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The anniversary of one of the most publicized general aviation accidents ever came and went, and almost on cue the NTSB released its official report on the crash that killed John F. Kennedy Jr. Together, they made a powerful reminder that one of the earliest identifiable pitfalls of flying is still with us today. Aptly named the graveyard spiral, it has taken its toll of lives since the invention of the airplane.

Like its cousin the tailspin, the entry is insidious – resulting from spatial disorientation – and the conclusion is often fatal. The entry pattern associated with either maneuver is similar, but the resultant maneuvering track quite different. Real-life testing and experience,…

To get the most out of this article, read it with your eyes closed. Sound silly? Okay, lets apply the same philosophy to radio communications. To get the most out of your $50,000 nav/comm stack, make all transmissions with the volume turned down.

Youll find the silence quite relaxing, no stress from competing pilots on CTAF or confusing instructions from nattering air traffic controllers. Just you, your machine, and the cosmic bliss of free flight. If you were a seagull, someone would write a book about you. But youre not. Youre a pilot and, unless youre knocking about grass fields in a J-3 Cub with no radio, youll need to improve those radio skills.

The good pilot never stops…

Although some recreational fliers ground themselves during the dingy winter months, most pilots continue to rely on their airplanes even when the mercury dips and the gray skies move in. And theres no reason not to, as long as you take into account the icy grip winter weather can have on everything it touches.

Planning for defensive flying in winter conditions begins on the ground. For VFR flight, youll need to plan to stay clear of clouds by a reasonable distance and be alert for signs of carb ice. For the pilots who are going to go IFR, things get more complicated. Watching The Weather Channel just isnt enough.

Preflight planning has to be thorough and thoughtful. Consider the rou…

They are leviathans sleeping on the tarmac. Towering amphibious floatplanes, boasting adventures of which their landlubbing cousins only dream. Nearby, small flying boats, engines mounted oddly above the fuselage, ponder remote lakes brimming with bass. If youre pondering whether to take the aqua plunge, the next question is floats or boats?

Flying boats, or hull designs, splash down on their bellies and have small floats, or sponsons, under each wing for stability on the water. Floatplanes are common aircraft that sit atop two pontoons. Which you choose will depend upon your anticipated missions and your budget. The decision may also have a substantial impact on your future safety.<...

A look at accident statistics can be a bit haunting. The NTSB has determined that about 80 to 85 percent of general aviation accidents are caused by human error. While some kind of equipment failure or weather problem may contribute to the accident, the fact remains that bad judgment and lousy decisions are what usually lead to bent metal and broken lives.

Many times the pilots mistakes are induced by outside pressures. The desire to get home, make a meeting, meet a schedule, beat weather or impress someone can lead to shortcuts and risky maneuvers. Often the pilot gets away with it, which reinforces the possibility that it will happen again. Sometimes, however, the pilots luck runs ou…

Put a dozen pilots in a room, and odds are youll hear a series of shocking stories of derring do as well as a parade of tales about other peoples mistakes. Put 200 in a room, and you might see something different.

The National Transportation Safety Board hosted a symposium in late September that brought together accident investigators, regulators, flight training experts, mechanics and manufacturers, among others, to discuss ways to make general aviation safer. The NTSB billed it as the first-ever General Aviation Accident Prevention Symposium. For several days, engineers, mechanics, human factors experts and flight training specialists examined a variety of common general aviation acci…

No matter what youre flying, chances are youve thought of trading up to something faster, or more nimble, or with a bigger payload. Pilots never have problems thinking ahead of the airplane when theyre looking so far ahead theyre seeing the next airplane theyll own. As one pilot once told me, Anything worth doing is worth doing to excess.

Conventional wisdom says that aircraft selection should match the mission of aircraft ownership. In other words, once youve figured out what you really want to do with an airplane, selecting an adequate model should be a piece of cake. If you plan to haul a family of four plus luggage over the Sierra Nevadas in the summertime in a typical 4-place…

Recently I had my own almost accident, which reminded me of a problem that is only going to get worse.

It was Thanksgiving Day and the traffic going into Denver International was normal for any holiday. Our Boeing 727 was cleared for the visual approach and landing behind an Airbus 319. Since the 727 is heavier than the Airbus, and since we had sufficient separation distance, the thought of a wake vortex encounter didnt enter my mind.

Just as I started to flare, we hit the Airbus wake and suddenly my wing dropped. It only takes 12 degrees of wing dip to strike an outboard flap during a normal landing in the 727. For a few moments, that wake had more control over the aircraft than…

The pilot reported for work as scheduled at 2 a.m. for a Part 135 light cargo flight, flying a Piper Lance from Burbank, Calif., to Phoenix, Ariz. He arrived at Phoenix and managed to get about five hours of sleep, waking at about noon local time.

On the next leg of the flight – the return to Burbank – he took off at 20:55 local. Several hours later, while maintaining a constant altitude, heading and airspeed, he collided with a mountain near Palm Springs -about 10 nautical miles south of his usual course. The investigators could find no evidence that indicated that the pilot had attempted to avoid the collision.

Investigators could find no mechanical reasons for the crash. After exam…

Editors Note: The December 2000 issue featured a discussion of the planning and decision factors necessary for a safe takeoff. Here, well look at gauging and using the proper technique.

Takeoff is the moment of truth when the pilot is called upon to apply his or her aeronautical knowledge and exhibit the right flying skills. The skill level of a pilot depends on recency of experience, practice and the performance standards of the pilot or instructor. In short, knowing what to do is not adequate if you are unable to perform properly.

Determining your aircrafts takeoff performance is the intellectual side of the start to your flight. The other side is deciding what typ…