Aviation

Airplane manufacturer Boeing announced it was flying another test flight of its 787 "Dreamliner" airplane on Monday.

The company has been flying test flights of the 787 since mid-February in the hopes of convincing the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to lift the grounding on the plane that has lasted since January. 

The flights were approved by the FAA last month after a monthlong prohibition of flights by the airplane.

The flight Monday, which was scheduled for two hours, was on a production airplane that was built for Polish Airlines, Boeing said. 

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is moving closer to allowing airline passengers to keep their electronic devices on during takeoffs and landings, according to a new report.

The agency has been studying the impact of easing its restrictions on in-flight electronic devices since last year. The New York Times reported that the outcome of the study is likely to be a change in the current policy, which prohibits the use of all electronics when airplanes are below 10,000 feet.

The FAA told The Hill on Monday that its group studying the impact of electronics on flights is not due to deliver its recommendations until the of July.

Federal transportation safety officials have released the official proposal to allow full-body scanners in airports for public comment.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) on Friday afternoon issued a 54-page rundown of why it uses the controversial “advanced imaging technology” (AIT) to scan passengers before they board an airplane and dispel health and privacy risks.

Even though the sophisticated scanners have been in airports since 2008, a federal court said the agency should have allowed for public feedback before moving forward with the technology, since the graphic image produced of the traveler may invade his or her privacy.

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said the skies would remain safe despite the cutbacks under sequestration.

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Beechcraft has taken another step in its bid to stop an Air Force contract awarded to competitors with a new lawsuit filed Thursday.

Beechcraft filed a lawsuit in the Court of Federal Claims to contest the Air Force’s recent decision allowing Sierra Nevada Corp. and Brazil’s Embraer move forward with the contract while the Government Accountability Office (GAO) conducts a review.

The lawsuit is only the latest attempt by the Wichita, Kan.-based defense firm to stop the Air Force from awarding the $427 million light air support contract to Embraer and Sierra Nevada to build 20 planes for the Afghan military.

The agency said its screening of a wheelchair-bound Marine was "done by the book."

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Sen. Chuck Grassley and other lawmakers worry that unmanned aircraft will be used to peer into people's private lives.

Harrison Ford says he’d be happy to share a cockpit with any lawmaker, telling ITK that if “there are any going in the same direction” he’d give them a lift.