As Sporty’s lead aviation course and video producer, Bret is usually flying an interesting airplane, and often with a camera rolling. He oversees the development, production and distribution of over 30 aviation courses from Sporty's, including the Private Pilot Learn to Fly Course. He is a flight instructor and check airman at the Sporty's Academy flight school and a senior captain on a Cessna Citation.
Clouds are often referred to as “sign posts in the sky”, and for good reason since they are one of the best visual indicators of what mother nature has planned for the weather. This week’s tip takes a look at the various types of clouds, when and where they form and what kind of flying conditions pilots can expect when flying in and around them.
All airports with ATC control towers in the U.S. (and many non-towered airports) use a standard set of pavement markings and elevated signs to call out important parts of an airport runway. In this video, we’ll explore the location and meaning of each in a simulated 3D airport environment so that you’ll be well prepared when operating at a large airport.
Just about every airplane includes performance data in the Pilot’s Operating Handbook to calculate the runway length required for takeoff and landing under various conditions. The FARs require you to determine these distances as part of your preflight responsibilities, but fortunately the charts published for today’s modern airplanes make this task a breeze. This week’s tip takes a look at how perform this calculation using the common “chase-around” style charts.
Class B airspace surrounds the busiest airports, which means there are some important restrictions to remember any time you’re operating within it – or underneath it. In this week’s video tip, we review how Class B airspace works, what you need to do to fly legally in it and how to stay safe. Take a few minutes and get current today.
What happens when the spark plugs in your engine aren’t working properly? Some pretty bad stuff. In our latest video tip, we explain what detonation and pre-ignition are all about, how they happen, and what you can do to prevent them from happening.
Sometimes terrain, icing, lack of instrument rating or proper equipment can make flying on an Instrument Flight Plan (IFR) not an option. But that doesn’t mean you need to cancel a flight just because there’s weather along the route or it’s not perfect VFR.
Many airports offer a self-serve fuel option at a cheaper price per gallon, which can offer big savings for large fillups and serve as a plan B for fuel when landing after hours when the FBO is closed. This week’s tip takes a look at how to operate a self-serve fuel system to ensure that your first time using one goes smoothly.
A new online training resource called InstaCFI connects pilots with CFIs across the country to meet virtually for ground instruction, assistance with complex flight planning, avionics instruction and much more.
The electrical system is a critical component of today’s modern airplanes, distributing and supplying power to the lights, avionics and digital flight instruments. This week’s tip takes a look at the various elements that make up the electrical system in the popular Cessna 172 training airplane.
Welcome to Sporty’s Flight Maneuver Spotlight series. This week we’re going to fly steep turns, a maneuver that will help both improve your flight control skills at a steeper bank angle and show the importance of keeping your eyes moving between inside and outside the cockpit.
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