Search Results for: Ercoupe

The state of California recently passed a law that outlines the shape of the state’s future highway plan, paving the way for the integration of so-called “driverless cars” into California’s highway system, which has one-third more high-speed roadway than any other state in the nation. Many of these driverless cars would in fact feature drivers […]

The aviation world rejoiced in the summer of 2004 when the FAA announced the long-awaited adoption of its light sport aircraft (LSA) rulemaking, and the sport pilot certificate. Small, simple aircraft manufactured to industry consensus standards instead of the agency’s regulations should be vastly less expensive than traditional entry-level aircraft. Pilots who self-certify medical fitness to fly on the basis of their state’s driver license requirements could avoid the expense of an FAA medical certificate (the same pilot self-certification of medical fitness to fly applying to private and higher pilots still applies to sport pilots). Overall, the price barrier to personal aviation should fall away, causing a resurgence in new pilot starts and a renaissance in recreational and entry-level career track flying.

My flying has recently come full circle. My first flight was in a Piper J-3 Cub back in the 1950s. I worked line service as a teenager in the 1960s to pay for my flying lessons, and in the early 1970s I earned my fixed-wing ­single-engine and glider commercial and instructor ratings so I could […]

If you don’t venture on sullen skies, You never come to sunkissed valleys. If your palms have never been moist, Your heart has never thrilled. If you have never been afraid, You have never been courageous. Gill Robb Wilson, The Airman’s World When my sister Mary and I started flying, we learned to check aviation […]

(March 2011) AS MANY OF YOU MIGHT BE aware, Sport Pilot students and certified sport pilots can solo and fly only light-sport aircraft, commonly referred to as LSA. You also might know that these aircraft must meet requirements and limitations, with the big one being a maximum gross weight of 1,320 pounds for land airplanes. […]

(February 2011) — When we shoved open the door of the disreputable little shack, six, maybe seven, pairs of eyes swung in our direction and their expressions read, “Either these two are lost or they just arrived from another planet.” In our pastel wool winter coats, white gloves, pumps and those little lace veils women […]

During checkouts of rated pilots, I usually ask them to explain why the rudder is on the airplane. More than half of rated pilots will tell me the rudder helps turn the aircraft, which is not only wrong but is a very dangerous belief. Less than half of pilots will correctly identify the main purpose of the rudder, to correct for adverse yaw. By failing to correctly understanding the rudders purpose, these pilots exhibit a failure in our training system. Moreover, by misusing the airplanes primary controls, they arent flying it properly or efficiently. This realization has many implications-an indictment of our training systems among them-but the dangers of misusing the rudder also must be acknowledged. Lets discuss the rudders proper role, plus the effects and dangers of misusing primary controls.

Last Saturday, I headed out mid-morning to stop in at two aviation events. Little did I know how awesome the day would turn out. The first stop was at a monthly BBQ at Orlando-Apopka (X04) hosted by First Landings Aviation, the flight school where I’m taking sport pilot lessons. The idea behind the BBQ is […]

Matthew McDaniel is a four-time Master Flight Instructor who’s logged over 11,000 hours in more than 70 aircraft types. He’s owned and operated Progressive Aviation Services LLC (progaviation.com), specializing in technically advanced aircraft and glass cockpit training, since 2002. He says: “Being a truly good pilot is a multifaceted skill: airmanship, knowledge and judgment. One […]

After he “aced” the ground (oral) portion of a private check ride I gave last week, this young man pointed the airplane in approximately the right direction, found a couple of checkpoints and made a reasonable guess about our time to the next one listed on his flight log sheet. This with benefit of a […]