February 27, 2015 - VOL 15, ISSUE 9

Flight Training News

Flight Training magazine

On the numbers

Why is landing with precision so difficult? Almost everything we know about flying is compressed into a single two- or three-minute period of approach and landing. Get tips on gently setting the airplane down right where you want it in the February issue of Flight Training magazine. Read more...  

Facebook chat

Let's talk about landings

Takeoffs are optional; landings are mandatory, as the old saying goes. Get some tips on how to polish your landings at the March Flight Training Facebook chat. Join guest chatter Brenda Tibbs, CFII and AOPA aviation activities specialist, at 3 p.m. Eastern time on March 3. One chatter will receive a $50 gift card courtesy of Aircraft Spruce & Specialty. Set an email reminder here.

Article

Command performance

An online video service launched to give enthusiasts an aerobatic ride-along from multiple camera perspectives is expanding into a more interactive experience. Launched by a pair of Chicago-area pilots, iFlyTheAirShow.com has set up a system allowing the audience to call the sequence. Read more...  

Article

Widgeon voted favorite 'Pilot' cover

After nearly a year of voting for their favorite AOPA Pilot magazine covers, members have dubbed the March 2000 cover featuring the Grumman Widgeon the winner. AOPA Photographer Mike Fizer snapped the cover image for Barry Schiff's Grumman G-44 Widgeon feature. "Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation was known during its heyday as the Grumman Iron Works. There was nothing fragile about a Grumman-built airplane," Schiff writes. Check out the cover...  

Video

Pilot shares lessons from 'Ditching in the Dark'

On the night of Oct. 9, 2009, a Mooney experienced an engine failure over the Gulf of Mexico. The pilot, realizing he wouldn't be able to reach land, had only one option: to ditch the aircraft in the rough, dark waters below. Had he prepared adequately for an over-water night flight? Find out what he learned...  

Women's enrollment in UAE aviation program rising

Women make up about 30 percent of the first-year students at Abu Dhabi University's bachelor of science aviation degree program, according to the United Arab Emirates' The National. About 20 percent of students in all four years of the program are women, the newspaper notes; course director Laurie Earl said the female students are hoping to dispel stereotypes. The aviation program was started to meet the needs of Etihad Airways and covers a number of subjects, including physiology, navigation, air traffic management, and flight lessons, according to the newspaper.

Purdue propulsion lab expanding

An expansion of Purdue University's propulsion laboratory will include new test cells, an expanded laser lab to allow researchers to see what happens inside a jet engine's combustor, and an air heater that will heat air to as high as 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit at a pressure of up to 850 pounds per inch, the university announced Feb. 18. Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories specialize in rockets and gas-turbine engines. Construction of a new, 9,600-square-foot facility for the labs is expected to begin in 2016.

Training Resources

Find a school, club for training

Looking to pick back up with flight training or start somewhere new? Using AOPA's online flight school finder, you can locate schools at your airport by searching the airport name or identifier. Don't forget, many flying clubs offer flight training, too, so you may also search the flying club finder to find the best fit for you.

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.

Career Pilot

Southwest, Virgin America add Love nonstops

Southwest Airlines on Feb. 12 announced new nonstop flights between Dallas Love Field and 10 cities. Beginning April 8 it will launch new service to Charleston, South Carolina; Columbus, Ohio; Indianapolis; Memphis; Milwaukee; Panama City Beach, Florida; Portland, Oregon; Sacramento, California; San Jose, California; and Seattle. Virgin America will launch five daily nonstop flights from Love Field to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport on April 28.

For more aviation career news, see the Flight Training website.

Plane Spotter

Bound for the backcountry

When an aircraft manufacturer touts its creations as suited to personal use, business, special operations, or life on the water, it's natural to envision an extensive product line and a long list of model numbers for plane spotters to learn. Quest Aircraft of Sandpoint, Idaho, has simplified all that by producing the Kodiak, a 750-horsepower, single-engine turboprop that fits those descriptions, can seat 10 occupants, and has earned a reputation for impressive short, rough, remote-field takeoff and landing capabilities, even when loaded at its maximum takeoff weight of 7,255 pounds.

Training Products

Power Flow e-book outlines exhaust system info

Aircraft owners considering installing a Power Flow exhaust system, designed to increase the power of a general aviation engine, can find out more about original and tuned exhaust systems in a free e-book released by the company. The 28-page guide, All You Ever Need to Know about General Aviation Exhaust Systems, discusses exhaust system designs of Lycoming engines popular in the GA fleet and the company's tuned exhaust systems. It may be downloaded from the Power Flow Systems Inc. website.

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.

Member Benefits

Members only

Trust, but verify: Transaction tips for aircraft buyers

Aircraft transactions are sometimes handled in a rather casual manner with the parties relying on verbal arrangements or inexact terms written on the back of a napkin. You can reduce the risks inherent in an aircraft transaction, however, by following advice in an adage used famously by President Ronald Reagan: "Trust, but verify." Read more...  

Member benefits

AOPA Insurance Services supports general aviation

AOPA Insurance Services provides you with comprehensive, competitive aviation and life insurance coverage, with the general aviation community in mind. Read more...  

Blogs

Look, Ma ... no hands

Are you working too hard while flying? Opinion Leaders blogger Rob Mark offers a tip to make your flying life a little easier: "Next time you're out solo in level flight, simply let go of the control wheel or stick and watch what happens to the nose of the airplane." Mark outlines how to trim the airplane properly. Read more...  

Just ahead in the April issue

Soaring is less expensive than flying a powered airplane, doesn't require a medical certificate, and teaches you stick-and-rudder skills. Climb into gliders for the April issue of Flight Training magazine. Also in the April issue, check out why you need to get your eyeballs off the instrument panel when in VFR conditions. Read more...  

Instrument Tip

Login required

The 'almost ILS' at Roanoke

You're intercepting a localizer and glideslope on this approach, but you're not flying an ILS! What gives? Find out why things are different on this unique approach to Roanoke Regional Airport's Runway 6. Take the quiz...

Final Exam

Question

Throughout the year a variety of weather phenomena codes appear in the METAR. Where can a pilot find a list of these codes?

Answer

The codes can be found in Chapter 3 of the Aviation Weather Services Handbook.

Got a question for our technical services staff? Contact AOPA.

Career Opportunities

Aviation job board

Job of the week: Airport commission executive director

The Houma-Terrebonne Airport Commission is seeking an individual who is professional and personable, has political acumen, and has experience managing a general aviation airport with a high volume of both fixed- and rotary-wing traffic. Apply for this exciting opportunity now.

AOPA career opportunities

Join the AOPA team

Ever dream of turning your passion for aviation into a career? We're looking for an outreach and events coordinator; aviation event and meeting planner; vice president for major and leadership gifts; Sitecore developer; director of studies, research, and analysis; associate editor—Web/ePilot; and account manager II. To learn more about other AOPA career opportunities, visit AOPA Online.