Training & Sims

The so-called “long” cross-country in instrument training requires three different approaches. Defining “different” and what approaches qualify has been a process.

Our first feel-good article on ATC saves (July 2023) was well received. Here are some more stories where a controller helped save a pilot’s butt.

You just dropped a bundle of money on your panel upgrade that includes Garmin’s G500 TXi full EFIS complete with engine monitoring. Know how to use it?

Today’s Sim Challenge begins on the ramp at Silver Springs, Nevada, (KSPZ). You can use real-world weather, but since it’s probably good VFR in this part of the country, set up an “under the hood” view in the sim that only shows the panel. We’ll tell you when to go under the hood and when […]

You’ve built your sim and you have been flying it a lot, improving your instrument proficiency and your overall confidence in the airplane. You’ve even deployed some of the devices we’ve talked about previously to give you a more realistic instrument panel. Yet, something is missing. Aviate, Navigate, Communicate Effective ATC communication is a critical […]

You can have too many choices, so many that decisions get delayed. It’s usually not a big deal for simpler matters like cruise altitude—estimate what’s best and you can always amend it. But when it comes to approaches and landings on a given runway, the choices are complex and require quick thinking. Throw in VMC, […]

Back in 2018, the FAA expanded our ability to use training devices to maintain instrument currency. Incomprehensible distinctions between aircraft and various types of simulators were removed. Rated pilots may log currency tasks without an instructor. An increased market for training devices and their increased use—often by pilots who logged little or no device time […]

Robert, my student, called me the other day. He bases his Cirrus SR22T out of Eagle Colorado (KEGE). He wanted to know if I was interested in attempting some of the maneuvers he had found in the Pilot’s Workshop document called the Pilot Exercise Program. It’s in a PDF for $49 or $69 if you […]

Flight training isn’t just about learning the right way to do things. A huge portion concerns recovering when things go wrong—self-inflicted or otherwise. For instance, take the power-off stall. I remember my first one, as the instructor pulled the power and I held the yoke back, stall horn screeching, until our Cessna Skyhawk’s nose snapped […]

While the Pilot’s Operating Handbook shows VMC for the aircraft, the VMC in flight varies depending on many conditions. It’s similar to the published stall speed vs. the stall speed for your current load factor. Remember, you can stall the aircraft at any airspeed but only at one angle of attack. The same is true […]