Pilot Proficiency

In summer 1954, I was 10 going on 11; the “going on” part is important when you’re 10. My father was in New York for some reason or another, and my mother and I were to join him there for a month. It was the first great travel adventure of my life. Born and living […]

Nearly every suburban parish in (heavily Catholic) Cincinnati has a Saturday afternoon or evening Mass but, for lots of reasons, I’ve just been going through the motions—never feeling too “connected.” But there’s a racetrack near Lunken Airport and, about a year ago, a friend introduced me to a small community of “backtrackers.” Because of their […]

Uncertainty makes for an accident waiting to happen.

I was providing flight instruction toward a commercial rating with a student whom I had recently helped obtain her instrument rating. We were flying my own Cessna Cardinal RG, and we had already flown together a great deal. In fact, she actually handled the airplane better than I did in most cases, especially landings. Because […]

PM: “Making power, power is even.” PM: “Airspeed alive.” PM: “80 knots.” PF: “My yoke.” PM: “Your yoke.” PM: “V₁.” PM: “V_R.” PM: “Positive rate on two.” PF: “Gear up.” PM: “Selecting gear up.” PM: “Gear is up.” PM: “Clean wing speed.” PF: “Clean the wing.” PM: “Cleaning the wing.” PM: “Wing is clean.” PM: […]

When pilots head to Las Vegas, most think of the nightlife or maybe gambling. With nearly year-round sunshine and often scorching temperatures, the last thing on their minds is probably the weather, despite Las Vegas’ regular monsoon season that runs from mid-June through September. That’s the time of the year when Las Vegas receives most […]

In 1980, as a local banker for 15 years, I was asked by the bank’s directors to become more involved in community affairs—specifically, to take over the position of chairman of finance on the executive board of the Boy Scouts of America in our town of Greenwich, Connecticut. In that position, I was responsible for the finances […]

The focus of my 34-year career with the airlines has always been passenger safety and comfort. But on this particular flight to London, the focus went to the dogs. My copilot, Steve, and I were the links in a safety chain that prevented the early demise of one beloved collie. Unbeknownst to its owner, the […]

If you don’t know where it went, is it really gone?

In “When to Give Up,” an article from several years ago, I recommended giving serious thought before every takeoff about how to handle an emergency. Rather than trying for a “miracle save,” it was usually better to accept the unpleasant certainty of bending some metal but probably surviving. The classic example is losing an engine […]