General Aviation Landing on Roads to Bring Supplies to Haiti

The landing strip, is a stretch of highway, currently the only way to fly into Léogâne, a city near the epicenter of the Jan. 12 earthquake. On a good day, a stray cow might be the only obstacle to landing the small planes bringing oxygen, crutches, baby formula and other supplies that will be put to immediate use at a hospital set up in a nursing school dormitory here. (www.nytimes.com) More...

Getting IFR Rating in Glass Cockpit vs. Round Gauge Aircraft

Many pilots are unsure whether to get their IFR rating in a modern glass cockpit like the Garmin G1000 or in an older aircraft with round gauges. Master CFI Max Trescott gives the definitive answer on the topic: It depends. (www.maxtrescott.com) More...

NTSB Seeks Authority To Probe Commercial Space Accidents

The NTSB is planning ahead! They want Congress to designate them as the lead agency to investigate any future accidents of commercial space vehicles. (www.nasdaq.com) More...

Fun Time Lapse Video: Reassembling a Cessna 182RG

Here is a really fun time-lapse video of a Cessna 182RG aircraft being reassembled after its landing gear was damaged in an accident. It's composed of several thousand photos taken over several weeks and assembled into a short two minute video. Although there is no sound on this video, I think you'll find that it is really fun to watch. (www.maxtrescott.com) More...

Colgan Air, Pilots at Odds on Safety

Federal investigators are set Tuesday to blame a chain of cockpit mistakes for the fatal crash of a commuter airliner near Buffalo, N.Y., last February. But pilots, safety experts and company officials disagree over how much commuter carrier Colgan Air Inc. has since done to combat the key issue of pilot fatigue. (online.wsj.com) More...

Floatplane Pilot Rescues Thrown Boater from Lake

It's not often a GA pilot out flying around is in the right place and time to perform a rescue, but it happened last week in Minnesota. The boater had fallen in the water, was hypothermic and since darkness was approaching might have died in the water. Score one for general aviation and seaplanes! (www.maxtrescott.com) More...

Metal Detectors Useless in Finding Powerful Explosive PETN

While luggage for the suspected bomber of Northwest Flight 253 may have been screened for explosives, the bomber himself most likely went only through a metal detector which won't detect explosives. TSA continues to decommission "puffer" units that do detect explosives on a person. (www.foxnews.com) More...

Volcanic Ash Hits Home Closing Airports in Iceland

In an ironic backlash, the volcanic ash cloud that caused the worst European flight disruptions in history has now blown back to Iceland, closing airports there for the first time since the volcano erupted more than a week ago. (www.aolnews.com) More...

California Pilot Alert: New Regulations To Raise Cost of Flight Instruction

Sadly, states often copy each other, so new regs in CA may spread. CA pilots need to write their legislators and regulators today. California A.B. 48 was signed into law giving the BPE, part of the California Consumer Protection Agency, authority to levy new fees on flight schools. The bureau appears to be taking the broadest possible interpretation of the law and proposes to include all independent flight instructors and flight schools, including Part 141 and Part 61 schools. Per EAA, “Each… (www.maxtrescott.com) More...

Husky Taildragger with G500 Glass Cockpit

Lots of photos from an evaluation flight of a 2009 Aviat Aircraft Husky A-1C taildragger (which slightly resembles a Piper Cub) with the new Garmin G500 glass cockpit. (www.maxtrescott.com) More...