Friday Photo: Capitol emerges from the fog
Friday PhotoFlying as a helicopter air ambulance pilot in Washington, DC, can be a stressful job. But as this week's Friday Photo shows, it can also offer some unique views. While most pilots will never get this close to the US Capitol, pilot John Guazzo got to see it covered in fog from 900 feet.
15 minutes to disaster – and I never knew it
I was thereFeeling good about our decision, we continued with the number three engine just above idle keeping all the a/c systems running normally. We had no trouble maintaining FL330 with only a slight reduction of airspeed. For weeks, I wore a smug smile on my face as I told my colleagues what a wonderful job I had done. Then one day I opened my company mailbox to find an envelope containing a curt note from the manager of the company Pratt & Whitney overhaul department.
An SR-71 Blackbird goes AOG – now what?
I was thereThe Blackbird moved on to the active, lined up, stroked the burners on those two Pratt & Whitney J-58s and started a slow, but steady acceleration down runway center. But, now the "Aw, Sh*t!" The Blackbird veered sharply and quickly to the right side of the runway. Everyone in the tower sat up straight, and then the bird departed the runway and came to an abrupt, ugly stop.
Basic math for pilots: does it still matter?
OpinionMost of the new-hires came completely unglued when forced to execute visual approaches – especially when cleared for such approaches while still quite high and many miles from the field. He said his flights were often forced to miss the first attempts at visual approaches and go around because of the airplanes being much too high on their profiles; I wondered to myself how such a systemic problem could exist in this computerized age.
Friday Photo: rough country
Friday PhotoThe southwest United States is a wonderful place for flying, says Barrie Strachan. The weather is often clear and the scenery is often striking, as this week's Friday Photo shows. This picture, taken from Barrie's SingSport LSA, shows Coyote Gulch in southern Utah. It's makes for a great view, but it's "a hell of a place for an engine out."
Keep your eyes outside
I was thereWhen I began my flight training several years ago, my first instructor told me something that I thought was common sense and that he didn’t need to tell me: Keep your eyes outside. I remember asking myself where else I would keep my eyes if not outside and wondering why he thought it necessary to give me that little piece of advice.
From the archives: Leighton Collins flies a Lear 24
Air Facts ArchivesIn this trip into the Air Facts archives, ride along with Leighton Collins as he gets a familiarization flight in a Lear Jet 24 in 1967. With a variety of small jets hitting the market in recent years, from the Cirrus Jet to the Eclipse, many of Collins’s reactions to flying a powerful jet 50 years ago might sound familiar. Collins concludes, "they’ve really got themselves a show horse in the Model 24."
The disappearance of two Congressmen in Alaska
HistoryAnniversaries of important events are times for remembering and other things good and bad, including reminding oneself of the dangers of misplaced trust and overconfidence. Forty-five years ago, October 16, 1972, two Congressmen on the campaign trail were lost somewhere in Alaska. They had trusted their pilot to get them from Anchorage to Juneau.
Friday Photo: beach campfire by a seaplane
Friday PhotoWith seaplanes, it's not just about the journey - sometimes the destination is pretty good too. This Friday Photo from Scott Magie will have you wishing you could jump into the picture. A campfire on the beach in front of a Beaver. What's not to like?
Whirlygig: the troubled life of the J-2 autogyro
HistoryBy the mid-1960s general aviation was booming, but airplanes and pilots were still regularly coming to grief in stall-spin accidents. Robert McCulloch sought to revitalize the autogyro concept for the mass GA market. Surely there must be demand for a stall-proof, slow-speed-capable flying machine that was both easier to fly and less complex than a helicopter.
What’s wrong with experimental pilots?
Dick's blogThe higher incidence of accidents in E-AB aircraft is just as logical as the fact that the fatal accident rate in private (general) aviation is almost infinitely higher than it is in airline flying. When more freedom is granted by reducing regulations and eliminating stifling procedures then the risk goes up.
One chance to get it right: inadvertent IFR flying
I Can't Believe I Did ThatI immediately knew that my current situation was extremely serious. I was currently flying at 4000 feet and was trapped between two layers of cloud in a wide band of clear air. This “meat in the sandwich” scenario at the end of the day, in a low speed, basically instrumented aircraft with a relatively low-time pilot was about as bad as it could get.
Friday Photo: putting the plane away
Friday PhotoGreat aviation pictures don't always happen in the air. This week's Friday Photo shares the simple pleasure of a family flight, and the joy of introducing young people to flying. Reuben Keim captured this memorable shot of his son Luke and his two cousins as they pushed the airplane back in the hangar after a flight. Airplanes and family - a perfect combination.
How to interpret radar in the cockpit
John's blogRadar seems so simple at first: red is bad, green is good. What else is there to know? As any pilot with more than a few cross countries in the logbook knows, quite a lot. While a lot of the problems with radar operation have been solved by datalink weather, few of the problems with radar interpretation have been solved.
Video tip: avoiding turbulence
Video TipNobody likes a bumpy flight, but forecasting turbulence isn't as easy as forecasting IFR conditions or thunderstorms. In this video tip from Sporty's Takeoff App, explore common causes of turbulence, plus tips for avoiding the worst rides.
I was a “weather coward,” and I made the right decision
I was there"Hey jerk face!" my conscience screamed. "What about PILOT IN COMMAND don't you understand? Who makes the decisions around here? The line boy? Is this a good idea or not? If it's not, grow a pair and do what you know to do!”
Friday Photo: Sydney Harbour from an Archer
Friday PhotoSydney, Australia, has one of the world's most photogenic harbors, from the famous opera house to the historic bridge. The view is even better from the air, as David Grabham shows in this week's Friday Photo. He gave a couple of friends the scenic tour in his Piper Archer and snapped this beautiful photo.
North to Alaska
I was thereA friend and I discussed flying to Alaska as he knew a fellow who had expressed a desire to see the northern state. I called a pilot friend who became the other front seat. He was not yet multiengine-rated although he was a competent instrument-rated pilot. I reserved the Twin Comanche for mid-July 1982 for our flight.
Drop everything to fly a DC-3? Absolutely
I was thereMy phone dinged as the text message came through. "Can you spend the day in Griffin tomorrow?" I had a lesson first thing in the morning, but was otherwise free. I asked Dan what was going on. "DC-3 flying. Emerg." I didn't need any other details and I made arrangements to change what would have been a lazy Saturday into one that would doubtlessly not be boring.
An awful sensation – lost above Brazil with no alternator
I Can't Believe I Did ThatI was totally by myself. I aligned the plane with the 04 runway, with no one in sight, since it was the middle of the week. I took off and decided to test the new plane with some basic maneuvers and a lazy flight. It's important to say that I was totally unfamiliar with the area, as I was used on flying my Cubs from another airfield some miles away. But the fates decided it was a good time to put me to the test.