My paper logbooks hold an emotional connection to a lifetime of effort. Notes in the margins tell the tale of wonderful flights and at least a couple terrifying incidents. They carry the signatures of pilots I’ve flown with and respect. Some are gone now. Some remain friends.
Opinion
Ask Paul: Troubleshooting engine problems requires specific information
Anytime you are asking a question regarding a Lycoming engine, it’s much easier for me to respond if I have a specific engine model and serial number. Any maintenance history on the engine is also helpful, especially when troubleshooting a condition that has recently changed in the operation of the engine. I will never fault anyone for providing too much information.
Human Factors: A competitive environment
What can we learn from a fatal crash at a STOL competition?
Challenge accepted
Most of us did not become pilots to expand the limits of science or technology. We took that leap in an effort to expand our own horizons. To learn new skills, adapt to new information, and accept the challenge of taking fate for a walk around the block to see if we could perform at a level few ever attempt.
Unleaded fuels and exhaust valve recession
What needs to happen to move forward towards an unleaded future for general aviation?
An intellectual wandering
Because of its incredible pace of improvement, aviation is perhaps the best example of how the impossible becomes possible.
The library is now open
All issues from our print archives dating back to 1959 — except one — are now available digitally on our website.
Plane Panels Part Two
Here’s another installment in “Can you pick a panel for a plane?” in which our Of Wings & Things columnist pairs some grand old Air Force cockpit photos with examples of the aircraft depicted, including the exotic German Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter.
Notes from an unknown veteran
I look at these snapshots from World War II and I wonder how their owner’s life went in peacetime. Did he pass me on the street, unseen, unrecognized? Did he ever get thanks for his efforts in the war?