mtrescott The world is becoming ever more tightly connected each day. The reverberations between Wall Street and my version of Main Street—the general aviation world—are becoming more intense. Just in the last 24 hours, I’ve come across a couple of surprises which I’ll share in a moment. First, if you haven’t already downloaded my Free “Learn … Read more
I've always been a fan of clever marketing. You can instantly recognize great marketing when you see it since it is always creative, effective at generating attention and often fun in the process. Sadly, it’s far from a daily occurrence, but it’s fun to sit back and grin when you see it. I worked for … Read more
If you didn’t already have enough reasons to consider buying a SR22T, Cirrus has given you one more with their announcement that they can now equip your new SR22T Perspective with FIKI—Flight into Known Icing. Perspective is the G1000-type glass cockpit that Cirrus announced in May 2008. I help people around the world who are … Read more
Wow, yesterday was quite a day. In the morning, I spent several hours with the owners and crew that manage the only Zeppelin in the U.S. If you enter your email in the upper left corner, you’ll be notified when I post a story and photos from that visit. Over the noon hour, I was … Read more
The quiet time over the New Years holiday is a wonderful time to reflect on the good and bad of the past year and to look forward to the New Year. While most people are familiar with the Emmy, Tony and Grammy awards, few pilots are familiar with the General Aviation Milestone or Gammy awards. … Read more
As pilots know, learning to fly is non-trivial. Many express the desire to learn to fly, yet few actually accomplish the goal. One reason is that it’s not easy for a neophyte to figure out what to do to earn a pilot certificate. To help with the problem, I’ve created a free new Learn to … Read more
Just as clothing makes the man, training makes the pilot. If so, then my past week at Flight Safety International, learning to fly and teach in the Cessna Caravan, was like ditching “off the rack” menswear for a custom suit. It fit perfectly and the experience was rewarding! If you’re unfamiliar with the Cessna Caravan, … Read more
What started as a bad week for Wall Street has ended as an even worse week for DayJet and possibly for VLJ manufacturers counting upon a robust per-seat, on-demand air taxi business. DayJet’s website says that it “has discontinued its jet services and cancelled all future flights as a result of the company’s inability to arrange … Read more
Anyone who's studied at all seriously for a pilot certificate knows that the final hurdle is to take a checkride which is governed by an FAA PTS or Practical Test Standard. The purpose of these booklets is to standardize the process, so that checkrides given in Peoria and Poughkeepsie are the same. It also attempts to … Read more
Fellow blogger and friend Dan Pimentel emailed recently and asked for advice on his upcoming instrument checkride. I was flattered to be asked and sent some suggestions. One, that I tell all my clients when they’re under the hood, is to take a few deep breaths, relax and get into the “Zen of airplane.” It’s … Read more