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One of the greatest aircraft compromises — in a good way — in history is Cessna’s franchise model, the 172 Skyhawk. The iconic Kansas-based airplane maker has turned out more than 40,000 of the sheet-metal birds since the model’s debut in 1956, and the utilitarian singles continue to roll down the line and out the […]

For nervous passengers who stiffen the moment an airplane begins to move forward and do not relax until the grab-your-carry-ons chime has sounded, it must be hard to imagine that pilots could actually fall asleep while flying. No pilot would like to admit to doing so. Nevertheless, there have been instances of airline crews overshooting […]

Flying takes a look back at the biggest events of the year 2013.

A two-man team from Oklahoma City was in town last month with the “live” portion of the FAA’s designated pilot examiner renewal seminar. Half of the mandatory training happens online, but we still get eight hours in one of those hotel meeting rooms; if the air conditioning is cold enough and the coffee strong and […]

(December 2011) It will be a while before the NTSB issues its findings about the crash of The Galloping Ghost at the Reno Air Races this year. There were so many witnesses, however, and photographic and video coverage of the disastrous accident was so clear, that it did not take long for theorizing about the […]

(December 2011) Remember Slovenia? It used to be part of what we now call “the former Yugoslavia.” Unlike Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia, Slovenia did not lay itself waste, after partition, with ethnic warfare. Perhaps that is why we hear so little about it; peaceful, prosperous and progressive, it is a sort of Slavic Sweden. It […]

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 […]

IT HAPPENED LAST MAY, DURING an air race in South Africa. An airplane was descending toward a turn point in a valley when the pilot of a following airplane saw what appeared to be paper scattering behind it. An instant later, a shattered wing separated from the fuselage, falling to earth a hundred yards from […]

I like to record the History Channel on my DVR and then play back the shows while I am working out, something I call “learn while you burn.” Many of the shows I record relate to my work teaching error prevention, and I am always looking for examples I can use in my training. A […]

Is landing an art or a science? That’s what the pilot of this King Air is about to find out as he maneuvers for a landing on a scenic runway out west, in the mountains. Once the King Air gets down, go flying with Tom Benenson as he explores landing through the eyes of a […]