Pilot Proficiency

When did the world shrink? When did the vast distances between continents fall away like sheer cliffs, leaving behind a much smaller planet? The aviation-savvy reader might choose a specific date, Dec. 17, 1903, on the sand dunes at Kitty Hawk with the Wright brothers — the dawn of the age of the airplane. Today, […]

My best friend, Mike,­ and I woke to the subtle muttering of raindrops and realized that beyond the curtains of our Ketchikan, Alaska, motel room there was only gray, dismal sky. Damn. At that moment a scenario began that could have ended up as an NTSB accident report, starting with unquantifiable indicators and an irrational […]

As details of a tragic crash of a Hawker business jet emerge, it has been confirmed that nine people lost their lives when the airplane crashed into an apartment building in Ellet, a neighborhood in Akron, Ohio, on Tuesday. While the apartment building and an adjacent home were destroyed in the post crash fire, it […]

Taking a careful look at the pressure in each of the tires before taking off is standard for any good preflight. But do you just take a glance at the wheels to see if they appear to be inflated? Using a pressure gauge once in a while to make sure your tires are inflated to […]

We’re mere weeks away from seeing the FAA’s first take on revised small aircraft certification standards, what has come to be known as the Part 23 rewrite. FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said the notice of proposed rulemaking should be published before the end of the year, a time table he’s hopeful the agency can meet […]

“Hey, fly the airplane.” I looked up, startled to see that we had entered a left bank. At Martha’s urging I came in with strong right rudder, ignored the left boost pump, and flew the airplane to the runway. The checklist on a Cessna 340 calls for both fuel boost pumps to be switched on […]

Both his wife and the instructor who had recommended him for his instrument rating two years earlier described the 1,500-hour pilot as thoughtful and analytical. He had “strong flying skills,” the instructor said; his wife observed that “he liked to plan ahead and have a contingency plan.” The 640 nm trip from Torrance, a southern […]

Mark Twain’s fanciful novel featured an industrial age New Englander transported back in time to the court of King Arthur, but this true tale is about an East-Coaster, his family, his airplane and a trip to Carmel, California. The basic plot ingredients feature a 35-year-old Piper Cheyenne I turboprop that they’ve owned for 16 years […]

A rare scene was caught on video in the skies over Fayetteville, Arkansas, on Tuesday when former Walmart CEO Bill Simon experienced engine trouble en route to Waco, Texas, and popped the ballistic parachute on his Cirrus SR22, floating to safety as amazed onlookers watched. According to a recording of the incident at LiveATC.net, ATC […]

One of the most-often busted federal aviation regulations is VFR cloud clearances. That’s because pilots often have a hard time judging how close they really are to clouds. We all know that in Class E airspace below 10,000 feet msl we need at least 3 statute miles of visibility and must remain 500 feet below, […]