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Category Archives: Aviation
100,000 Airplanes
Which aircraft manufacturing company first reached the milestone of 100,000 aircraft manufactured? What company was most likely to do this? Boeing, perhaps? Mooney? Lockheed? Piper? No. The company was Clyde’s. Clyde Cessna. Cessna was a Kansas farmer who was the … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History
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Tagged 100000 Airplanes, airplanes, Boeing, Cessna 140, Cessna 150, Cessna 170, Cessna 172, Cessna 180, Cessna 182, Cessna 185, Cessna 210, Cessna 320, Cessna 340, Cessna 402, Cessna 421, Cessna Model A, Cessnas, Clyde Cessna, first aircraft company to reach 100000 delivered, flight training, flying, inexperienced pilots, learning to fly, Lockheed, memories, Mooney, pilots, Piper, professional pilots, Sky King!, student pilots, taildraggers, training aircraft, US Flight Instructors Association, Wichita KS
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2 Comments
Crosswind Landings
We were leaving school about 6:30 in the evening. I was with my wife and one of our authors—they had been working on a book while I was teaching school and we agreed to give him a lift home afterward. … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flight Instructing, Flying, Life in General
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Tagged airplanes, airspeed, altitude, bad landings, Cessnas, crosswind landings, crosswinds, discipline, drift, excessive speed, first solo, flight training, float, flying, incorrect crosswind landing technique, inexperienced pilots, instrument flying, judgment, landings and takeoffs, learning to fly, light twin on final, non-flyers, opposite rudder, pilots, Pilots’ Operating Handbook (POH), professional pilots, runway behind you, student pilots, taildraggers, the approach end of Runway 34, training aircraft, Trim the airplane, “aero-rudeness”
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3 Comments
When Reality Comes into the Classroom
As it turns out this week, the subject matter in my commercial class is meteorology. There are some things I like to focus on, the most important of which is learning how to recognize in-flight aviation weather hazards. The tornadoes … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Life in General
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Tagged aviation weather hazards, Canadian County OK sheriff, CNN News, commercial class, cyclonic wind, distraught homeowners, Fox News, friends, Joplin MO, memories, meteorology, monetary damage at $9 billion, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Oklahoma City, Piedmont OK, storm damage, When Reality Comes into the Classroom
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1 Comment
The Cessna 180
One of the best planes Cessna developed was the Cessna 180. Powered by a 230 horsepower Continental engine, the 180 could carry four at speeds of about 135 knots. At the same time, she could carry a load of luggage … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, Flying
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Tagged 230 horsepower Continental engine, 80-gallon long-range tanks, airplanes, airspeed, Alaska, altitude, bush pilots, Canada, Cessna 182, Cessnas, flight training, floats, flying, Geraldine “Jerri” Mock, gross weight, low-end flying characteristics, normal tires, oversized tundra tires, pilots, professional pilots, ranchers, skis, standard tanks, taildraggers, the airplane of choice, The Cessna 180, the first solo woman aviator around the world, the high-wing Cessnas, “para-lift” flaps
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6 Comments
Airports & Cats
Jeff and I stand at the front of the hangar. As we watch student pilots practice their approaches and landings, we revel in the wonderful evening. The weather is perfect for perfecting landings–except for the westerly winds, which forces the … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying, Life in General, Personal
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Tagged a bobcat, a very pretty evening, airplanes, Airports & Cats, airspeed, altitude, cats, Cessna 170, Cessnas, Florida, flying, friends, Gracie, judgment, learning to fly, perfect weather, pilots, professional pilots, right at sunset, student pilots, sunset, taildraggers, the airport cat, the hangar, watching from the side of the taxiway, westerly winds, when I saw him
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2 Comments
Airports&Cats
Jeff and I stand at the front of the hangar. As we watch student pilots practice their approaches and landings, we revel in the wonderful evening. The weather is perfect for perfecting landings–except for the westerly winds, which forces the … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying, Life in General, Personal
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Tagged a bobcat, a very pretty evening, airplanes, Airports & Cats, airspeed, altitude, cats, Cessna 170, Cessnas, Florida, flying, friends, Gracie, judgment, learning to fly, perfect weather, pilots, professional pilots, right at sunset, student pilots, sunset, taildraggers, the airport cat, the hangar, watching from the side of the taxiway, westerly winds, when I saw him
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2 Comments
Back in the Old Days
The old days. What is the definition of “the old days?” It depends on your point of view, that point of view being age. If you are young, the old days were back in kindergarten, perhaps. If you are in … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flight Instructing, Flying, Life in General, Personal
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Tagged accidently scraping the tail, aerobatic pilots, Air Force, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, AOPA’s weekend FIRC in Jacksonville, Back in the Old Days, barnstormers, Cessnas, charter pilots, Colonel Ernie Moser, drinking coffee, Flight instructors, flight training, Florida, flying, friends, Great Lakes 2T-1A, inexperienced pilots, Jim Holland, Jim Moser, Jim Moser’s Aerosport, judgment, learning to fly, memories, open cockpit biplanes, pilots, professional pilots, sitting around the FBO, student pilots, taildraggers, talking airplanes, the good old days, the St. Augustine airport, training aircraft, weekend airshow
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Comments Off on Back in the Old Days
Why Should You Teach?
Why is it important for new pilots to teach younger pilots? Many young pilots question why they should teach others how to fly. For whatever reason, they fail to understand the concept that in teaching others, what you are really … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flight Instructing, Flying, Life in General, Personal
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Tagged a hard job, airplanes, Cessnas, current or former flight instructors, demonstrating maneuvers, discipline, engage the autopilot, engine failures, first solo, flight training, Florida, flying, flying night cargo, flying skills, flying with finesse, friends, hy Should You Teach?, inexperienced pilots, instrument flying, judgment, learning to fly, memories, pilots, professional pilots, reinforcing your knowledge, serious pilots, stick-and-rudder pilots, student pilots, taildraggers, teaching younger pilots, the very best pilots, training aircraft, using CRM techniques, why they should teach
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4 Comments
Piper’s Comanche
One of the best single engine aircraft on the used airplane market today is the Piper PA-24 Comanche. Piper delivered the airplane with a variety of Lycoming engines ranging in power from 180 hp on the low end, to 400 hp … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, Flying, Life in General
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Tagged a solid instrument platform, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, bona fide four-place airplane, Comanche, flight training, flying, inexperienced pilots, instrument flying, judgment, learning to fly, Max Conrad, pilots, Piper PA-24 Comanche, Piper's Comanche, professional pilots, standard "T" instrument panel, the non-stop speed record from Casablanca to Los Angeles, “oil-canning” in the aft fuselage
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Comments Off on Piper’s Comanche
The World’s First Flight Attendant
In 1930, Ellen Church was a newly licensed pilot who wanted to fly. She went to Boeing Air Transport, the predecessor to United Airlines, and applied, even though she knew her chances of flying as a pilot were not good. … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, History
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Tagged Army Nurse Corps the Air Medal, Boeing Air Transport, Cresco IA, Ellen Church, Ellen Church Field, Ford Tri-motor, Iowa, passengers fearful of flying, reassuring frightened passengers, scared and airsick passengers, Steve Stimpson of BAT, stewards, the fledgling airline industry, the very first flight attendant in the world, The World’s First Flight Attendant, United Airlines, World War II
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4 Comments
