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    • The Choice to Fly

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    • Friday Photo: Thunderbirds

    • Mea Culpa: Confessions of a Joyful Pilot

    • Why I Returned to Stick and Rudder

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    123456

    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

    Chris Schaich

    Articles by Chris Schaich

    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…

    Arkansas satellite

    Go or no go: how strong is the front?

    Go or No Go
    A weekend flying trip is on the calendar today, as you're scheduled to attend a family reunion in Springfield, MO. Your flight will depart from Olive Branch Airport (OLV), just outside of Memphis, TN and arrive at the Springfield Branson Airport (SGF). Your proposed departure time is 1630Z. It's time to make the go/no go call.
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    18 Comments
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    April 23, 2012
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/06180503/AR-satellitesmall.jpg 450 640 John Zimmerman https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png John Zimmerman2012-04-23 09:18:492016-02-27 10:16:09Go or no go: how strong is the front?
    iPad in helicopter

    Breaking in my iPad on a helo ferry

    I was there
    Occasionally, I get a break from the dreary doldrums of flying a FLIR-equipped MD500E police helicopter (I know, right?) with a ferry flight, moving ENG (electronic news gathering) R44s around the country. Last month, the opportunity arose to fly via airliner to Pittsburgh to move a ship to Atlanta. I thought it would be a good time to put my new iPad to the test.
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    5 Comments
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    April 19, 2012
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/06180510/ipad-helo.jpg 598 800 Lou Gregoire https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Lou Gregoire2012-04-19 18:14:292016-02-27 10:16:00Breaking in my iPad on a helo ferry
    Tenzing-Hillary Airport

    Crappy runways

    History
    It’s known as the Pucker Factor, and everyone contracts it at that particular airport where, frankly, it sucks to land. Phil Scott reviews some of the worst, from Catalina Island to the Himalayas. Read his list, then add your own nominees.
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    47 Comments
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    April 18, 2012
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/06180512/himalyas-airport.jpg 450 600 Phil Scott https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Phil Scott2012-04-18 09:27:092020-05-13 11:15:56Crappy runways
    Low clouds

    Mr. Invincible

    I was there
    Well I finally met that guy. That guy everyone has read about. That guy who seems to be at every airport. That guy whom no one admits to being. You know, the guy who willfully violates significant federal aviation regulations and openly brags to total strangers about his near death experiences.
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    12 Comments
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    April 16, 2012
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/06180516/clouds-gray.jpg 686 1024 Michael McDowell https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Michael McDowell2012-04-16 16:36:242016-02-27 10:15:40Mr. Invincible
    Thunderstorm from airplane

    Do you cancel too many flights?

    John's blog
    Some instrument pilots apparently are uncomfortable in anything less than clear skies and unlimited visibility. It raises the question: do you cancel too many flights? Has the aviation community beaten everyone over the head with the risk management stick so much that they’re gun shy? From what I read and hear, I think it’s quite possible.
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    16 Comments
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    April 12, 2012
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/06180517/weather-citation.jpg 641 855 John Zimmerman https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png John Zimmerman2012-04-12 15:56:112016-11-18 16:27:28Do you cancel too many flights?
    172 on landing flare

    Touchdown: squeak squeak every time…

    Technique
    So if for the past 65 years we have been able to fly and land electronically, we should be able to teach a chimpanzee, or at least a pilot, how to do it with no trouble at all. That we can’t do this is illustrated by the fact that there are more accidents on landing than in any other phase of flight.
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    61 Comments
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    April 10, 2012
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/06180520/172-landing.jpg 664 1019 Richard Collins https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Richard Collins2012-04-10 11:10:312012-12-19 11:34:01Touchdown: squeak squeak every time…
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    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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    26 Comments
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    June 2, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/27151312/The-aviation-community-is-alive-and-well.png 1000 1250 John Zimmerman https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png John Zimmerman2025-06-02 08:54:432025-05-27 16:38:00The aviation community is alive and well

    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

    The Choice to Fly

    Opinion
    Now we were nose-down, spinning, and rapidly losing altitude. The earth swirled in the windshield, the tall pines below getting closer. I don’t remember how many turns we made, but somewhere between the second one and the top of those trees, he cut the power and stopped the rotation. We were still descending fast. Sweat poured down my face, driven by the sudden surge of fear, my novice brain gripped by self-preservation.
    Read more
    0 Comments
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    July 18, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/30140542/the-choice-to-fly.png 1000 1250 Parvez Dara https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Parvez Dara2025-07-18 08:55:012025-06-30 14:06:35The Choice to Fly

    The First Flight After Maintenance, and Texting While Wrenching

    Opinion
    Flying has dangers, always has, but they were just different dangers in the past. But some of the dangers of flying persist.  Like the danger of flying an aircraft the first time after maintenance has been done to it. A bad mechanic can kill you dead with an error—and they’ll go have lunch (with an ATC guy) while you take a dirt nap.
    Read more
    1 Comment
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    July 14, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/30134113/first-flight-after-maintenance.png 1000 1250 Matt Johnson https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Matt Johnson2025-07-14 08:55:272025-07-14 15:52:32The First Flight After Maintenance, and Texting While Wrenching

    Mea Culpa: Confessions of a Joyful Pilot

    Opinion
    Over the last several months, I have committed several aviation sins. I once went on a flight without checking the weather. I recently departed without calculating my takeoff distance or obstacle clearance. On more than one occasion, I landed from a non–“stable approach,” being both below and above target approach speeds. I’ve flown non-standard traffic patterns. I’ve flown outside the glide range to the nearest airport. I’ve even flown without talking to ATC or filing a flight plan.
    Read more
    25 Comments
    /
    July 9, 2025
    https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/23135150/mea-culpa.png 1000 1250 Serrhel Adams https://media.airfactsjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/03140241/AF_Logo_24.png Serrhel Adams2025-07-09 08:55:132025-06-23 13:52:53Mea Culpa: Confessions of a Joyful Pilot
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