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Backcountry Flying - Greg Herrick, AircraftOwner Publisher
Referring to my article in the October issue of AircraftOwner, I love flying in the backcountry. If you have an experience or suggestions you would like to share concerning backcountry flying, please do so. As soon as I get the airports we visited off my GPS I will post them here. In the meantime you can visit the Web cam at our base camp at Johnson Creek here: http://www.ruralnetwork.net/~yellowpinecm/. Fly Safe, Greg Herrick 		2 1
"I was in the Idaho Backcountry last week.. what an amazing place that is! I" - Gary Paul
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Latest Post 9 months ago
The Pilot and Controller Lounge: An open exchange of aviation issues - by Jeff M
For this first post I wanted to come up with something that would really get us thinking. Something that might make a difference, even if it just helps one person. I thought, well, let’s draw of off everyone’s experience and talk about some of the “gotchas” out there. We know that in the world of aviation there seems to be a rule for everything. I guess that, and our own professional standards, is partly why flying is one of the safest modes of transportation in the world today. The truth is, though, we are not perfect. I, like many others, make mistakes and hopefully learn from those mistakes. It is my intent with this first post to get you talking about some of the who, what, why, where, and when of some potential issues out there. I’ll start with one that was recently brought to my attention. Take a look at the KMHT airport chart (If you do not have access to the KMHT chart, click on my profile (Jeff Miller). I have uploaded it to my photos and you can view it there for reference). You are at the airline terminal (adjacent to taxiways G and N) and given taxi instructions that sound something like this: “N13FC taxi to runway 17 via D, A, C, and H.” Think about it for a second. Are you cleared to taxi across 17 at C and continue via H, cross runway 24 and hold short of 17 on H? The answer is no, and this issue has been highlighted at my company as a potential conflict to be aware of. Sure, you are cleared to cross other runways to get to the active (if not told to hold short of other runways or intersections). You are not, however, cleared to cross the active runway that you have been cleared to taxi to. FAA order JO 7110.65S effective February 14, 2008 paragraph 3-7-2 b. states: “When authorizing an aircraft to taxi to an assigned takeoff runway and hold short instructions are not issued, specify the runway preceded by “taxi to,” and issue taxi instructions. This authorizes the aircraft to “cross” all runways/taxiways which the taxi route intersects except the assigned takeoff runway. This does not authorize the aircraft to “enter” or “cross” the assigned takeoff runway at any point.” In the future, I have planned a series of discussions with the manager of ATC training for Phoenix Sky Harbor airport. We plan to discuss some pilot/controller issues that have come up over the years that may be of interest to the general aviation community. If you have any questions for the PHX ATC training manager, please let me know and I will get the answers. Please feel free to discuss and post any comments and any “gotchas” that you might have come across. We can all learn from each other’s experiences. Hopefully, through our discussions, we can all learn, grow, and quite possibly we might post an experience that will help a fellow pilot avoid a potential conflict. This forum is for you. It is my hope that we will enter into discussions with pilots of all experience levels. The direction that it goes is up to you! Have fun, I look forward to your input! Jeff Miller 		0 0
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Fly-in's and Airshows and Aviation Events, oh my !!
Most pilot's like participating and attending a variety of aviation events. Whether a flight breakfast, an airshow, a fly-in, a trip to a major event such as Oshkosh, the AOPA convention or Blakesburg, much has been written about, blogged about, discussed or simply rumored about as to the in's and out's of flying ones airplane to or participating in such an event. But have you considered what it takes to actually plan and put on such an event. From the smallest of gatherings to the largest, there is a tremendous amount of work involved in getting ready for, putting on and then cleaning up from an aviation event. Never mind worrying about the weather !! It's about time there is a forum out there where ideas, thoughts, experiences and problems can be shared amongst all those whom work to put on aviation events. Whether you're a grizzled Fly-in Chairman (like myself) or want to start an event to help promote/save your airport (private or public) there is a lot we can learn from each other. So let the questions, suggestions, ideas and rants fly !! Hopefully this forum will help to make those aviation events we all love to attend better. As well, perhaps it will help to educate the attendees so that these same events can be more safe and enjoyable for all. 		1 1
"Thanks for hosting this Forum.  BTW, I plan to make the Pumpkin Drop a" - Greg
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Latest Post 9 months ago
Training and Technique Forum - by Michael Leighton
Hi All- Welcome to the Training and Technique Forum. There are lots of subjects we can talk about but none more relevant than transitioning into Technically Advanced Aircraft. Pilots raised on “steam” gauges as well as those who actually started their flying careers on glass panels are faced with an entirely new set of training and proficiency issues that did not exist in the “round dial” world. As an instructor, I want to know what those issues are and how I can teach my students what traps to look for and how to deal with them. As an owner or pilot of a TAA aircraft, I want to know how to channel my training time to address pilot technique issues associated with the advanced technology. One might expect that the integration of these advanced technologies into general aviation cockpits would enhance safety, yet in-flight incidents and accidents that have a defined cause rooted in the use of or more accurately, dependence on these advanced technologies are beginning to show up in the accident reports. From where I sat, this trend was clearly predictable. I want to hear your thoughts on the pros and cons of TAA equipped aircraft. If you are an instructor, I‘d love to hear about some of your training issues. If you are a pilot or owner flying a glass panel aircraft, I want to hear how you deal with technology failures. Do you practice black tube approaches? Where do you plan to get your charts and plates from if the MFD fails? Are you comfortable flying that approach by hand if the autopilot won’t do it for you? What say you? -Michael Leighton 		0 0
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Legalese -- Nothing Easy About It! - by Charles Morgenstein
Recent decisions by the National Transportation Safety Board have created a huge increase in the number of filings of cases under the heading of "Intentional Falsification" of applications for Medical Certificates, due to an alleged failure to report prior traffic stops for suspected DUI, DWI, OUI and other alcohol and drug-related traffic stops. The NTSB has issued an opinion that says, essentially, that the FAA does not need to prove "intent" in order to make a case for "Intentional Falsification." They have taken the position that, if you EVER knew that you had been stopped for suspicion of DUI and issued a ticket of any kind, the experience must have been so ingrained in your memory that you can never make a credible argument that you "forgot" you got the ticket, or that you "didn't know" that whatever administrative action followed the stop was to be reported to the FAA on its most-recent versions of the application for medical certificate, even if the stop occurred twenty or thirty years ago. The practical effect of this opinion, which is now on appeal to the D.C. Circuit (Federal Court in Washington, D.C.) is that all of the Administrative Law Judges of the NTSB have been compelled to grant the FAA's Motions for Summary Judgment on all of these cases (meaning the airman doesn't even get a chance to have a hearing on the issues in front of a Judge). The Oklahoma City office of the FAA is now issuing litterally hundreds of these "Intentiaonal Falsification" cases as "Emergency Orders of Revocation", requiring the airman to send in their certificates, and to stop flying immediately; and subjecting them to expedited procedings, in which the airman's chance of success is very low. This forum will discuss these events. Thanks - Charles Morgenstein 		0 0
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Aviation Medicine - Brent Blue MD
As a FAA Senior Aviation Medical Examiner, I get requests all the time for help with Special Issuance medicals for all class medicals. If you have a question about your medical, feel free to post it to me and I will do my best to answer. Please remember this is a public blog so do not put in identifying information unless you do not care who knows about your situation. Brent Blue 		1 4
"The chances for high harm diseases are higher with smokers than the non smo" - subtitle john
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Latest Post 1 month ago
Lyn Freeman
Advocacy. 		0 0
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The First Ever AOPA Aviation Summit : Will you be there?
Join us at the First Ever AOPA Aviation Summit! As General aviation is facing one of the greatest sets of challenges of its 100-year history, AircraftOwner will be attending the show in support of our friends, family members, and neighbors who serve America from the air every day! So come out to Tampa the 5th-7th of November and support this epic battle to protect who we are, what we do, and what we love! There is something for Everyone: Pilots, Students, Aviation Enthusiasts, and Fun for the Entire Family AOPA’s annual convention has undergone an exciting transformation to the all-new AOPA Aviation Summit. The Summit will feature new experiences, events, education, and opportunities to touch, test, and interact with the people and technology that’s relevant to the way you fly or to help you realize your dream of learning to fly. Learn more about the AOPA Aviation Summit at: http://www.aopa.org/summit Tampa, Florida November 5 - 7, 2009 		3 1
"i was until yesterday when i found out they want to nick you   $ " - drew gillett
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Latest Post 9 months ago