Search my Blog
Subscribe
rss
-
Recent Posts
January 2025 S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Archives
Recent Comments
- Marie Palachuk on My Grandfathers
- Ingrid on My Grandfathers
- Joe Clark on The Aeronca Chief
- Lindsay Barra (Knowles) on The Aeronca Chief
- Peter Brown on Gladys Ingle
Tag Archives: airplanes
It Seems As If Only Yesterday
It is the start of the new term. It is difficult to believe it is the Spring 2018 term. As part of the introduction to my classes, I used a scene from the movie, “The Dead Poets Society.” It was … Continue reading →
Posted in Uncategorized
|
Tagged A-7E Corsair, airplanes, Carpe diem, discipline, extraordinary learning, flight training, flying airplanes, grades, inexperienced pilots, It Seems As If Only Yesterday, judgment, learning to fly, memories, military service, Navy, pilots, professional pilots, reading, Robin Williams, student pilots, studying, The Dead Poets Society, the key to learning, the Perseid meteor showers, the Spring 2018 term, “cramming”
|
Comments Off on It Seems As If Only Yesterday
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 →
Posted in Aviation, Flying
|
Tagged airplanes, airspeed, altitude, Cessnas, discipline, Florida, flying, fog, inexperienced pilots, instrument flying, judgment, learning to fly, pilots, professional pilots, student pilots, temperature-dewpoint spread, training aircraft, “reading” the weather
|
Comments Off on Sitting Around Waiting
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 →
Posted in Aviation, Flight Instructing, Flying
|
Tagged airplanes, airspeed, altitude, Cessnas, crashing, discipline, Emergency Landings, flight training, inexperienced pilots, judgment, landing on roads, learning to fly, pilots, professional pilots, student pilots, training aircraft
|
Comments Off on Big Field, No Sweat
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 →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, Flying
|
Tagged 13 Black Cats, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, an afternoon air show, barnstormers, Flying Circuses, Gladys Ingles, iron nerves, JN-4D Jennies, judgment, memories, open cockpit biplanes, over there, OX-5 engines, parachute, pilots, pluck, professional pilots, taildraggers, the 1920s, World War I
|
6 Comments
Classic
In their latest issue, Flying Magazine published an interesting article about the DC-3. It made me realize that sometimes we get so busy living life that time just passes by without our noticing. Such is the case with the DC-3. To … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, Flying, History
|
Tagged 1927, 1935, a classic airplane, air travel, Airbus, airplanes, Charles Lindbergh, Charles Stewart Rolls, December 17, flying the oceans, Kitty Hawk, May 27, McDonnell Douglas, memories, military service, Rolls-Royce Ltd., taildraggers, the DC-3, The Mojave, the Wrights, train travel, World War II
|
Comments Off on Classic
Understanding the Wing
Wings are very cool things. Many pilots like wings; they fly wings and most know the working speeds of wings (if only by rote). The question is, though, exactly how does a wing work? Keep in mind that designing an … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flight Instructing, Flying
|
Tagged "know the numbers", aerodynamics, airplanes, AR=b/c, aspect ratio (AR), Cessna 172, Cessnas, chord, flight training, flying characteristics, math, mission, P-51, pilots, Pitts Special, power to weight ratio, professional pilots, Reno race pilots, S = b x c, straight and level, student pilots, trailing edge, transport airplanes, unaccelerated flight, wing area, wing span, wings, working speeds
|
Comments Off on Understanding the Wing
Roar of a Tiger
Things you learn from researching a book. You get an idea, you act on it, and you learn so much. I decided to write about one of my favorite airplanes, the P-51 Mustang. Dropping the term “MOH P-51” into Google, … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, Flying, History
|
Tagged 354th Fighter Group, 356th Fighter Squadron, 8th Air Force, Air Force, airplanes, airspeed, altitude, American Volunteer Group, Andy Rooney, brigadier general, Colonel James H. Howard, England, flying, January 11 1944, judgment, Lambert Field, Medal of Honor, memories, military service, Navy, Oschlersleben Germany, P-38 Lightning, P-47 Thunderbolt, P-51 Mustang, Pearl Harbor, Roar of the Tiger, the Army Air Corps, USS Enterprise, warriors, World War II
|
Comments Off on Roar of a Tiger
A Dozen Rules to Spin a Prop
I looked at my Facebook page yesterday and found a photo of a pilot who lost the tip of a finger while hand propping his ultralight airplane. Pretty gruesome stuff. I often tell my students that hand propping an airplane … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flight Instructing, Flying
|
Tagged aerobatic, Aeroncas, airplanes, Cessnas, Champs, Continental A-65, Cubs, flight training, hand propping, inexperienced pilots, judgment, learning to fly, Light Sport Aircraft (LSA), Luscombes, pilots, professional pilots, Rotax, student pilots, Subaru, taildraggers, the "Armstrong" technique, training aircraft, ultralight, VW
|
Comments Off on A Dozen Rules to Spin a Prop
Flying for Fun
As always, I woke early. Most of my students can’t believe I wake up so early – and without an alarm. I set my phone to sound at 6:05 and it is a rare morning when I sleep past 6 … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Aviation History, Flight Instructing, Flying
|
Tagged airplanes, airspeed, altitude, barnstormers, Cessnas, early morning flight, Flight instructors, flight training, flying, friends, inexperienced pilots, judgment, learning to fly, memories, open cockpit biplanes, pilots, professional pilots, student pilots, sunrise flying, taildraggers, training aircraft
|
Comments Off on Flying for Fun
Playing the Game
Much of flight boils down to the decision making process. This is particularly true when it comes to weather and fuel and many times, either weather depends on the fuel situation or vice versa. An intriguing part of flight planning … Continue reading →
Posted in Aviation, Flying
|
Tagged airplanes, airspeed, altitude, Cessnas, discipline, inexperienced pilots, instrument flying, judgment, learning to fly, pilots, professional pilots, student pilots
|
2 Comments
