Features

Environmental Impact of Flying I was heartened to see how many respondents to the Question of the Week knew that flying is the most environmentally friendly mode of transportation (QOTW, Dec. 6). The worst thing one can do is to build a road. The road interrupts ecosystems. It also requires materials such as asphalt or […]

Dubya had done us a favor this holiday season and officially made all of the Military Operations Areas “cold” during Thanksgiving weekend. What a guy; the MOAs are normally shutdown during holidays anyway, but a political point is a political point.Because of resting military flight crews and a generous (albeit disingenuous) president, we actually arrived […]

Overheard in IFR Magazine‘s “On the Air” Returning to Republic Airport in Farmingdale, New York on New Year’s Day, I heard the following exchange on the air between the tower controller and the pilot of a Piper Arrow: Arrow:“Republic tower, Arrow One Two Three Four Five, eight miles north, inbound with India.” Tower:“Arrow Three Four […]

This Week’s Question |Previous Week’s Answers PREVIOUS RESULTS *** Last week, we asked about the mania for green living currently sweeping the U.S., wondering aloud if it might be time to curb our flying for the sake of the environment. For thesecond week in a row, our readers spoke out loud and clear, with 74% […]

[AVweb’s reprint of A Pilot’s History began with Chapter 1.] The news broadcasts and newsprint was not what I had seen and heard when covering the large expanse of the Pacific and its battlefields. The field commanders put out news slanted to benefit their positions. The civilian news reporters were obviously censored. Those that did […]

A380 (Not) Tail Strike Video The video of the A380 having a tail strike is undoubtedly part of the certification testing (POTW, Dec. 1). Since an over-rotation accident in Rome in the early days of jet transports, they must all now demonstrate their ability to lift off successfully if over-rotated on takeoff. Seems the A380 […]

My first flight instructor introduced me to the touch and go: power off, flare, flare, flare, “chirp” go the mains, hold the nose (“If the nose touches, it’s not a touch and go,” he said), flaps up, power up, carb heat in, adjust the trim in there somewhere, and up we go. The touch and […]

Overheard in IFR Magazine‘s “On the Air” Overheard in the vicinity of Buchanan Tower in Concord, California: Cessna 123:“Buchanan Tower, this is Cessna One Two Three, seven south of Buchanan, 2000 feet, request transit, northbound.” Buchanan Tower:“Cessna One Two Three, transition approved. Report clear.” [30-second pause] Cessna 123:“Tower, this is Cessna One Two Three. Where […]

This Week’s Question |Previous Week’s Answers PREVIOUS RESULTS *** With the EAA contemplating a new classof kitbuilt aircraft where the builder wouldn’t (necessarily) have to beinvolved in over half of all wrench-turns during construction, we askedreaders for their take on the 51% Rule. A clear majority of our readers (54% of those who took time […]

What About the Instructor Shortage? We are hearing about the pilot shortage (AVwebFlash, Nov. 25), but what about the instructor shortage? When “old goats” like me get mass mailings from a school with large, contracted, flight-instruction needs with pay rates near $30/hour for primary instruction, there is a problem. And what about the mass postcards […]