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A big part of the go/no-go decision relates to your health and well-being as a pilot. This week’s tip takes a look at various personal factors, including illness, fatigue and the effects that medication and alcohol can have on your decision-making before and during a flight.
According to the Aeronautical Information Manual, “Line up and wait is an air traffic control (ATC) procedure designed to position an aircraft onto the runway for an imminent departure. The ATC instruction ‘LINE UP AND WAIT’ is used to instruct a pilot to taxi onto the departure runway and line up and wait.” In earlier […]
Sadly, daylight saving time comes to an end on Sunday, November 1 as the clocks “fall” back one hour. As daylight wanes in the coming months, please consider these helpful reminders: Definitions of Night Aircraft position lights on = sunset to sunrise Logging night = end of evening civil twilight to the beginning of morning […]
The moment: short final The place: Lake Cumberland Regional Airport (KSME), Somerset, KY The aircraft: Piper Seminole The memory: This fall morning is what you’d describe as “glassy”…not a bump in the sky with unrestricted visibility. Now, no excuses after being on speed and on glideslope short final for runway 5. Want to share […]
I remember planning my first cross country flight. There were sectional charts thrown across the floor, highlighters in the dog’s mouth, crumpled flight plan forms in the corner, my aluminum E6B lodged into the drywall from where I chucked it in frustration…those were the days. Much like we’ve graduated from outhouses to indoor plumbing, we […]
The Douglas DC-3 might be the hardest working airplane in aviation history. From pioneering airline routes to flying World War II missions to hauling freight in remote areas, this tail-dragging radial twin has done it all. In this fantastic video, you’ll get to fly in a DC-3 with the world’s highest time DC-3 pilot.
As you start to feel comfortable with takeoffs and landings after solo, your flight instructor may have you practice touch and gos during landing practice. This week’s video tip takes a look at the maneuver and some factors to consider to help execute them properly.
The moment: Prop contrails The place: Northeast Florida Regional Airport (KSGJ), St. Augustine, FL The aircraft: Super Decathlon The memory: In addition to a fun day of aerobatics, the temperatures were cool with enough moisture to produce condensation trails off the propeller tips during this spin captured by my GoPro. Want to share your […]
Every pilot needs a reliable pair of sunglasses, but the cheap gas station ones usually don’t work. In particular, you need a pair that won’t distort avionics or iPad screens. Go flying with Sporty’s Chris McGonegle in this video to see the Flight Gear Captain’s sunglasses in action.
Confession: I hated ground reference maneuvers as a student pilot. Eventually, my flight instructor broke through and explained why we were spending so much time on these seemingly boring lessons. I began to appreciate that doing these simple maneuvers really well was going to help me make better landings. Let’s review the point of these exercises.
