Of all the amazing, memorable, soul-enriching experiences I’ve had in the general aviation industry, none has come close to the satisfaction I have gotten from helping someone get started. Those smiling faces fill my memory and tug at my heartstrings.
Opinion
The past and future of avgas
Today’s search for an unleaded avgas is so different from similar searches in the past, which was a very large cooperative effort to find an answer — and they were looking for one fuel that could be produced by any oil company.
Questions from the Cockpit: Got you covered — maybe
James, a private pilot and airplane owner in South Carolina, writes: What happens if someone wrecks your plane while they are considering buying it?
Notes from SUN ‘n FUN 2025
Attending SUN ‘n FUN for the first time since 2019, Publisher Ben Sclair filled his reporter’s notebooks with news from the show.
We don’t know what we don’t know
If we can’t or won’t acknowledge our own ignorance, we can’t learn. And since we can all be sure we truly don’t know what we don’t know, we can proudly stand up and say, “I know a lot, but I’m still learning.”
The conflict within
After canceling a flight I’d planned due to weather, a friend commented to me as I tucked my airplane back into the hangar, “A lot of pilots have been buried on a sunny day because they flew when they shouldn’t have.”
Human Factors: Certified, not qualified
As it becomes harder to find a CFI, pilots may find they are waiting quite a while for flight training. But a long wait is much better than watching a brand-new airplane broken to pieces right in front of your eyes before you’ve even made the first payment.
Disappointment along the way
Setbacks are going to happen. A lot, unfortunately. How we handle the challenges we face is a big part of what defines us as individuals. And as anyone involved in aviation on any level knows, delays are part of the deal. Eventually we manage to get where we’re going anyway.
Fees for thee, but not for me?
A Montana state bill, if signed into law, will establish a line of who can, and can’t, be charged airport usage fees generated using ADS-B.