Two months ago the National Transport Safety Board issued a safety alert that recommended against using the autopilot in icy conditions. The safety alert stated "Using the autopilot can hide changes in the handling qualities of the airplane that may be a precursor to premature stalling or loss of control”.

Twenty-six seconds before crashing, the autopilot was disengaged and the Colgan Air 74 seat Bombardier Q400 began to pitch wildly, at one point dropping from 1,800 feet to 1,000 feet in five seconds. The pilots used full power "to try to get some flying airspeed back," said chief NTSB investigator Steven Chealander. The plane rolled to the left at 46 degrees, then snapped back to the right to 105 degrees.

With the passing of the February 1, 2009 deadline are you sure what the requirements are concerning ELT operation?  The Search and Rescue (SAR) satellite system will discontinue monitoring 121.5 MHz emergency locator transmitters (ELTs) and only monitor the 406 MHz signal. 121.5 MHz ELTs will continue to be monitored, but only by ground-based facilities and airborne aircraft that happen to have their VHF receiver tuned to 121.5.

A 74-seat Q400 Bombardier turbo-prop aircraft, operated by Colgan Air, was flying from Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey to Buffalo Niagara International Airport when it simply vanished off the radar screen.

By declaration of the regional court in Brno, Czech Republic, the Czech Aircraft Works Company is now bankrupt and the Court has ordered the debtor to dispose of its assets.

The FAA has released the audio communications between FAA air traffic controllers and the pilot of USAir 1549, who ditched his plane in the Hudson River on January 15, 2009.