Category Archives: Flying

New Portrait

Sometimes we are resistant to change. Frequent readers will recognize that I changed the banner above.  It is something I have been meaning to do for a while.  The old photograph was long overdue for changing.  So now I’m using … Continue reading

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Engine Failure on Takeoff

Last night one of my former students from a long time ago hosted a pilot get together on zoom.com. He had a great turnout and the theme of his meeting dealt with engine failure on takeoff. He led a discussion … Continue reading

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Experience

How did I get here? Many times, I must ask myself, am I a writing pilot, or a flying writer? When I was in second grade, just getting a handle on reading, I remember standing in the hallway of our … Continue reading

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I Wish I Had Shot More Photos

I have not been writing over the past year. This was due to many reasons, including the death of my wife, teaching, house hunting and moving closer to my university, fixing up a new house, running the publishing business, and … Continue reading

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Sitting Around Waiting

We’re sitting in a waiting room while waiting. After all, that is what you do in a waiting room. We sit watching television news about tornadoes and flooding in Tampa. As I watch the satellite and radar images of the … Continue reading

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Big Field, No Sweat

Okay, it happened again. Another pilot decided to try landing his crippled airplane on a road. Follow this link to view dramatic law enforcement dashcam video of a Cessna 150 trying to turn a road into an emergency runway. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkriThuaaB0 … Continue reading

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The Magenta Babies

Standing in front of the class, I talked of the rudiments of navigation. I still marvel at the miracle of leaving somewhere on the earth in a vehicle, vessel, or airship and navigating precisely to another location. Then after visiting … Continue reading

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Gladys Ingle

There was once a time when flying airplanes was really fun and truly free – free in the sense of a lack of regulations. This period was short-lived, lasting less than a decade. During the time from the end of … Continue reading

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Lost Logbooks

This past week, one of my students, Jo, asked about the problem. After I told her the solution, she asked, “Why didn’t you tell the class?” I usually do, but at the point in the course when I usually talk … Continue reading

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Bob Hoover 1922-2016

It is hard to believe famed aviator Bob Hoover has passed. Of the world’s “Greatest Generation,” 16 million served in uniform during World War II. As of this year, approximately 620,000 still survive and they are dying at a rate … Continue reading

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