I think Ben Visser was spot on in his Sept. 7 piece, The definition of insanity, when he cites the old 80/20 rule regarding 100LL use. I believe it is indeed 20% of the GA fleet, the Navajos, the Barons, the Cessna 400 series, etc., that are burning 80% of the 100LL produced. But I […]
Letters
Success of Edge speaks for itself
In the story Wonder Woman: Patty Wagstaff Commands the Skies in the July 20 issue, writer J. Douglas Hinton asked: “We’ve noticed that some of the better known aerobatic pilots, such as Kirby Chambliss, have switched to the Edge and others, the French CAP. What’s your take on that?” Wagstaff replied: “Every airplane is a […]
The Largest OSH Formation?
Meg Godlewski’s article in the Aug. 24 issue, Formation flight honors Van’s RVs, quoted Stu McCurdy as stating that the 35 ship RV formation flown this year was the largest ever at Oshkosh. He is not even close to correct! In 1999, the T-34 Association put up a 61-ship formation, and I am quite sure […]
Flying the B-25, Part II
Meg Godlewski’s article in the Aug. 10 issue “Flying the B-25” caught my eye. I enjoyed it and had the same emotions Meg did when I was a 20 year old in 1944. I am sending a copy of my book, “A Drop in the Bucket,” in which you can follow through some actual missions […]
Physicists cause the confusion
It is a disappointment that Michael Tieman does not understand the explanation of Stephen Hawking being weightless (Stephen Hawking confused?, Letters to the Editor, June 22 issue). It is physicists that cause so much confusion about centrifugal force, which makes anything in orbit weigh less and encourages the use of the term “Zero-G.” Stephen did […]
The year of the engine
Having just received the latest copy of GANews, I was excited to see on the cover an article on the new aircraft engine offerings at AirVenture this year (Bright new engine ideas at AirVenture, Aug. 24 issue). Although each of the engines covered in the story exhibited new technologies, a notable omission was the ULPower […]
ADS-B not the first
In the story, FAA to expand ADS-B nationwide in the Aug. 24 issue, it says that ADS-B promises to increase situational awareness for all pilots because, for the first time, pilots will be able to see real-time displays of traffic. Does no one else remember reading of the experiment at Atlanta wherein the approach control […]
The same old song and dance
After receiving a sample copy of GAN, I subscribed. I have not read many aviation journals until yours arrived. My aviation career spanned more than 40 years as a captain, DPE, FBO, etc., etc. Alas, my medical is history. So I now cruise around in the cockpit of a 1953 MG. I’d like to comment […]
What are financial paybacks to flight data monitoring
In the Sept, 7 issue of GAN, Meg Godlewski’s article on Flight Data Monitoring (FDM) for general aviation (Can a GA “black box” prevent accidents?) does a nice job of covering the subject. I’m the source of the “don’t call it a black box” inset, and I would like to add one more paragraph on […]