Flight Training

At AirVenture 2016, EAA has improved the popular Pilot Proficiency Center where you can attend forums, fly simulator problems and generally knock the rust off your flying skills. AVweb’s Jeff Van West prepared this video report. view on YouTube

When the FAA changed its certification process in April to include TSA security vetting, one unintended consequence was that the tradition of student pilots flying their first solo on their birthday fell by the wayside — until today. Acting on a request from GA advocates including AOPA and EAA, the FAA said today it has […]

The just-introduced CubCrafter’s XCub has enjoyed strong initial sales success, with the first 20 aircraft already sold, the company said this week at AirVenture 2016. It also announced a new factory training program for buyers that will allow them to get the most of their new airplanes, especially if they’re coming from nosegear aircraft. “CubCrafters […]

After purchasing every model in the CubCrafters line, TacAero now offers a certified five-day transition course to prepare CubCrafters’ customers for the challenges of flying a high-performance tailwheel airplane. Aviation Consumer editor Larry Anglisano spoke with CubCrafters’ John Whitish and TacAero’s Jeremy Young about the program. Duration: 5:01 File Size: 1.2 MB download here

The recent passage of the Third Class medical exemption was cause for cheering in the GA industry, but for some pilots, the actual effect of the legislation remains cloudy at best.”The law is very, very specific in how can you use this exemption,” said Dr. Ian Blair Fries, a senior Aviation Medical Examiner with years […]

One of the most popular sites at EAA AirVenture in recent years has been the Pilot Proficiency Center, which keeps adding new features to help pilots stay current and learn new skills. This year, Redbird is offering 12 simulators, an MCX full-motion device, and an Xwind crosswind trainer. The sims offer more than 30 scenarios […]

The great book Fate is the Hunter by Ernest K. Gann well describes the grip of fear that most have observed in our fellow pilots and perhaps in ourselves. Fear is of course a primordial, natural, and quite healthy reaction to unknown and threatening situations. Flying perfectly describes such a situation—an obvious venture away from […]

Many of our ranks are professional pilots because they simply love to fly. They find a way to fly no matter what. For them, retiring from a career in aviation simply means they no longer get paid to fly, but they’ll find a new ride. These are usually superb pilots—pilot’s pilots—but they can sometimes struggle […]

AVweb actually has a policy about ignoring coverage of “youngest pilot” aviation exploits since they can and have led to disaster but a story out of the U.K. is one of the exceptions. Budget carrier easyJet has welcomed the U.K.’s youngest airline pilot and he said few have noticed, which is as it should be. […]

Remember films like The Blue Max, The Red Baron or Flyboys? They all depicted WWI aerial warfare, in machines invented some 15 years earlier. Instead of defined runways, pilots of that era landed and took off from large, broad fields, which always allowed them to fly into the prevailing wind. One of the reasons those […]