A friend of a friend knew the pilot of a King Air that crashed, killing six of the seven people on board, so I was asked to be on the lookout for the NTSB’s final report on the accident. The thinking among those who knew the pilot was that there had to be some sort of catastrophic mechanical failure or a series of problems with the plane and avionics, far beyond the coping capabilities of any mere mortal. Read More “Don‘t Bank On It”
Running out of fuel and crashing is something you might expect from an inexperienced private pilot, but not from a crew of professional pilots or even experienced pilots. Yet that was exactly the case when it came to an accident that occurred on April 8, 2003. It involved a Dassault DA-20C Fan Jet Falcon that was being vectored by ATC in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) for another approach. Read More “Fill ‘Er Up”
Any list of general-aviation evergreens is bound to include certain airplanes: The Cessna 170 and 172 would be near the top of the list; Piper’s venerable Super Cub would be a strong contender; Beechcraft’s straight-tail Bonanza would definitely qualify; and the Piper Cherokee Six also would likely make the list. Read More “New Piper‘s Saratoga II TC”
Anyone looking to find the facet of flying that has grown the most over the past decade will discover that it’s the part of aviation on the Internet. What began as a mere curiosity some years ago is now a well-established component in most pilots’ lives. Never before have we been able to find so much information about the passion we share. |
Read More “25 Great Aviation Websites”
If your auto mechanic doesn’t get something quite right when making a repair to your vehicle, chances are good that you’ll survive. Read More “More Alerts For GA Pilots”
DAHER-SOCATA announced the appointment of Jet Mach as TBM aircraft distributor for Mexico. Read More “Daher-Socata Appoints Jet Mach As TBM distributor For Mexico”
Roaming through the expansive winged carnival that is the annual Sun ‘n Fun International Fly-In & Expo, I fairly marvel each year at how much changes from visit to visitâand how much doesn’t. Read More “Light-Sport Chronicles: The Long View”
Mention the word “abort” to a pilot, and you’ll immediately summon visions of every pilot’s nightmareâ an engine failure on takeoff. Read More “When To Abort”