Aviation Safety

Pipers Tomahawk has been criticized for its stall-spin behavior. How does it compare with other spins-approved airplanes?

Most in-flight emergencies are manageable with the proper training, preparation and mindset. Beating brainlock can help us react as weve been trained.

Most of us fly behind or between propellers, but theres a lot we dont know about them. Some basic knowledge will help keep us safe.

If you believe the hype, thousands of very light jets are right around the corner. What will it take for pilots without jet experience to safely fly them?

Losing the ability to communicate while IFR might mean youre deaf, but there are smart ways to deal with the problem.

An experienced pilot botches a nighttime ILS to minimums. Is that all there is to it?

[IMGCAP(1)]After an IFR flight of nearly four hours from our home base on the East Coast, my wife and I approached our destination. Under the overcast, where the visibility was excellent, we canceled IFR and soon reported the field in sight. We were advised to enter a left downwind for the east-west runway; I was flying our Mooney while my wife was handling the navigation and communication duties.

The tower was busy with three inbounds from the southeast, at least two singles and a twin in the pattern, plus us, inbound from the east.

Soon, we were advised to enter the left downwind for the northeast/southwest runway and the tower sequenced us to follow the second single, now on left b…

Stuck Mic
It promised to be an easy flight-just over three hours from Wichita to Oshkosh in advance of this years AirVenture extravaganza. A buddy and I launched my Debonair from his home drome and soon were established in cruise, talking to Kansas City Center.

Soon, an inexperienced female voice came on the frequency from her Skylane, asking for flight following. A patient controller coaxed from her the necessary information, she repeated it back and that should have been the end of it. Except her microphones push-to-talk switch never released.

Everyone on the frequency was treated to one side of an apparent conversation between two women discussing children, boyfriends,…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts.

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Cessna 150
Lost Rudder Hinge Bolt
The upper rudder pivot bolt backed out of its self-locking nutplate at the upper hinge while in flight. The rudder was ripped from the lower bell crank control, and departed the aircraft. The aircraft landed without incident.The rudder was found and its upper pivot bolt was retained in the rudder cap. The bolt could be inserted in the nutplate with light, finger pressure only, and removed the same way.The nutplate was worn and had lost its locking ability. At installation of a factory new rudder assembly, a drilled…

How To Fly Twins
While the idea of ignoring the throttles and instead grasping the propeller levers on takeoff is intriguing, such a habit may be the wrong thing to do. While it is assumed that an aircraft is at full power during takeoff, it is important to note that not all aircraft use full power on departure. Therefore, it is wise for pilots to continue to push up the power to squeeze as much power out of the remaining engine as possible, resulting in a superior climb rate.

Another reason to test ones selection of which engine to secure by retarding the throttle is that this action provides one extra layer of safety, one extra hoop through which pilots must jump, to…