Flight Safety

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. – Ben Franklin Old Ben had it right, but only half-right. He pointed out that such people don’t “deserve” either, but failed to point out they won’t GET security, either. There is no such thing, for we […]

Hack started it, another, er, discussion, that’s it, discussion, in the pilot’s lounge here at the virtual airport. Hack was explaining to one of the yuppie pilots that no self-respecting human being would ever allow a bartender to serve him a martini with ice floating in it. Hack was explaining real loud. As the exchange […]

William Langewiesche was born June12, 1955 — 11 years after his father Wolfgang had published Stickand Rudder, the classic book on the art of flying. William grew up inairplanes, and learned to fly the gauges before he could see over theglareshield. He soloed at 14, flew air taxi and charters to put himself throughStanford, then […]

There are several programs designed to interest young people in aviation – the most notable of which is the Experimental Aircraft Association’s Young Eagles – but there are only a very few that actually get the kids started flying as genuine student pilots. Rick Durden recently wrote about what is obviously the largest of these, […]

Up until this point I’ve been having fun writing this column. This installment isn’t going to be fun, at least for me. This is my third attempt at writing this particular column. I’ve been looking for a way to take the sting out of telling someone that they are doing something wrong. If anyone could […]

While hanging around and working at the Sarasota-Bradenton airport (SRQ) in the mid-50s, I became aware of a small group of pilots my father called “airport bums.” It was years before I realized that was intended as a derogatory term, for they were my heroes. That was probably why Dad put me into forced labor […]

In the weeks since September 11, I’ve found that I have sometimes avoided visiting with my friends in the Pilot’s Lounge at the virtual airport simply because of the gloom and doom that has become the preferred conversation of so many pilots. While I join them in not being impressed by the manner in which […]

Gen. Robert L. Cardenas was bornMarch 10, 1920, in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico. At age five, he moved to San Diego,Calif., with his parents. He built model airplanes and helped local gliderpilots with dope-and-fabric projects. Being the top student in math and physicsat his high school earned him a two-year pre-engineering scholarship to SanDiego State University. […]

Although all kinds of sport flying are for fun rather than transportation, all you “power pilots” don’t know what fun is until you try soaring; it’s so quiet the instructor can hear his students cry. Soaring in a glider or sailplane is just pure joy. With the sophisticated aircraft of today that most of us […]

Dear Pete: We met before we met. Around the gliderport, there’s a sort of “Pete wave” that washes around. There’s a little bit of you in the eye of every line boy, and an ounce of you on everyone’s tongue. You are beloved for your dry, gentle humor, and respected for your skill. Whether you […]