Features

On a flight to Purdue University in my Piper Seneca, I was cleared for a right base to Runway 23. With a number of student pilots training at Purdue, the following exchange occurred: Tower: “300DE execute a left turn for spacing, student traffic on final.” Me: “300DE left turn for spacing.” Tower: “300DE, I said […]

AVweb’s General Aviation Accident Bulletin is taken from the pages of our sister publication, Aviation Safety magazine. All the reports listed here are preliminary and include only initial factual findings about crashes. You can learn more about the final probable cause on the NTSB’s website at www.ntsb.gov. Final reports appear about a year after the […]

In early 2006, the world’s most experienced skydivers assembled in Thailand to build a record, 400-way formation. What did it take? The resources of an entire air force, 300 tons of Jet-A, a trainload of oxygen bottles and the determined endurance of a marathon runner. On the 15th anniversary of that record, we’re republishing this […]

Musk, FAA Spar Over Next Mars Rocket Test Launch I have had considerable experience in space launch and was part of a team that developed the FAA/USAF safety standards. I do not know exactly what occurred here, but you need to realize that launches from Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg AFB involve the use of government […]

I learned a lot about flying airplanes while working 60 feet underground. I served as a missile launch control officer in the U.S. Air Force in the waning days of the Cold War. We worked in two-person crews, a commander and a deputy, behind a sealed blast door in a small room filled with old-school […]

This story originally appeared in KITPLANES. I didn’t buy this GlaStar intending to commit significant resources to the engine in the first year. Indeed, few of us intend to do that—but it happens. Who does that? But I always knew it was a possibility. My GlaStar’s Lycoming O-320-E3D, originally in a Piper Warrior, had seen […]

I fly a Cessna Conquest and when I announce myself to air traffic control, sometimes they hear Citation, and I usually correct them so they know I can’t cruise at FL 430.The other day I was doing practice approaches at my home airport, and a student was on the tower frequency with me. Me: “Conquest […]

Poor weather has always topped my list of potential aviation hazards. But after earning the instrument rating, I was much more willing to go out and tackle low ceilings and visibility, which inevitably led to poking around thunderstorms and frontal activity. I quickly learned there were no iron-clad rules or procedures for safely penetrating them […]

Replica Spirit Of St. Louis Flies In 2010 I had the opportunity to fly the Spirit replica once around the patch with Sean Elliott as PIC. It absolutely responds like a Mack truck without power steering. How Lindbergh wrestled in to Paris is incredible. This aircraft is one of two at Oshkosh. It’s not a […]

The raw performance numbers of a Meyers 200 might resemble what you’d expect from the most modern single-engine piston speedster, even though the airplane is a product of the 1950s, and went out of production in the 1960s. But don’t turn a nose to these old gals because of their age. We’re talking cruise speeds […]