Oshkosh. A single word, which is also a city in Wisconsin, conjures up feelings like few others among the aviation crowd. To many, AirVenture – as the Experimental Aircraft Association’s annual fly-in and convention is officially known – is the center of the aviation universe. To others, it is a family reunion. The event that […]
The Romance of One Six Right Endures
“One Six Right” – the much loved aviation documentary originally released in 2005 — has been re-released in Blu-ray format. The romance of the original has endured. A recent viewing with my high school aged daughter Savannah produced, “I wish all my history classes were like this. This is interesting and entertaining.” No doubt, the […]
I’m a pilot, not an airman
The FAA should have titled the Practical Test Standards (PTS) replacement Pilot Certification Standards, not Airman Certification Standards (ACS). Regardless what you think of the new standards for awarding (or earning) a pilot — see there it is — certificate, the title is wrong. Never have I been asked, “Are you an airman?” And I’d hazard a […]
New book looks at ‘Milestones of Flight’
The National Air and Space Museum has the preeminent collection of aircraft anywhere. A new book – Milestones of Flight – looks at 29 legendary aircraft from the 1903 Wright Flyer to the MQ-1L Predator drone. While powered flight has a relatively short history, the achievements made are remarkable. Milestones of Flight uses the National […]
The evolution of the warbird cockpit
Like most things in aviation — and society — evolution occurs. The cockpit of the warbird has evolved more than many. From the very early days of the open cockpit aircraft with fleece-lined leather clad pilots to high-tech, all weather fighting machines, Fighting Cockpits by Donald Nijboer dives deep into more than 50 warbird cockpits. Following are handful of the […]
Will others follow?
Bravo CubCrafters. Bravo. On June 2, XCub officially joined the CubCrafters line-up. It’s a 180-horsepower machine with lots of bells and whistles, including heated seats (coming soon) and a $297,500 base price. Go ahead haters… pile on. They can take it. But from my perspective, the best feature of the XCub announcement is… it’s certified and available for immediate delivery. […]
Partnership aids pilots seeking airline career
In some ways, everything has changed. In other ways, nothing has changed. Learning to fly still takes an investment of time and money. Becoming a professional airline pilot is still a long winding path for many. But the investment has just gotten a bit more affordable, and the path has become a little shorter and […]
Back to the drawing board in Salem
If you doubt one person can make a difference, doubt no more. Salem, Oregon pilot Chuck West watched as Salem’s NcNary Field (KSLE) airspace was re-drawn, and re-drawn again. There was a problem. Portions of the instrument approaches were no longer protected and that violated FAA Order 8260.26F. Chuck found that a pilot flying inbound from […]
‘Born to Fly’ a worthy read
Ever heard the story about the guy who landed a C-119 in Iwo Jima, in a typhoon, while seated on the floor of the cockpit? What about the guy who, in 1963, flew a DC-4 1,200 miles north of Point Barrow, Alaska, and landed on an “ice island” in support of the Arctic Research Laboratories? […]