The twin-turbine Bell 412 helicopter I fly for Baptist Hospital in North Carolina sucks a lot of Jet-A. This is why when we land at FBOs, the line crews have big smiles. And when it comes time to pay for that fuel, I just whip out the familiar white and blue Multi Service charge card […]
Cool running
Do you remember the days before digital watches or clocks? When we were asked for the time, the answer usually would be something like “It’s almost 2:30” or “About 1:15.” Then came digital timekeeping and the answers became “2:28” or “1:13.” When pilots began using Loran and ultimately GPS, the same thing happened with headings. […]
Personal Airline
For those of us who use general aviation to travel, conversations often come up comparing the use of our airplanes to the commercial airlines. This has become a major issue since Sept. 11 and the absolute mess the commercial airline system is in right now. The growth of fractional jet ownership organizations is one direct […]
George — A new autopilot makes the trip easier
In June, I flew my plane 38.4 hours, of which 37.3 were all cross-country. I was in IMC for 15.9 of those hours and shot two localizer, two ILS, and two GPS approaches — and all six were to within 100 feet of minimums. My personal airline had a 100% dispatch reliability and on time […]
In the zone
My Cardinal RG recently returned to service after a pretty extensive annual inspection. The 12 months leading up to that annual were good because not one trip was canceled due to maintenance problems and only one trip was delayed. In fact, on that particular trip, to Mt. Washington, N.H., I actually had two “mechanical” problems. […]
Canadian Connection
What better way to end another great year of traveling in my Cardinal RG than a December business trip to Canada? (Yeah, I know, a better way might have been a trip to the Bahamas.) Wheels up from my Rowan County, N.C., airport (RUQ) base at 1 p.m., with an OAT of 55°, and 3.5 […]
Who’s the boss?: When it comes to operating your aircraft, it better be you
By Guy R. Maher Southerners have a long-standing reputation for being friendly. My first real encounter with Southern charm came when I was relocating from New Jersey to Georgia in 1978. I chose Gainesville due to its proximity to Atlanta — and it had a good GA airport. When I climbed out of my airplane […]