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I Can’t Believe I Did That

Learn from the mistakes of others

I Was There

Pilot stories from around the world

Technique

Improve your flying skills

History

Preserving aviation's legacy

NEW ARTICLES

OUR MOST RECENT POSTS

Air Facts was first published in 1938 by Leighton Collins, dedicated to “the development of private air transportation.” It’s a different world now, and it’s a different Air Facts. Relaunched in 2011 as an online journal, Air Facts still champions, educates, informs and entertains pilots worldwide with real-world flying experiences. More…

Flight instruction

It isn’t always the instructor’s fault

Opinion
After reading the blog post Bad instructors by David Huprich, I thought it might be good to hear the other side of the story (from an instructor point of view) about some of my bad students over the years. Reflecting on David’s article reminded me of several interesting experiences that I have had helping students transition to new airplanes, complete flight reviews, and training primary students.
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9 Comments
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July 6, 2012
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/06180158/Charlie-Betsy.png 1080 1920 David Zitt https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg David Zitt2012-07-06 10:22:192017-06-05 13:36:53It isn’t always the instructor’s fault
Greenland from air

Trans-Atlantic in a Mooney 231

I was there
For many years we had contemplated a trans-Atlantic flight in our Mooney, and finally in June of 1982 the plan became a reality. Our first plane, a 1967 Piper Arrow had taken us to the Caribbean and to South America safely and comfortably via an island-hopping route, so the overwater aspects of single-engine flying held no special terror for us.
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9 Comments
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June 29, 2012
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/06180316/Zingesser-Greenland-2.jpg 800 521 Lawrence Zingesser https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg Lawrence Zingesser2012-06-29 10:05:422016-02-27 10:20:14Trans-Atlantic in a Mooney 231

8 things I love about Oshkosh

John's blog
Oshkosh. Have you ever met an aviation enthusiast who didn’t know exactly what that word meant? The annual EAA gathering in Wisconsin, officially called AirVenture, is a common thread in an aviation community that is remarkable for its diversity. Some pilots like homebuilts and some like certified airplanes; some like glass cockpits and some hate them. But everyone likes Oshkosh.
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12 Comments
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June 27, 2012
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/06180221/brown-arch1.jpg 327 505 John Zimmerman https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg John Zimmerman2012-06-27 08:40:582017-07-19 11:46:328 things I love about Oshkosh
NEXRAD image on iPad

Is the NTSB stupid or do they just not pay attention?

Dick's blog
The NTSB recently made a startling (to it) discovery that there is latency involved with the Nexrad pictures that pilots are looking at as they try to avoid weather. To read the NTSB Safety Alert on the subject, you get the feeling that they just crawled out of a hole and discovered weather in the cockpit.
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30 Comments
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June 25, 2012
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/06180238/photo-50.png 1536 2048 Richard Collins https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg Richard Collins2012-06-25 10:39:552016-02-27 10:19:59Is the NTSB stupid or do they just not pay attention?
Flight instructor

Bad instructors

I was there
During my nearly six decades of flying I’ve had more good instructors than bad. But beware: there are bad ones. The worst instructor I ever had was in a Pitts S2A. I learned nothing from him except how to keep from redecorating the interior of his airplane. Share your experiences with good and bad CFIs.
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26 Comments
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June 22, 2012
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/06180241/CFI.jpg 400 600 David Huprich https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg David Huprich2012-06-22 10:37:542016-02-27 10:19:52Bad instructors
Me262

WWII Watson’s Whizzers

History
It was a mission late in the war. Lieutenant Robert Anspach was flying cover in his P-47 Thunderbolt for a group of B-26 Marauders near the Messerschmitt factory airfield at Lechfeld, Germany. From out of nowhere an enemy airplane rocketed past, blasting off a few rounds. It looked like nothing they’d seen before. Ever.
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14 Comments
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June 20, 2012
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/06180302/messerschmitt-262.jpg 389 600 Phil Scott https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg Phil Scott2012-06-20 10:41:282016-02-27 10:19:44WWII Watson’s Whizzers
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John’s Blog

Pilot in airplane

How to improve your aviation decisions

John's blog
At some point in a pilot’s flying career, usually around 250 hours, the primary challenge shifts from a physical one to a mental one. When you finally master crosswind landings and learn how to use all the avionics in your airplane, what’s left is the never-ending task of making good decisions. How can we improve this skill?
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17 Comments
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July 5, 2022
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/06161030/BretCitationVegasApproachClouds1000.jpg 750 1000 John Zimmerman https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg John Zimmerman2022-07-05 08:03:232022-07-04 07:48:37How to improve your aviation decisions
Trevor Jacob jump

YouTube, Top Gun, and aviation culture

John's blog
Is YouTube good or bad for general aviation? That seems to be a popular hangar flying debate these days, especially since a number of high profile pilots have found themselves in hot water with the FAA over the last month. The answer may be more important for the future of GA than you think.
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22 Comments
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May 9, 2022
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/06135800/f6920-16506029019652-1920.jpg 1080 1920 John Zimmerman https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg John Zimmerman2022-05-09 09:57:172022-05-09 09:21:34YouTube, Top Gun, and aviation culture
Pilatus PC-12

What’s wrong with Pilatus PC-12 pilots?

John's blog
A key reason for the PC-12’s popularity has been its stellar safety record, one of the best in all of general aviation. So any effort to answer the question, “what’s wrong with Pilatus PC-12 pilots?” has to begin with: not much. But accidents do happen, including a recent one off the coast of North Carolina. That means it’s worth our time to examine the safety record of a specific airplane type, even if you don’t fly that model.
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16 Comments
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March 30, 2022
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/06140132/Pilatus-PC-12-landing.jpg 1192 1800 John Zimmerman https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg John Zimmerman2022-03-30 08:41:022022-03-29 17:49:56What’s wrong with Pilatus PC-12 pilots?
View John’s Blog

I Can’t Believe I Did That

Cessna 182

Weight and balance “get-there-itis” traps

I Can't Believe I Did That
It was a beautiful spring day for an airplane ride, which I was asked to give to a very important and even famous client (and his two friends). As an instrument pilot having flown for years, I knew the importance of getting the exact weight of my client and his two adult friends, so I got the numbers over the phone. I never realized that a hidden trap was awaiting me until I first saw all three of them at the airport.
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15 Comments
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July 20, 2022
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/15142453/Cessna_182S_Skylane_%E2%80%98G-OBBO_30860356187.jpg 683 1024 Rick Spencer https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg Rick Spencer2022-07-20 08:57:452022-07-15 14:26:17Weight and balance “get-there-itis” traps
Thermometer at 100 degrees

Low, hot, and humid

I Can't Believe I Did That
The subsequent takeoff began normally enough—I didn’t necessarily notice if we became airborne a little farther down the runway than normal or not. But once airborne, I slowly became aware that things weren’t going as expected. After liftoff, the climb rate of the 172 was downright anemic to say the least. It was clawing the air trying to climb, but without much success.
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6 Comments
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March 16, 2022
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/06173405/thermometer.jpg 360 640 Craig Bixby https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg Craig Bixby2022-03-16 08:39:562022-03-08 16:08:06Low, hot, and humid
Savannah

Who’s pilot in command? A faulty assumption leads to an accident

I Can't Believe I Did That
There was much joking and laughing about operating the Savannah, a small aircraft, from an 8,000-ft runway that had been built for nuclear bombers. The weather was perfect, we were in high spirits, but there was no discussion about our respective licences and experience or check procedures. We were just a couple of pilot mates going for a fly—what could go wrong?
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4 Comments
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February 14, 2022
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/06140304/SavannahS.jpg 536 800 David Johns https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg David Johns2022-02-14 08:14:572022-02-11 15:49:17Who’s pilot in command? A faulty assumption leads to an accident
View ICBIDT

Opinion

Constellation cockpit

Where have all the pilots gone?

Opinion
I have noticed the aviation industry is once again experiencing another pilot shortage. So, let’s take a little trip back in time and see how we keep getting in to these so called “shortages.” A long time ago—when dinosaurs ruled the earth, beer was only a nickel, and I had no gray hair—the airlines were regulated and all was well upon the land. For a captain flying at night on an international flight, the salary was as much as God.
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11 Comments
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July 13, 2022
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/06174428/Connie-cockpit.jpg 450 500 Skip Stagg https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg Skip Stagg2022-07-13 08:47:512022-07-01 17:53:02Where have all the pilots gone?
Autonomous ucar

Who is in charge of your safety?

Opinion
I have a GPS that will provide me navigation support and let me access almost anything I need to know to continue on a safe flight. All these things are nice and helpful, and I would not enjoy flying as much if I did not have them. But there are two essential elements I can’t do without, and if they are not working, I’m not flying: SA and ADM.
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4 Comments
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June 29, 2022
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/06135617/iStock-829197466-1024x683-1.jpg 683 1024 John Rousch https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg John Rousch2022-06-29 08:35:032022-06-21 17:20:32Who is in charge of your safety?
Facebook group

How the web and social media have encouraged aviators

Opinion
Ever since the earliest days of the internet, when Usenet newsgroups were the main source of shared information, aviation has had a presence. With the advent of the World Wide Web in the 1990s, it wasn't long before aviators and aviation enthusiasts built their first websites. When social media arrived in the 2000s, aviation once again established a firm foothold and has used the medium to its full extent.
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6 Comments
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June 10, 2022
https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/06135658/FB-screenshot.jpg 1270 1200 Ben Lovegrove https://airfactsjournal-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/06142440/Air-Facts-Logo340.jpg Ben Lovegrove2022-06-10 09:04:282022-06-02 17:53:07How the web and social media have encouraged aviators
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  • A 12-minute flight and a serious in-flight fire
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