Monthly Archives: October 2004

Abnormal Airports

Posted on October 30, 2004 by David Megginson

Anyone who flies in private planes knows what a normal airport looks like: it has one or two runways, an FBO, and maybe a restaurant and a little terminal building used by a commuter airline a couple of times a … Continue reading →

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Winterization

Posted on October 25, 2004 by David Megginson

With Halloween and the end of Daylight Savings Time closing in, it’s time to start getting my plane, my house, and myself ready for the winter. A lot of pilots put their planes away until spring but I like to … Continue reading →

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Thumbing It: Altitude

Posted on October 22, 2004 by David Megginson

Following my 1:60 rules of thumb, here are some rules of thumb that apply to altitude. Some of these, like pressure altitude, are basic stuff from any ground school, but some are not well understood. Density altitude is especially useful, … Continue reading →

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Do you like your ADF? (Not as much as these guys.)

Posted on October 21, 2004 by David Megginson

The ADF radio, vintage 1940’s AM radio-direction-finding technology, inspires a lot of love and hate among pilots. Some pilots twitch violently when they remember the trauma of partial-panel NDB approaches during instrument training, some love the simplicity of the little … Continue reading →

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Blog: Yankee Alpha Foxtrot Bravo

Posted on October 20, 2004 by David Megginson

I have complained to people that it’s hard to find good aviation blogs: they all seem to be rants about politics, hype about technology, or moaning about teenagers’ social lives. Fortunately, I have found one exception, Hamish Reid’s Yankee Alpha … Continue reading →

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French Navigation

Posted on October 19, 2004 by David Megginson

After reading my posting on the Rule of 60, Malcolm Teas kindly pointed me to a 1996 Usenet posting by Barry Silverman (originally written ten years ago, in October 1994) describing the French method of teaching pilot navigation. He also … Continue reading →

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Review: "Practical Risk Management for Pilots" and "Practical Risk Management for Weather" (King Schools)

Posted on October 18, 2004 by David Megginson

I recently ordered my first two CD-ROMs from John King and Martha King, who are very well known for their training down in the U.S.: Practical Risk Management for Pilots (USD 49.00) and Practical Risk Management for Weather (USD 49.00). … Continue reading →

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Thumbing it: Playing with the Rule of 60

Posted on October 16, 2004 by David Megginson

I enjoy the numbers in flying. That’s not to say that I’m one of those people who try to calculate everything to five decimal places like the FAA and Transport Canada (unrealistically) require on their tests; rather, I like the … Continue reading →

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747 Crash at Halifax

Posted on October 14, 2004 by David Megginson

I woke up to the sad news that a Boeing 747 carrying cargo and seven crew members crashed and exploded during takeoff from Halifax this morning. The only positive note in all of this is that no one in the … Continue reading →

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In Praise of the Altimeter

Posted on October 12, 2004 by David Megginson

My Warrior’s altimeter is probably the simplest instrument on the panel, really nothing more than a calibrated barometer. It doesn’t even tell me my real altitude — on a very warm or very cold day it can be off by … Continue reading →

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