Pilot Proficiency

Last Saturday night — Halloween — a Canadair CL600 regional airliner hit a deer while landing in Florence, South Carolina. No one on board the twinjet was injured, but even the “minor” damage listed in the NTSB report was likely expensive. And the deer will probably never play the cello again, either. With the changeover […]

A pilot was climbing through 800 feet in instrument conditions in a Cirrus SR22 when he reported that his vertical speed indicator was jumping between zero and 2,000 fpm. Shortly after that, his altimeter began acting erratically, with large deviations. The pilot requested to return to his departure airport. Then he reported his attitude indicator […]

We all know that proper hydration is vital to good health. In the case of flying, it is even more critical. Not only is dehydration more likely at altitude and its effects more pronounced, but the consequences of losing one’s competitive edge are that much more life-threatening when at the controls of a flying machine. […]

All pilots have their personal safety standards for weather, and plenty of pilots fly on the airlines when they absolutely have to be somewhere. Granted, that guarantee has become ever more dubious over the past decade, but your chances of arriving on time are still better with an airline ticket. But most pilots probably look […]

Raise your hand if you haven’t performed a weight- and- balance check since your last certificate check ride, or checking out in a new airplane. I have, but I admit that’s mostly because older Beech Bonanzas (such as mine) are easily loaded with their center of gravity too far aft. And to boot, because even […]

With dark clouds, heavy rain and marginal visibility, the weather was lower than I like for flying over the Smokey Mountains. Hour after hour of updating radar did not yield the forecasted improvement. My friend Jim is also my insurance agent. Being concerned about any possible get-home-itis, he joined me in the FBO lobby, luring […]

Ah, landing. It’s what learning to fly is all about, isn’t it? It’s often what causes the most consternation as well. Secrets abound about how to grease the wheels (or floats) onto the surface. Although the flare through touchdown demands excellent hand-eye-foot coordination, the process hinges on our ability to quickly and accurately interpret what […]

Words have a lot of power. Certain words can immediately hurt someone’s feelings. Other words can reassure. Some of the most dangerous words provide a false reassurance, and should never be used by a pilot. In a recent FAASTeam Safety Tip (faasafety.gov), Max Trescott, the 2008 National CFI of the year, warned pilots about the […]

One of my early childhood memories from growing up in Southern California is of my dad showing me a litho print of the A4-D Skyhawk in flight that he’d brought home from work at the Douglas Aircraft Company. As I looked at the image, I thought to myself, “How did they get that picture?” never […]

There is nothing in any aircraft manual on how to correct for humidity when calculating density altitude. The formulas all assume 0% humidity. We know that humidity is almost always much higher than that, and that it decreases the density of the air. And therefore, it increases density altitude — but by how much, and […]