monday that Cirrus sales are up 5% this year. That's a stark contrast to sales being down overall worldwide.
Klapmeier came up with a great product and had the vision and leadership to bring it to market. Now, he's set his sights on a new aircraft: the Kestrel. This 6-place composite turboprop is a great next step for an SR22 owner and boasts performance numbers that beat a major competitor, the Socata TBM-850, and threaten to leave most of the VLJ fleet in the dust. It looks like this aviation genius has another great product and is posed to turn Kestrel Aircraft Company into the next Cirrus.
Looks like the folks at Terrafugia might have a competitor entering the marketplace. Albeit with a slightly less refined solution. The Maverick is essentially a dune buggy attached to a powered parachute, and is targeted to make life easier for those folks working in hard to reach places. I admire the simplicity of the design, not a lot of creature comforts, just what you need to get yourself downrange.
It probably won't go head to head against the folks at Terrafugia, but it's nice to see some more innovation in this whole drive it and fly it space...
This isn't just a cool video. It's the final landings of something very special. Exactly 100 years after the birth of Swiss Aviation, two friends decided to honor aviators of the past with an around-the-world odyssey...
...and what pilot doesn't at least toy with the idea of flying around the world? It's been done before and it'll be done again, but I think it's an impressive accomplishment every time. A couple Swiss pilots recently completed one of these amazing adventures. They flew around the world, in formation, in a pair of Flight Design CTLS LSAs. What a blast! 44,000 kilometers from April 30th to June 19th. They called their adventure "Azimut 270."
Alaskan bush pilots just finished their annual May Day Fly-in, where they come together for everything from hot-topic discussions to flour bombing and STOL competitions! The STOL competition is no doubt the highlight, though. Here are some highlights from last year's competition:
The development of ICON's A5 is still going full-tilt. They've released a video of further testing that includes amphibious operations. It looks like things went pretty smoothly to me. I especially enjoyed the formation taxiing with jet skis.
I realize this is the second somewhat crazy aviation video I posted lately. I promise I'm not some adrenaline junkie or anything, but some of these are just too much fun not to post. I definitely don't recommend trying this at home, but it sure looks cool.
There are a couple practical notes to glean from this though:
When I first heard about flying gliders I thought it sounded boring: no engine, slow-flying airplanes taking very short flights. Luckily, I got the opportunity to try it anyway. I found it to be anything but boring. Even the clunkiest gliders (like my beloved SGS 2-33) don't feel slow when you're in them. The challenge of planning to make it back to the runway and get your landing right the first (and only) time is a thrill. The best part though is finding some type of lifting action that can keep your plane in the air for more than a couple tenths. This video got my heart racing! It shows a truly exciting type of lift-riding called ridge soaring.
