Pilot Proficiency

Every two years, whether you’re current or not, you have to complete a biennial flight review with an instructor. The BFR is not a test – there is no such thing as a pass or fail. Your instructor simply needs to feel confident that you’re a competent pilot before endorsing your logbook. But rather than […]

Air traffic controller and pilot James Price has taken home flight simulators to a new level. His project? The construction of a Boeing 737 simulator out of the nose section of a retired airliner. A long-time flight sim enthusiast, Price purchased a retired Continental Airlines Boeing 737-130 nose shell more than 10 years ago for […]

Airplane crashes are generally unplanned tragic events that we all do our best to avoid. But this weekend, a 170-seat Boeing 727 was deliberately crashed in the remote Sonoran Desert in Baja California, Mexico, all in the name of science. “This groundbreaking project features an actual crash of a passenger jet and explores the big […]

A few months ago I wrote a feature story that took an in-depth look at the future of aviation biofuel, an area of scientific research that is still very much in its infancy but appears poised for major breakthroughs. In the article, I noted that oil price instability is the chief worry of most every […]

During the summe of 2010, my homebuilt, Melmoth 2, which had been flying for almost eight years, began to display a mystifying symptom. As I turned off the runway after landing, the main landing gear oleo on the outside of the turn would seem to collapse. The wing on that side would slump toward the […]

Usually it’s my intent to emphasize more of the flying aspects of the airline pilot career with the Jumpseat column. But on this particular occasion, unique circumstances provided an interesting sequence of events prior to becoming airborne. Albeit embarrassing, sharing this moment is an insightful glimpse into my world. If you are a colleague … […]

Have you ever noticed how old married couples sometimes start to look like each other? Or that ardent dog lovers possess a startling resemblance to their bassett hounds? Crazy as it sounds, I fear that I am beginning to look like my airplane. The 1980 Cheyenne I that my wife, Cathy, and I own is […]

Whenever I think about Midwest Airways I’m reminded of Bob Newhart’s skit “The Grace L. Ferguson Airline and Storm Door Co.” But I think too of the title of a Pete Seeger and The Weavers album, “Wasn’t That a Time!” From the late ’50s into the ’60s, Ebby Lunken operated a seasonal, weekend air service […]

There are efforts under way around the country (and around the world, in fact) to redo Part 23, the iconic regulation that addresses the certification of light airplanes. While we’re still years away from a final rule, these first steps are critical to the ultimate success or failure of creating a new regulatory landscape for […]

The word groupthink has been coined to describe a common phenomenon in which a desire for harmony overrides a realistic analysis of alternatives. This emphasis on maintaining the group’s cohesion and togetherness can result in bad decisions, because differing points of view are not expressed. The description of the kind of group most susceptible to […]