FBOs

When I was first recruited by AVweb to write a column coming fresh off my FLYING magazine column dealing with flight testing called “The Eye of the Examiner,” I was given the freedom to write whatever strikes my fancy (so long as it is in reasonably good taste). At that time, I informed the readers […]

LEGEND: JT = Jim Tucker [Co-pilot] AC = Auburn Calloway [Jumpseat Passenger] AP = Andy Peterson [Flight Engineer] DS = David Sanders [Pilot] Center = Memphis ARTCC Tower = Memphis Air Traffic Control Tower UV = Unidentified Voice AW = Autowarning UA = Unidentified Aircraft UNIN = Unitelligible [UNIN] [Laughter] DS: I can’t believe it, […]

James Morgan Tucker, Jr. was bornSeptember 7, 1951, in Miami, Fla. He grew up two blocks from MIA with A&Psfor neighbors, and watched Eastern Airlines transition from props to jets. Hewent to college in Alabama looking at a law career, but a carrier aviationposter in the recruiter’s office caught his eye, and he became a […]

I‘ve been writing for AVweb just over a year now. It’s amazing the things I’ve been learning. One of the things that I’ve learned is that new people start reading this column all the time. And they don’t necessarily go back to where I started and “catch up,” as it were. So, at the risk […]

When I was young, I had fantasies of becoming a test pilot. I’d done some test flying in the F-51 and lesser airplanes, but with no college at all, no money, and very poor high-school grades, it seemed an impossible prospect. Then I joined Air America in 1963, and the money started flowing into my […]

A collection of images to accompany “Pelican’s Perch #61: Test Pilot School.“ KEDWAirspace Chart Click the image for a much higher-resolution version, which will open in a new window. Note: CHUM (see lower right corner of chart)stands for Chart Update Manual. The CHUM has all the changes to the charts for new towers and obstructions, […]

Last month I said that this month’s column was going to be the third in the series on flying tailwheel airplanes. In working on it, I have spent quite a bit of time in the Pilot’s Lounge here at the virtual airport, and received a lot of very good feedback on the subject. I’ve enjoyed […]

Oh sure, pilots have the FARs and the AIM, and controllers have the 7110.65, to tell us what we must do and can’t do. But where do you go — besides AVweb — to find out how the ATC system really works out on the firing line — like VFR climbs and descents, approach gates […]

Several years ago here on AVweb I wrote an Eye of Experience column entitled “Eye of Experience #17: I Can’t Believe They Did That,” dealing with unusual events I witnessed over a 17-year career as a Designated Pilot Examiner (DPE). At that time, I promised more of these reflections of a DPE. Now it is […]

Hello again, class. This series of 300-level classes will be dealing with the structure of airspace. This particular article will be about airspace stratums. While most everyone is comfortable thinking in terms of lateral boundaries depicted by almost any chart, air traffic control must be thought of in three dimensions. Unfortunately, we are not all […]