Commentary

This article is in response to a recent opinion piece regarding the insurability of flight schools conducting flight training for new Sport Pilots.First off, I could not agree more with the first few paragraphs of the previous letter: The new FAA rules for Sport Pilot and light sport aircraft (LSA) offer a new and very […]

General Aviation has seen an interesting and uncommon change recently: A new certificate is now available. Sport Pilot has been much-awaited, touted, and striven-for by many dedicated individuals and organizations whose goal was to help broaden the appeal of GA.Sport Pilot offers a new group of people the ability to participate in, help support, and […]

A retelling of the 19th-century story, especially for aviators. This has been floating around the Internet for years in various forms — and probably was passed around as photocopies for years before that. ‘Twas the night before Christmas, and out on the ramp,Not an airplane was stirring, not even a Champ.The aircraft were fastened to […]

Ah, autumn — birds on the wing, a crisp snap to the air, and pumpkins falling from Cubs. For those seeking the true meaning of flight you need only look to southern Iowa, where at an undisclosed location, close to the Maharishi TM University, unfettered by TFRs, the Annual Great Pumpkin Bombing and Chili Shootout […]

These words are impromptu “Talking Stick” remarks that just came out during a gathering of family and friends to celebrate the life of Richard Dyken on July 15, 1999. A dedicated sky-diver-driver, he had just lost his life doing what he loved so much. The Talking Stick is a symbolic staff that served Native American […]

If you’ve ever had the misfortune to be around an aircraft crash, there are certain aspects of it that are unforgettable. One is the smell: a disagreeable blend of fuel, oil, hydraulic fluid and wet upholstery, and a sour, metallic odor unique to bent, broken or burned airplanes. Although the wind carried off most of […]

They all know you’d rather not jump out of a perfectly good airplane. But here’s how to avoid an encounter between skydivers and your perfectly good airplane.If you fly much, you’ve certainly heard this radio call: “One minute to skydivers away over Zephyrhills … use caution, 13,500 feet and below … one minute to skydivers […]

Sometimes you learn hard lessons in life. Sometimes these lessons are cheap, but sometimes they are very expensive. During the first week of February, I learned one of the expensive lessons.I have perhaps one of the most highly modified and upgraded Cessna T206H aircraft in existence. It has just about everything. However, when I fly […]

In a recent report, the General Accounting Office (GAO) presented research on the air traffic controller workforce and the impending retirements that the FAA will be facing in the next few years. Some of the finer points of this report include the following statistics: This increases the risk that FAA will not have enough qualified […]