For most of us, if our engine quits, we're going down. It happens, though not often. About half…
We have covered a lot of ground on the fueling of airplanes lately, but you can imagine our…
Anyone who has ever caught themselves flying while getting uncomfortably close to the big "E" will appreciate the…
Your plans are all set -- with some excitement, you will be flying up to the All-Star Game,…
Here's a story you don't hear very often. It is a tale of a hard IFR flight, and…
Emergencies are rare but that does not mean it's a good idea to be unprepared for them. Emergency…
There she is, sitting by the wash rack: the picture of health. You've just finished washing off the…
Transitioning to a new airplane can be a lot of fun, if you do it correctly. I can…
On April 27, 2000, a Canadian commercial helicopter pilot (who was also a helicopter flight instructor) took off…
Sometimes, the choice to abort is complicated by other possibilities -- the unpleasant things that will likely happen…
I loved looking at airplanes when I was looking to buy my first plane. The exploration of the…
Aborting a takeoff can be as uneventful as simply reducing power and rolling to a stop. It may…
Whenever we fly from point A to point B, many of us use the Victor airway system, and…
IT WAS ALL OVER IN A FLASH, literally in the blink of an eye. The airplane was trashed…
Rosanne Roseannidanna warned us years ago: "It's always something." As pilot-in-command you may have meticulously planned your takeoff,…
The number of our landings must always equal our number of takeoffs -- or so goes the adage…
The pilot stated that he set 10 degrees of flaps for takeoff from the relatively short runway. The…
We had even more questions on fueling as a result of the article on explosive potentials in fueling…
Which is safer: a well-used rental airplane flown by dozens of pilots, from students to high-timers; or a…
Recently this column focused on the collision between a Cessna 172 and a Piper Cheyenne just west of…
This is a sad story, with an even sadder ending. Two pilots, who loved to fly their homebuilt…
Get Lost! Think about how many times you have heard that in your life (alright, some of us…
I knew the pilot of the Piper Cheyenne turboprop that January 24 collided with a Cessna 172 near…
So what happens after notification of an emergency reaches the Flight Standards District Office? What is more dangerous…
Man, my airplane is fast, boasts a pilot. "I was getting 150 knots true groundspeed."
The participants in the first simulator session all appeared to be reluctant to tell the controllers that they…
Oil is the lifeblood of your aircraft engine or engines. Despite what a few vendors will try to…
Ten gallons -- about thirty bucks worth of avgas -- what'll it get you?
I received a letter recently from an old pilot friend of mine, who said he had experienced a…
I owe my life to aviation mechanics. For one, my father was an A&P (certificated airframe and powerplant)…
A careful preflight won't protect you from some problems -- in the case of a flap problem though,…
When I was young, I enjoyed watching Bugs Bunny and, on occasion, Bugs matched wits with Marvin the…
I was climbing on top of the fog, looked down at my instruments, and when I looked up…
When problems turn up in your airplane, you need to be concerned -- whether the problem is large…
Did your instructor ever pull the power on the upwind leg and then say: "OK, your engine just…
Years ago, I enjoyed reading the Peanuts comic strip written by Charles M. Schultz -- in one series,…
The air was absolutely still save for the far-off putter of an O-320 Lycoming at low power. A…
Last week, we reviewed four of the eight "high risk situations" that lead to almost all lightplane accidents…
Last week we defined a Danger Zone: A pilot who has between 50 and 350 flight hours is…
Accident statistics indicate that pilots with the least experience have the most accidents -- but are there ways…
It's that time of year again -- know what the dangers are, know your defenses...
Some things to keep in mind while we watch the Hurricanes sweep through the Gulf for destinations unknown…
Next to being on fire or having an engine failure, experiencing an electrical (or vacuum) failure in IMC…
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) calls it that -- they even publish an Accident Prevention Program Bulletin by…
When an unauthorized airplane interrupts a Space Shuttle launch the results can be dangerous and expensive -- both…
Your plane looks very cozy to the mouse population -- they will be more than happy to set…
Excluding certain personalities, AvGas is the most explosive part of your piston-powered airplane. For the energy that AvGas…
I faced aeronautical temptation this weekend... a lot of temptation.