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What do you get when you mate a sleek and efficient composite airframe to a high-output Continental engine, advanced avionics and an ergonomic interior? Sales—and lots of them. This is evident by Cirrus Aircraft’s success with its SR22. That was the premise behind the original Columbia 300/350, the normally aspirated versions of the company’s flagship […]

Maintaining your IFR currency isn’t that hard. Just fly and log in actual or simulated conditions six instrument approaches, “holding procedures and tasks” and “intercepting and tracking” electronic courses within the preceding six months, and you’re golden. Even if you find yourself slightly out of currency in the 11th month, you can go out with […]

Most instrument rated pilots log about 10 percent of their flight time in IMC. That same percentage holds true for night operations. When you combine the two, encountering IMC at night is a rare occurrence for many. Most of us recognize that night IMC presents a high risk environment (statistically five-times more so than day […]

Of all the major components of a conventional airplane, the tail—empennage, if you prefer—may be the least understood. Yes, we generally know it’s there to help balance and stabilize the airplane’s attitude in flight, and to help control yaw and pitch, but that’s often the extent to which we paid attention in ground school. If […]

It’s funny how a rendezvous with old friends can inspire acts of either derring-do or works of complete insanity. Sometimes you just can’t help yourself. I attended the Dawn Patrol Rendezvous in 2005, flying a Dennis Wiley-designed Jenny and came away with a terrible resolve after talking with Robert Baslee during the dedication dinner. We […]

Airshow season is at its height and hundreds of thousands of people are flocking to watch some of the coolest airplanes on the planet being flown by some of the finest pilots around. At the same time, summer weather means the backcountry airstrips are open and pilots with a certain lust for adventure are taking […]

It’s been over a decade since we last looked at aviation life rafts. While there have been noteworthy changes in the industry, numerous evolutionary improvements and some new offerings, it’s also a case of the more things change, the more they stay the same. Winslow still, in our opinion, offers the best rafts—you pay a […]

Pilots decide to buy their own airplane for a variety of reasons. It could be a business decision, helping ensure coverage of a relatively wide sales area, or perhaps an aerial photography business. Specialized flight training—like acro, or a quicky instrument rating—also can be a reason. Recreation or personal transportation is yet another. One of […]

If age mellows people, the same might be said for airplanes, at least if the airplane in question is Mooney’s M20K series. The airplane arrived in the GA market at a time when turbocharging was relatively new and the demand for high-flying aircraft was thin. Mooney didn’t get the M20K’s turbocharging system right on the […]

Flight instructors often note to the student, early in the training cycle, that there are back-up systems in case the primary equipment fails. However, with respect to the single engine purring away on the nose of the aircraft they will often add, “Don’t worry, they hardly ever fail, and if it does, the airplane will […]