Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2025 i Flying

FORMER FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker in September reiterated a long-standing agency commitment: Two pilots must always be on the flight deck during routine commercial flight operations. But that hasn’t stopped companies from developing technology designed to reduce or even eliminate crews—and airlines and pilots are divided on whether that will compromise safety. Autonomous drones are already flying and have delivered hundreds of thousands of items. But the FAA is working closely with two firms building systems to enable reduced crew operations (RCO), single-pilot operations (SPO), and—if the technology advances enough—crewless flight for a wide range of aircraft: Boston-based Merlin Labs and Mountain View, California-based Reliable Robotics. At least one major U.S. airline told FLYING it sees a “clear path” to SPO or fully autonomous airline operations. But the Air Line…

IT HAS been said that the most painful accident is one that could have been prevented. That holds particularly true in aviation when a pilot’s failure to identify risk leads to a lack of situational awareness and poor decision making resulting in a fatality. This becomes obvious when you read the reports generated by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)—you see the pilot’s actions and find yourself wondering, “Why didn’t the pilot declare an emergency and get priority handling from ATC?” While declaring does not guarantee a way out of a bad situation, it can connect a pilot with more resources such as air traffic control, because of the nature of the job, may have a better grasp of the options available. Joe Sedor, chief technical adviser for space and…

Line up and stop. Confirm full flaps are selected and elevator trim is set. Hold the stick slightly forward of neutral. Slide the throttle from quiet to loud while holding the brakes. Confirm the gauges reflect full power and feel the airplane quiver in anticipation. Can an airplane feel excitement? Word got around about the Husky’s ability to get in and out short strips and its performance on floats. Probably not, but you sure can. Now, release the brakes and feel yourself pressed into the seat as you discover less right rudder is needed than you expect. The controls are immediately responsive, and before it even seems possible, the ground disappears as you surge upward. Welcome to Husky flying. FLYING Magazine flew the Aviat Husky thanks to one man’s desire…

WITHIN THE AVIATION COMMUNITY, Vero Beach, Florida, is most well known for being the site of Piper Aircraft’s manufacturing and business operations. While Vero Beach Regional Airport (KVRB) has been home for the well-regarded aircraft airframer for more than six decades, it also serves as the gateway for tourists from the U.S. and beyond who are looking for fun in the sun in a quieter locale than many other Florida vacation destinations. There are many aspects that make Vero Beach unique and worthy of being atop any discerning pilot’s must-visit list. A leading reason people come to Indian River County, which Vero Beach is the seat of, is its 26 miles of pristine beaches. The city’s location at the northern end of South Florida has earned it the informal distinction…

IN THE world of piston twins, the head-turning Aerostar has an earned reputation for impressive speed, decent endurance and timeless good looks. It also comes with an interesting history dating back to the late 1960s. The Aerostar is the product of famed aircraft designer Ted Smith, whose name is attached to such classics as the A-20 twin-engine bomber and the Twin and Jet Commander lines. These days, the Aerostar gets high marks from owners for the same reasons pilots liked them early on. Better yet, field support is good thanks to the Aerostar Corp. and also the Aerostar Owners Association. Still, this is not a twin for skimping on training or maintenance. But when it all comes together, it’s an impressively capable go-places machine with a flying experience more like…

“I’VE BEEN waiting for this,” the learner said as she stood in the lobby of the flight school. In her arms was a stack of books—the Jeppesen Private Pilot textbook, test guide, syllabus, book of pilot maneuvers, a FAR/AIM, a POH, a plotter, and a mechanical E6-B. The this the learner was waiting for was a private pilot ground school. She explained that she was taking the class that would terminate in the spring when there was more VFR weather, and she knew from experience that she learned better in a face-to-face class than online. Face to Face vs. Online Over the past 10 years, online ground schools have grown in popularity. This was especially true during the COVID-19 pandemic when most schools relied on remote education. Although online is…

ON JULY 26, 2024, about 1:04 p.m. MDT, a Pilatus PC-12/47E was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Recluse, Wyoming. The pilot and six passengers were killed. Before the crash, the pilot reported to Salt Lake City Center the loss of the autopilot and declared an emergency. The pilot then advised he was trying to get control of the airplane, and the controller asked if he needed additional assistance. There was no further response from the pilot. On May 5, about 8:54 a.m. EDT, a 690A Aero Commander was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Palmyra, Virginia. The pilot and passenger died. According to preliminary information obtained from the FAA, the airplane was in cruise at 20,000 feet when it reversed course. The controller…

A: If you are flying in noncontrolled airspace where a radio is not required, you don’t need a radio at all. But most pilots who fly light sport aircraft (LSAs) do have a battery-powered, handheld radio with them in the cockpit as it can provide an extra level of situational awareness since you can listen for other traffic, access automated weather, etc. A second radio is always a good idea. Many pilots who have a radio hardwired into their panel carry a handheld as a backup in the event the main radio fails. You might also consider carrying spare batteries with you in the aircraft. Store them somewhere accessible in flight, so you can replace the batteries in the radio without doing an advanced yoga pose to reach your flight…

A FEW months ago, I completed a set of upgrades to my home flight simulator cockpit that I chronicled in FLYING issues 952 and 953 titled “Build Your Best Sim” (Parts 1 and 2). In February’s Issue 955, I introduced and recommended live ATC services that you can add to your simulator, and specifically how they can bring the simulator environment to life in a truly compelling way—increasing learning, immersion, and fun. Writing the articles in that specific order was intentional as I wanted to illustrate what is possible once you have your home sim built to your own specifications. Through this lens, my purpose has been to share how compelling home flight simulation can be. My personal focus is using my sim to learn as much about instrument flying…

The nonprofit Recreational Aviation Foundation (theraf.org) exists to preserve, improve, and create airstrips for recreational access. That almost prosaic statement barely scratches the surface of what the RAF and its 13,000 members have been doing since it was formed in 2003, nor how Aviat’s charismatic president, Stu Horn, has—as one RAF director emeritus, Tim Clifford, told us—”adopted the RAF” and supported its mission. Clifford said that Horn “could never do enough for us” as he explained Aviat’s most recent major action in support of the RAF—creating a striking, custom paint scheme for an A-1C-200 and giving the airplane to the organization to use for a year to raise awareness of its mission throughout the U.S. It’s the one FLYING was privileged to fly for this article. Beginning as a group…

THE AVIATION GENE IS DOMINANT IN MY FAMILY. MY DAD WAS AN AEROSPACE ENGINEER AND MOM TOOK FLYING LESSONS AS A TEENAGER, ALTHOUGH SHE DID NOT ACHIEVE CERTIFICATION. SHE DIED WHEN I WAS JUST OUT OF MY TEENS, BEFORE I EARNED MY WINGS, AND OFTEN I WONDER IF SHE WOULD HAVE ENJOYED FLYING WITH ME. As a child, I saw a faded black-and-white photograph of my mother in her 1940s teenage chic jeans with cuffs and saddle shoes standing next to a two-toned, high-wing aircraft—an Aeronca Champ. Because the photo is black and white, I don’t know for sure what color the aircraft was, but my research indicates the yellow-and-orange paint scheme was popular in 1946, so I’m going to hazard a guess that is what the airplane my mother…

I’VE BEEN writing for FLYING going on 12 years now, and on the whole it’s been a fantastic chapter of my life. Through this column I’ve met some really interesting people and flown some pretty cool airplanes. There are, however, a few notable downsides to the gig. One is that my words, once unleashed upon the larger pilot population, are permanently out there, and I occasionally find myself eating them. Another is that I write about ongoing flying adventures, and if they subsequently go pear-shaped, my options are fessing up or hoping my sharp-eyed readers don’t notice the sudden radio silence. Fat chance. In December/Issue 953, I wrote of my preference for “Wicked Old Birds,” avowing that their various charms outweigh their many vices (including engines that are “often less…

COCKPIT CONVERSATIONS at cruise altitude run the gamut from flying stories to career aspirations to family life. Very rarely do discussions with colleagues make mention of great-grandchildren. Considering the possibility that legislation may be reintroduced to lift the ceiling on mandatory airline pilot retirement age, that topic of cockpit conversation may not be uncommon. Why? In a letter sent on November 20, 2024, addressed to then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken and International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a group of five bipartisan senators strongly urged that the U.S. should increase maximum pilot retirement age past 65 or eliminate it completely. The senators were adamant that we shouldn’t “spend the debate sitting on the sidelines” while other ICAO member countries have already taken the initiative. Not too long ago in a congressional…

THE LATE B.H. Carson’s AIAA paper on “Fuel Efficiency of Small Aircraft” emerged unsought, like a dinosaur bone poking out of eroded Wyoming topsoil, from the scree of papers on my desk. First published 45 years ago, Carson’s essay became a point of reference for the wonkier class of pilot, to whose vocabulary it contributed a couple of novel phrases: “Carson Speed” and “the least wasteful way of wasting.” Carson’s argument began with the familiar observation that because airplanes need to climb, their engines are more powerful than they would be if they were sized solely for most efficient cruising. Since people love speed, they naturally make use of the surplus power to go faster, and as a result airplanes seldom realize in practice the efficiencies of which they are…

IN MAY 2021, seven people died when a Citation 501, N66BK, crashed into Percy Priest Lake near Nashville, Tennessee, shortly after taking off. It was a little before 11 a.m. There was an overcast at 1,300 agl (1,850 msl), but no precipitation and good visibility below the clouds. The pilot had topped off the plane for the two-hour flight from Smyrna Airport (KMQY) to Palm Beach International Airport (KPBI) in Florida. After taxiing to Runway 32, he was instructed to turn to a heading of 090 after takeoff and maintain 3,000. His IFR clearance, which he had received previously, said to expect a climb to FL 330 10 minutes after departure. “OK,” the pilot replied, “we’re going 090 at or above 3,000.” The tower corrected him, and the pilot acknowledged.…

Even if you have a datalink weather capability in the cockpit, don’t give up on your air traffic controllers. Many other technologies are at work—albeit unseen, but critical to get the pilot back on the ground safely. This is especially true when flying through a high-impact terminal area during the warm season when convective SIGMETs are sprinkled nearly everywhere. Your satellite-based weather receiver becomes less effective in the busy terminal area due to its latency—especially if an update or two is missed. The good news is that some approach controllers are armed with near real-time weather data from two additional sources to include the Airport Surveillance Radar (ASR) and Terminal Doppler Weather Radar (TDWR). Even though the controller can’t see your view outside of the cockpit, they can offer near…

FROM AN AUDIENCE PERSPECTIVE, most people probably don’t give a second thought to the work that goes on behind the scenes before and during a major stage performance. Unless you’ve happened to be in the audience of a play when a set failed in some way, and everything behind the scenes was suddenly laid bare. Such anomalies aside, without the planning, coordination, and orchestration from the unseen support behind the scenes, there are no scenes. We arrive, the curtain goes up, the show goes on, and we’re transported to another place and time without giving much thought about what transpired prior to curtain up and showtime. Airshows are a different kind of performance, where the stage is an invisible three-dimensional aerobatic box that performers enter from high above stage left…

I remember exactly where I was standing, precisely what time of day it was. Someone had paged me and announced that the editor of FLYING Magazine was on the phone. I thought it was a friend playing a joke. As I looked out over the controlled chaos of the intensive care unit where I worked as an oncology surgeon, I heard a voice claiming to be Mac McClellan. I had known him by email, but had never spoken to him. In 1998, I sent a piece “over the transom” to FLYING. It was about the many similarities between surgery and flying. It ran in July of that year—I bought about 50 copies. I had tried to convince Mac that I should be a regular columnist at the magazine that I…

FOREFLIGHT’S CHARTING capabilities go beyond the standard VFR sectional, providing additional features to enhance your flight planning and in-flight capabilities. Here are some tips to help you get the most out of your charts and data: More Chart Layers Beyond the default VFR sectional, ForeFlight offers additional VFR-focused chart layers: • VFR flyway charts: Available as a separate layer, these can help you navigate airspace around Class B airports by showing recommended VFR flyways, which help reduce congestion and conflicts. • Helicopter and Gulf VFR charts: If you fly in areas with helicopter-specific routes or offshore operations, enable these charts in More > Downloads. Use Map Touch Action to Manage Chart Visibility ForeFlight’s Map Touch Action setting gives you more control over how raster charts (like sectionals and IFR en-route charts)…