Pilot Proficiency

Shopping for pilots can be tricky at best. There is so much aviation gear on the market, and, without trying things out, it’s hard to know what products work well and which ones don’t. Here is a collection of some of our favorites — gift ideas for all budgets that are sure to put a […]

More than a dozen years after the July 2000 crash of an Air France Concorde supersonic transport (SST) outside Paris, a French court will decide today whether to uphold a manslaughter conviction against Continental Airlines. The original ruling, which was appealed, held that a Continental mechanic improperly attached a metal strip to one of the […]

We’ve been hearing talk about a looming “pilot shortage” for so long that we’ve stopped believing it. But I had dinner last night with a group of regional airline pilots, all in their mid-30s and all left-seaters on CRJ 700s, who told me they’re convinced a pilot shortage is coming. They might be right this […]

Wingsuit pilot Alexander Polli says that he wants to be surrounded by people with a passion for life. For many people, his passion pushes the envelope of sanity. In this video Polli speaks about the project he came up with to slalom down a sheer cliff face thousands of feet high at 10 feet agl […]

FlyThisSim has just received the paperwork from the FAA signing off on additional capabilities for the company’s touch-screen TouchTrainer simulator. The TouchTrainer now features configurations for round-gauge and G1000 panels for Cessna 172, 182 and 206 airplanes (including the retractable gear versions). The analog version of the panel includes Garmin’s GNS430W and an STEC autopilot. […]

The introduction of GPS into airplanes, whether in a panel-mounted or portable format, has made general aviation flying more efficient and more safe particularly with the inclusion of traffic, weather and terrain information. And while playing around with cockpit gadgets is also a lot of fun, we should never forget to look outside. While you […]

As I get ready to sit down for my Thanksgiving dinner, I’m reflecting on the things that I’m thankful for. While family and friends top that list, the freedom of flight is a close second. I still marvel at the fact that, at any time of the day or night, I can jump in an […]

As pilots flying general aviation airplanes, there can be times when we have a lot on our plates — sometimes more than it seems like we can handle. And unlike many corporate pilots and all airline crews, we usually have to do everything ourselves, without a helping hand from a second crewmember. That can lead […]

Three men were killed Friday night in a Cessna 172 when the airplane hit a truck on takeoff from Knox County Regional Airport in Maine. After the collision, the airplane reportedly climbed to about 150 feet before banking east and nose-diving into a wooded area, killing 22-year-old David Cheney, 24-year-old Marcelo Rugini and 24-year-old William […]

Volunteers at the Connecticut Air & Space Center museum in Bridgeport have started the process of cleaning and restoring the historic Curtiss Hangar at Sikorsky Memorial Airport. Visited over the years by aviation pioneers including Charles Lindbergh, Amelia Earhart, Howard Hughes and Igor Sikorsky, the Curtiss Hangar will become a focal point for the museum, […]