Pilots who own or operate an aircraft under Part 91 of the FARs are allowed to perform various preventive maintenance tasks. For the pilot comfortable with basic mechanical tasks and aware of the rules and regulations, this can save time and...
The history of general aviation will be on public display overhead in Washington, D.C., on May 11 as the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) hosts a “parade of airplanes” over the National Mall. In 1939, Franklin Roosevelt was the first...
No one likes flying in turbulent air. It’s an annoyance to the pilot, requiring constant attention at the controls, and a concern for passengers, tossing to and fro in their strapped-in seats and beginning to debate the wisdom of air travel....
Pilots who have attended the Aero Friedrichshafen show in Germany may have spotted Pegaso since it was first exhibited in 2018. Six years later, the model lacks American representation, so ‘Yankee’ pilots generally don’t know this flying machine. This is Pegaso,...
Women aviators from the U.S. and across the globe are set to embark on the 47th Air Race Classic (ARC) on Tuesday, June 18, commemorating the 95th anniversary of the historic Women’s Air Derby. The race covers a challenging 2,628-statute-mile route...
Light sport aircraft (LSA) have been part of the aviation firmament for almost 20 years and over that time some models established themselves even as newcomers regularly arrived. The way the FAA accepts—not “certifies”–-these airplanes allows for rapid improvement, which has...
I don’t know about you, but I have been less than happy with the flashlights available to pilots. I really enjoy flying at night, but the selection for both preflight inspection and in-flight use leaves me wanting more. Top of the...
Looking for the perfect enticement to lure your loved one into the air with you on Valentine’s Day? For those significant others who aren’t pilots or enamored with flight itself, an additional romantic edge can frost the cupcake, so to speak—and...
By the summer of 1983, I had finished my junior year of ROTC, and our old neighborhood gang was reunited again. Larry Leonard and I roomed together our college freshman year at the Castilian dorm, where I met my future wife,...
By my reckoning, there have been two golden ages of general aviation in my lifetime. The first peaked around 1976, coincidentally a year when so many of the airplanes we mere mortals can afford to own and fly today were constructed....