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It wasn’t a big deal. Shortly before Judith and I were slated to leave for a trip (possible only with our own airplane) to a reunion of college friends in Wyoming, a stop to help with haying at the Flying A Ranch in South Dakota and a week at AirVenture in Oshkosh, I fell off […]

Though it seldom happens, a passed-out pilot may be passengers greatest fear. For frequent passengers, just a little training can make for a happy ending

A second pilot on board can be a help or a hindrance. Take a page from the airlines book when flying with a crowded cockpit

The following briefs were selected from the 192 preliminary reports filed with the NTSB in August 2002. Statements in quotes were taken directly from the NTSB documents. The information is subject to change as the investigations are completed. Click here to view “Accident Totals, August.”

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August 01, Gypsum, Colo.
Piper Cherokee 180
At approximately 0855 mountain time, a Piper PA-28-180 crashed while maneuvering near Gypsum, killing one passenger and leaving the other three occupants seriously injured. A flight instructor departing behind the accident flight said the airplane used about 5,000 feet to become airbor…

At about 1230 eastern time, the pilot of a homebuilt Long EZ suffered medical incapacitation and the airplane crashed in the Atlantic Ocean near Marthas Vineyard. The pilot was determined to have died before impact. The pilot was gathering NOAA research data in the purpose-built airplane. He was making low passes over research buoys. The pilot reported no trouble, but another airplane spotted wreckage floating in the water. An autopsy showed the pilot suffered a massive subarachnoid hemorrhage that was too large to determine its origin or its dimension….

It would take a clinical psychologist to explain, but there are some people who are not meant to fly airplanes.

It certainly doesnt take a superman or superwoman to become a competent pilot, of course. Like riding a bicycle, most people can learn to do it competently, with a few becoming exceptionally skillful. The flip side of that is that there are also those who cant get the hang of it.

So it is with flying: There are some people who, for whatever the reason, simply can not put it all together and fly competently. The difference is that in aviation, this apparent learning disability costs lives and money, rather than scrapes and bruises.

My first exposure to this phenomenon w…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts. Click here to view “Airworthiness Directives.”

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The FAAs Aircraft Certification Office in Atlanta has received reports of problems with oil filters manufactured by Champion. The problems include collapsed elements, rubber gasket material inside the filter canister, and other one-time events. The reports were serious enough for the manufacturer and the FAA to launch an investigation, which revealed that the collapsed elements were caused by the engine oil bypass valve that is installed in some Textron Lycoming engines.

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The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts. Click here to view “Airworthiness Directives.”

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An FAA avionics inspector in the Scottsdale, Ariz., FSDO reported that he has found the ELT remote switch circuits to be defective on two separate new Cessna 172s.

The Pointer 3000-11 model ELTs were both factory installed as original equipment by Cessna. An investigation by the manufacturer determined that the internal fuse had failed, but the manufacturer claimed the problem had been traced to Cessnas post-production test procedure several years ago.

The problem was fi…

Success at a social function is judged by your entrance. If you stumble over the doorstep and land face first in the guacamole, youll definitely get noticed but probably not invited back.

Entering a traffic pattern requires the same dont-trip-over-your-joystick finesse. Unfortunately, there is no Emily Post guide for pattern etiquette, and it shows. Monitor the Unicom at any busy uncontrolled airport and youll hear pilots announcing modified downwinds (with no hint of what that modification is), the cursing that results from one pilot cutting another one off and multiple runways in use, even if theres only one strip of pavement.

Think its not a problem? Look at this issues Pre…

Theres an old saying in aviation that youll hear throughout your flying career: Trust your instruments.

Anyone who has had instrument training has been beaten over the head by the instructor. The strategy is necessary in order to overcome your proprioceptive sensors – the so-called seat of the pants sensations – that you learned to rely on when flying VFR.

Yet, what may not have been emphasized is that your instruments can and occasionally will lie to you. Therefore a basic function of cockpit resource management requires a continuous cross-check of the engine, flight and navigation instruments. Its akin to the old saw, just because youre paranoid, dont think someones not ou…