I went to a concert at the Hollywood Bowl one January night in 1995. I remember several things about that night. First, I recall offering my jacket to my date, as it was unseasonably cold. Normally in January in the LA basin, summer temperatures prevail because of strong easterly Santa Ana winds scouring hot air […]
Opinion
What about Military Eagles?
Chad Manning flies 737s for Alaska Airlines and C-17s for the 446th Reserve Wing at McChord Field in Washington state. He hadn’t flown in a J-3 Cub. Ever. “When was the last time you flew in a small plane?” I asked Chad as we drove to the airport. “16 years ago in a 172,” he […]
Make the most of your airport’s bragging rights
Ocala, Florida, is the horse capital of the world. It says so on the Ocala/Marion County website. It’s what the place is famous for. If you like horses, low-rolling hills, wide open spaces, and fields of green grass, Ocala is the place for you. General aviation pilots rolling up to the FBO in Ocala know […]
Remos GXiS: A Mercedes of LSA
Although I’m a longtime regular at Oshkosh, this year I did something I’ve never done. I flew out of KOSH and then returned. If you’ve never flown into Oshkosh during AirVenture, you may not know what an experience such an arrival can be. This is the world’s busiest airport for one week. Airplanes arrive every […]
Life — and aviation — is better with help from friends
There is precious little we can accomplish in life entirely on our own. We need help, or encouragement, or correction from others. And thank goodness. Life would be awfully lonely if we all went around all the time being entirely self-sufficient and self-contained. I’ve written a number of books over the course of my career, […]
What’s in it for you?
In the inimitable words of Ray Kinsella, the main character in, Field of Dreams, “What’s in it for me?” The question is potentially offensive, totally ego driven, and as common as waves on water. Asking, “What’s in it for me?” is a perfectly reasonable thing to do, especially when you’re considering doing something as weird […]
Third class medical reform: Done
With the swipe of his pen on Friday, July 15, President Obama set into law third class medical reform. I’m thrilled. So are a good many pilots. “It’s important to celebrate this moment, which has been a long time coming and resulted from an incredible amount of work over the past five years,” said Jack […]
Oshkosh Bound: Has anything changed in the last year?
By DEAN BILLING. As I was preparing my motorhome for the trip to AirVenture 2016, it dawned on me that I haven’t written anything for the GA Fuels blog in quite sometime. Perhaps that’s because not much is happening in the aviation fuel arena despite the nagging problems of TEL contamination and the perceptible decline […]
Seize the sky
On most mornings throughout the year, commuters driving along Interstate 4 through central Florida are treated to the elegantly bouyant eye candy of a low-speed airshow. Hot air balloons dot the skies for miles, drifting on light winds, and bringing joy to passengers and observers alike. It’s perfectly natural to be attracted to the sight […]