Like you, I have on occasion cancelled a dentist appointment. Even at the last minute, with almost no warning, I’ve cancelled plans to attend a wedding or a birthday party. A friend of mine just cancelled a dinner he had been planning. Cancellations happen. We might be disappointed, but we adapt. We overcome the sorrow […]
Opinion
What’s the best way to read the dip stick?
Q: Should one read the oil level with the dip stick screwed in or just resting on the threads? Gary Brown, via email A: Gary, I’m glad you asked this question even though I can see the boys in the hangar beginning to smile about it. First of all, it’s not quite as simple as […]
You should subscribe to the Federal Register
You should subscribe to the Federal Register. If someone in the greater Salem, Ore.-area had been subscribed to the Federal Register, they might have seen a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) titled, “Proposed Amendment of Class D and Class E Airspace, Revocation of Class E Airspace; Salem, OR” scroll across their email inbox on May […]
Respect the two great intangibles
It is a basic human drive to acquire things. Historically, this ambition has been used as a means of showing affluence. Mr. Smith owns a tidy three-bedroom, one-bath house, which causes Mr. Jones to set his sights on a bigger, more opulent home. Mrs. Pierce drives a new mid-line sedan, sparking Mrs. Snyder to purchase […]
There’s an opening in the public sector
On Tuesday, Nov. 3, only a couple months from now, local elections will be held across the continent. These races will result in new faces and old faces being sworn in to sit on city commissions, county commissions, state boards, and to fill a slew of mayoral seats. These are the people who will be […]
Forget the why, focus on the how
I spent my Saturday productively, standing at the front of the Eickhoff Conference Room at SUN ‘n FUN, leading a donut and coffee fueled group of Rusty Pilots back through the intricacies of airspace, weather reports, and right of way rules. It was great. We spent three hours together laughing, learning, and sharing a few personal […]
Is unleaded avgas coming to an airport near you?
By DEAN BILLING. Perhaps you noticed the announcement that Swift Fuels made at AirVenture 2015, which was also carried by General Aviation News. Swift Fuels has begun distributing 94 MON, unleaded aviation fuel to several airports and has begun a program to distribute it throughout the U.S. Airports currently carrying the new 94 MON unleaded […]
‘Higher, Orville, higher!’
Spoiler Alert: The final paragraph of The Wright Brothers is my favorite. “They took off, soaring over Huffman Prairie at about 350 feet for a good six minutes, during which the Bishop’s only words were, “Higher, Orville, higher!” “They” were Orville Wright and his father Bishop Milton Wright. The Bishop was eighty-two years old at the […]
A bucket full of luck
By IVY McIVER. They say that pilots start out with an empty experience bucket and a bucket full of luck. The trick is to fill the experience bucket before your luck bucket is emptied. Though one can make deposits into the experience account without making a withdrawal from the luck account, it would be foolish […]




