Author Archives: David Megginson

Analog Flying

Posted on May 19, 2005 by David Megginson

I was recently reading yet another review about the glass cockpits starting to appear in general aviation aircraft, when one comment struck me — the review mentioned how much pilots rely on the position of needles on analog (steam) gauges, … Continue reading →

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All in Pieces

Posted on May 16, 2005 by David Megginson

That’s how my plane has been for a full week now, in the shop, waiting for parts to arrive from Piper via a supplier in Memphis via a second supplier in Montreal. Owners tend to say that the annual is … Continue reading →

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Admin: Upgrade to WP 1.5.1, and SpamKarma

Posted on May 14, 2005 by David Megginson

Even a relatively patient person like me eventually gets tired of deleting comment spam. I’ve just upgraded to WordPress 1.5.1, and installed the highly-recommended SpamKarma plugin. Hopefully, this will allow legitimate comments to appear immediately, without waiting for moderation, while … Continue reading →

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JPI Slashdotted

Posted on May 7, 2005 by David Megginson

An avionics story on Slashdot? JP Instruments sells a line of engine monitors that is popular among owners (at least, owners who spend more on their planes than I do). Engine monitors help you to find problems before they get … Continue reading →

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Upcoming changes to Canadian airspace

Posted on May 6, 2005 by David Megginson

Nav Canada has a whole bunch of proposed changes in its National Level of Service Report from last October (which I’ve noticed only now — here’s a link directly to the full 96-page PDF report). The report proposes revoking many … Continue reading →

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Charts

Posted on May 2, 2005 by David Megginson

In his most recent posting, Moncton Centre controller Michael Oxner makes some friendly but justifiable complaints about summer recreational pilots who don’t bring paper charts in the plane and tie up ATC time when their handheld GPS’s fail (for those … Continue reading →

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Icing: Altitude Strategy

Posted on April 28, 2005 by David Megginson

I’ve written about icing before, both here and here. Like storm clouds and scud running, icing is one of those things that pilots are supposed to avoid but occasionally stumble into anyway. The Canadian AIP contains some advice for pilots … Continue reading →

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Blog: Randy's Journal

Posted on April 26, 2005 by David Megginson

Via Aviatrix, I’ve found another interesting aviation blog: Randy’s Journal is a weblog maintained by Randy Baseler, VP Marketing for Boeing Commercial Aircraft. Obviously, the blog reflects company orthodoxy, but it at least uses direct language rather than the marketing … Continue reading →

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NATCA vs. Nav Canada

Posted on April 25, 2005 by David Megginson

[Updating: on guessing — see below] The National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) — the non-union union representing U.S. air traffic controllers — attacked plans to privatize the U.S. air traffic control system with the following statement: Cleveland controllers alone … Continue reading →

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400

Posted on April 21, 2005 by David Megginson

Yesterday, during a Hope Air flight, the virtual odometer in my logbook finally ticked around past 400 hours. It was a day of flying extremes. I flew three legs totalling 8 hours flight time (7.2 air time), of which 3.3 … Continue reading →

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