Training Notes and News

Pilot, flight instructor, and aviation author William K. Kershner, 77, died January 8 in Sewanee, Tennessee, after a prolonged battle with cancer.

"Bill will be remembered as an enthusiastic pilot, great educator, and friend," said Bruce Landsberg, executive director of the AOPA Air Safety Foundation. "He served as a sounding board on many occasions to the foundation. I called on him periodically to discuss airmanship or procedural issues. From traffic patterns to aerodynamics of stalls to IFR techniques, I could always count on Bill for good advice."

Kershner soloed an Aeronca Defender from Clarksville, Tennessee's Outlaw Field--a grass strip at the time--in 1945, at age 16. After four years flying Corsairs in the Navy, Kershner worked as a corporate pilot, flight-test pilot, and special assistant to William T. Piper Sr., then president of Piper Aircraft. With the help of his wife, Betty--who typed his handwritten manuscripts--Kershner authored and illustrated a series of five highly regarded flight manuals; his Student Pilot's Flight Manual alone, first published in 1959, has sold more than 1 million copies. A memoir written in 2002 contained many anecdotes from his flying career. He contributed often to AOPA publications, including AOPA Flight Training and AOPA Pilot.

Widely known for his interest in spins, Kershner logged more than 8,000, totaling some 35,000 turns--that's only counting spins of at least three turns, and he didn't record spins at all during his first 24 years of flying. He was the national General Aviation Flight Instructor of the Year in 1992. At his Ace Aerobatic School in Sewanee, Kershner provided spin recovery and aerobatic training in a Cessna 152 Aerobat to hundreds of pilots, and he continued to teach ground school into late December 2006.

Flight instructor Catherine Cavagnaro, whom Kershner mentored into aerobatic instruction, will continue to operate the school. She has purchased an Aerobat nearly identical to Kershner's; his will be displayed at the National Air and Space Museum. Kershner's children--his son, Bill, is an airline pilot and his daughter, Cindy, a freelance writer--will continue his series of flight manuals.

Visit AOPA Online for links to a multimedia presentation in which Kershner reflects on his more than 60 years of flying, and to the articles he wrote for AOPA's magazines. --Mike Collins

What It Looks Like

Vertical speed indicator error

The vertical speed indicator (VSI) is one of six basic flight instruments that measure and report, or indicate, various conditions of flight that we pilots use to control and adjust pitch and power--airspeed, attitude, altitude, vertical (climb or descent) rate, heading, and the turn coordinator or turn-and-bank indicator.

Before takeoff, when flight instruments begin to do their work, it's prudent to check each flight instrument to see that they are set and indicating properly. In the case of the VSI, that means the needle should be pointing at the 0 climb/descent mark.

That's not always the case, however. It's not unusual for the VSI to show a slight climb or descent when the airplane is still on the ground. The culprit may be a small spring inside the instrument that is calibrated at the time of manufacture, but over time and with wear allows a slight error to creep into the needle setting.

The VSI can't be adjusted in the cockpit, but a slight error in the needle reading isn't cause for alarm. Just note the amount of error and apply the adjustment while flying. If, for example, the VSI shows a 100-fpm descent while at rest, then establish a 600-fpm climb if what you're really after is a 500-fpm climb rate.

VSI errors are more problematic when flying in instrument meteorological conditions, for obvious reasons. Prompt corrective action is called for.

FAA funding proposal could increase training costs

How would you like to pay $1,000 to take a private pilot knowledge test? That's what it costs today in the Netherlands, where a system of user fees funds operation of the aviation system. What about a $30 charge every time you obtain a weather briefing? That is today's reality in the United Kingdom.

General aviation in the United States faces a huge challenge this year that could result in user fees such as these. The FAA's reauthorization bill, which determines who pays what and how much into the FAA's budget, needs to be passed into law by the end of September. Special interests--including the airlines, the White House, and the FAA itself--are calling for general aviation to pay a bigger share in financing the FAA. These special interests claim there isn't enough money to modernize the FAA and to fund its operations, despite a surplus of more than $2 billion in the aviation trust fund--an amount that is projected to grow, even after significant annual increases in FAA spending.

Under a user-fee-based pay-as-you-go fee structure, it's easy to see how safety would be compromised, and how general aviation's growth would be seriously impaired by a huge, unequal financial burden. AOPA opposes user fees and any unfair shifting of costs to GA (see "President's Perspective: The danger of user fees," p. 4), and is preparing to battle the initiative.

Future funding could maintain the current method, which uses aviation excise taxes, or implements a new user fee structure. AOPA maintains that the current system has worked well over the past four decades and should be preserved. It relies on a fuel tax on each gallon of avgas (19.4 cents per gallon) or jet fuel (21.9 cents per gallon) purchased by GA operators; a tax on each airline ticket (7.5 percent of airfare) and another on each segment of an airline trip; and a tax on packages sent by air.

Combined, these taxes total $11 billion, or 77 percent of the FAA's $14.2 billion budget; the remaining $3.2 billion comes from the U.S. Treasury's general fund and reflects the aviation system's benefits to the nation as a whole.

To read a more detailed article on this subject and view accompanying multimedia, see AOPA Pilot Online. For more information on FAA funding, see AOPA Online.

Wheelchair-bound students to get free flight training

A car accident put Stephany Glassing in a wheelchair more than 22 years ago. This year, she'll leave the chair on the ground as she learns to fly a specially equipped light sport aircraft. Glassing, of Marietta, Georgia, and Brad Jones of Ty Ty, Georgia, are the first two recipients of flight training scholarships provided by Able Flight, a nonprofit program aimed at helping disabled persons to become pilots. Jones, 22, became paralyzed in a June 2006 car accident. "Being in a chair instantaneously makes everyday life and events challenging," he said. "The challenge of learning to fly will be a difficult one, but upon successfully completing the training, will bring a renewed sense that anything is possible, no matter what other challenges life might have for me in the future."

Jet Aviation sponsored the scholarships, while Hansen Air Group provided the Sky Arrow 600 equipped with hand controls.

Three get Student Pilot Network 'Flight Dream Awards'

Three student pilots have received $300 cash awards from Student Pilot Network as the 2006 recipients of SPN's "Flight Dream Award." They are Shaye Dunn, who trains at Falcon Aviation Academy in Peachtree City, Georgia; Larnelle Rogers, who flies at Bode Aviation in Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Aaron Tarbox, who flies with Heart of Virginia Aviation in Ashland,Virginia.

SPN is taking applications for the2007 Flight Dream Awards. For more information and requirements, visit the Web site.

Final Exam

Final Exam is composed of questions similar to those a student may expect on the private pilot knowledge test. Answers are researched by members of the AOPA Pilot Information Center staff and may be found on p. 19.

1. Which is the correct traffic pattern departure procedure to use at a nontowered airport?

1. Depart in any direction consistent with safety, after crossing the airport boundary.
2. Make all turns to the left.
3. Comply with any FAA traffic pattern established for the airport.

2. In what flight condition is torque effect the greatest in a single-engine airplane?

1. A) Low airspeed, high power, high angle of attack.
2. B) Low airspeed, low power, low angle of attack.
3. C) High airspeed, high power, high angle of attack.

3. Generally speaking, the use of carburetor heat tends to

1. A) decrease engine performance.
2. B) increase engine performance.
3. C) have no effect on engine performance.

4. Which aircraft has the right of way over all other air traffic?

1. A) A balloon.
2. B) An aircraft in distress.
3. C) An aircraft on final approach to land.

5. When making routine transponder code changes, pilots should avoid inadvertent selection of which codes?

1. A) 0700, 1700, 7000
2. B) 1200, 1500, 7000
3. C) 7500, 7600, 7700

6. With certain exceptions, when must each occupant of an aircraft wear an approved parachute?

1. A) When a door is removed from the aircraft to facilitate parachute jumpers.
2. B) When intentionally pitching the nose of the aircraft up or down 30 degrees or more.
3. C) When intentionally banking in excess of 30 degrees.

7. What is the one common factor that affects most preventable accidents?

1. A) Structural failure.
2. B) Mechanical malfunction.
3. C) Human error.

8. What is ground effect?

1. A) The result of the interference of the surface of the Earth with the airflow patterns about an airplane.
2. B) The result of an alteration in airflow patterns increasing induced drag about the wings of an airplane.
3. C) The result of the disruption of the airflow patterns about the wings of an airplane to the point where the wings will no longer support the airplane in flight.

Final Exam Answers

1. The correct answer is C. At nontowered airports, each pilot of an airplane must make all turns of that airplane to the left unless the airport displays approved light signals or visual markings indicating that turns should be made to the right, in which case the pilot must make all turns to the right. Complying with any established pattern for that airport is always the best procedure to ensure safe operations.

2. The correct answer is A. The effect of torque increases in direct proportion to engine power and is inversely proportional to airspeed. Thus, at low airspeeds, high angles of attack, and high power settings, torque is the greatest. The initial climbout after takeoff is one phase of flight when torque effect is most pronounced, and most noticeable to pilots, requiring larger amounts of right rudder pedal input to counteract.

3. The correct answer is A. Use of carburetor heat also tends to increase the operating temperature. Warmer air is less dense, and engine performance decreases as air density decreases. Carburetor heat should not be used when full power is required, such as during takeoff, unless recommended by the aircraft manufacturer.

4. The correct answer is B. FAR 91.113 (c) states that an aircraft in distress has the right-of-way over all other air traffic. A balloon has the right-of-way over any other category of aircraft and aircraft on final approach to land have the right-of-way over other aircraft in flight or operating on the surface.

5. The correct answer is C. There are three codes that are set aside for emergency use only. 7500 is the code for hijacking, 7600 is the code for lost radio communications, and 7700 is the code for a general emergency.

6. The correct answer is B. FAR 91.307 (c) states that each occupant must wear a parachute if a pilot intentionally executes any maneuver that exceeds a bank of 60 degrees relative to the horizon or a nose-up or nose-down attitude of 30 degrees relative to the horizon. While the jumpers may wear a parachute with a door removed, the pilot is not required to wear one. Intentional banking of more than 30 degrees is fairly common for pilot training, and a parachute is not required for this either.

7. The correct answer is C. Most preventable accidents, such as fuel starvation or exhaustion, VFR flight into IFR conditions, and flight into known icing, have one common factor: human error. Pilots who are involved in accidents usually know what went wrong. In the interest of expediency, cost savings, or other often-irrelevant factors, the wrong course of action (decision) was chosen, leading to an accident.

8. The correct answer is A. Ground effect is caused by the interference of the ground (or water) surface with the airflow patterns about the airplane in flight. As a wing encounters ground effect, the up wash, downwash, and wingtip vortices are reduced and a reduction of induced drag results. Thus, in ground effect, the wing produces more lift and less induced drag, creating a floating tendency if too much airspeed is carried into the landing.

AOPA members can discuss these or any aviation questions with Pilot Information Center staff by calling 800/USA-AOPA or sending an e-mail.