Pilot Proficiency

Four people died over the weekend near St Mary’s, Alaska, after a Cessna 208 Caravan crashed in conditions described by local news outlets as freezing rain and low ceilings. According to the Anchorage Daily News, the passengers killed include a retired couple, a five-month-old baby and the pilot. Six additional passengers survived with injuries and […]

The investigation into the crash of a police helicopter through the roof of a packed Glasgow pub on Friday night continues as emergency workers sift through the rubble in search of more bodies. At least nine people died and 30 were hospitalized when the Eurocopter EC135T2 went down at about 10:30 p.m. local time straight […]

In 1973, the end of American involvement in the Vietnam War signaled the end of the draft. A few months prior to leaving for college in 1975, the Selective Service System no longer required me to register. It wasn’t long thereafter that the Air Force dramatically reduced its demand for pilots. My secondary alternate status […]

To say that electrical systems are not my strong point is something of an understatement. The reality is I don’t actually believe in electricity, and although I’ve spent a lifetime regurgitating answers to questions on oral and written tests about amps and volts and ohms and AC and DC current and inverters and buses and […]

Spoiler alert: The following story reveals one of the top ten airplanes in our Top 100 Airplanes: Platinum Edition list. As the kids sing on Sesame Street, “One of these things is not like the others,” a number of readers have been taken aback by the inclusion of an odd bird in Flying Magazine’s Top […]

As 40 million Americans prepare to visit relatives and friends this Thanksgiving week, Mother Nature has decided to add a twist with a massive winter storm that is delaying airline flights and grounding many GA pilots. To help travelers keep tabs on airline flight delays, FlightAware.com has created the Misery Map, a real-time weather and […]

My first year of membership in DiamondShare is almost over. And as the end of my one-year lease approaches, I have an important choice to make: stick with the shared-lease program or find some other way to fly. My introduction to the DiamondShare experience was somewhat unusual in that I was handed the keys to […]

The aftermath of the tragic accident during the 2011 Reno Air Races, when 11 people died as a result of a P-51 Mustang crashing into the box-seat area in front of the grandstands, is still having negative effects for organizers of the half-century old event. The accident has skyrocketed insurance costs for the competition, and, […]

When planning a flight, pilots are trained to prepare for contingencies; minor problems and emergencies will arise at some point throughout every one of our flying careers. We taxi slow enough in case we experience a brake failure. In a single-engine airplane we choose a route of flight from point A to B that will […]

The FAA puts great emphasis on the use of checklists, so much so that failing to use them during a checkride will result in a pink slip. While you should always have a checklist within reach to back you up, there is another easy way to make sure you are not missing any critical items […]