AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 42

BRIEFING

NEWS

Jet industry ponders future at Orlando
News from NBAA
A monster cargo door, winglets, and a T-tail complete the design. Cessna’s big news was improvements to the Sovereign, the airplane that is so successful that its tail and wings (with modifications) were chosen for the new $14.9 million Latitude announced in 2011. The $17.8 million Sovereign has winglets, new Pratt & Whitney PW306D engines that boost range by 150 nautical miles (to more than 3,000 nm), autothrottles, and the Garmin G5000 avionics suite. Cessna decided to give up on the name, “Citation TEN,” and just call it the Citation X. It is the fastest business jet in the world. Dassault Falcon Jet said it will offer a 2000LXS based on its 2000LX but lighter and equipped with a three-screen Honeywell Easy II cockpit. The convention mood was marked by modest steps and modifications rather than stop-the-presses news—just as you might expect in the midst of an economic plague. Forecasts presented in Orlando indicate the good times will return by 2017. —AKM

ONCE A YEAR, A THOUSAND companies and 20,000 to 30,000 people meet at the National Business Aviation Association convention to view new products, and assess the state of the aviation industry in the process. The market remains flat, but economic surveys suggested things will look much better in two to four years. Beechcraft Corporation drew the greatest attention when company officials said they must cease warranty coverage (but will continue to make parts) for the 150

Hawker 4000 and Premier 1A jets, out of a fleet of 36,000 products in the field. But there was positive news, too. The company is not only supporting its propeller aircraft, it is planning new models. There will be something to bridge the gap between the Bonanza and Baron, and a couple of new, as-yet-undefined King Air models. The talk of the convention was about its singleengine turboprop that is basically a Premier jet fuselage stretched to carry eight to 11 passengers at 300 knots out of rough fields.

BOB SHOWALTER

TEST PILOT

| BY BARRY SCHIFF
6. Why might jogging reduce a pilot’s tolerance for
high Gs?

1. What is the world’s shortest scheduled airline flight
(in terms of time and distance)?

2. An instrument-rated pilot is flying in actual IFR

conditions in Class G airspace and is not communicating with air traffic control. He should squawk which of the following codes on his transponder? a. 1200 b. 3100 c. 5100 d. a discrete code

7. From reader John Schmidt: Why did director Tony
Scott suddenly and unexpectedly write a $25,000 check and hand it to the captain of the USS Enterprise while filming Top Gun aboard the aircraft carrier?

8. The most unfavorable weather associated with a

3. The Ninety Nines, the largest international organization of women pilots, used to conduct an annual transcontinental air race for women pilots. What famous personality dubbed that race the Powder Puff Derby? 4. From reader Brian Schiff: What is the difference
between spoilers and speed brakes?

low-pressure system is most often found in the _______ quadrant. a. northeast b. southeast c. southwest d. northwest

JOHN UELAND

5. True or False: One or more U.S. airlines operated a
supersonic transport (an SST) in scheduled passenger service within the United States.
42 | AOPA PILOT January 2013

ANSWERS on page 44

AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013

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