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Are aircraft condensation trails really a form of chemical warfare being carried out on unsuspecting innocents below?
What a glider is: Non-powered aircraft that is not lighter than air Derivation of the term “glider:” Unknown Other common term for gliding: Soaring Difference: In soaring, pilots gain altitude in flight Glide ratio: Cessna 172: 9:1 Best high-performance sailplane: Better than 70:1 Northern flying squirrel: 2:1 Steinway Piano: Infinitely poor zero:1 Methods for altitude more »
Round airports have been around since the early days of aviation, because that layout allowed the notoriously lightly wing-loaded planes of the day to land directly into the wind no matter which direction it was blowing. But circular runways are another thing altogether. And while the idea might seem totally crazy at first blush, there’s more »
First helicopter capable of hovering flight with pilot: Paul Cornu’s unnamed helicopter, 1907 Height of that first flight: About 1 foot Duration: 20 seconds Fate of Cornu’s helicopter design: Abandoned Early design standoff: Dual contra-rotors vs. one plus tail rotor Early enabling technology: Swashplate for collective pitch changes First “practical” helicopter: Sikorsky VS-300 Fastest helicopter more »
First landing in a powered plane: Orville Wright, Wright Flyer, Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, December 17, 1903. First successful helicopter landing: Paul Cornu, November 13, 1907, Lisieuz, France First landing on a heavenly body: Apollo 11 Commander Neil Armstrong, Sea of Tranquility, Earth’s Moon, July 20, 1969. First landing on inflated rubber aircraft tires: more »
Across 1. The answer is right in front of your eyes! 5. A seal is used in one to cut drag 9. Long range (acronym) 11. Some flight crew in EMT planes 12. “American Champion” plane 13. Time saving alternative to plans 14. Worlds biggest aviation marketplace 16. Flying prefix 17. Mathematical ratio 18. “Air more »
The plane was lost from radar and the Air Force couldn’t find the missing plane or pilot. The military declared Steeves dead, and that was that. Until, that is, 54 days later when Steeves emerged from the Sierra, having been found badly malnourished and still limping badly on swollen ankles.
The Mystery/Controversy: The controversy, which has been around for at least 70 years, is this: How does one best control airspeed and glideslope on the approach? The approach in question was originally an ILS, though today LPV approaches have a glideslope (technically a “glidepath”) as well. In the seminal aviation how-to book “Stick and Rudder,” written more »
Across 1. Lance-like 5. What some brakes help you do 8. Waggle 9. Dutch or barrel 11. Activity when you’re riding in back 12. 65 is an important one 14. Good policy for renters 16. Hall of fame aviator Scholl 17. Most ORDinary airport 19. Don’t forget to pull this one 21. Negative prefix 22. Husky more »
Learn all about the history and development of Van’s RVs with these facts. Person behind RV phenomenon: Richard VanGrunsven Nicknames: “Van,” “Dick” Profession: engineer Aeronautical ratings: ATP Total time: more than 12,000 hours Origin of first RV (RV-1): modification of Stits Playboy RV-2: wooden flying wing glider (never flew) RV-3: single-seat all-metal, low wing sport more »
High-tech cockpits are supposed to make flying safer. But do they really?
Neat and interesting facts about post-war aviation.
The answer key for the crossword puzzle found in the 2018 issue of Plane & Pilot.
Subscribe today to Plane & Pilot magazine for industry news, reviews and much more delivered straight to you! First bombing: 1911, just eight years after the first flight by the Wrights Place: Libya (Italo-Turkish War) Payload: specially designed steel bombs containing picric acid. Casualties: Zero First purpose-built bombers: 1913, Bristol T.B. 8 (British) and the Caproni more »
The answer key to the crossword puzzle in the September 2018 issue of Plane & Pilot.
Subscribe today to Plane & Pilot magazine for industry news, reviews and much more delivered straight to you! The Mystery? Was Chuck Yeager the first to break the so-called “sound barrier?” Or did someone, or multiple people, beat him to the sonic boom? Well, this one isn’t so much a mystery as a debate. The Backstory more »
Cool and interesting facts about planes, aviation, and life in the 1970s.
Are you an aviation enthusiast or pilot? Sign up for our newsletter, full of tips, reviews and more! The Theory The purported hazard of the downwind turn is one of the most controversial topics in all of aviation. Despite it being widely debated for many decades, it maintains a hold on the popular pilot imagination because more »