Pilot Proficiency

No doubt you’ve heard by now that Congress has ordered the FAA to add photos and biometric data to all pilot certificates, which would have to be renewed every eight years with a new photo at an out-of-pocket cost to you of $22. Or maybe it’s $50. Or maybe it’s more than that. Nobody’s really […]

While driving back the other day after a particularly challenging horse jump lesson, I realized there are many similarities between horseback riding and flying. It reminded me that – as with any sport – I need to walk before I run. There is a progression of skill, and nothing but experience can advance me to […]

This will be my last week passing along bits of aviation wisdom. It has been an honor for you all to invite me into your email inboxes for the past three years as Flying’s Online Editor. Steve Pope will be taking over the primary responsibilities for the Flying eNewsletter with the next issue, and I […]

It is no wonder Cessna called the revolutionary tricycle landing gear Land-O-Matic when the company introduced it on the Cessna 172 in 1956. Tricycle equipped airplanes are simply easier to land. But that doesn’t mean that tailwheel aircraft are not worth flying. With the increased nose up angle of the fuselage, the propeller is further […]

(February 2011) — How do we get more people to join our ranks as pilots? It’s simple; force them to make a trip on a commercial airline. Frankly, it’s amazing to me that the airline experience hasn’t caused a mass migration to general aviation. Ironically, the solution was driven home to me on my trip […]

The vocabulary section of my son’s third-grade social studies book laid out one of life’s basics that I sometimes miss as an aircraft owner — ‘Budget — a plan for managing money.’ It goes on to tell the story of a teenager with a summer job who has to budget for three areas: his needs […]

* Co-owner of trucking company, pilot/owner of Piper Saratoga * Aircraft parts manager * Retired air traffic controller * Flight instructor * Greater Orlando Aviation Authority staff * Owner of an environmental consulting firm * Owner of Flight Attendant Express * Co-owner of a Stinson * Teacher specializing in aviation education programs, pilot/co-owner of a […]

It’s never a good sign when you show up for your airline flight and see news helicopters circling the airport. That was the scene on Monday afternoon at Newark International Airport as I arrived for my scheduled flight to Phoenix on US Airways. Walking into the terminal, I quickly understood the reason for all the […]

(January 2011) — A Beechcraft King Air returning from an emergency medical services flight descended normally toward the destination airport, but then flew past the airport and plowed into the ground about seven miles west of the airport. A student pilot returning from a business meeting with his instructor in a Cessna 182RG crashed about […]

(January 2010) — My medical’s due next month and I’m mindful of one of the rules of flying: “The medical profession is the natural enemy of the aviation profession.” But we’re lucky to have good choices around here, and I’m actually dithering about which of three to call for an appointment. These are good physicians […]