Monthly Archives: January 2007

Cheers and jeers

Posted on January 30, 2007 by David Megginson

Over the past couple of months, I had two exceptionally good experiences with aviation-related businesses, and one exceptionally bad one. As a service to my fellow owners, I’m going to name them all here. Cheer: Great Lakes Aero This company … Continue reading →

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Threats to general aviation

Posted on January 26, 2007 by David Megginson

According to AOPA, the biggest issue facing general aviation in the U.S. is the risk of user fees. I agree with Phil Boyer that user fees could hurt GA, especially if they are per use (as in Australia) rather than … Continue reading →

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Winter Warrior wrangling

Posted on January 23, 2007 by David Megginson

My plane’s back on the line today. After doing some high-speed taxi checks to make sure nothing was leaking or running too hot or cold, I had to try to push the plane back into its spot through snow and … Continue reading →

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Up a tree

Posted on January 16, 2007 by David Megginson

[Update: see below.] According to Snopes, this photo is legit — it’s a Cherokee 180 N6487J that crashed into a tree during a forced approach near Meadowlake Airport in Colorado last month after the engine lost power (the pilot, who … Continue reading →

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North up or track up?

Posted on January 13, 2007 by David Megginson

I was reading through an article on pilotage [Wikipedia] in the December AOPA Pilot. In general, I found the article enjoyable, but one thing stuck out like a wart — the author’s assumption that people should always read a chart … Continue reading →

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U.S. WWII F4U Corsair training film online

Posted on January 4, 2007 by David Megginson

A friend sent me a link to this 20 minute U.S. government training film for the F4U Corsair (Google Video). Make sure your wings are locked in the down position before takeoff, and remember that you’re burning well in excess … Continue reading →

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Gate shortage foils space invasion

Posted on January 2, 2007 by David Megginson

Some workers at Chicago/O’Hare Airport claim to have seen a UFO on the night of November 7, 2006 (CNN story): it hovered over the field and then climbed rapidly out of sight. The FAA talked a lot about low ceilings … Continue reading →

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