It’s been a big year in aviation, and at FLYING, we’ve been there for pilots, to report on the stories that have mattered to you most—to the tune of more than 15 million page views. Here are the top 5 articles that we’ve posted on flyingmag.com over the past 12 months.
What do you think was the top story of the year? Let us know at: [email protected].
1: NTSB Preliminary Report Sheds Light on Copilot Mid-Air Departure
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the copilot of a skydiving aircraft that made an emergency landing July 29 at Raleigh, North Carolina, intentionally departed the aircraft in flight without a parachute. According to the surviving pilot, the copilot was upset about the hard landing that damaged the airplane.
2: World’s Largest Airplane Completes First Test Flight in Eight Months
Stratolaunch’s Roc—the biggest airplane in the world—returned to the sky Sunday, completing its first test flight in more than eight months.
The four-hour and 23-minute mission expanded Roc’s proven test envelope, including a higher altitude, as well as retracting and extending one of Roc’s main landing gear in flight for the first time.
3: New Images of World’s Largest Cargo Jet Show Details of Destruction
Russia’s Ministry of Defense has released new imagery showing an apparently destroyed Antonov An-225 Mriya—once the world’s largest cargo airplane—at Gostomel Airport (UKKM) in Ukraine.
The airport—also known as Antonov Airport—was the scene of intense firefights last month between Ukrainian military and invading Russian special forces. The photos show Mriya’s gigantic nose cone riddled with what appear to be bullet or shrapnel holes sitting near the aircraft’s wing and turbofan engines.
4: The ‘Colossal Mistake’ May Lead to a Colossal Bill
“I made a colossal mistake in my first lesson, mistakenly departing with the cowl plug still in place. The cylinder head temperature had reached a sickening 550 degrees for a few minutes, and we made a precautionary landing at a nearby grass strip. After cooling down, the airplane performed flawlessly for the trip home, so I went ahead and scheduled a second lesson with my instructor for the next day.”
5: Cirrus Vision Jet Pilot Pulls Chute in Florida
A pilot and two passengers are okay after the Cirrus Vision Jet went down after deploying the CAPS (Cirrus Airframe Parachute System), apparently while on approach to Kissimmee Gateway Airport (KISM) in Florida on September 9.
