Shhhh. I’m going to trust you to keep this to yourself. It’s a secret. It has been for years. Yet, I’m going to tell you the truth. Here. Now. Only a few sentences hence. Now, if I’m going to be completely honest, I have to admit the paragraph you just read is hyperbole. I’ve used […]
Opinion
Result Of CEH lawsuit settlement: Were there any?
By DEAN BILLING. Late in 2011, a little known environmental organization, perhaps totally unknown in aviation circles, Center For Environmental Health (CEH) filed a lawsuit against “30 companies that sell and/or distribute lead-containing aviation gas (avgas) at 23 California airports, calling on the companies to provide safer alternative fuels.” At the time, there was some fanfare in […]
Stories from the logbook
We’re all connected…somehow. A July 1987 entry in my logbook proves it. I was barely 17 years old and had flown our 1946 J-3 Cub on July 17 from our airpark home – Shady Acres – to the annual Arlington Fly-In. My logbook notes, “massive headwinds, heavy x-wind when landing.” At this point, I was […]
A deadly combination: Selfies and flying
Recently the National Transportation Safety Board released a report on the May 2014 crash of a Cessna 150 in Watkins, Colo., that was attributed to the pilot being distracted by taking selfies. How many people heard about this crash and thought to themselves, “It was only a matter of time before this contributed to a […]
Sharing the skies with RPAs
They fly, so pilots could love Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) [with other terms also used, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), unmanned aerial systems (UAS), and drones.] Some pilots are already involved with RPAs. However, RPA pilots remain on the ground. Is that the same? Differences have a way of dividing people, even when they may […]
Formation flight
By IVY McIVER. Formation flight has intrigued me for as long as I can remember. Seeing the Blue Angels for the first time as a child, I remember thinking not just about how cool they looked, but how disciplined and precise the pilots must be, and how well they worked together as a team. It […]
Flight training the Wright way
The Wright brothers are well known as scientists, inventors, builders and flyers — and they became international celebrities in 1909 with record-setting flights in Europe and America. Less well known were their efforts as flight instructors and flight school creators. They began flight instruction in Europe. Later back home, they trained aviators for their exhibition team, […]
One engine, many questions
Q: I have a Cessna 172N with the Lycoming O-320-H2AD 76 series engine, serial number L-3406-76. I’m trying to sell it, and I’m getting all kinds of questions regarding the “A” suffix, the “T” mod, and others that are way too far out there to even mention. As an A&P/IA, I’m fairly familiar with the […]
New friends, old friends, and cherished memories
Later this week I’ll be flying from Lakeland, Florida to Lowcountry Regional Airport in South Carolina. I’m flying there in a shiny, nearly new, totally rebuilt Cessna 152. As hard as it may be to believe, I’ll be meeting a new friend who will be flying an almost identical airplane in from the frozen north. […]