Pilot Proficiency

As I was talking with Dr. Martin Smith about the research he and his associates at Presage Group were doing on unstable approaches, he commented that visual approaches “were a little more seductive than instrument approaches in terms of continuing with an approach that is unstable.” Dr. Smith said even though all of the participants […]

The pilot-owner of a Cessna R172 — a six-cylinder, 195 hp version of the 172, based on the French-built Reims Rocket — was en route from ­Everett, Washington, to Albuquerque when he and his wife found themselves weathered in at Roseburg, Oregon. The pilot, who did not have an instrument rating, inquired at an FBO […]

How did I get myself into this position? Here I was in a $6 million helicopter, just minutes from running out of fuel, at night, over the swamps of the Florida panhandle. I was beginning to imagine the headlines that would greet my wife and children. “Sir, we’ve got about 10 minutes of gas,” my […]

SimuFlite’s level-C King Air 200 simulator can be transformed in a few hours from round instruments to a B200 model’s EFIS gear.| Morning light was just beginning to illuminate the New York City skyline in soft shades of lilac and pale vermilion as I swung the King Air 200 onto John F. Kennedy International Airport’s […]

In a startling announcement a few days ago, Jane’s All the World’s Aircraft has named an August 1901 flight by Connecticut aviation pioneer Gustave Whitehead as the first successful powered flight in history, beating the Wright brothers’ first flight by more than two years. Jane’s, which calls itself the world’s foremost authority on aviation history, […]

The NTSB on Tuesday issued five Safety Alerts that it says focus on the most frequent types of general aviation accidents and how to prevent them. “Because we investigate each of the 1,500 GA accidents that occur in the United States every year, we see the same types of accidents over and over again,” said […]

Able Flight is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping wounded veterans and other disabled people learn to fly. Sennheiser, Embraer and Signature Flight Support are sponsoring a benefit evening for Able Flight on Saturday April 20 at Fantasy of Flight in Polk City, Florida, near Orlando. Guests will be able to tour Kermit Weeks’ aviation […]

The National Aeronautic Association announced on Tuesday that the team behind the Mars Curiosity Rover will be awarded the 2012 Robert J. Collier Trophy. The award was given “…in recognition of the extraordinary achievements of successfully landing Curiosity on Mars, advancing the nation’s technological and engineering capabilities and significantly improving humanity’s understanding of ancient Martian […]

The NTSB this week issued five GA Safety Alerts aimed at preventing the most common fatal general aviation accidents. The big question centers on whether the Board’s action will have any discernable impact in moving the safety needle. My guess is no, it won’t. Here’s the reason: The vast majority of GA pilots won’t take […]

In our FBO Spotlight series, we’re highlighting FBOs around the country that have received rave reviews from our readers. This latest Spotlight is brought to you by Roy Brewer, who recently flew into Tulsa’s Richard Lloyd Jones Jr. Airport in a Commander 114. Here’s what he had to say about one of the airport’s FBOs, […]