Training Tips
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Article
A student pilot is practicing maneuvering during slow flight, working hard to keep the aircraft on the assigned heading and altitude while flying at a near-critical angle of attack (AOA). Heading is under control, but altitude has gradually slipped until the aircraft is more than 100 feet lower than when the exercise began. "The aircraft is stalled," the student's flight instructor says. "Please recover." The student had not noticed the usual downward-pitching behavior of the aircraft that he had come to expect with aerodynamic stalls. Or had he missed it while concentrating on the slow flight drill? Read more...
 
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Flight Training News
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Safety video
Would you like a precise way to gauge when you're about to exceed a wing's lift capacity? Enter the angle of attack (AOA) indicator. The Air Safety Institute's latest safety video, Margins of Safety: Angle of Attack Indicators, developed with technical assistance from Aspen Avionics, explains how an AOA indicator can help you avoid exceeding the critical angle of attack. The video is made possible by the Tom Davis Fund, and brought to you by Aspen Avionics. Watch the video...
Piper delivers Arrows to University of Dubuque
The University of Dubuque has added three single-engine Piper Arrow trainers to the aviation department's training fleet for the fall semester, Piper Aircraft announced Aug. 17. The complex trainers, powered by a 200-horsepower Lycoming engine, are equipped with Garmin G500 avionics. A standard-equipped Arrow starts at $448,750.
FlightSafety, WVU Tech announce partnership
Students will be able to receive college credit from West Virginia University Institute of Technology for courses they've completed at FlightSafety Academy through a new partnership, FlightSafety International announced Aug. 18. WVU Tech and FlightSafety Academy also will develop an FAA-approved Bachelor of Science aviation management program, the company said. After completing accelerated training at the Vero Beach, Florida, academy, students may take online courses through WVU Tech to complete the aviation management program coursework.
Article
Aviators celebrated National Aviation Day and Orville Wright's birthday Aug. 19 by flying to favorite destinations, sharing aviation with friends and family, and visiting U.S. aviation attractions. Read more...
Article
The Academy of Model Aeronautics is offering kits and education for student teams to compete in a search-and-rescue challenge with drones. The UAS4STEM program is similar to school robotics programs, with an aeronautical twist. Read more...
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Scholarships
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Article
The AOPA Foundation has selected two nonprofits to receive the first $5,000 grants from a new program supporting organizations that offer scholarships to their members. Read more...
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Training Resources
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Flash-based, login required
Whether you own or rent, you should consider factors that affect the aircraft's health and aging process—its true age does not necessarily coincide with its factory age. The Air Safety Institute's Aging Aircraft course delves into what causes aircraft to age, offers suggestions for proactive inspection and maintenance practices, and discusses renovation opportunities that can extend an aircraft's useful life. Take the course...
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Did you know that student pilots who join AOPA are three times more likely to complete their flight training? Membership includes unlimited access to aviation information by phone (800/USA-AOPA, weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern time) or from Flight Training Online or AOPA Online. If you're not already a member, join today and get the pilot's edge.
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AOPA Live
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AOPA Live This Week
Splash in to the land of 10,000 lakes for the AOPA Minneapolis Fly-In Aug. 22 at Anoka County-Blaine Airport. Watch a de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver and others arrive at the seaplane base, then ride along with pilots who race much smaller aircraft in a budding sport that's drawing sponsors and investors with stadiums in mind. In light of the recent collision of a Cessna 172 and a Sabreliner jet over Southern California, the Air Safety Institute has issued a new safety alert and a renewed call for vigilance. Watch AOPA Live This Week®, Aug. 20...
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Career Pilot
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FAA: Software upgrade caused DC-area delays
A recent software upgrade at a high-altitude radar facility in Leesburg, Virginia, was the source of automation problems that led to delays and cancellations of numerous flights in the Washington, D.C., area Aug. 15, the FAA said Aug. 17. Preliminary information cited on the FAA Facebook page connected 492 delays and 476 cancellations to the problem, though the FAA said that controllers handled 70 percent of normal Saturday traffic at Baltimore-Washington International, 72 percent at Reagan National, and 88 percent at Dulles International airports using backup systems and procedures.
OneJet announces expansion plans
OneJet, a new air transportation network that uses business jets to offer direct flights in small and medium markets, announced on Aug. 6 the first step in a multiphase expansion plan. OneJet said it plans to announce a second "focus" city by Sept. 15 and will announce new destinations from its initial focus city of Indianapolis. The company now offers flights from Indianapolis to Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, and Memphis. Its expansion schedule calls for adding about one Hawker 400 light jet per month and up to 12 additional destinations or focus cities through 2016.
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For more aviation career news, see the Flight Training website.
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Plane Spotter
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Of Liberty, and Discovery
A Liberty XL2 single-engine airplane sits on the ramp, its gull-wing doors open invitingly to give pilot and passenger, or instructor and student, access to a cockpit renowned for its bubble canopy's 270-degree view. Pilots describe the pleasures of the composite-built aircraft's snappy response to control stick inputs; they extol the easy operation of the full authority digital engine control (FADEC). Built in Melbourne, Florida, formerly by Liberty Aerospace, Discovery Aviation renamed the aircraft the Discovery XL-2 when the firm acquired manufacturing rights in 2014.
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Training Products
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Your regular aircraft is down for maintenance, so you schedule another airplane. When you arrive for your business trip, you discover it is an unfamiliar model. After your preflight, you decide to take off as planned—why? The FAA's Advisory Circular 60-22 "Aeronautical Decision Making" challenges pilots in an attitude assessment test to examine which mindsets could drive them to such a questionable decision. The resource includes recommendations for dealing with hazardous attitudes, information about stress and flying, and tools for assessing risk. Read the circular...
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Note: Products listed have not been evaluated by ePilot editors unless otherwise noted. AOPA assumes no responsibility for products or services listed or for claims or actions by manufacturers or vendors.
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Member Benefits
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Pilot Protection Services
As the pilot in command of an aircraft, federal aviation regulation 91.7 makes you responsible for determining whether your aircraft is in an airworthy condition before it is flown. What does "airworthy" mean? Read more...
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Blogs
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Thirty years after Back to the Future, why don't we have flying cars? Blogger Chip Wright comes up with an answer. Read more...
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Instrument Tip
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IFR Fix
Flying the VOR RWY 9 approach into Anoka County-Blaine Airport in Minneapolis, how would you plan your descent to the minimum descent altitude? Read more...
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Final Exam
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Question
Your flight training is coming along well, and you feel you are nearly ready to solo. However, your home field is a towered airport with a lot of radio chatter, and you aren't comfortable on the radios yet. Between operating the aircraft and learning new things you feel you have a long way to go before you're confident enough to handle the radios by yourself in this busy area. How can you improve your radio skills between flight lessons?
Answer
There are several ways to work on improving your radio skills between lessons. For example, read through Aeronautical Information Manual 4-2: "Radio Communications Phraseology and Techniques," download an app (such as LiveATC Air Radio) that allows you to listen to live ATC on your smartphone, or buy a handheld radio and tune in to frequencies in your area.
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Got a question for our technical services staff? Contact AOPA.
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Career Opportunities
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AOPA career opportunities
Ever dream of turning your passion for aviation into a career? We're looking for a database developer; aviation event planner; manager of aviation safety programs; ambassador—Texas; director of aviation security; graphic design intern; director of media relations; and director of regulatory affairs.To learn more about other AOPA career opportunities, visit AOPA Online.
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Education and Seminars
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Flight Instructor Refresher Courses
Sep 12-13 - Colorado, Springs, Colorado; Elkridge, Maryland; and Sandston, Virginia
Sep 19-20 - Phoenix, Arizona
Sep 26-27 - Sacramento, California
Oct 10-11 - Nashville, Tennessee; Indianapolis, Indiana; and Windsor Locks, Connecticut
For a complete schedule, see AOPA Online. Can't make it in person? Sign up for the Air Safety Institute's Online eFIRC.
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Air Safety Institute Safety Seminars
Aug 22 - Blaine, Minnesota
Aug 26 - Colorado Springs, Colorado
Aug 27 - Northglenn, Colorado
Aug 31 - Ypsilanti, Michigan; Houston, Texas; and Florham Park, New Jersey
Topics vary—for details and a complete schedule, see AOPA Online.
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Rusty Pilot Seminars
Aug 22 - Blaine, Minnesota; Mitchellville, Maryland; Tucson, Arizona; and Lebanon, Ohio
Aug 25 - Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Aug 26 - Racine, Wisconsin
Sep 5 - Hayden, Idaho; and Santa Ynez, California
For a complete schedule, see AOPA Online.
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Aviation Calendar
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Want something to do this weekend? Planning an aviation getaway? See AOPA's enhanced calendar of events. Now you can filter events by date range, airport ID, state, or region. Before you take off on an adventure, make sure you check our current aviation weather provided by Jeppesen.
To include an event or to search all events in the calendar, visit AOPA Online. For airport details, including FBO fuel prices, see AOPA Airports.
AOPA Featured Events
Aug 22 — Minneapolis, Minnesota. Anoka County-Blaine Airport (KANE). AOPA Fly-In.
Sep 26 — Colorado Springs, Colorado. Colorado Springs Municipal Airport (KCOS). AOPA Fly-In.
Oct 10 — Tullahoma, Tennessee. Tullahoma Regional Airport (KTHA). AOPA Fly-In.
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ePilot Flight Training Editors:
Sarah Deener
Alyssa Miller
Jim Moore
David Tulis
Production Assistant:
Melissa Whitehouse |
Contributors:
Jill W. Tallman
Warren Morningstar
Alton K. Marsh
Dave Hirschman
Tom Horne
Ian J. Twombly
Dan Namowitz |
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