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Category Archives: Flying
GPS, LG4, and Government Woes
Something in the industries and the government is not quite right. Something’s up. Last January, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) waived their own rules to shotgun an approval through the system for LightSquared, an emerging company in the new 4G … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying, Life in General
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Tagged 40000 base stations, 66 members of Congress writing a letter to the FCC, Air Force, airplanes, anglers, aviators, current GPS satellite system, drivers, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, FCC International Bureau, FCC International Bureau Chief Mindel De La Torre, FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology, flying, frequency band and power output, Garmin, General William Shelton, GPS Industry Council, GPS LG4 and Government Woes, inexperienced pilots, instrument flying, LightSquared, navigators, new 4G technologies, Philip Falcone, problems with 4G interference, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, refund of $1 billion, significant measured degradation in aviation GPS units Harbinger Capital Partners, surveyors, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Trimble, US Air Force Space Command, wholesale 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) wireless broadband communications network, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, “Experimental Evidence of Wide Area GPS Jamming That Will Result from LightSquared’s Proposal to Convert Portions of L Band 1 to High Power Terrestrial Broadband”
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3 Comments
Learning How to Land
This one is for all the students trying to master the technique of bringing an airplane back to earth. This is from the notes I kept when I was trying to learn how to land. ———————– Now, how does one … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flight Instructing, Flying, Personal
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Tagged airplanes, airspeed, altitude, discipline, first solo, flight training, flying, inexperienced pilots, judgment, learning to fly, memories, student pilots, taildraggers, training aircraft
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Dreams of Waco UPF-7s
A very long time ago, my best friend, Paul, rather jinxed me. He introduced me to one of the airplanes I have always wanted to fly, rebuild, own, and showcase: the Waco UPF-7. (Found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuRT7fstFxs.) The UPF-7 is a … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, Flying, Life in General, Personal
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Tagged 220 horsepower Continental radial engine, a loop, a training airplane, a wingover, airplanes, barnstormers, barrel roll, Dreams of Waco UPF-7s, flight training, flying, flying in the cooler air, friends, little wind, memories, my best friend, no turbulence, open cockpit biplanes, pilots, PT-14, rebuilding a classic airplane, the barnstorming era, The best time to fly, the Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP), The Great Depression, The United States Army Air Corps, the Waco UPF-7, Waco Aircraft Company of Troy OH
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Takeoffs and Climbs
Yesterday I touched on the theory of the different kinds of climbs. I discussed the best-rate of climb (Vy) and the best-angle of climb (Vx). Today, let’s talk about how we use the appropriate climb speed for given situations. Most … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flight Instructing, Flying
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Tagged adequate runways, airplanes, airspeed, all available excess horsepower, altitude, angle-of-attack, best-angle of climb (Vx), best-rate of climb (Vy), Cessnas, clearing an immediate obstacle at the airport, cruise climb, cruise level winds aloft, discipline, flight training, flying, grass runways, hard surface runways, Headwinds, judgment, learning to fly, mountainous terrain, mountains, normal takeoff, not being aggressive enough, over-rotating, overly aggressive pilots, proper cruising altitude, student pilots, taildraggers, tailwinds, Takeoffs and Climbs, the fastest climb to altitude, the short field takeoff, training aircraft, winds aloft are stronger at altitude
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2 Comments
Climb Speeds
Aircraft have different climbing speeds. One is appropriate for getting the aircraft up to altitude as quickly as possible and the other is for gaining the most altitude in the least amount of lateral distance. There is another speed, referred … Continue reading →
Posted in Flight Instructing, Flying, Teaching
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Tagged 000) / W, absolute ceiling, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, basic understanding of theory, best-angle of climb (Vx), best-rate of and climb (Vy), Cessnas, Climb Speeds, discipline, excess horsepower, flight training, full power, gaining the most altitude in the least lateral distance, getting to altitude quickly, gross weight, higher density altitudes, learning to fly, maximum power available, service ceiling, the formula, the greatest distance between the power available curve and the power required curve, the greatest surplus of power, thinner air, which climb speed is appropriate, “cruise climb”
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2 Comments
Low Levels
This week, one of the subjects for my commercial class was airspace and as always, I made mention of the military training routes on the sectional charts. When I was flying in the Navy, we routinely referred to the routes … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying, Personal
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Tagged 910 feet per second, a couple of guys on a boat fishing, airspace, airspeed, almost as fast as a speeding bullet, altitude, Cedar Key, changing elevations, Corsair, discipline, Florida, flying, flying in the Navy, flying on VR-1002, Flying the routes at 150 to 200 feet, friends, inexperienced pilots, judgment, looked like deer staring into headlights, Low Levels, memories, military airplanes, military service, military training routes, mountains, Navy, nine miles a minute, out West, pilots, professional pilots, rock outcroppings, roll the jet upside down, sailors, speeds of 540 knots, Star Wars, the Gulf of Mexico, Weapons School
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Flying Offshore
For whatever reason, as a pilot flies farther away from land over the water or other inhospitable terrain, the engine(s) run rough. There is no factual or statistical evidence of this phenomenon, but there is plenty of emotional, anecdotal information. … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying
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Tagged "min sink", airplanes, airspeed, altitude, away from the sight of land, best glide, calm sea, cumulus clouds, do not deviate from the approved approach procedure, drug runners, drug wars, engine failures, Florida, fly as high as possible, flying, Flying Offshore, Flying over water, friends, IFR flight plan for flying after sunset, inexperienced pilots, inhospitable terrain, instrument flying, instrument skills and experience, island checkpoints, judgment, keep security in mind, minimum sink, navigation, no night VFR, the Bahamas, the Caribbean, the Pirates of the Caribbean, tune and identify all navaids, VFR navigation, visual navigation, water survival
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The Luscombe
After the war, another little airplane that had quite the following was the Luscombe. It came in a variety of flavors; the 8A and 8F were very popular. When the airplane came out, it was powered by the typical engine … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, Flying, History
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Tagged airplanes, airspeed, altitude, flight training, flying, friends, inexperienced pilots, judgment, learning to fly, memories, pilots, professional pilots, student pilots, taildraggers, training aircraft, World War II
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3 Comments
Misconceptions About Landing
Wednesday, I wrote about a pilot flying a light twin who made a hot approach and floated down the runway. I think there are many pilots who carry misconceptions about flying into the cockpit with them when they learn how … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flight Instructing, Flying
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Tagged aerodynamic control, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, Cessna 170, Cessna 182, Cessnas, crosswind landing, fast approach, final approach, flight training, floating down the runway, flying, flying landing approaches too fast, flying the approach and landing too fast, groundloops, gusty winds, inexperienced pilots, judgment, landings require precise speed control, learning to fly, Misconceptions About Landing, pilots, Pilot’s Operating Handbook (POH), professional pilots, runway excursions, scraping fingernails on a blackboard, short field landing, soft field landing, static control, student pilots, taildraggers, the secret to landing, training aircraft, transition from flying to rolling, “whiteboards”
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1 Comment
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
