Pilot Stories

Enjoy pilot stories? Our Pilot Talk section is full of informative and entertaining flying tales from accomplished pilot authors.

June 16, 2017

The Human Factor: Panic
Learning how to train yourself to relax in the face of danger

You read the accident reports, hoping to learn something from someone else’s troubles. Often, I imagine, you’re left with a nagging sense that things just don’t add up. Why did the highly experienced pilot do that? Why didn’t the CFI grab the controls and take over? The answers might lie in a kind of stall more »
June 13, 2017

Compassion Flights
How general aviation pilots make an impact by turning their passion into a vital service

In an exciting reversal of trends, general aviation aircraft ownership in the U.S. is increasing. According to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association, GA aircraft based in the United States rose from 199,000 in 2014 to approximately 204,000 in 2015, the first increase in private ownership since 2009. As more aircraft and pilots take to the more »
June 9, 2017

The Post-Maintenance Check Flight
Post-maintenance flying has a greater potential to encounter problems than our typical everyday flying. Learn how to reduce the risk.

After lifting off and establishing a positive rate of climb in the Cessna 340, I retracted the gear when I was out of usable runway, but the result wasn’t normal. As the gear went up, both airspeed indicators stopped working and dropped to zero. Uh, oh, that’s not normal. Pitching forward a little to guarantee more »
June 7, 2017

What The Engine Was Trying To Say
In the aftermath of a crash of a Cessna 421B Golden Eagle, statements made by witnesses to the NTSB actually reveal more than the official probable cause

The NTSB’s narrative report on the Cessna 421B Golden Eagle crash in Hammond, Louisiana, on October 14, 2015, in which the pilot and passenger were killed, repeats a deficiency we occasionally see in other reports from the agency. It lays out facts and provides a carefully worded probable cause for the accident, while failing to more »
June 2, 2017

The Romance Of Soaring
The beauty of flying...without the noise

As I was about to climb into the front pit of the solid-silver, letter-opener, stiletto of a glider for my first soaring lesson, instructor Gus Briegleb reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver dollar. He placed it on the runway at El Mirage Airport, then turned to me and said, “Bill, when you’re more »
June 2, 2017

Sometimes Engineers And Designers Get It Right The First Time
A look at old technology and new ideas

It is a fascinating thing when we, especially in the aviation industry, attempt to improve upon performance and efficiency only to find that we are returning to old technology and ideas, some of which are nearly as old as aviation itself.  Let’s look at just three specific ideas, or technologies—two that are on the market more »
June 1, 2017

Lessons Learned: Speaking From The Heart
Overcoming a speech deficit—and the naysayers—to achieve and share a lifelong dream

From the time I began, it was clear something was up, and while I was still a small child, I was diagnosed with a severe stuttering disorder. As though that weren’t bad enough, I was told throughout my life not to expect much because I would be working on cars or packing bags at the more »
May 30, 2017

Nausea
You make me sick

Nausea isn’t the most alluring topic. Just the very word brings up bad memories. It’s not fun to regurgitate that icky feeling we’ve all experienced at one time or another. When we feel nauseated, we normally have a very good idea why we do—food poisoning, the flu or a whole host of other reasons. When more »
May 24, 2017

Call Of The Heart

It was a desolate and alien place, looking more like a photo from Mars than any place that could be on this Earth. The vista stretched for miles in every direction, a rock-strewn blanket of baking, undulating tan, brown and bone white scree. As desolate as this vista was, so too appeared the lives of more »
May 16, 2017

The Top Rudder Remedy
Using this technique raises the lowered wing on departure to prevent loss of control.

Inflight loss of control (LOC), unintended departure of an aircraft from controlled flight, is regarded by the NTSB and the 25th Joseph T. Nall Report from the AOPA Air Safety Foundation as a significant flight safety issue. Over 40% of fixed-wing general aviation accidents occurred because pilots lost control of their airplanes. NTSB and AOPA more »
May 15, 2017

Accident Briefs: May 2017
Reports from the NTSB

Aeronca 11AC Chief 2 Fatal Ishpeming, Michigan During a personal local flight, the private pilot made a low pass in the airplane over the runway and turned left to enter the traffic pattern for landing. A witness stated that the airplane “looked mushy” when it made its left crosswind turn. Another witness reported that the more »
May 12, 2017

Plane Facts: Flying Cars
Fun facts about flying cars

First flying car patent issued: 1918, Felix Longobardi, never developed First flying car built: Curtiss Autoplane, 1917 Designer: Glenn Curtiss Patent issued: 1919 Debut: Pan-American Aeronautic Exposition, NYC, February 1917 Flight: Reported to have made a few straight-ahead hops Style: Aluminum automobile body with detachable wings and tail Seats: 3 Engine: 100 hp Curtiss OXX (water-cooled V8) Propeller: 4-blade, rear-mounted Dimensions (flight mode): 27 ft. x 40 ft. more »
May 9, 2017

A Pilot’s Bewilderment
A routine night flight turns harrowing when both engines inexplicably go silent.

I have a hunch that when I finish telling you about what happened to a Piper PA-34-220T Seneca II, you’ll take a close look at your airplane’s emergency checklist, if you can find it. You know, it’s that thing you may have misplaced, or maybe never even bothered to photocopy from the airplane’s documents, or maybe more »
May 5, 2017

Not Really The Bad Guys
Contrary to sometimes popular opinion, most folks at the FAA aren’t really the bad guys

Incident 1 The flight from Santa Maria to El Paso had gone well, or so I thought. I’d picked up a new Aerostar 601P from Roy Tucker at the company’s delivery center early in the morning and pointed the nose east toward Florida. It was one of those chamber of commerce days that the Southeast more »
May 4, 2017

Printed Planes
While your next plane won’t be 3D-printed (we think), plenty of parts will be soon, thanks to huge advances in additive manufacturing

Let’s get one thing straight right from the start: You cannot have your next plane printed for you. Not now, not soon, probably not ever. It’s a beautiful dream, to be sure, like the Willy Wonka invention that let kids reach into a television screen and pull out a chocolate bar. In this case, you’d more »
May 3, 2017

This Is Your Captain Speaking
The PA system is an opportunity to think thoughtfully about the information we share with those who travel with us

If you made a list of the audible wonders of the ancient world, the theater of Epidaurus, on the Argolid Peninsula of Greece, would probably come first. Even today spellbound audiences of around 14,000, wherever they’re seated, can easily hear the unamplified voices of actors. The science behind all this was a mystery until a more »
May 2, 2017

Summer Weather
Every season has its challenges for pilots. Learn how to prepare for the heat and humidity, warm fronts and thunderstorms, to make summer flying a breeze.

When I think about summer, I think of long, lean days, blue water, tan legs, iced tea. I can survive winter, but it’s really about paying my dues until my favorite season returns. Summer means flying west into a golden sun or heading home trying to beat the darkness so I can sleep in my more »
April 27, 2017

All Joy

Curt Brickman is 57 years old. When I meet him, he’s wearing jeans, hiking shoes and a dark blue jacket. His cap says “Cold War Veteran.” He wears an Army pin in his lapel and sunglasses over his prescription glasses. Ten years in the service, he tells me. Here, I think, is a guy who’s more »

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