Risk Management

My family is moving to a new state soon. Every time we go there to do adult stuff, I carve out a little time to get to know the local flying scene. I had a fun 172 checkout with a CFI at the closest FBO, and have since done some sightseeing flights with friends and […]

It was a December afternoon at Spirit of St. Louis airport (SUS), about 1400 local time. Sunny, with scattered clouds, cool. The weather forecast had the word “snow” in it, starting about 1800, which would be after dark, but right now it was sunny. Snow? Seemed like a long way off. Turns out it wasn’t. […]

For this magazine’s August 2021 issue, I wrote an article titled, “Take A Minute,” where I discussed some valuable advice about slowing things down and analyzing the situation around you. The initial inspiration came from a time where my captain and I were rushing to swap airplanes and when we thought we were done, he […]

One of my favorite aspects of winter is the peaceful calm after fresh snowfall. The snow softens all sound, and the undisturbed scene looks beautiful. Coincidentally, this is one of my least favorite things to encounter as a pilot. When I am flying, I much prefer the sight of snow removal equipment and clear blacktop. […]

In late December 2021, I was giving upset recovery training to a student. We were done with our work in the practice area and were returning to base at Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport in San Diego. Weather included unlimited visibility and scattered clouds. We picked up the ATIS and were heading toward the airport. A few […]

The day’s mission was to get me and my Debonair from Wichita, Kansas, to Las Vegas, Nevada, in loose formation with a friend who would be flying his Piper Comanche 180. Although we had scheduled this trip weeks ago, we both presumed the other guy a) had done this before and b) knew how. Over […]

A close friend of mine, also a pilot, revels in flying low enough to view various features on the ground, to the extent a long cross-country flight in IMC not only bores him but seemingly can elevate any anxieties. I get it, and always enjoy that vista when I’m able. But I also subscribe to the […]

If you listened much to the cellular telephone companies talk about the ongoing rollout of 5G performance standards for your devices, you might think it was the best thing since sliced bread, canned beer and kissing on the first date. The FAA isn’t so sure, however, and in early November published a Special Airworthiness Information […]

You would think pilots would have learned their lesson about messing with thunderstorms, especially landing in or near them. I mean, we’re almost 40 years beyond the defining moment in understanding wind shear and microbursts, the August 1985 crash of Delta Flight 191, a Lockheed L-1011, in Dallas, Texas. Add to that, many aircraft now […]

I’m going to go out on a fairly stout limb with this statement: No pilot ever plans to become an accident statistic. Instead, we all approach every flight in the firm belief it will be successful or we don’t fly. Too often, of course, events conspire against us—or we screw up—and the flight’s outcome isn’t […]