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Tag Archives: pilots
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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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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The Wonder of Weather Technology
We knew the weather was coming today, and now it is here. Earlier today, Ardis was talking with her father and asked if we should spend the money to water the lawn. He told her yes, so now the lawn … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying, Life in General, Personal
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Tagged a great instrument platform, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, another night of dodging thunderstorms, building experience, Cessna 210, Cessnas, computer screen, discipline, Florida, flying, flying only on my terms, flying Part 135, heavy rain, inexperienced pilots, instrument flying, judgment, learning experiences, learning to fly, Level 3 storms, Level 4 storms, memories, pilots, professional pilots, radar map, Tampa, The Wonder of Weather Technology, trying to stay VFR, weather, written tests, “paying my dues”
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2 Comments
The Big Hole in the Ground
Today is the first day of class and as with all first days of class, some things can be unpredictable. Like what I may use to illustrate my lessons and where my mind might go in the process. Today, it … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying
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Tagged a dangerous place to fly, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, Cessna 170B, Cessnas, discipline, first day of class, flying, friends, Grand Canyon National Park airport, inexperienced pilots, judgment, military service, mountains, Navy, pilots, professional pilots, special air traffic rules, taildraggers, The Big Hole in the Ground, the Grand Canyon
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2 Comments
Cruising
We have the ability today to stay in contact immediately with anyone around the globe. Facebook is a case in point. As I was thinking of a topic for tonight’s blog, I stopped in on Facebook to check in and … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying, Life in General, Personal
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Tagged A-7E Corsair, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, at sea, Cruising, discipline, Facebook, flying, flying around the boat, friends, helicopter pilots, judgment, landing signal officer (LSO), memories, military service, Navy, nighttime operations, Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, pilots, professional pilots, rescue swimmers, sailors, tactical jet aviators, the deck was pitching and rolling, the guy who bought the beer at the last port of call, “ball call”, “getting aboard”, “Roger ball!”, “We’re going to the ship!”
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4 Comments
Headwinds and Tailwinds
We were at the Thomasville fly-in and the weather had been okay, not great, but just okay. There was a high overcast and it was cool for October. And it was windy. As we were getting ready for the return … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying, Life in General, Personal
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Tagged airplanes, airspeed, Cessna 170B, discipline, Florida, flying, friends, Headwinds, judgment, memories, pilots, professional pilots, taildraggers, tailwinds
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1 Comment
Sealord and the Atlantic
It is the day after Mother’s Day and for her treat, I take Ardis to dinner at the Reef Restaurant on the beach. As is always the case, whenever I look out to sea, my mind wanders back a couple … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying, Life in General, Personal
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Tagged 2 v 1 Air Combat Maneuvering (ACM), ACM was much more subjective, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, bombs are better, discipline, disliked rushing or hurrying, dropping bombs, flight training, Florida, flying, I gave him the thumbs up, inexperienced pilots, instrument flying, judgment, learning to fly, learning to fly Corsairs, memories, military service, my mind wanders back a couple of decades, NAS Cecil, NAS Cecil Field, Navy, out of the chocks, pilots, professional pilots, sailors, Sealord and the Atlantic, student pilots, the disembodied voice inside my helmet, the final knock-it-off of the day, the O-Club, training aircraft, “a hung ordinance approach”, “Sealord”
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1 Comment
Pilot-Engineer Wars
There is a thought that engineers created performance charts just to drive pilots crazy. And, as if that were not enough, they had to include “notes,” “cautions,” and “warnings.” The pilots need to heed all those, too, just to keep … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying
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Tagged "cautions", "notes", "warnings", airplanes, airspeed, altitude, becoming familiar with the charts and graphs, becoming very familiar with the airplane, Cessnas, engine failures, flight training, flying, grass runways, hidden in plain sight, inexperienced pilots, instrument flying, judgment, learning to fly, performance charts, Pilot-Engineer Wars, pilots, professional pilots, student pilots, taildraggers, training aircraft
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6 Comments
The Aeronca Champ
The Aeronca Champ is one of the most classic of airplanes from the 1940s. As with most of the old airplanes from that era, the Champ was able to fly based on a very fine balance between large wing area … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, Flight Instructing, Flying
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Tagged a near-perfect landing, a very honest-flying airplane, adverse yaw, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, Cessnas, Continental C-65 engine, discipline, engine failures, first solo, flight training, flying, flying at very slow airspeeds, generous wing area, how to use rudders, inexperienced pilots, judgment, keep the stick back, learning to fly, Mr. Piper’s J-3 Cub, neophyte pilots, pilots, professional pilots, sitting in the backseat, slow flight, stalls, student pilots, taildraggers, the 7AC, The Aeronca Champ, the counterpart to the 11AC Chief, the most classic of airplanes from the 1940s, training aircraft, very well balanced controls, World War II, “purist pilots”
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3 Comments
