Chad Trautvetter
Online Editor
Chad is the editor of AINalerts, AIN's daily business aviation newsletter, and is also the news editor at AIN Media Group. He has been writing about aviation, with an emphasis on business aviation, since 1994. Chad started his writing career at The Avion, the student newspaper at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida, serving as editor-in-chief before graduating with a bachelor's in aeronautical science. After a stint as managing editor at Professional Pilot magazine, he joined AIN in late 1998. Chad holds a commercial pilot certificated with instrument and multi-engine ratings, and he also is a CFI/CFII. He lives and works from his home in Venice, Florida.
Latest from Chad Trautvetter
Charter & Fractional
Berkshire Hathaway: FlightSafety Up, NetJets Down
Revenues at Berkshire Hathaway’s services group–which includes fractional provider NetJets and flight-training provider FlightSafety International–were $8.
Environment
Aviation Alphabets Tackle Climate Change
NBAA, GAMA, AOPA and other aviation alphabet groups jointly issued a paper that offers a set of principles to address aviation and climate change.
Charter & Fractional
Avantair Revenues Up Significantly
Clearwater, Fla.-based fractional provider Avantair saw its year-over-year revenues climb nearly 24 percent to $35.4 million in its second fiscal quarter,
Hawker Beechcraft Posts $139M Loss for 2008
Hawker Beechcraft reported net sales of $3.5 billion and operating income of $135.5 million last year, though it also posted a net after-tax loss of $139.9
NBAA, GAMA Resurrect ‘No Plane, No Gain’ Campaign
NBAA and GAMA today swept the dust off the slogan “No Plane, No Gain”, which was launched by the two associations in 1993 to highlight the benefits of busi
NBAA Goes On Defense over Business Jet Use
Testifying before Congress yesterday during a hearing on FAA reauthorization, NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen directly challenged those who have recently q
Aircraft
Cessna: Business Aircraft Are Good for Businesses
Cessna Aircraft yesterday kicked off an initiative to debunk myths about business aircraft and outline how t
Aircraft
NIAR Partners with Bombardier on Learjet 85
Bombardier Aerospace has tapped the National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) at Wichita State University to provide material and structural testing
Security
Alphabets Petition TSA for LASP Rulemaking Group
NBAA, AOPA, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) and the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) late last week sent a joint letter to the
Industry Consultant Sees Bizav Recovery Next Year
Sparta, N.J.-based Brian Foley Associates president Brian Foley foresees a recovery of the business aviation industry in the middle of next year, but not b
Bombardier Ships 239 Bizjets in ’08, Braces for ’09
Montreal-based Bombardier Aerospace last year delivered 239 business jets, seven more than the previous year, and further took net orders for 262 more, tho
Hawker Beechcraft Plans To Lay Off 2,300 More
Just weeks after warning that pending job cuts “could very well touch all areas and levels of the company,” Hawker Beechcraft CEO Jim Schuster today put a
NBAA's Letter to White House Defends Bizav
In the wake of political influence that forced Citibank on Tuesday to ditch plans to take deliv
GD Upbeat about Gulfstream, Jet Aviation
Bucking the current economic tide, Gulfstream Aerospace and Jet Aviation parent company Genera
NBAA Folds LBA Show into Its Annual Convention
Citing the state of the economy, NBAA yesterday announced the cancellation of the inaugural Lig
Russian Investors Seek Partners or Buyers for AAI
Russian investment firm Industrial Investors today announced it is seeking to sell all or a por
FBOs
FBO Profile: Rectrix Aerodrome SRQ
Rectrix Aerodrome Centers is aiming to raise the bar for FBOs by building “five star” facilities with service and amenities to match.
John H. Winant 1923-2008
John Winant, 85, president of NBAA from 1971 to 1986 and a “critical player in the evolution of business aviation,” died on January 13.
UBS: Bizjet Flight Activity Decline Continues
Business jet flight activity last month fell 19 percent from the same period a year earlier, although that was better than November’s 25-percent drop-off,
ATC
406-MHz ELT Requirement Starts Next Month
The FAA Safety Team yesterday issued a notice to remind aircraft operators that satellite monitoring of 121.5-MHz emergency locator transmitters (ELTs) wil
Regulations and Government
Piper Confirms Layoffs, Still Seeks Incentive Money
Vero Beach, Fla.-based Piper Aircraft confirmed that it laid off 150 employees, company CEO Jim Bass told Indian River County commissioners at a general me
Aircraft
Cessna’s New Products Unhampered by Downturn
Cessna Aircraft yesterday confirmed that, global economic woes aside, it is moving forward on new product development projects, including the Citation Colu
Avionics
CMC Investing $150M in Next Avionics FronTier
Montreal-based CMC Electronics announced plans on Tuesday to invest nearly $150 million in research and development for a new integrated avionics suite cal
Bizav Mourns Loss of Former NBAA Chief Winant
John Winant, 85, president of NBAA from 1971 to 1986 and a “critical player in the evolution of business aviation,” died Tuesday at his home in Williamstow
Accidents
Pilot Tried To Fake Death in Meridian Crash
Marcus Schrenker, a 38-year-old financial manager under investigation by the SEC, apparently attempted to fake his own death on Sunday by parachuting from
Regulations and Government
NBAA: TARP Language Could Harm GA Industry
NBAA is fighting to eliminate from a bill to reform the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) wording that would “require divestment of private aircraft or
Bizjet Backlogs Shaky as Used Inventory, Slots Climb
Two separate analyst reports issued this week by UBS Investment Research and Brian Foley and Associates note that business jet order backlogs are at increa
More Layoffs Pending at Cessna, Hawker Beechcraft
The healthy backlogs that Cessna and Hawker Beechcraft thought they had six months ago apparently haven’t been able to weather the worldwide recession, wit
UBS: Business Jet Flight Activity Down 11% YTD
UBS Investment Research’s recently issued business jet update indicates that flight activity, m
Aircraft
Hong kong firm takes first a318
BAA Jet Management last month took delivery of its first managed Airbus, an A318 Elite, making the Hong Kong-based company the first in Asia to operate the
