Plane and Pilot

NOVEMBER 27, 2024

Often, turbulence is the harbinger of mountain waves, not the ideal ceiling—and visibility unlimited—day. Anything in the airplane not tied down floated, even dust from the flight deck carpet, then slammed to the nearest surface moments later as we were caught by the next wave. I flew into that and the venturi effect that day.

Turbulence 98

Turbulence Weather Knot Descent 98

Air Facts

AUGUST 16, 2024

Flying to Sun ‘n Fun 2024 Air Facts Journal I’ve been flying since 1994 if you don’t count model airplanes, rockets, balsa wood and tissue paper rubber band powered models, control line, radio controlled (R/C) model aircraft and gliders. With a screaming tailwind, I was seeing a groundspeed of 185 kts at 6,500 feet.

Weather 98

Weather Knot Ceiling Turbulence 98

Air Facts

MAY 10, 2024

A perfectly good airplane with everything operating as expected. An acceptable meteorological combination of ceiling, visibility, and wind. The rule of thumb is VSI = ½ groundspeed times 10. A high degree of pilot proficiency, competence as well as currency (currency in Circling Approaches specifically).

Approach 97

Approach AGL Descent Runway 97

Air Facts

DECEMBER 30, 2024

Our airplane is certified for day VFR operations only, so my progress was at the mercy of daylight length and good VMC. I encountered unexpected headwinds to start, slowing my groundspeed down to 75 knots at times. All the planning, packing and preparation was finally done, and the day came to depart.

Weather 98

Weather Approach VFR On Top Knot 98

iPad Pilot News

NOVEMBER 5, 2024

Get the watch app here. FlightRadar24 Turn your Apple Watch into an air traffic radar and see a listing of nearby airplanes, including relative location, flight details and position on the map. When on the go, you can use the GPS feature to find the nearest weather station image.

Pilot 52

Pilot Altimeter Weather NOTAMs 52

Air Facts

AUGUST 5, 2024

The Warrior has introduced countless people to the joys of light airplanes. For Runway 35, we see a takeoff ninimum of 400-2 or standard with a minimum climb of 343’ per nautical mile to 5,200′ Remember, the basic assumption is that you are IFR and have a limited ceiling and visibility. It quite literally did happen to me.

Density Altitude 98

Density Altitude Ceiling Runway Weather 98

Air Facts

APRIL 29, 2024

At the current groundspeed, I believed it shouldn’t be of much concern unless the cell began producing lightning. KCPC was reporting IFR conditions with a 700’ ceiling and one mile visibility. Unicom also confirmed the weather was still showing a 700’ ceiling with one mile of visibility. RNAV 24 at KCPC.

Descent 98

Descent Approach Weather AGL 98