Pilot Proficiency

(Advertorial) There’s a right way to learn to fly and a wrong way, and Jon Gerhart has tried them both. After a less-than-fulfilling experience with his first instructor, Jon quit flying before he even soloed. Ilya Khakham, President of DCT Aviation in Waterford, Michigan (KPTK), has heard this story before. He thinks one of the […]

Flying at night requires an understanding of how darkness affects a pilot’s vision and what you can do to make sure you make the most of your night-limited vision. The most important aspect of night flying with respect to vision acuity is to realize that it takes 30 to 45 minutes for your eyes to […]

Until recently, Electronic Flight Bags (EFBs) were typically thought of as large computer devices mounted in the cockpits of high-end jets and airliners. They usually relied on a permanent mounting fixture, and needed to be hard-wired into the aircraft’s electrical system. Once installed, these EFBs provided electronic charts, moving map displays and weather in the […]

As a flight instructor, I find it particularly difficult to read about airplane accidents – fatal or not – that could have been prevented by better choices and, in some cases, better training. Flight instructors need to focus less on teaching their students to pass the FAA test and more on becoming good pilots that […]

(August 2011) As I rolled through the security gate at the GA side of the Key West Airport, I glanced toward the ramp area reserved for corporate jets and larger equipment. I caught a glimpse of the tail and upper fuselage of a hulking airplane as it taxied to a parking spot. Even with my […]

Even if you’re not a particular fan of the bureaucracy that is the Federal Aviation Administration, you have to feel for Randy Babbitt. Since taking over as FAA Administrator a little over two years ago, bringing with him fresh ideas about ways for improving aviation’s safety record and transitioning to the satellite-based NextGen operating environment, […]

Nearly 4,000 FAA employees were furloughed Saturday after Congress adjourned Friday without passing an FAA reauthorization bill, prompting a partial FAA shutdown and triggering a ripple effect throughout the country, including at this week’s EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The FAA has issued dozens of stop-work orders for multi-million dollar airport improvement projects, and approximately […]

Airshows energize me. No, I’m not talking about the hotdogs or the fried food. It’s the energy generated by a large group of people with a mutual passion for airplanes that fuels me. This week, one of the largest gatherings of aviation aficionados can be found at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin for the […]

__The 2004 fourth of July fell on a Sunday, so I had the added benefit of a Monday off from work. My wife and I had planned our trip to Toledo, Ohio, a couple of weeks earlier to catch up with some old friends. This was a perfect-length trip for a single-engine airplane and one […]

In last month’s Aftermath, which concerned fatal accidents that the NTSB had linked to hypoxia, I was puzzled by a few that involved experienced pilots who had been flying, in one case for a rather short time, in the 12,000- to 18,000-foot altitude range without supplemental oxygen. If scrambled fighters find a maskless pilot slumped […]