The world’s greatest ever movie, Top Gun, was first shown in May 1986 so it’s now 40 years old and still as appealing as ever! We celebrate the date with our favourite scenes and lines, plus reveal some of the back stories which are just as bad-ass. 

In The News
Doncaster Sheffield Airport inches closer to re-opening
4Air’s electric aircraft gift to Aerobility
Royal Aero Club annual awards
Popham’s neighbours need our help
CAA wants our feedback on Manchester’s North West Transit Corridor
PPL Skill Test standards document updated
Special offer from Hangar Homes

Plus SkyDemon Tip of the Week, Weekend Weather Forecast, Club News and Events

In What Caught My Eye
Dave finds a classic tailwheel aircraft for just £3,500
Annabel makes a splash in Scotland with a Seaplane Rating
Ed spots one of FLYER’s best ever flight test aircraft is up for sale 

Links
Popham’s neighbours need our help: https://flyer.co.uk/pophams-neighbours-need-help-to-defeat-hgv-nightmare/

North West Transit Corridor feedback: https://consultations.caa.co.uk/safety-and-airspace-regulation-group/nwtc-pir/

PPL Skill Test Standards Document 19A: https://www.caa.co.uk/data-and-publications/publications/documents/content/standards-document-19-a/

Special offer on hangar home at Enniskillen Aeropark: https://flyer.co.uk/special-offer-on-a-hangar-home-at-enniskillen-aeropark/

Lockheed12A Electra Junior Flight Test: https://flyer.co.uk/feature/lockheed-12a-electra-junior/

Behind the Scenes with Top Gun: Maverick Aerial Team / Cinejet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQUGwYHhCKw

#topgun #topgunmaverick #aviation #aviationnews #pilots #movies

“To make a small fortune in aviation, start with a large one!” It’s as hard as ever to stay in business in General Aviation (GA) with manufacturers struggling to make money or even break even. We take a look back at three of the big name brands that have faced tough times, run through some of the many casualties - and end with a couple of surprises.

In the News:
Popham Microlight Trade Fair was a huge success
Sonex Aircraft bounces back
Drones get loadsamoney Govt support - but at what cost to GA
DeltaHawk update: Jet A burning new engine is causing a stir

In What Caught My Eye:
Dave is shocked by Robinson Helicopter’s electric plans
Ian spots signs of a long gone and much missed airfield
Ed has a mad twin! Blimey, can we cope?

Plus:
SkyDemon tip of the week
Simon Keeling’s Weekend Weather forecast
FLYER Club news
Flying events coming up

Links
FLYER #FLY2026 Challenge: https://forums.flyer.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=139024
FLYER Club membership: https://flyer.co.uk/membership/

#generalaviation #aviationnews #popham #waco  #aviation

Ahead of the Popham Microlight Trade Fair we take a look at the UK’s booming 600kg Light Sport Microlight category: what aircraft are approved, what’s on the way and our Top 5.

In the News:
AERO 2026 was a huge success: Ed has the numbers
What’s new in radio chat: CAA updates CAP 413, the R/T manual
Blackbushe flight school aiming for record airfield landings
Popham Microlight Trade Faire this weekend

Club News:
Free landings for May: Causeway, Perth, Felthorpe and Jersey
Catch up on a brand new webinar about flying to and from the Channel Islands

In What Caught My Eye:
Ian spots a new easy to use Traffic Display
Dave marvels at a French two-seat jet, the Sipa S.200. Think mini Vampire
Ed is stunned by the very last Beech Staggerwing, a beautiful biplane once owned by Walter Beech himself… and it’s for sale

Links
Video Best of Aero: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmJ5YP1-OUM
FLYER Club membership: https://flyer.co.uk/membership/
Donate to Airfirst’s “Beyond the Record” Challenge: https://www.gofundme.com/f/beyond-the-record-airfield-challenge

#aero2026 #aviationnews #popham #microlight #aviation

This week's show comes to you live - the team will be bringing you all of the hot news from AERO 2026!

Yes, the FLYER team is off to Europe’s top General Aviation show staged at Friedrichshafen Messe which just happened to be adjacent to the local airport, on the shore of Lake Bodensee in southern Germany. Aircraft, avionics, engines, propellers and a zillion accessory and service providers from all over the world descend on what is a stunning location. This week on The FLYER Show we preview the show, looking at some of highlights we’ve already heard about.

In the News
British Airways opens its 2026 fully funded airline pilot training programme
Garmin launches a new pilot watch with InReach satellite comms and much more
MagniX proposes an electric power system for Vans RV-10 kitplane
The Alto NG 600kg microlight kicks off its UK type approval process 
New 7-blade prop for the Piper M700 Fury
French maker Aura Aero is awash with cash to build more of its two-seat aerobatic aircraft
Europe’s business aviation show, EBACE, cancels with just weeks to go

What Caught My Eye this week
Dave is getting wound up about the Chipmunk’s upcoming 80th anniversary
Ian ponders the little known Sreya Aviation Envoy which promised so much but delivered… well what?
Ed finds a bunch of aviation geeks building a 60% scale replica of a late 1950s V-bomber

Links
Video: Essential advice for BA’s 2026 pilot sponsorship course https://youtu.be/1oOYxjb3_YE?si=oVE7HDudJ8dss8kD
FLYER Club membership: https://flyer.co.uk/membership/
Pilot Careers Live April 18th - https://www.pilotcareernews.com/live/heathrow-april-2026/

#aviationnews #aero #generalaviation #aircraft #pilots

NASA has created many experimental aircraft over the years and operated many others. In the week Artemis II flew to the Moon and around it for the first time in 53 years, we pick our favourites… and it’s an eclectic mix, we admit. Especially since one of us (DAVE!) mis-understood the brief. No matter, watch, listen and let us know your thoughts!

PLUS

In the News
Great Britain’s Vertical Aerospace has flown the all-important transition test flight, going from vertical take-off to wingborne flight - and raised shedloads of investment cash in the process
Poacher turned gamekeeper? AOPA is to deliver the CAA’s Airspace Infringement Courses in place of GASCo
Piper wing spars are back in the news. Could yours be affected?
Andrewsfield Airfield is back in operation. Hooray!
Sun n Fun starts in Florida next week. Yes, it’s both sunny and fun but also followed by AERO at Friedrichshafen on the banks of Lake Constance in Germany

What Caught My Eye
Ian rants (his second one) about AI slop in aviation 
Dave finds a brilliant, gorgeous Pitts Model 12 for sale
Ed is enlightened by a flight review of the Spirit SE-1 by an occasional FLYER contributor

Links: 
Euro GA link in description -
Spirit SE-1 Review - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTzwVQ6f1AA
Join the Flyer club - https://flyer.co.uk/membership/
Pilot Careers Live April 18th - https://www.pilotcareernews.com/live/heathrow-april-2026/

#aviationnews #nasa #generalaviation #aircraft #pilots

£10k? £15k? £20k? We run through some of the figures, some of the options and remember our first solo flights - which vary from a flex-wing microlight to a glider to a Piper Cub!

Plus, in the News:
Sonex Aircraft closes
Avid founder and designer, Dean Wildon, RIP
Microlight Awards + video chat with Owain Johns, CEO of the BMAA
The Reno, sorry Roswell Air Races are back and this time all the really fast guys will be there
Update on fuel prices

In What Caught My Eye:
Ian wonders about a spectacular forced landing in Oregon’s immense Snake River Canyon
Dave is excited about Pussy Galore’s Piper
Ed speculates on the future of a new light twin from Poland

Plus:
SkyDemon tip
Weekend weather forecast
Latest FLYER Club news including four new free landings for members
Weekend events

Links: 
Freedom Fox Adventures Hell's Canyon p1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPn1Vh-ebAs
Freedom Fox Adventures Hell's Canyon p2 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrPiSsMzU_4
Sonex shutting down - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wl9H0N_r8kE&t=3s

#aviationnews #learntofly #generalaviation #aircraft #pilots

Oil prices are rising quickly and the £3 litre of 100LL avgas is a definite possibility. In some parts of Europe, it’s already close. We take a look at current UK, Europe and USA prices, talk to the suppliers for their view and ask where’s it going?

Plus, in this week’s News
Swift Fuels 100R unleaded avgas is approved for hundreds more aircraft
We look back at the life of Mike Melvill, kitplane builder, test pilot and first civilian astronaut
Ultimate High is having a GA Safety Day at Goodwood
Loganair trials electric aircraft in the Highlands & Islands
Greenland’s legendary Narsarsuaq Airport us to close
£190k job at the CAA to sort out airspace mess

In What Caught Me Eye this week:
Dave finds a simulator of a Thruster microlight for those days when it’s too windy to fly the real thing.
Ian fancies a blend, a blended wing aircraft that is. Two are due to appear at April’s AERO Friedrichshafen show.
Ed finds a seven-tenths scale Junkers Ju-87 Stuka replica for sale. Will he ever stop making that Stuka dive bomber sound?

Links
Thruster simulator https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqGnECqInpI
Stuka replica https://www.swarbirds.com/ju-87-stuka-replica
Send your “Welcome to The FLYER Show” videos to: [email protected] via https://wetransfer.com/

#aviationnews #fuelprices #generalaviation #aircraft #pilots

The sale of the busiest General Aviation airport in the UK to Horizon Aero Group has collapsed. What do the two local councils which own the airport do now? We visit the airport - still functioning and busy - and look at what it could be.

In this week’s news:
Sale of Gloucestershire Airport collapses
Consultation over the airspace above Manston Airport in Kent when it reopens
Update on the new MD 564 ‘hotrod’ helicopter
Entries open for TopNav 2026, the navigation competition that takes place in May
Enthusiasts building a replica of a 1911 Helpman 1, an early aeroplane in the Netherlands

In What Caught My Eye this week
Ian chases a bigger Bird Dog (that’s a Cessna btw)
Dave marvels at two microlight pilots heading for Iceland
Ed is enthralled by the latest aeroplane from Lego, the legendary DC-3

Plus events, SkyDemon tip, the weekend’s weather forecast and FLYER Club news

Links 
FLY2026 - https://forums.flyer.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=139024
Top Nav - https://rin.org.uk/page/TopNav
Lego DC-3 https://www.lego.com/en-gb/product/douglas-dc-3-pan-am-airliner-11378
Welcome to the Flyer show videos send to - [email protected] - Via WeTransfer

#aviationnews #gloucestershire #generalaviation #aircraft #pilots

What flying competitions can you take part in as a General Aviation pilot? There’s a surprising number of events and a wide range of sports, from air racing to short take-off and landing (STOL) competitions. For the tourers, there’s the Pooleys Dawn to Dusk Challenge, navigation exercises or precision/rally flying.

The SkyDemon tip is about integrated AIPs and airfield guides.

In the news we discuss:
Old Sarum Airfield wins planning appeal
Bicester Airfield hangar restored
New helicopters everywhere at the Verticon trade show
Fuel prices

In What Caught My Eye this week:
Annabel intercepts a video from Sam Rutherford
Dave spots a Spitfire
Ed finds a real-life fantasy hangar that’s straight out of a Bond movie

Links:
FLY2026 - https://forums.flyer.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=139024

Attend/Enter Real Stol event -https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1iYGU1REw62u-sArdKHEr3HDIyO-FWFARUD3v8vYDjtE/edith

Spitfires.com circumnavigation - https://www.spitfires.com/spitfire90

RRRA - https://www.royalaeroclubrrra.co.uk/

British Aerobatics - https://www.aerobatics.org.uk/

Top Nav - https://rin.org.uk/page/TopNav

Precision Flying World Championship 2026 - https://wpfc2026.pl/

British Precision Pilots Association -
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1687052261663401

Welcome to the Flyer show videos send to - [email protected] - Via WeTransfer

#aviationnews #generalaviation #aircraft #pilots #airrace