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Some overhaul shops claim beneficial cooling effects of blackpaint on their engine. The theory is that black is a betteremitter of infrared (heat) energy. A hot engine in a cold surrounding,radiates energy from the hot object to the cold. The amount ofradiant cooling (thermal emissions) is generally dependent uponthe temperature of the emitter (engine) and […]

Appendix F to Part 23: Test Procedure Acceptable test procedure for self-extinguishing materials for showing compliance with Secs. 23.853 ,23.855 and 23.1359. (a) Conditioning. Specimens must be conditioned to 70 degrees F, plus or minus 5 degrees, and at 50 percent plus or minus 5 percent relative humidity until moisture equilibrium is reached or for […]

The very idea of going around in circles in a hold at 150 knotsis pretty ridiculous, particularly when it goes on so long thatyou end up diverting to an alternate. Makes you wish you’d takenthe bus. Nonetheless, the feds really do want to minimize airborneholding and they use something called Flow Control to do it. […]

Remember when you were studying for your instrument written andyou came to the chapter on holding? Remember how your brain wentnumb and you had flashbacks to high-school algebra class? I realizethere are a few people who actually understood algebra (not me)and those same individuals probably understand how to enter aholding pattern while calculating their weight […]

I write this with considerable personal embarrassment, in thehopes that someone may learn from it. Sunriver, Oregon, is a lovely summer and winter resort communityabout 20 miles from Mt Bachelor, a popular ski spot. We renta condo there for a week every year, during the kids’ Spring break.I usually fly down with one or both […]

Late last year, Mobil Corporationsettleda class-action lawsuit brought by Cessna T210 owner Malvern Grosson behalf of owners of Teledyne Continental engines damaged bythe use of Mobil’s AV-1 synthetic oil. In the hard-fought andcomplex settlement, Mobil agreed to pay for inspection and repairof TCM 360/470/520/550 engines that used AV-1 oil for more than150 hours. It now […]

The passion to fly, to be one with the sky, to roam where onlyGod intended birds and angels to be, has few equals. A smittenvictim visualizes melding with a craft as it transverses boundlessskies, rising and rushing to and from mother earth, in a grandtour of her greatest vistas and breathless majesty. My first wing… […]

For reasons not easy to explain, pilots don’t like to ask for help. Just why this is so would make a good topic for a graduate psychology thesis but certainly pride and machismo have a lot to do with it. At the least, fessing upto an emergency seems likely to reveal flawed thinking; at worst, […]

Preflight: Start: Idle: Takeoff: Cruise: Shutdown:

Proper leaning during idle and taxi operations is much more important thanmost pilots understand. It can solve spark plug fouling problems, reducevalve guide wear and valve sticking problems, and prolong engine life.Here’s why. Mixture distribution is poor at idle. At a rich idle mixture, some fueldoesn’t vaporize and enters the cylinder as a liquid where […]