This week: turbulence. Some degree of turbulence is almost always present in the atmosphere and pilots quickly become accustomed to slight turbulence. Moderate or severe turbulence, however, is uncomfortable and can even overstress the airplane. Today we’ll talk about its causes and share some best-practices when encountering turbulence. Words and pictures have been excerpted from […]
By ASA
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Posted in Ground School, Weather
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Also tagged airplane, angle of attack, avoid turbulence, clear air turblence, cloud, FAA, feature, fly, flying in turbulence, jet stream, learn to fly, mountain wave, pilot's license, stall, turbulence, weather, what is turbulence, wind
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This week kicks off airshow and fly-in season with SUN ‘n FUN International Fly-In and Expo being held in Lakeland, FL. The event began on Tuesday and will conclude on Sunday with the mass exodus of hundreds of general-aviation aircraft. In advance of this year’s fly-in season the National Transportation Safety Board has issued a […]
By CFI
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Posted in CFI Briefing
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Also tagged airshow, expo, FAA, fly-in, NOTAMs, NTSB, NTSB SA, NTSB SA-053, Private Pilot, safety, sun n fun
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Back in January, the FAA announced changes to the Student Pilot Application Requirements (SPAR), effective April 1st, 2016. Well that time has fast approached and these changes will go into effect tomorrow Friday April 1st, 2016, and this is no April fool’s joke. I have previously written a CFI Brief on this change and it […]
By CFI
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Posted in CFI Briefing, Regulations
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Also tagged Aircraft, airport, FAA, FAA Exam, flight training, learn to fly, pilot in command, pilot's license, Private Pilot, SPAR
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Today we’re pleased to feature a guest post from CFI and DPE Jason Blair. Check out his previous contributions to the LTFB here. He writes his own blog at JasonBlair.net As an examiner, I regularly see the same things cause disapproval on practical test. These common errors are things that anyone can avoid during their practical test. […]
This week’s discussion is geared towards the topic of aircraft performance and I thought today would be a great day to talk about crosswinds. The tree blowing across the freeway on my way into the office this morning is probably what gave me the idea. After all, March comes in like a lion and out […]
By CFI
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Posted in Aircraft Performance, CFI Briefing, Ground School
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Also tagged aerodynamics, Aircraft, FAA, FAA Exam, flight training, landing, learn to fly, pilot in command, Private Pilot, safety, takeoff, writen exam
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What’s new in the world of aviation weather products you ask? Well, the “Experimental Graphical Forecast for Aviation” (GFA) of course! As the title suggests, this product is in experimental form at the moment, but is up and running at AviationWeather.gov. The National Weather Service and FAA are asking for your help in surveying this […]
By CFI
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Posted in CFI Briefing, Weather Services
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Also tagged Aircraft, airport, atmosphere, CFI, FAA, FAA Exam, flight training, instruments, learn to fly, pilot in command, Private Pilot, safety, weather
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February 29, 2016 – 9:48 am
Out here in the Pacific Northwest, there’s a saying: if you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes. Whether or not your weather changes as fast as ours does, knowing what to expect is still critical to flight safety. Radar helps us track weather nearly in real-time and make visual sense of what to expect […]
By ASA
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Posted in Ground School, Weather Services
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Also tagged Aircraft, airport, ASA, atmosphere, FAA, FAA Exam, feature, flight training, learn to fly, Navigation, pilot in command, Private Pilot, safety, Test Prep, weather
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February 22, 2016 – 9:00 am
Today we’re pleased to feature a guest post from CFI and DPE Jason Blair. Check out his previous contributions to the LTFB here. He writes his own blog at JasonBlair.net. UPDATE: we’ve since posted a follow-up companion blog post on physical preparation. Click here to read it. The stress of a practical test is something […]
February 18, 2016 – 9:14 am
That little green book I’m sure you’ve seen lying around the FBO or on the briefing room table in the flight school actually packs a punch. As you learned in Monday’s post, it contains a wealth of crucial information that every pilot requires for pre-flight planning purposes. Just to recap a few key points regarding the […]
By CFI
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Posted in CFI Briefing, Ground School, Procedures and Airport Operations
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Also tagged airport, FAA, FAA Exam, flight training, landing, learn to fly, pilot in command, Private Pilot, safety, takeoff, writen exam
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February 16, 2016 – 8:14 am
Last week, we released the 12th edition of one of our keystone textbooks: The Complete Private Pilot. This week we’ll be covering procedures, and today we’ll introduce the Airport/Facility Directory (A/FD). Here’s what Bob Gardner has to say about it in the latest edition of The Complete Private Pilot. Before setting off on a cross-country flight, […]
