AOPA throws a birthday bash
Frederick 80th anniversary fly-in weathers the storms
Just like its rich, storied, and tumultuous past, the birthday bash for the 80-year-old Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association saw weather from sunshine to clouds and epic rainstorms. Although some Friday night events had to be canceled, more than 11,000 attendees of the two-day event enjoyed everything an AOPA Fly-In is famous for—friends, food, education, camaraderie—and much more.
The Friday night drone show was canceled as a rainstorm drenched the fly-in campus located on the Frederick Municipal Airport. But Friday wasn’t a complete washout: The workshops and seminars went on as planned, and hundreds of people enjoyed a flightline cookout with entertainment. The flight program took place on Saturday, and attendees were thrilled by the short takeoff and landing invitational, as well as the sight of five Douglas DC–3 and C–47s flying overhead and releasing 14 parachutists of the Liberty Jump Team.
Saturday’s Pilot Town Hall provided a remarkable treat: two past AOPA presidents and the current president together reflecting on accomplishments and challenges for general aviation’s future. AOPA President Mark Baker welcomed his predecessor Craig Fuller, who served AOPA from 2009 to 2013, and Phil Boyer, who served AOPA for 18 years. Both Boyer and Fuller expressed optimism for GA’s future, especially GA technology, including the development of electric aircraft.
Airplane ramp appeal was everywhere: A hulking Quest Kodiak 100 single-engine turboprop proved popular; single-engine models and a sleek P2006 twin from Italy’s Tecnam drew interest. Many attendees likely had their first close-up look at a Cirrus single-engine light jet and the new PC–24 twinjet from Pilatus.
AOPA Air Safety Institute
Should I stay, or should I go
Adapting to changing in-flight conditions
By Alicia Herron
Thunderstorms are one of nature’s most powerful forces and one of the weather phenomena most dangerous to pilots. Flying too close to a thunderstorm’s lightning, hail, heavy rain, and powerful lifting forces and downdrafts can end poorly. Flying into them can end in disaster.
Thunderstorms are a part of summer flying, however, and canceling a flight at the first sign of convection could keep a pilot grounded for weeks. We’re rightly taught to fear and respect thunderstorms, but convective activity in the forecast doesn’t necessarily have to cancel a flight. Flying around some light convective activity isn’t necessarily dangerous.
Reports of supercells and squall lines will surely lead to a day in the hangar, but a convective outlook or a few isolated storms may still be flyable. The key to safely making the most out of a stormy day is flexibility.
Consider the time of day you typically fly. Do you plan to be in the air around 2 p.m.? A hot, humid, unstable afternoon is prime time for a pop-up thunderstorm. Planning to fly in the relatively cooler, less-humid air in the morning may be a better option.
If a storm is small and isolated enough, you may be able to safely fly around it. Before you take off, determine if you have enough fuel on board to circumnavigate a small cell or two along your route. Even a short departure from your planned route can eat up an hour or more of fuel, and on a cross-country that could mean planning a new fuel stop. Fuel gives you time, and time can give you more options. Always keep your eyes on the storm and divert if conditions change.
Rarely are we thrilled to abandon our flight plan, but the ability to adapt to changing in-flight conditions is the mark of a good pilot, and diverting is a skill worth developing. Consider how fast the storm is moving. In some cases, the nearest airport is toward the weather, and the storm might beat you to it. Also, consider the headwinds from fast-moving weather—your new groundspeed from a fast-approaching storm might be much slower than the groundspeed you’re used to.
No one can control the weather, but with a little preparation and planning you can still make the best of stormy days.
Test your thunderstorm decision-making skills with the Air Safety Institute’s Weather or Not Thunderstorm Challenge course, the first in a new interactive, video-based format. Course sponsored by SiriusXM Aviation.
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airsafetyinstitute.org/thunderstormchallenge
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@allisonleeward flying her “new to her” Cessna 120.
AOPA’s Pilot Passport: July challenge
Join the fun this month and earn points to win a $50 Hertz gift card. AOPA’s Pilot Passport on the AOPA app lets users search for new places to fly, check in at airports and aviation events, earn points and badges for meeting certain criteria, and share adventures with others through social media and the AOPA Hangar. For July, AOPA will award the three participants with the most badges earned this month. Every time you check in on the AOPA app, you earn points and progress toward badges. You can earn badges for states that you land in, regions that you visit, airspace you encounter, events you attend, and runways you conquer. New challenges and new prizes are offered each month.
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Photo taken by @twoeleven_aviation
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Whoops, I missed that…
Inadvertent is OK; disregard is not
By Ray Carver
The FAA’s compliance program, formerly known as the “compliance philosophy,” utilizes education, training, and counseling to resolve instances of inadvertent regulatory noncompliance informally and without the need for legal enforcement actions. The aim is simple: The FAA works with pilots to determine the root cause of the deviation and to develop a resolution that will prevent a re-occurrence and improve the overall safety of the airspace, rather than proceeding directly to sanctions such as certificate actions.
While compliance actions can address a wide variety of potential deviations, there is an important caveat: The violation must be unintentional. For deviations such as airspace or runway incursions, this is typically not an issue. However, deviations resulting from expired medicals or overdue flight reviews may involve a judgment call by the inspector on the question of inadvertence.
For airmen who miss a deadline by a couple of days or weeks, compliance actions are common. These issues are typically addressed by reviewing the applicable regulations and developing new procedures to ensure continued compliance. However, the passage of time makes it more likely that the FAA inspector could conclude that the violation was not inadvertent or that it resulted from a disregard for the regulations. Airmen who fly without a medical certificate for six months to a year are more likely to face a suspension than airmen who missed an expiration date by a couple of weeks.
If you discover that you are no longer current or that your medical certificate has expired, the first step is to take corrective action. Immediately remedying the issue can demonstrate to an FAA inspector that you are safety conscious and doing your best to ensure safe operations in the future. In terms of a lapsed medical certificate or qualification, obtaining a new certificate or qualification also demonstrates that you were medically qualified even though you missed an expiration date. If you are the subject of an FAA investigation or if you have concerns about a possible deviation, call the AOPA Legal Services Plan at 800-872-2672.
Ray Carver is an in-house attorney for the AOPA Legal Services Plan.
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