Features

First, a little housekeeping. Inmy previous column, I mentioned a neat little booklet by HamiltonStandard that I said I might get duplicated if there was sufficient interest. Wow, wasthere ever: I received over 50 serious inquiries! I have placed the order for 100 of them.My final cost will be something over $20 each. I’m not […]

Yes, You Do Need To Be Concerned And, No, TheyAren’t Here To Help This Time The Pilot’s Lounge has been jumping all month. On thepropitious date of April Fool’s Day, our Friendly Aviation Administration published itsinterpretation of FAR 91.123 (a) and (b). Those regulations outline the responsibility ofthe pilot to comply with air traffic control […]

Early inmy consulting career, I began to notice certain approaches and traits that were common tosuccessful professionals. On the flip side, while working with struggling professionals, Isaw a commonality in their mistakes. The area where the successful professionals excelledwere often the areas where struggling professionals made their mistakes. All technical experience and expertise being equal, […]

The contrast was remarkable. Formonths I had been canvassing the airline personnel departments, making phone calls andpersonal visits — with no luck. Of the dozen airlines I had been following up on weekly,none would give me the time of day. Only one had even acknowledged receipt of myapplication. But as soon as I was invited […]

Reader Jerry Kurata requested a column on multiengine flying, and since I just afew minutes ago got home from giving a refresher workout to a very good multiengine pilot,I thought it would be a good time to comply with his request. By the bye, the guy I wasflying with is a much better pilot than […]

Like manifold pressure (see my previous column, “Manifold Pressure Sucks!“), propeller systems are often not well understood by those who depend on them. But there is no part of the airplane more critical, or that endures more stress and abuse. We really ought to know more about our props in order to get the best […]

History of Flight On January 13, 1998, about 0810 central standard time, a Gates Learjet 25B, N627WS,impacted terrain approximately 2 nautical miles (nm) east of the runway 26 threshold atGeorge Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Houston, Texas, during an instrument landingsystem (ILS) approach. (All times in this report are central standard time, based on a24-hour clock.) […]

Doctor Warren Silberman took on a big job last year when heassumed the reins of the Civil Aeromedical Institute (CAMI), which is responsible forall FAA Airman Medical Certification. The place was a mess of paperwork with over 50,000medical certificate applications caught up in the quagmire. Silberman quickly reduced thatbacklog to 10,000 medicals, and began to […]

Whenthe FAA first experimented with the Accident Prevention Program, an Aviation SafetyInspector in each of two district offices was assigned the duty of establishing a programto prevent accidents. After a one-year trial period in those two offices, the program wasdeemed a success and it went national. Apparently, the FAA is in love with words. Why […]

It was one of those goodevenings in the Pilot’s Lounge. Lots of flying during the day, the weather let us knowspring was truly coming and quite a few folks stuck around for coffee as the day wounddown. The conversation worked its way around to volunteer flying as we have a few pilotswho volunteer their time […]