Editor’s Log

The worst thing anyone could do with an airplane has now been done. Several times.

As this issue goes to press, just how the suicide hijackers will change aviation remains in a state of flux. Odds are that, when the dust settles, flying will be more like before rather than less so – that many of the flight restrictions will be lifted and pilots will again be essentially free to carry on.

However, in light of the fact that much of the general public now sees light aircraft as potential threats, all pilots can do a few things to minimize the chance that the kinds of episodes that happened with an airliner will happen with a general aviation airplane.

• Secure your airplane. Make…

Freed at last from the tyranny of enhanced Class B airspace, the VFR-only Citabria virtually leaped into the sky despite a load that was nearly at max gross weight.

We reached 500 feet well before the Cessna 172 that had taken off from runway 7 in front of us and we were cleared to make an early left turn for a northwest departure. This was a far cry from the almost iron-fisted display of IFR flying that had been the order of the day for nearly six weeks, adding to the sense of freedom. Tapping into the karma, I slowed the airplane and opened the window. Noisy, yeah, but worth it.

Once clear of the ECB, I we undertook some moderately aggressive aerobatics. My passenger, also a pilot,…

Night flight is one of the most beautiful times to be in a light aircraft. But there are some times when the unexpected jumps up in a way thats terrifying at best, deadly at worst.

I was flying three passengers in a VFR Archer from Fort Myers, Fla., to Orlando one evening. We departed Page Field as the sky was just losing its grip on the last golden vestiges of the setting sun. Departure had been delayed a bit while we waited for some thunderstorms north of the airport to move east and out of the way.

After takeoff, we were greeted by smooth air and a spectacular light show from the lightning that still exploded within the distant clouds. No one spoke much, enthralled as we were with…

I was struck by the number of seemingly active pilots Ive talked to in the days leading up to press time in early April who profess to be out of currency for instrument flying.

In some ways, this can be expected, since low freezing levels keep many pilots out of the clouds during the winter. Recently Ive had the same kind of problem. Through a combination of circumstances and an unusual winter, I didnt do much flying in IMC simply because there wasnt much around on those times when Ive used an airplane for travel.

I try to get an instrument proficiency check every six months, regardless of how much instrument flying Ive been doing. Its a strategy I adopted years ago for a rather…

A pilot we know usually starts (and often completes) his preflight in the car on the way to the airport. He calls Flight Service from the cell phone. He pulls the airplane out of the T-hangar, makes sure its got both wings and still has a propeller, and away he goes.

Most pilots are a bit more diligent, calling Flight Service before leaving home or the office and conducting a more thorough walk-around before parking the car in the hangar and heading out. Some are downright anal-retentive about it, plotting the weather for days before a flight and conducting a 100-hour inspection before lighting the fire.

Over the recent Thanksgiving holiday, I was reminded of how many different faces…

Many wags love to toss around cliches as if theyre the clever soul who invented them. Theres a grain of truth to most of them, of course, but, gosh, it gets tiring explaining the mystery and the dynamic environment of flight with such cookie-cutter phrases.

While we all might dust off a cliche from time to time, there are times when you might live one and wish you hadnt. Thats when it becomes crystal clear just why the cliche has emerged from the fermenting stew of language.

However, recently I turned a cliche on its tail and discovered a kernel of wisdom there, as well. Its better to be on the ground wishing you were in the air than in the air and wishing you were on the ground….

Since the dawn of flight, pilots have been forced to validate their infatuation with aviation by giving a convincing answer to the simple question, Are airplanes safe?

Early on a beautiful February morning, I departed on a 370 nm flight from Orlando to Atlanta in a VFR Citabria. Winds aloft were light and the air was smooth, but the tranquility was battered at my mid-flight fuel stop.

As I rounded out to settle into the three-point sweet spot for landing, the aircraft unexpectedly bounced. I reined it in, a bit flustered by the momentary loss of control, and taxied to the ramp.

Later, when landing at my destination, the approach was only slightly complicated by a mild crosswind. Again, as I started to settle into the three-point attitude, the airplane took an unexpected hop. Because I was a bit tired after four hours of hand-flying, I wasnt so quic…