Commentary

[Read the first chapter of A Pilot’s History here.] Our class of 51 sergeants, with newly sewn stacks of chevrons on our sleeves and silver wings pinned to our shirts, arrived in Long Beach, Calif., the heart of aircraft manufacturing facilities. We were to ferry these aircraft to modification plants scattered around the country and […]

This is the story of an aviator who started out in flight training prior to World War II. The narrative chronicles his experiences through the tremendous and rapid development of aviation in all its phases. It tells the story of the evolution and growth of a working pilot, in the vastness of the Pacific Ocean […]

When one considers the dramatic evolution of aviation support facilities of the 1920s to present day Lockheed Martin Automated Flight Service Stations (AFSS), it is difficult to fathom how the job was ever accomplished. To give the reader a sense of the extremity of Lockheed Martin’s undertaking of the government’s largest contract with private industry, […]

[Editor’s Note: AVweb’s Mike Busch received the following letter from the FAA regarding his column, The Savvy Aviator #32: 2006 Aging GA Aircraft Summit, published June 7, 2006.] Dear Mr. Busch,First of all, we thank you for attending the FAA’s Small Airplane Directorate “GA Summit,” held earlier this year in Kansas City. We appreciate your […]

Last week in AVweb’s Brainteaser we invited readers to submit short stories about their first solo flights. The response was so overwhelming we can’t publish them all, but here are a few for your enjoyment. Congratulations to all who have ever soloed! 1966: Cessna 150. Instructor got out of plane, said, “You’re on your own; […]

Editor’s Note: This opinion piece from the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) is in response to a letter from an AVweb reader about recent negotiations between the FAA and NATCA. First of all, NATCA is not proposing a pay increase. NATCA has proposed the current pay table, meaning the status quo would be maintained […]

In an earlier AVweb opinion piece Anti-Airport Activism,” June 19), I discussed the growing threat to general aviation airports posed by anti-airport activism. I pointed out that general aviation pilots have to get involved in local politics in order to protect our ability to fly freely and safely.That article generated a lot of email, including […]

As we’ve covered extensively in the past few weeks, the U.S. government is preparing to make the restricted airspace around Washington, D.C., a permanent fixture, with permanent rules aimed at safeguarding the Capitol regardless of the threat level from terrorism, war or domestic unrest. The area covered by the zone is more than 2,000 square […]

Chicken Wings is an aviation-related cartoon. The cartoonists try to keep it not too technical, yet accurate enough to amuse aviators and aviation fans alike. So if you’re a professional pilot or just an air-show visitor, you should be able relate to these stories!

General aviation should be poised to enjoy a Golden Age. Exciting new technologies are appearing almost every day. And with airline travel becoming less convenient and more humiliating, business travelers are turning to general aviation as never before. As a result airplane sales are up and the general aviation business is booming.But general aviation’s financial […]