AOPA Pilot Magazine - Turbine Edition

When Edwin Remsberg earned his pilot’s certificate in his 40s after a multilayered career in photojournalism, he found his perspective on his subjects changed.

Peter Zaccagnino had a decision to make. The April deadline for applying to race in the 2022 Stihl National Championship Air Races was approaching. Was he going to race two airplanes this year—or just one?

Powerlifter Brian Beirne held his gold medal in one hand and pulled his new Marvel Comics hat over his face with the other. The 30-year-old Special Olympian was only on his second flight in a private jet, and although the typical summer clouds were providing a somewhat bumpy ride, he was chill. And he needed a nap.

“The premise of the plan was about speed,” said Mark Brown, chief demo pilot and sales and marketing director for Kodiak at Daher.

Readers weigh in on our suggested options

In the context of administrative adjudication (when an agency acts like a court), the relationship between the FAA and NTSB is uncommon.

I’m departing Frederick Municipal Airport (FDK) in Bonanza N4GA, AOPA’s flagship aircraft. The weather is low IFR, radios are popping at a rapid cadence in busy airspace, the Washington, D.C., Special Flight Rules Area to my left, presidential TFR around Camp David to my right, and I’m anxious to get the autopilot engaged to help me through the intensity.

You’ll get there when you get there. Make sure you enjoy the journey along the way, especially the unplanned parts.

A friend had recently purchased a used Cessna 182RG, and I was providing him with the instruction needed to satisfy his insurance requirements. We were on final approach to Southern California’s Big Bear Airport (L35) with two other friends filling the rear seats. The long-range fuel tanks were half full, so the airplane was obviously heavy.

I had just started the engine on the AOPA Sweepstakes Grumman Tiger to fly home from a visit to Purdue University. I called ground and requested permission to taxi. Silence. I waited a minute and called again.

With how busy the skies are this year, I continue to be amazed at how safe general aviation remains. We’re coming off our safest fiscal year yet, according to NTSB data reviewed by our own Air Safety Institute.

Quiz for pilots

In the spirit of growing the broad tent of general aviation, AOPA is launching an alliance organization program designed to cross-promote groups that have mutually beneficial goals for the aviation community.

This is no ordinary fly-in. Join us in Spokane, Washington, at Felts Field for a truly new way to experience the aviation life.

Part museum, part restaurant and bar, and all airplane-spotter heaven, The Proud Bird Food Bazaar and Events Center in Los Angeles is a must-stop for any avgeek.

In the early twentieth century, two of the United States’ most celebrated men came out of the Great Plains—both good, honest sons of Oklahoma. The two very different men would become famous in their own endeavors, become good friends, and die together on the frontiers of America.

That apple. It really doesn’t fall far from the tree. The adage fits 16-year-old Iain Lanphier, the great-grandson of Brig. Gen. Charles McGee, the 102-year-old Tuskegee Airman who died earlier this year.

By Lowell Williams

This story begins when Cliff Magnor is 6 years old. His father puts him into a Curtiss Condor for his first flight. He becomes infected with aviation. There is no vaccination. There is no cure.

By MayCay Beeler

When I first laid eyes on my newborn son in the delivery room, I never imagined 31 years later I would be looking down on him from atop a Stearman wing as he piloted a 1943 PT–17.

Volocopter, which in 2011 was among the first to introduce an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) design, recently announced its newest venture—the four-seat VoloConnect.

There is much buzz nowadays about “behavior” and “behavioral health,” a euphemism for “mental health,” which sadly still carries a negative connotation in many areas of society. In aviation medicine that stigma is starting to change for the better.

By Terrie Mead

As you stumble, fall, and get back up en route to your primary pilot certificate (private, sport, or recreational),  your flight instructor is your principal support system. When questions arise, setbacks pile up, or you turn pessimistic about ever reaching your goal—all normal, by the way—it is the CFI’s lesser-known responsibility to impart support, encouragement, and advice.

Are you one of the 116 million Americans who regularly listen to podcasts? These on-demand shows bring stories, education, and entertainment to life. Since 2012 AOPA has been producing a broad range of free, on-demand audio programs that seek to teach, inspire, and connect you to all that is great about aviation.
ian.twombly@aopa.org