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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

    Articles by Serrhel Adams

    Articles by Serrhel Adams

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    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…

    Avionics: advancing or retreating?

    Opinion
    For some ancient, bureaucratic reason my Piper is not allowed to use the same newer, more capable and less expensive avionics and autopilots that experimental airplanes do, although we all fly the same airways, airspace and systems. Is TSO’d equipment really twice as good and twice as reliable as today’s non-TSO’d?
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    42 Comments
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    January 10, 2014
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/06173818/af-avionics-feature.jpg 280 520 Ed Rickett https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Ed Rickett2014-01-10 11:31:432014-01-10 11:31:43Avionics: advancing or retreating?

    Over the river and the wood

    I was there
    We often think of airplanes as a way to make long trips shorter, or make them possible at all, but sometimes we forget that the trip doesn’t have to be very far at all to make it worthwhile to fly, or that it can conquer more than one kind of distance. Here’s the story of one case in point.
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    7 Comments
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    January 7, 2014
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/06173821/cardinal.jpg 280 520 David Reinhart https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png David Reinhart2014-01-07 20:11:202014-01-07 20:26:14Over the river and the wood
    Supercell

    A flight to remember – Angel Flight for Sarah

    I was there
    Several years ago I started volunteering for the Angel Flight organization, which transports low income patients for distant specialized medical treatments. Such flights are a fine opportunity to share my good fortune in owning a relatively fast and comfortable cross-country airplane.
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    7 Comments
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    January 6, 2014
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/06165651/birmingham_ref-1.jpg 280 520 Bruce McGregor https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Bruce McGregor2014-01-06 10:43:412016-11-22 10:21:53A flight to remember – Angel Flight for Sarah
    Icing map

    Ice: gotcha… Where is the ice?

    Dick's blog
    Where? Simple. Ice is where you find it. As pilots we have to accept the fact that ice will be forecast when it is cold and there are clouds but if we are to get any utility out of our airplanes in the wintertime, we have to develop the weather wisdom to recognize the times when ice is likely and when it is not.
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    3 Comments
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    January 3, 2014
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    A Big Apple adventure

    I was there
    After parking at the FBO and shutting the engine down, we looked at each other and laughed like a couple of kids that just got off their first roller coaster ride. Scary, exciting and fun all at the same time.
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    16 Comments
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    January 2, 2014
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/06173835/AF-big-apple-feature.jpg 280 520 Wayne Schneider https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Wayne Schneider2014-01-02 12:28:502014-01-02 12:30:46A Big Apple adventure

    Accident? No, it’s a screw-up!

    Opinion
    Most “accident” reports should be labeled "lack of judgment" investigations. Ian Seager says that too often we fail to learn from our own and other pilots’ errors.
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    22 Comments
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    December 30, 2013
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/06173837/seager-AF-feature.jpg 280 520 Ian Seager https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Ian Seager2013-12-30 13:17:402015-11-23 17:39:33Accident? No, it’s a screw-up!
    Page 381 of 438«‹379380381382383›»

    John’s Blog

    The aviation community is alive and well

    John's blog
    Before the expletive could even leave my mouth, one of the FBO employees offered to lend me the crew car. I assumed the crew car option would be impossible, or at least impossibly bad manners, since the round trip would be nearly two hours and the FBO was closing soon. But he wouldn’t hear it: “take all the time you need and just drop the keys off with the night security guard. We appreciate your business.”
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    25 Comments
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    June 2, 2025
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    The Starlink era is here—will we regret it?

    John's blog
    This promises to be a major advancement in cockpit technology, with benefits for pilots and passengers alike. But before diving headfirst into the Starlink pool, it would be wise to pause for just a moment and contemplate what we might lose. Don’t worry, I’m no Luddite and I’m not here to scare anyone away from an exciting new gadget. I am, however, an observer with enough experience to have seen technological breakthroughs bring unintended consequences. I fear that may happen here.
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    27 Comments
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    April 9, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/17123837/Copy-of-The-Starlink-era-is-here%E2%80%94will-we-regret-it.png 1000 1300 John Zimmerman https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png John Zimmerman2025-04-09 08:55:152025-04-17 12:38:45The Starlink era is here—will we regret it?

    Pilot’s Bucket List: 11 Must-Do Adventures After Earning Your License

    John's blog
    Everyone's dream list will vary, but let me suggest 11 things that every pilot should do with their license. Call it a bucket list if you want, but I consider it a flight plan for a fulfilling life in the cockpit.
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    55 Comments
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    March 14, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/20101002/11-things-to-do-with-your-license.png 1000 1250 John Zimmerman https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png John Zimmerman2025-03-14 08:55:252025-03-23 14:20:58Pilot’s Bucket List: 11 Must-Do Adventures After Earning Your License
    View John’s Blog

    I Can’t Believe I Did That

    A Quarter Tank and a Prayer

    I Can't Believe I Did That
    I was watching the fuel gauges drop before my eyes. I elected to continue to ECG rather than turn back. I was on a direct course. The Norfolk controller wished me luck—not the most reassuring sign—and handed me off to ECG Tower, who had already been briefed.
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    13 Comments
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    June 20, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20175441/QUARTER-TANK-AND-A-PRAYER.png 1000 1250 Jeff Minck https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Jeff Minck2025-06-20 08:55:212025-05-27 15:15:11A Quarter Tank and a Prayer

    Trial by Ice

    I Can't Believe I Did That, I was there
    The most valuable lesson I learned from the “School of Hard Knocks” had nothing to do with weather or instrument flying. The “trial by ice” was a lesson in the awesome responsibility that comes from occupying the left seat of an airplane, regardless of its size. It also taught me to recognize those rare and unusual emergency situations when going by the book is not safe, and when deviating from standard operating procedures or the Federal Air Regulations is not only warranted, but imperative.
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    31 Comments
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    May 5, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/16113809/trial-by-ice.png 1000 1250 Joel Turpin https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Joel Turpin2025-05-05 08:10:022025-05-05 08:11:53Trial by Ice

    I Am UNSAFE Checklist—Lessons Learned on a Fateful Night

    I Can't Believe I Did That
    Very soon I was on the approach and thought I could still make 06C.  The ATIS called out the overcast at 800’ AGL, the minimum I needed (mistake #5—not mine, but it counted anyway.)  I held at 800’, assuming I’d see the runway lights below me and then I could continue to 06C.  As I crossed the runway threshold, it was solid IMC and I had to go missed.  I asked the Tower what the current ceiling was, and the response was that the ATIS was old and the ceiling was actually 400’ and you’ll have to go around. 
    Read more
    19 Comments
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    February 28, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/14102325/unsafe-checklist.png 1000 1250 Bob Hamilton https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Bob Hamilton2025-02-28 08:55:512025-02-14 10:24:30I Am UNSAFE Checklist—Lessons Learned on a Fateful Night
    View ICBIDT

    Opinion

    ADS-Fee?

    Opinion
    Imagine flying out on a perfect CAVOK day to bathe in all that heavenly glory. Now imagine a few weeks later receiving a bill in the mail for a “landing” fee from an airport you, well, never landed at. Welcome to PLANEPASS!
    Read more
    18 Comments
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    June 16, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/20091718/ADS-FEE.png 1000 1250 Alexander Sack https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Alexander Sack2025-06-16 08:55:252025-05-27 10:58:00ADS-Fee?

    A Different Kind of Pilot Decision—Choosing Not to Fly

    I was there, Opinion
    In my airplane, I am the source of reliability—or unreliability. The flight doesn’t leave without me. If I don’t like the weather, I don’t go. If I need to divert, I can. I choose my departure time. I build in margins. And most importantly, I have the authority—and practice—to say “no.”
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    14 Comments
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    May 28, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/12100549/A-Different-Kind-of-Pilot-Decision%E2%80%94Choosing-Not-to-Fly.png 1000 1250 Serrhel Adams https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Serrhel Adams2025-05-28 08:55:462025-05-27 15:18:53A Different Kind of Pilot Decision—Choosing Not to Fly

    What the Sky Taught Me

    Opinion
    Small airports hold a peculiar magic—they exist in the present moment while preserving a vision from long ago. For decades, I watched small aircraft come and go from these little strips, until at 49, that pull became a question I couldn't ignore: what was I missing by staying on the ground? What relationships—what dialogue—awaited me in the sky?
    Read more
    14 Comments
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    May 19, 2025
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    View Opinion

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