Pilot Proficiency

Aloud, muffled boom is heard from within the cockpit. The airplane begins to buffet. The two pilots exchange wide-eyed glances. From years of routine and training, they simultaneously turn toward the center instrument panel and begin to focus their attention on the electronic engine displays. The needle of the left engine N1 gauge is gyrating […]

Last summer, I traveled to Scotland on vacation for a week to attend a wedding on the Isle of Skye. I’d hardly consider the first few hours of the trip relaxing. I picked up my rental car in the center of downtown Edinburgh and was instantly tasked with operating a manual transmission from the right […]

Sometimes the urge to fly strikes when I least expect it. It’s always there, mind you, but sometimes it lies dormant while my attention is elsewhere, only to suddenly resurface. Take yesterday morning, for example. I was lounging in Windbird’s cockpit, sipping coffee and enjoying the warm Caribbean breeze while planning an upcoming sail to […]

Not just anybody can join this group. We’ve been meeting for close to 30 years, and we guard admission with diligence. To become a member, you must be a man who looks good on paper, but be a bit of a mess in real life. Turns out, there are a lot of us. In the […]

Nothing ruins a pilot’s day more than landing on the wrong runway, or even worse, touching down on a taxiway the pilot mistakenly thought was the runway. While a slap to the head is certainly in order for anyone who falls prey to a case of mistaken runway identity, there’s also the potential for much […]

Like the late stand-up comic Rodney Dangerfield who never seemed to get enough respect, the people at Gary Airport (GYY) feel as if they’ve been missing the love for many years. Sitting 20 miles south of Chicago along the shore of Lake Michigan, Gary Airport has certainly seen its share of failed airline startups including […]

ELT (emergency locator transmitter). A self-contained radio transmitter that automatically begins transmitting on the emergency frequencies any time it is triggered by a severe impact parallel to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft. Required by all U.S. civil airplane category aircraft except as provided below [91.207(e) and (f)]. Transmits on 121.5 MHz or the newer […]

Pilots like to fly low, so what can we learn from this 2017 Cessna 172 accident?

Redbird Flight Simulations launched a couple of unique simulator products on display at the EAA AirVenture show grounds for the week. The company introduced a seaplane trainer, specifically designed for Tropic Ocean Airways, which operates Cessna 208 Grand Caravans in the Bahamas, the Caribbean, Florida, and the northeastern United States. The simulator is a modified […]

An acquaintance named Mark Burton recently sent me a copy of his book about an airport owned and operated by his family called Brownie’s. A few days later, I met a guy at a party who regaled me (unsolicited) with wild and woolly tales about flying out of a now defunct airport called Brownie’s with […]