VFR

June 2010 NOT ALL THAT long ago even the best full-motion jet simulators had very basic visual presentations that were restricted to nothing more than a view straight ahead through the windshield. Most simulators had a television-style screen mounted in each pilot’s windshield, and you couldn’t really see anything except the display on your side. […]

THE WORDS “PLEASE CALL this phone number after you land” strike terror into the heart of any pilot. Sometimes the bad news comes in the form of a letter from the FAA. However it arrives, it is no fun to learn that you are being charged with an airborne deviation from the FARs. Despite some […]

There’s plenty of information on the operating limitations of an airplane. A VG diagram (in some applications called a VN diagram) shows many things including stalling speed, maneuvering speed, maximum allowable speed, maximum indicated airspeed in rough air and maximum allowable G loading, both positive and negative. Operate within the parameters of the VG diagram […]

In the history of aviation there have been a number of aircraft that were considered dangerous, including the Learjet 20 series, the Aerostar and the Twin Comanche. More recently the airplane some people seem to love to hate is the Mitsubishi MU-2. There are numerous websites that detail what the authors consider to be the […]

__For many of us, going places is one of the wonders of flying. Many instructors like to take potential flight students on a short cross-country flight during the initial introductory flight in order to whet their appetite for the reward that awaits after they complete their primary training. Getting kicked out of the pattern is […]

It starts with weather. A pilot knows where he wants to go VFR and the first step is to see if the weather will allow a flight along the route that, at this point, is just in his mind. The most direct route is the first one considered. The next thing is the weather synopsis, […]