A rose by any other name.

More Sun `n Fun

“Spring Break For Pilots,” as the Sun `n Fun Aerospace Expo has come to be known among frequent attendees, seems to be off to a good start. By the time you read this, the first of two night air shows will have occurred and the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels flight demonstration team should have arrived. Beechcraft has its to-be-certificated turboprop single, the Denali, on public display for the first time. Epic Aircraft also has its newest, the E1000 AX, another turboprop single. They’re joined by a slew of other manufacturers bringing new airframes and upgrades.

On opening day, the crowds were plentiful, the parking lots overflowing, and the entertainment got into full swing. So far, the weather has mostly cooperated, with some early fog, but good VFR by late morning. The rest of the days have been breezy, warm and humid, just the cure for the cold starting to give up its grip on more northerly climes. In other words, if you have the means, you should consider making your way to KLAL this week. If the first few days are any indication, it’ll be a good show, this 51st Sun `n Fun.

Bryan Bedford Nominated As Next FAA Administrator

As soon as his name was announced as the new administration's pick to lead UCAP's Favorite Aviation Agency, the accolades starting rolling in for Bryan Bedford. Most of aviation's alphabet soup chimed in, including AOPA, EAA, NBAA, Airlines for America (A4A), the Regional Airline Association and many more. A lot of that is due to Bedford having a long history in the aviation industry and being an instrument-rated private pilot. He presently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Republic Airways, a regional jet operator based in Indiana flying for American and United Airlines, plus Delta Air Lines.

Presuming the U.S. Senate confirms Bedford's nomination, he will replace former FAA Administrator Michael Whittaker, who resigned the post in January. Since then, the agency has been led by Acting Administrator Chris Rocheleau.

Not all observers drank the same Kool-Aid: "We have concerns about the nominee's past efforts to lower pilot training and safety standards and we look forward to hearing his assurances that he will maintain the current requirements," said Captain Jason Ambrosi, president of the Air Line Pilots Association, in a statement.

ADS-B In The News

If you’re new to aviation, you may not know much about the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast system, ADS-B. After a lengthy transition period, its use was mandated in busy airspace beginning January 1, 2020, supposedly for everyone. It seems a certain U.S. Army helicopter unit, the 12th Aviation Battalion’s Bravo Company, based at Fort Belvoir, VA, has been ignoring the requirement. That's according to testimony during a March 31, 2025, Senate hearing into the January 29, 2025, mid-air collision between a PSA Airlines regional jet and a UH-60 Black Hawk assigned to the battalion. Although the collision occurred near the center of the Washington Tri-Area Class Bravo airspace, where ADS-B is required, no such data had been received from the accident helicopter during the 730 days prior to the tragedy. Supposedly, an Army memo exists outlining its policy on ADS-B in the national capitol region, but it hasn’t been shared with the Senate Subcommittee on Aviation. Yet.

The ADS-B system also figures prominently in efforts to bill landing fees to operators. The idea gained traction last year, over AOPA’s opposition. Since then, AOPA’s new President Darren Pleasance wrote FAA Acting Administrator Chris Rocheleau to say that “a cottage industry of companies contracting with public-use airports are now using ADS-B data to collect airport fees from general aviation pilots.” Pleasance pointed out in his letter that AOPA had been assured before the January 1, 2020, equippage deadline that ADS-B data would be restricted to improving ATC operations and safety.

Unleaded Avgas Update

The only real news of late in the ongoing saga to transition the spark-ignition-powered fleet from leaded gasoline to an unleaded fuel comes from the FAA. The agency, on March 24, 2025, basically said that available unleaded fuels are not ready for prime time, and that Santa Clara County California may not ban lead-containing fuels because doing so would violate grant assurances made when receiving federal airport grants. The FAA’s decision is agnostic on leaded vs. unleaded fuels but it does buttress the validity of grant assurances and the agency’s intent to enforce them.

Sun n Fun 2025 On Site Report

Hi this is Jack. I've been here at 2025 Sun n Fun Fly-in since Monday and I'm having a great time.

It's been a terrific week. The crowds seem to be as good as ever. There are reports that they are record breaking.

There are some great planes on display and flying over the grounds.

The Blue Angels are here. They do their performances starting on Friday afternoon, but they did one of their practice sessions on Thursday while Amy and I were recording a UCAP Daily episode. The noise was glorious.

The warbird ramp is packed with all sorts of planes, large and small. A C-17 cargo plane parked next to a CBP fast-boat.

Over the past few years the area around the former "ultralight field" aka Paradise City, has been expanded to include flight demonstrations by LSAs, STOL planes, small rotorcraft, and more.

Multiple evenings this week Paradise City has been the site of the "Sunset Aerial Circus" which includes showcase fly-bys, STOL contests, a drone show, and more.

As I have for over 18 years, I am volunteering at the Sun 'n Fun Radio station. This year, I'm proud to take over the seat that had been filled for years by our dear friend Dave Higdon, as a member of the live announcing team for the station. I've been spending the mornings interviewing a wide variety of people who are here at the fly-in.

We still have a few more days here. On Saturday, Jeb and I will be joined by friends to do our annual UCAP full-length episode, from the SnF Radio Station deck. You can listen to that on one of the SnF Radio livestreams. Audio at liveatc.net/snf of video and audio at youtube.com/SUNnFUNRadio. And the audio version will be posted on our regular podcast stream next week. Or if you're here at the show come on by to watch the recording as it happens. And we'd love to say hi to you.

Well that's more than enough. I'm about to head back out to see more of the show.

Walking from the Sun 'n Fun Main Gate to the Flightline

On Tuesday evening of Sun 'n Fun I shot an experimental video where I walked from the Main Gate all the way to the Flightline.

The idea was to give viewers some context of the layout and arrangement of the grounds here in Lakeland.

Originally I was going to add a voice-over, but I ended up posting it with just the live sound.

If you'd like to get the lay of the land, here's that video.