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Every student pilot has heard the admonition to “keep your eyes outside.” When we’re flying VFR, we’re told, at least 70 percent of our time should be spent looking outside the airplane. One of my instructors once referred to me as “human TCAS,” and I’m still proud of my ability to spot traffic and otherwise […]

HAMMER: Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer is used as a kind of divining rod to locate expensive parts not far from the object we are trying to hit. ELECTRIC DRILL: Normally used for spinning rivets in their holes until you die of old age, but it also works well for drilling […]

Special thanks to loyal AVweb reader Greg Martin forthese images. Click on any image to view alarger version. Visit AVweb’s NewsWire for More

I‘m a little nervous writing stuff like this, because I am acutely aware that not all readers are the same. Some will read this column by itself, without reading the material in previous columns that has led up to this point. Some don’t care about the dirty details, and simply want to know what to […]

When I decided I wanted to fly, I did it in a hurry. I passedby Private checkride on November 3, 1995, and purchased a 1982Mooney 231 less than three weeks later. By early December, I hadlogged enough dual that the insurance company would let me flymy new high-performance turbocharged retractable without an instructorin the right […]

I‘ve reviewed dozens of newproducts and services on these pages in recent years, but this one is really special. It’sthe culmination of a decade-old dream of mine, and I’m tremendously excited to be able totell you that the dream has finally become a reality.

Have you noticed the headlines lately dealing with galactic cosmic radiation? April 7, 2000: Solar shock wave causes surprise aurora display. June 9, 2000: Sun storms creating a stir on Earth. July 13, 2000: Eruption on sun triggers radio blackouts. July 14, 2000: Another strong solar flare heads toward Earth. This is no coincidence. We’re […]

Of Flight Breakfasts, Air Races and Roll Your Own Fly-Ins It’s August in the Pilot’s Lounge. The heat shimmers off the asphalt, the trainers seem to sag into the air and the regulars in the big, easy chairs are out of sorts. Hack is complaining that he wants to go somewhere in the Super Cruiser […]

Over the years, my flying in the Florida has included introductions to dozens of ultralight and light experimental-amateur built designs … and the odd encounter with alligators. Now, imagine yourself in a big, open-cabin experimental airplane, cruising languidly about 500 feet above a mirror-still, algae-green lake outside Sebring, Fla., one known for yielding some awesome […]

Gallery 1 | Gallery2 | Gallery 3 Special Report: Sun ‘n Fun 2000 This isn’t Alice’s Restaurant, but you can still get anything you want… Stinson Gullwing Lockheed starting up. Rise and shine! Night taxiing… …and night camping Super Chipmunk. Hey! Who snuck a single in here? Powered parachutes swarming over Paradise City Thursday evening. […]