by Chris Oquist So you’ve finally done, you decided to buckle down and make your dream of flying a plane a reality. Now what? Well, you are going to need a few things before taking flight. Some items on this list may seem like little things, but they can make a big difference. An important aspect of being…
Are we letting the computers fly too much? I believe so, I know many of my blogging colleagues would also agree. We seem to be going backward – better technology, but crappier pilots. I have noticed that training vendors for professional pilots tend to assume that you know how to fly the airplane and they…
by Alan Carr Every pilot knows that more weight means added time, and that charts, maps, and manuals add a significant number of minutes to your flight. Thankfully, the iPad Mini weighs less than a pound and can contain pounds of information in just a few apps. Here are some of my favorite iPad resources…
This is my humble contribution to the blogging in formation series. For this month’s #blogformation post, Cap ‘n Aux astutely chose “my most instructional moment” as the theme. I had to think about this one for a few minutes. As a former instructor I feel like I could choose between either side of the coin –…
Having flown some formation in my youth, I was familiar with the addictive nature of this kind of flying. Back then I was a mixture of self-trained (read: SCARY and NOT RECOMMENDED) and loosely instructed. My “training” was from a grizzled Vietnam-era F-4 jock. He was in a Pitts and I was in a 2/3rd scale composite…
On the heels of the FAA’s certification of the first commercial drones, I’m compelled to take you down the rabbit hole with me regarding the implications of our skies littered with faceless, nameless machines. Like almost all powerful technology that has been developed in history, it can be used for good, and it can be…
This post is my contribution to the #blogformation series on the topic of “truth is stranger than fiction.” One of us among the group selected this topic to torment the other authors! The good news is, there is no shortage of incredible stories in aviation that defy logic and turn fiction onto its ear. This…
Disclaimer: the inspiration for this post comes from my minor obsession with coffee. It real doesn’t matter where you are in the spectrum of aviation, sometimes we just need a little jolt to remind us why we have embarked on this journey. Indulge me as I draw parallels between my other vice, Starbucks, and different ways to enliven…
Pilots don’t agree on much, but if you were to ask what are the scariest things that could potentially occur in an airplane you will almost universally get this answer: Fire, Structural Failure, and Midair (in no particular order). Not that we sit around trembling in fear of such things, but when the thought wafts…
This post may sound like it is targeted at folks in training, but it really applies to all of us. It assumes that we are all “students” in some form or fashion. Let me explain. You see it doesn’t matter if you are a 787 driver with decades of experience and you flew F-15s prior…