Plane and Pilot

MARCH 25, 2025

She walked me through the foyer to the spotless, freshly painted hangar. The GameBird is right at home on the grass, pavement, or TacAeros clean hangar. The Texas winds were gusting anywhere from 15-25 knots, and like other aerobatic airplanes, the canopy can be easily blown off. Before I knew it we had already hit 120 knots.

Knot 111

Knot Airplanes Runway Rudder 111

Air Facts

MAY 24, 2024

Centerline, centerline, centerline Air Facts Journal It was a beautiful May day as we grabbed the tow bar to pull the 1981 Cessna 182 out of the hangar. With a little forward pressure on the yoke, I was able to keep the airplane on the runway to continue picking up airspeed as we arrived at my target of 60 knots for takeoff.

Aileron 98

Aileron Crosswind Knot Runway 98

Pilot Institute

MARCH 28, 2025

When the aircraft encounters a vortex and its strong enough to induce roll, the pilot counters it by using the ailerons against the roll and tries to fly out of the wake as soon as possible. If the aircrafts wingspan is long enough, its ailerons will extend beyond the vortex diameter, and counter control would still be possible.

Turbulence 97

Turbulence Lift Drag Runway 97

Plane and Pilot

NOVEMBER 19, 2024

This 172 had a flap extension speed of 85 knots, and my old Cessna 172’s limit was 100 mph, or 87 knots. It had undergone some repair work done after experiencing soot and smoke damage from a fire in a nearby hangar. The newer 172 (46 years old) did and had a 3-G limit with flaps extended.

Pitot Tube 80

Pitot Tube Approach Aileron Instrument Landing System 80

Photographic Logbook

FEBRUARY 2, 2025

At the airport, there was ice and snow to remove from in front of the hangar door, fuel to add to the Warrior now resting on three fully inflated tires (the left main had a new tube), and then there was the moment when I slipped on ice while pulling the airplane from the hangar and landed flat on my back. We had a deal.

Runway 89

Runway Knot Weather Turbulence 89

Plane and Pilot

SEPTEMBER 15, 2024

The weather briefing we had reviewed a half hour earlier promised a 20-knot headwind that would require two fuel stops on the 130-mile trip from our home airport in Kennett, Missouri (KTKX), to Little Rock Air Force Base (KLRF) in Arkansas. The windsock promised that getting the little yellow bird into the air would be a white-knuckle affair.

Runway 98

Runway Crosswind Rudder Pilot 98

Fear of Landing

OCTOBER 4, 2024

Surface Wind South-west 7-12 knots (kt). He went to the hangar and did a pre-flight walkaround of the 172, including checking the fuel. Satisfied, he pulled the 172 out of the hangar and started the engine. The pilot applied some aileron to compensate for the crosswind and then applied full power.

Runway 52

Runway Pilot Knot Weather 52