Pia Bergqvist

We all know what it’s like to stick a hand out of a window at 65 mph. Multiply that feeling by 144 (the pressure varies with the square of the speed), all over your body, and you’ll get the sense of what it’s like to exit an airplane past the speed of sound. It seems […]

If you’re fascinated by anthills,** Boeing’s new flight tracking system** is definitely for you. The Boeing Flight Tracker shows Boeing airplane activity around the world during a 24-hour period based on data provided by OAG (Official Airline Guide). The displayed flights are not in real time. The current data is based on information collected in […]

Recently, a former private pilot student of mine revealed some information during his biennial flight review that made my heart skip a few beats and nearly get stuck in my throat. He said he enjoys flying through clouds. Had this been one of my instrument students, I would have been happy. But this man never […]

The Blue Ash Airport (KISZ) outside Cincinnati, Ohio, will close this summer, if the city of Cincinnati has its way. In a statement issued on March 8, city manager Milton Doheny revealed that “the city administration is providing notice to the FAA, the city of Blue Ash, and the current Blue Ash airport tenants and […]

This 1960s-vintage video shows the incredible performance capabilities of the C-130 Hercules. After some footage of C-130s landing on skis in Antarctica and conducting refueling missions, extensive coverage is shown from what the video claims to be the first carrier landings by a Hercules. Lt. James Flatley and his co-pilot Lt. Cmdr. W. Stovall conducted […]

The traffic pattern around an airport keeps the flight paths of airplanes in the vicinity predictable. By following the same track, it is easier for pilots to see other airplanes approaching to land. But the safety and efficiency of the traffic flow is dependent on the pilots in the pattern. It can become quite frustrating […]

Russian company Enterprises LLC has acquired Bend, Oregon-based Epic Aircraft. The acquisition has the potential to push FAA certification forward for Epic’s LT – a six-seat single-engine turboprop that has been sold as a kit. An Epic spokeswoman said the company expects certification in three years. Enterprises LLC, a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) company, […]

AOPA’s Air Safety Institute recently released The Accident Record of Technologically Advanced Airplanes — a report that concludes that the introduction of TAAs (technologically advance aircraft; the definition is extremely broad) has not decreased accident rates, as some expected to happen. In fact, newer glass cockpit airplanes had “demonstrably higher rates of accidents during takeoffs, […]

Last week, P-51-pilot Chuck Gardner had trouble getting his landing gear down in preparation for landing at the Mobile Downtown Airport. After attempting the recommended emergency gear operations procedures, Gardner asked for help. And did he ever receive! No one other than aviation legend Bob Hoover advised Gardner to perform some high G maneuvers to […]

What questions should you ask to assess the compatibility of a flight instructor, and how can you switch instructors gracefully if yours isn’t a good fit? Max Trescott was selected as the 2008 National Flight Instructor of the Year. Based in Palo Alto, California, he publishes aviation books and software, including Max Trescott’s GPS and […]