With four million people living in Orange County, there are undoubtedly quite a few folks who make the drive from Santa Ana to Carlsbad on a daily basis. I’m not sure how long it takes. Traffic being what it is, anywhere between 90 minutes and two hours seems like a reasonable estimate. Figure three to four hours for the round trip in a car. I… Read more →
Category: Aviation
Econo-maniac
Dan writes about fuel economy experiments in his RV-7. It’s interesting that he managed to get 35.4 statute miles per gallon out of his airplane. With a slight headwind, no less. I’ve never seen more than about 20 mpg out of a Cirrus, even with a tailwind. That’s on par with far draggier airplanes like the strut-braced Skylane. For such… Read more →
Glass Panel Failures
I recently returned from Duluth, MN, where I had the pleasure of picking up a brand new Cirrus SR22 from the factory. The experience left me feeling that we’re becoming a bit too complacent about the miracle of glass avionics. During the obligatory tour of the Cirrus plant, I was surprised to learn that starting with the 2006 models, they no longer manufacture airplanes… Read more →
Avgas Prices
Think it’s expensive to fill up your car? According to AirNav, aviation fuel is now running as high as $6.79 a gallon. Yes, you read that right. We’re pushing seven dollars per gallon. Anyone want to take a guess about how high it will go? Eight dollars? Ten? Assuming a fuel flow of 30 gallons per hour on takeoff, an SR22 would… Read more →
Landing on a Gravel Bar
Dan sent me a couple of companion pieces to yesterday’s entry. Both are cockpit-based videos of a tailwheel airplane landing on a gravel bar. In the first clip, our intrepid pilot uses the “waterski” arrival, touching down with the main wheels on the surface of the river and sliding right up onto the gravel bar. In the second, he drops… Read more →
The Ultimate Displaced Threshhold
A fellow CFI sent me a real gem.  I’d have to say this is the ultimate short field landing. It’s so short that half of it takes place on the water. This wouldn’t be such a big deal except for the fact that the aircraft in question is not a sea plane. You can do some pretty amazing things when you… Read more →
Accident Investigation Leads to TFR
FDC 6/4280 ZLA CA.. FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS 25 W PALM SPRINGS, CA. EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. PURSUANT TO 14 CFR SECTION 91.137(A)(2) TEMPORARY FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT WITHIN A 3 NAUTICAL MILE RADIUS OF 340223N/1165315W OR THE PALM SPRINGS /PSP/ VORTAC 281.0 DEGREE RADIAL AT 25.0 NAUTICAL MILES AT AND BELOW 11000 FEET MSL TO PROVIDE A SAFE ENVIRONMENT… Read more →
Like The Man Said…
Perhaps whoever designed this sign lost sight of the, uh, “larger picture” — if you catch my meaning. It doesn’t help that the pilot is sporting what appears to be a bicentennial porno mustache, circa 1976. I’ve been trying to think of a good caption for this photo. Suggestions? Read more →
Eagle Flight 230
Just two days after Christmas in 2000, an American Eagle commuter flight developed pitch trim problems immediately after takeoff from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. The pilots had the controls full forward, yet the aircraft was climbing at “3000 to 6000″ feet per minute.  All pitch trim controls were inoperative. Take it from someone who’s been there: when one of the primary flight controls stops responding,… Read more →
High-Res Sectionals
High resolution sectional charts for the entire U.S. are available at Kyler Laird’s aviationtoolbox.org. How cool is that? These charts are not up-to-date, but they’re great for illustration, teaching, and web-based excerpts. Also, be aware that the downloads are pretty large. The south side of the Los Angeles sectional chart was more than 42 megabytes. The detail is worth it,… Read more →