“How can you fly visually, just looking out the window?” So asked our smart-beyond-his-years 13-year-old friend back home in Virginia. The question really set me off. In his devotion to computer flight sims, he was starting at the top and working his way down! Sure, he could “land” a virtual 757, but was clueless about […]
Opinion
GA garnering more attention from Washington
WASHINGTON, D.C. — General aviation now seems to be getting more attention in Congress and from the FAA. This observation comes from the appearance of a Congressman and a deputy administrator of the FAA at the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Homecoming Fly-In earlier this month. Michael Whitaker, FAA deputy administrator with the primary responsibility […]
Would you hesitate to declare an emergency?
The fact that all three of my passengers were throwing up simultaneously left me three options: Tough it out and press on to our destination; join them in their nauseous state; or declare an emergency and get the hell on the ground. My right seat passenger was a Horizon Air first officer. She thought she […]
Sing a happy song
Nobody who is seriously involved in aviation is unaware of the concern that student pilot starts are down and student pilot completions are down. At the same time, aviation has become a critical part of the global economy. Ideas abound for how the industry might combat this trend and hopefully reverse it. You may have […]
Pure Adventure: An epic journey home
By IVY McIVER. The distance from Paducah, Kentucky, to Seattle, Washington, is 1,845 statute miles as the crow flies. My recent journey in an American Champion Citabria 7GCBC totaled 2,123 statute miles due to weather deviations and fuel stops. Though this particular leg started in Paducah, the journey really began about a year ago when […]
Internationally awesome
Last week I spent some time in Washington D.C. I had business in the area, but like most of us, when I get in the vicinity of the Mall, the monuments, and the Capital building, I find myself wanting to browse the wares of our country. There is art to peruse and documents to consider. […]
Possible terrorist threats keep GA vigilant
WASHINGTON, D.C. — When conditions in the Middle East erupted and President Obama unleashed air power on the Islamic State, officials at many general aviation organizations here became jittery over ISIL threats to retaliate on American soil. If there is retaliation, would aircraft be used? Would the escalation of tensions raise the level of concern […]
Six movie companies given OK to fly drones
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The drones are coming. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and FAA Administrator Michael Huerta revealed at a news conference Sept. 25 that six aerial and video companies have been granted permission to operate unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) in the United States, with a seventh company in line for approval. The regulatory exemptions are the […]
The Black Hole Departure disaster
A dark cloud has recently settled on the general aviation community from the fatal airplane crash of Babar and Haris Suleman. They were a father and son pilot team who were attempting to fly around the world. They had become popular through social media. Followers of their journey wonder what happened that their Beechcraft could […]