Pilot Proficiency

In the spring of 1944, Col. Don Blakeslee wanted P-51 Mustangs for his Fourth Fighter Group in England. But it would take weeks to transition the pilots from their huge radial-engine P-47 Thunderbolts into the sleek V-12-powered Mustangs. Blakeslee promised to have his pilots in combat within 24 hours of receiving the Mustangs – and […]

There are a lot of definitions out there for maneuvering speed (Va), including the textbook one that students deliver by rote, when asked. Unfortunately, most of the popular definitions don’t relate to the true meaning of this “life saving” speed. The best definition, albeit the shortest, is — “turbulence penetration speed” — the speed you […]

**BLOGBOOK ENTRY 6 ** I had my third flight lesson on Saturday, six weeks after my last. I had made the decision about a month ago to finish the FlightSafety ground school course and take the written before continuing with the flight lessons. Remember, when I started flying “oh so many years ago,” I learned […]

One of my short local flights last week reminded me that the time of year has a lot to do with what I can expect from wind conditions. It’s winter in the Northeast, and the season brings some pretty reliable presumptions. It’ll be colder, and the days are shorter. In clouds, icing assumes center stage […]

I have noticed a number of letters to the editor over the years that lament the fact that most of the training and safety articles seem to be about accidents. A few people have even indicated they were scared away from flying by the many accident stories. There is a very important reason many articles […]

Larry Turley first decided he wanted to be a pilot when he was a teenager, working the line for an FBO in Augusta, Georgia, and the Master’s Golf Tournament came to town. “Arnold Palmer and the other pros landed their jets and pulled out gas credit cards,” Turley remembers with a laugh. “I’d never seen […]

Flying Editor Emeritus Richard Collins once told me he preferred not seeing his airplane all torn apart during its annual inspection. And there is certainly no stauncher advocate of doing maintenance right. He just chose to keep the elbow grease at arm’s length, and it worked just fine for him. Owner participation in the annual […]

Each month, Flying answers questions about the new Sport Pilot/Light Sport Aircraft rule with assistance from the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), the authority on the opportunities available within the category commonly known as “Sport Pilot”: Q: Would it be possible to build/rebuild a V-22 homebuilt to meet the Light Sport Aircraft maximum weight of 1,430 […]

It you are one of the pilots who has not yet traded in your old paper certificate for an updated, tamperproof version, you have until March 31 to make the change. After that date, you will be ineligible to exercise your privileges with a paper certificate. When you do make the change, you can also […]

Fly-in communities, where homeowners have access to a runway from hangars on their property, now face a threat from the FAA. Such communities depend on so called “through the fence” (TTF) access, and new security concerns have the FAA challenging airports that already have the practice well established, including clauses written into property deeds and […]