Search Results for: Lear 45

The US Department of Transportation and the FAA issued a Final Rule (PDF) on January 6 2021 to facilitate the safe development of civil supersonic aircraft. The rule streamlines and clarifies procedures to obtain FAA approval for supersonic flight testing in the United States. The rule will help ensure that companies developing these aircraft clearly […]

Several colleagues knew of a pilot’s limitations before a fatal 767 accident.

I’ve been flying for 30 years and never experienced a hiccup from an airplane engine while airborne. That changed a few minutes into a recent flight. This story can’t rival a sudden engine stoppage and forced landing—it’s a story of an engine that seemed on its way to quitting—but I hope it provides some useful […]

Of the roughly 100,000 active single-piston-engine airplanes in the FAA registry, a quarter are amateur-built. A person shopping for a used airplane might want to take a look at them. The difference between buying a factory airplane or choosing a homebuilt is something like the difference between getting a chair and getting a dog. A […]

It is 9 a.m. on a gray Tuesday. I am standing on our dock at City Island in the Bronx, New York, surveying my handiwork, sipping hot coffee to assuage the gnawing tension. I have just finished preparing my sturdy boat and home, Windbird, to ride out a hurricane on a 40-year-old dock in an […]

The Terminal Aerodrome Forecast, TAF, is a staple of aviation weather, known to almost every pilot. During my own Air Force career, I composed hundreds of TAFs for pilots not too different from you. In this article we’ll take an inside look at this tool in a more readable format than you’re probably used to. […]

Three hours in a single, even a roomy one like the sturdy Piper Dakota, seems to be about the maximum sitting time for most PICs and especially their passengers. It also happens to be a good time to refuel, as the typical four-to-five-hour endurance allows for landing with ample reserves when it’s time for a […]

You might have heard the old adage, “The flight cannot be cleared for departure until the gross weight of the paperwork exceeds that of the aircraft.” While cynical, this reference to all the required processes, rules, and regulations makes a good point. Regulations and procedures for pilots largely mirror those of ATC, but these might […]

October 1, 2020, Burlington, Wash. Zenith CH601 Experimental At about 1500 Pacific time, the airplane sustained substantial damage when it crashed short of the runway. The solo private pilot was not injured; visual conditions prevailed. After taking off on the first flight of the day, the pilot remained in the traffic pattern. During the turn […]

Most of my mountain-flying experience comes from frequent trips across or parallel with the Appalachian range in the eastern U.S. I’ve flown my share of trips to Las Vegas and California, though, and at least since an episode over North Carolina in a 160-hp Skyhawk, I’ve always tried to plan for and avoid related turbulence. […]