Pilot Proficiency

(October 2011) Those of us who have been around airplanes for any length of time understand the concept of stepping up, whereby a nonpilot becomes a pilot, learns to fly in a certain brand of airplane and then remains loyal to that brand while gaining experience and moving up through the model lineup to bigger, […]

During my 12-year flying career, I’ve had one engine failure. I was lucky. It happened during a takeoff in my Cessna 170, and thankfully the engine quit immediately after I applied full power on the runway. I was able to use what forward momentum I had achieved to roll onto the hard surface area between […]

There has been a lot of talk this year about student retention and what flight schools can do to inspire their customers to keep flying. I think one of the most important aspects of this issue is the student-instructor relationship. Learning to fly is a very intimate experience requiring many hours in close quarters. In […]

FBO Spotlight: Lanmar Aviation (KGON) Groton, Connecticut In our FBO Spotlight series, we’re highlighting FBOs around the country that have received rave reviews from our readers. The latest Spotlight is brought to you by Bruce Drost, who recently flew into KGON in a PA 28-181. “On arrival they greeted my family and I with a […]

As we all learned in Flight School 101, airspeed indication is a measurement of the difference between ram air and static air. Since the pitot tube points right into the relative wind, taking in the ram air, it is also exposed to any debris in the air that you’re flying through. It’s not entirely uncommon […]

The First Amendment guarantees our right to petition our government. For generations, Americans have used this right to organize around issues they care about, from ending slavery, to guaranteeing a woman’s right to vote, to furthering the civil rights movement. Now, with the rise of the Internet, any citizen can create an online petition in […]

Galveston Aviation Services (KGLS) Galveston, Texas In our FBO Spotlight series, we’re highlighting FBOs around the country that have received rave reviews from our readers. The latest Spotlight is brought to you by Rob Maas, who recently flew into KGLS in a Cessna Cardinal. “KGLS took a direct hit in 2008 from Hurricane Ike and […]

(September 2011) The following conversation did not take place during the Pilot Training Reform Symposium sponsored by SAFE (Society of Aviation and Flight Educators) — but it could have. During a coffee break between sessions, a small cluster of aviation educators are discussing ways to lower the stagnant rate of general aviation acci- dents and […]

This is the best time of the whole year if you’re a sports fan. Baseball pennant races are coming down to the wire, the NFL season is just getting under way, Division I college football has already had its share of big matchups, and drama in the NASCAR Chase for the Cup is ratcheting up. […]

After having experienced the Reno Air Races once in 2003, I was thrilled to return to the show this year. The weather forecast for the races looked good and the lineup of race airplanes was as exciting as ever. I took off IFR into a 1,200-foot ceiling on Thursday morning in a 172RG that I […]