Flight Safety

In my last column we covered where I think pilots of light piston aircraft should be looking during takeoff and the initial-climb phases of flight, say to 1,000 feet AGL. In my opinion, virtually all attention should be outside the cockpit unless there are no outside references available to keep the airplane upright, climbing, and […]

Flight instruction is considered to be one of the safest categories of general aviation. AOPA Air Safety Foundation’s 2006 Nall Report (3 MB Adobe PDF file) calls flight instruction “… relatively safe … result[ing] in just 13.2 percent of all [NTSB-reported] accidents and only 6.5 percent of fatal accidents.” AOPA attributes this to “… the […]

Nominate an FBO |Rules |Tips |Questions |Winning FBOs AVweb’s “FBO of the Week” ribbon goes to Great Lakes Air at K83D in St. Ignace, Mich. AVweb readers Andrea and Tim Olson said the FBO’s staff and service were outstanding. “We had just touched down and were still rolling out down the runway when we were […]

The atmosphere in the Pilot’s Lounge at the virtual airport has been decidedly unpleasant over the last several weeks. About half of the pilots here rely on telephone briefings with Flight Service to get their aviation weather information and file flight plans. As any pilot in the U.S. is now aware, the Lockheed-Martin takeover of […]

Nominate an FBO |Rules |Tips |Questions |Winning FBOs AVweb’s “FBO of the Week” ribbon goes to Vail Valley Jet Center at KEGE in Gypsum, Colo. AVweb reader Snorri Snorrason said the FBO is tops in his book. “Great setup with remarkable pilot accommodations. A lobby that makes your grandma feel comfy, and staff so helpful […]

This article originally appeared in Aviation Safety, Apr. 2005. The first few hundred hours of any pilot’s flying career are the ones involving the greatest accumulation of experience and judgment. In some ways, it’s a miracle any of us survive this period; in other ways, these first few hours of flying time are both necessary […]

Nominate an FBO |Rules |Tips |Questions |Winning FBOs AVweb’s “FBO of the Week” ribbon goes to Indianapolis Aviation at KUMP in Indianapolis, Ind. AVweb reader Bill Johnson said the FBO staff is not only helpful, but honest, too. “If your travels take you to Indianapolis the best airport is UMP. Phylis Denny and Larry Schmaltz […]

Nominate an FBO |Rules |Tips |Questions |Winning FBOs AVweb’s “FBO of the Week” ribbon goes to Aurora Jet Center at KUAO in Aurora, Ore. AVweb reader Dennis Conner said the FBO has great service — and cookies, too. “Every time we stop in there, there is always a person to greet you and take care […]

This article originally appeared in IFR magazine, Feb. 2005. You are IFR and solidly in the clag; the terminal area is busy and Departure Control sounds like a tobacco auctioneer. You are flying single pilot, trying to comply with the eparture clearance but beginning to have a hard time keeping up with the airplane. Your […]

This article originally appeared in IFR Refresher, Apr. 2006. What any pilot does not need at the end of a long day is low ceilings and poor visibility with fog. Yet, that is what a Beech Baron pilot faced in the early hours of an October morning in 2001 when he needed to reposition his […]