Airmanship

according to the NTSB, and was forced to ditch the airplane in Seattle’s Elliot Bay, out of gas.

There are major reasons we need to obtain a pre-flight briefing for all our flights. Airports and airspace are dynamic, and temporary flight restrictions literally can pop up anywhere. Construction, changing operations, available services, closures and, yes, obstructions all compete to materially change conditions from flight to flight, even on the same day. And then theres the weather. The good news is the recent revolution in electronic flight bags (EFBs) means all of the data we need is either in the palm of our hand or within easy reach, even in the cockpit.

As election day loomed, I realized I hadnt secured an absentee ballot. What to do? Fly home and vote, of course-any excuse for a cross-country. So I reserved the Skyhawk for the full day and invited a friend to join me. This was one of my first cross-country flights in a while. And it was the friends first-ever flight in a personal airplane, so he peppered me with questions as I pre-flighted the rental and got my act together.

Somewhere back in the typical GA pilots mind is the idea of flying a personal airplane over long distances. Maybe across a continent, maybe an ocean. Or around the world. Part of the idea is visiting distant destinations and seeing foreign lands from the perspective only a personal airplane can offer. Another part of it is the challenge, which can be substantial; part of it is bragging rights; part of it is just because you can. However common the idea of flying around the world may be, the typical GA pilot rarely follows through. Whether due to time constraints, finances, lack of a suitable airplane or other responsibilities, the obstacles are just too daunting for the typical GA pilot.

Way back in the mid-1980s, when I purchased a 1946 Cessna 120-the same week I earned my private pilot certificate-I received my taildragger checkout from Mr. W.E. Dierking in Higginsville, Mo. Dirk had taught U.S. Navy cadets in Waco biplanes during WWII, and he sure taught me a lot about flying! One of the techniques Dirk suggested was to take off with the fuel selector on the left tank (there was no both position in the 46 Cessna), fly for an hour, and write down the time aloft.

So I got into one of those internet discussions with other pilots about airplane performance. The focus was on a 2100-foot-long grass strip near sea level and how well a Bonanza would handle it. We didnt disagree on the typical Bonanzas ability to get in or out, but I think some people might be a bit more optimistic about such things than I am.

If youve ever wanted to see something you wrote appear in an aviation magazine with your name, heres your chance. Each month, this space is devoted to giving readers the opportunity to share with other pilots something theyve learned about flying aircraft. Well always assure anonymity if you want it, but well be happy to put your name on it, also.

Spend enough time at a non-towered airport, as I have, and youll eventually see every traffic-pattern variation you thought possible. Traffic patterns at towered facilities, of course, are subject to ATC management. The controllers job is to sequence and separate traffic on the runway(s). In the absence of local controllers, non-towered airports use the traffic-pattern procedures first drummed into primary students during landing practice.

The FAA recently announced the new ACS guidance was ready for prime time and will be implemented this June for the private pilot-airplane and instrument rating-airplane practical tests. According to AOPA, the new ACS is designed to make the certification and testing process more relevant and meaningful to modern pilots.

I hope it wont come as a shock to learn magazine editors dont always practice what they preach. Kind of like fat-cat politicians urging austerity for the proletariat, we arent always as prolific in our flying as we may seem, or as we encourage others. In fact, over the last couple of years, competing and conflicting priorities conspired to keep me and my airplane on the ground much more than was good for either of us.