Features

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; […]

Everybody wants to move up. I guess it’s just natural. Most pilots start out flying “low and slow” and long to go higher, faster, further. The Cessna 150 turns into a 172 and then a 210, to a twin and now everybody is dreaming about a Very Light Jet (VLJ).You see it somewhat in controllers, […]

British Airway’s Three-Engine Incident AVweb wrote (NewsWire, Jun. 12): “British authorities say flying a 747 on three engines over the polar icecap was the right thing to do and now they’re going to try to convince the FAA of that. As AVweb reported, the British Airways flight from LAX to London lost an engine after […]

As if to make the day perfectly symmetrical, two vans pulling small trailers came scooting down the driveway, crossed the parking lot and, slowing greatly, drove down the centerfield taxiway a short distance and turned into the grass. People spilled from the doors and went swiftly to the respective trailers from which they began unloading […]

No, that’s not what I said. “I was about to lift off with my instructor from a class D airport in a Robinson R-44. The route of flight would take us very near neighboring Class C airspace. The controller questioned us after we gave our initial heading…” Controller: Staying clear of all airspaces? My instructor: […]

Dakota Breakup near ACY I fly this area regularly. So the interest in this accident is high.To correct your report (NewsWire, Jun. 5): Weather at the time of the accident was far from benign. Looks like this poor fellow got upset in hard IMC.The sky at the time of the accident was 700 overcast. Here […]

Another day at customs… I was returning to the US with my niece. The week before, a friend had flown the plane into a local grass strip and there was still mud and residue on the fuselage. As customs agents inspected the plane, one officer asked about the dirt and commented, “I gotta say, that’s […]

The FAA held its second public “summit meeting” about aging GA airplanes on March 22-23, 2006. More than 170 representatives of government, industry, owner groups and type clubs packed the meeting room in Kansas City to listen to what the FAA had to say on the subject, and to present their views and ideas to […]