A new kit helicopter has had its first flight – hover! – and production of the homebuilt starts this month. Pawnee Aviation, based at McCook Airport, Nebraska, plans to offer up to 60 kits a year. The kit, shown at Oshkosh, uses a 306hp Chevrolet V8 engine and is claimed to cruise at 85mph and have a useful load of 880lb.W: www.pawneeaviation.com ... more

Sywell-based Sloane Helicopters has launched a one-day Safety Course. The £100 course is for a range of abilities and Sloane recommends it as a warm-up for the Licence Proficiency Check.The courses run on the first Friday of each month. Topics covered include throttle chops, autorotations to a specific point, vortex ring and recovery, and manual throttle control.W: www.sloanehelicopters.co.uk ... more

Bristow Helicopters has lost its contract to provide the UK’s Coastguard Search & Rescue (SAR) helicopters to a Canadian company. Bristow has provided Britain’s SAR helicopters for 20 years and recently performed its 10,000th rescue.The Maritime & Coastguard Agency has awarded a five year contract to CHC Scotia, starting from July 2007. CHC will deploy seven specially-equipped SAR helicopters at Sumburgh, Stornoway, Lee-on- So ... more

A new four-cylinder Engine is being developed by British turbodiesel specialist Wilksch. What’s more, the company’s existing three-cylinder WAM-120 unit is heading for EASA certification this year, meaning that a retro-fit kit for certified aircraft can be produced. Extra finance obtained by the Dursley, Glos based company means it is able to push ahead with plans for expansion. It has set late 2006 as the launch date for the new four ... more

A seaplane mini-airline is on the rocks after a crash in Miami, Florida last month. The wing broke off a Grumman Mallard operated by Chalk’s Ocean Airways shortly after take-off , the pilot and 19 passengers were all killed in the crash. Investigators have found cracking in the main wing spar and the FAA has issued an Emergency Air Directive compelling all operators of the type to have the wing inspected. Chalk’s is the only commercia ... more

Socata has upgraded its single engine turboprop six-seater with a more powerful engine and renamed it the TBM 850. The TBM 850 has a higher cruise speed of 320kt at Flight Level 260 (26,000ft) which puts it head-to-head with the new breed of Very Light Jets (VLJs) set to go into production this year.“The TBM 850 is the fruit of our close relationship with TBM customers,” said Socata CEO Stéphane Mayer.“We listened to their requests ... more