A very common problem with new pilots is over-controlling the airplane, or “chasing the needles.” For example, cruising at 5,000 feet, a new pilot might notice the altitude increases a little bit, so he abruptly pushes the yoke forward in an effort to correct the deviation. He pushes a little bit too much, and the aircraft, previously climbing, starts descending. What does our pilot do? He over corrects again, in the other direction, and the aircraft climbs again.
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August 26, 2013
New First Officer & ATP Rules Explained
The Congress and FAA recently made some big changes to the minimum requirements for First Officers in part 121 airlines and for the way pilots get their Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) licenses. These changes will affect you if you’re dreaming of an airline pilot career. In this post I’ll explain the new rules and how they may affect you.
August 26, 2013
Wildland Firefighting Aircraft – Guest Post
Alan Carr explores the world of fire-fighting aircraft.
If you’re flying anywhere around the Western United States, you can probably navigate from state to state using nothing more than the plumes of smoke from the massive forest fires consuming the west. On the average, more than 100,000 wildland fires scorch between 4 million and 5 million acres in the U.S. every year. In more recent years, with an increase in drought conditions throughout the west, fires have torched upwards of 9 million acres a year.
June 20, 2013
Guest post: Understanding Flying Book Review
Chris Oquist reviews Understanding Flying, by Richard Tylor
If you’re about to head off to pilot school or you’re simply interested in the matter, Understanding Flying by Richard Taylor is a great aviation book and one you should not miss. In this book intended to reach beginning aviators, Taylor gives a great understanding of the subject matter from the ground up. The information provided in the work is an achievement in and of itself, but Taylor keeps from digging a hole of dense vocabulary. What is left is a thorough yet entertaining read of which all ages are sure to enjoy.
July 11, 2010
Top 6 ways to building your flight time
Building flight time is one of the major challenges you’ll face during your pilot’s career. In this article, I’ll cover some of the top ways to build your flight experience.
July 8, 2010
Highlights of New FAA Runway Taxi Clearances
The new FAA runway taxi phraseology went into effect on June 30th, 2010. This article highlights the changes. Visit http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Notice/N7110.528.pdf for more information.
June 17, 2010
FAA ATC taxi instructions changes
The FAA announced today the following changes to standard taxi instruction phraseology:
Effective June 30, 2010, air traffic controllers will no longer use the term “taxi to” when authorizing aircraft to taxi to an assigned takeoff runway. With the change, controllers must issue explicit clearances to pilots crossing any runway (active/inactive or closed) along the taxi route. In addition, pilots crossing multiple runways must be past the first runway they are cleared to cross before controllers can issue the next runway-crossing clearance. One exception to the new rule is at airports where taxi routes between runway centerlines are fewer than 1,000 feet apart. In this case, multiple runway crossings may be issued if approved by the FAA Terminal Services Director of Operations. The elimination of the “taxi to” phrase will apply only to departing aircraft. Arriving aircraft will still hear the phrase “taxi to” when instructed to taxi to the gate or ramp. However, controllers in these situations still will be required to issue specific crossing instructions for each runway encountered on the taxi route. For more information on the change, refer to FAA Order N JO 7110.528, which can be found at: http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Notice/N7110.528.pdf
February 8, 2010
Pilots will visit the M.D less often
Effective July 24, 2008, the FAA extended the validity period of pilot medical certificates. This change will allow some pilots to visit the aviation medical doctor less often.
The extension applies only to first and third class medical certificates issued to pilots under the age of 40. Under the old rule, a third class medical certificate, required for the operation as a private pilot, issued to a pilot under the age of 40 was valid for 36 calendar months (3 years). The new rule extends that period to 60 calendar months (5 years)
October 9, 2009
Flight training in the 21st century
Just a couple of years ago, the typical flight school airplane was using technologies that have changed very little since the 1950s. Even newly manufactured airplanes still had the standard six pack mechanical instruments. However, this changed dramatically when systems such as the Garmin 1000 and Avidyne Entegra quickly took over the General Aviation market. Today, you can find Technically Advanced Aircraft (TAA) with sophisticated glass cockpit avionics almost everywhere.
July 9, 2009
First Fuel Cell Powered Piloted Aircraft Flies
Antares DLR-H2, the first manned aircraft able to takeoff and fly powered by fuel cells took its first flight this week on July 7 in Hamburg, Germany.
The Antares is a motor glider with a very low noise footprint and zero CO2 emissions. It was developed as a testbed for fuel cell technologies by the DLR Institute for Technical Thermodynamics (Stuttgart, Germany) in collaboration with Lange Aviation, BASF Fuel Cells and Serenergy (Denmark).
