Features

You’ve decided that it’s time to buy an airplane, or you own one and you want to upgrade it with a glass panel or a larger engine. The “how will I pay for it?” refrain has gone through your head more than once. Now you have to listen to that voice. It’s time to get […]

Back in the 1970s, when transponders were just starting to be used, a pilot contacted Tucson Approach Control. Approach asked him if he “had a transponder on board.” To which the pilot responded:“No. Just the wife and I, headed to Phoenix.” Burke McClure

Only a small percentage of the controller work force in the system today-or for that matter, in the past-are or have been pilots. Controllers are taught to perform the duties and provide the services that are outlined in the controller’s bible, the FAA Order 7110.65, Air Traffic Control Manual. While they have been made aware […]

The final fly-ins and airport gatherings will take place this weekend, as seen on SocialFlight. On Saturday, the Civil Air Patrol will have an all-you-can-eat breakfast at Dayton, Tennessee. Also in Tennessee, EAA Chapter 1326 will hold its weekend breakfast fly-in in Shelbyville. Further south, EAA Chapter 677 will hold a Young Eagles rally at […]

There has long been a subset of pilots with a certain sense of adventure and the burning desire to own an aerobatic airplane. While most lust after an aerial hotrod such as one of the Extra 300 series or a Sukhoi Su-29, economic reality means putting something a little less impressive into the hangar. In […]

First hitting the market in 1958, the Piper PA-24 Comanche was a radical departure for Piper. Until then, the company had built mostly rag-and-tube taildraggers. Instead, the Comanche was a thoroughly modern design focused on speed and good looks, and targeting the high-performance piston-single market being tapped by the Beech Bonanza and Cessna 210, among […]

Several years ago, I was flying from John Wayne (KSNA) to Big Bear (L35) on a route that crossed that of arriving traffic into Ontario (KONT). It was the anniversary of the Wright Brothers’ first flight, well into the holiday gift-buying season. East of Ontario, SoCal instructed me to alter course 20 degrees to the […]

This weekend’s annual holiday airport parties get perfect timing just a few days before Christmas, as seen on SocialFlight‘s calendar. This month’s Wings and Wheels fly-in on Saturday at William P. Hobby Airport in Houston will honor museum volunteers and planespotters. Weather permitting, Hobby Ops will offer airport tours with rare photo ops. Santa arrives […]

Anyone who has flown a Beechcraft will have come away impressed with the line’s quality and, especially, the handling qualities. All the way down to the lowly Musketeer, Beech just took pains to get the airplane’s handling qualities a cut above everything else, and that applies in spades to the Baron series. Even so, every […]

It was the wee hours of the morning, and the center’s frequency had been dead silent for quite a while. Finally, a pilot just had to check. Pilot:“Uh, Albuquerque – anybody home?” Controller:“Nope. We’re all at work.” Art Friedman