Search Results for: Lear 45

Last Friday morning at 1130, three LSAs departed from Apopka, Florida’s X04 for a long weekend in Franklin, North Carolina. Another sport pilot and I flew the Remos while the SportCrusier (formally a PiperSport) and Gobash each had a sport pilot (one working on his private) and a CFI. Pilots and passengers of a Cessna […]

(April 2011) IT WAS PART 2 OF A MONTH’S worth of airplane (commercial and private) travel, and though I was seated in posh surroundings in the nose of a KLM 747-400 bound from Los Angeles to Amsterdam, the prisoners began to stir. Our departure had been delayed more than four hours. I worried about my […]

I had the opportunity to ride along with Tecnam demo pilot Andrew Jones in the P92 Eaglet out of Winter Haven (KGIF), where it was based, during one of the company’s Showcase Fly-Bys at Sun ‘n Fun last week. If the term Showcase Fly-By is unfamiliar, I’m certain that if you’ve ever been at the […]

(March 2011) ON OCCASION, I AM ASKED if we airline types actually monitor guard frequency — 121.5. My stock answer is “Of course.” And for the most part, I’m telling the truth. However, in some circumstances it’s not practical. What are those circumstances? I don’t want to speak for all my colleagues, but below 10,000 […]

I need to wrap my head around how people run out of gas in airplanes.” Ive been saying that to myself (and my editor) for over a year, marveling at how almost half of all known engine failures are due to fuel mismanagement. Most of those result from fuel exhaustion: attempting to fly beyond the fueled range of the aircraft, or more simply, running out of gas. Very frequently the pilot almost makes it, landing just short of the planned destination. How could a pilot take off with less fuel than needed to complete a trip? Shouldnt it be a pilot imperative to have enough fuel not just to meet the preflight planning requirements of FAR 91.151 or 91.167 as appropriate, but also to be certain there would always be enough fuel on board to make it safely to an airport, regardless of the conditions encountered en route?

(March 2011) WRITING ABOUT ADVENTURE – whether the adventure is climbing a mountain, fighting a war or flying a small airplane across the country – is something of a challenge. Not because the source material is lacking. To the contrary. But there’s a reason explorers and generals who cared about recording their battles for history […]

On Monday FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt announced a plan to reduce general aviation accidents substantially and incrementally over the next 10 years with a 10 percent improvement as the target. At Sun ‘n Fun, the FAA will host the first of nearly 100 meetings across the country designed to let pilots and the FAA work […]

Using a single-engine airplane for long-distance, literally cross-country trips, usually isnt a good choice. That is, of course, until you survey all the other choices-including the airlines-and decide the flexibility and utility of using a personal airplane is the only way to go. Often, of course, the flight is the trips purpose, not the act of getting to a destination. Watching various landmarks and other magnificent scenery slide underneath the wings-albeit relatively slowly-makes up for the time it can take, especially when headed west into prevailing winds.

The airplane was substantially damaged when it crashed about 1845 Central time during an instrument approach. Night instrument conditions prevailed and an IFR flight plan was filed. The private pilot was killed. The pilot was cleared for the ILS Runway 24 approach at BHM, which he acknowledged. The airplane initially intercepted the localizer for the approach, but did not intercept the glideslope.

The airplane impacted a lakes frozen snow-covered shoreline at about 1845 Pacific time, killing the private pilot and passenger. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings and the entire fuselage forward of the tailcone. Night visual conditions prevailed.