Latest Posts   –  Page 145

Faster than a Speeding Jet: Single Engine Travels

In recent posts, Plastic Pilot has been focusing on flight times when flying commercially. It’s a subject that’s come up for me recently as I consider whether travelling with the Saratoga is more convenient than a commercial flight. I have always tended to assume that popular point-to-point routes are done more efficiently in a big,…

Read more… 10 Oct 08

Destination: Strasbourg

Strasbourg has two airfields serving the city: Entzheim (LFST) and Neuhof (LFGC). Neuhof (LFGC) is much more convenient for the city but has a number of restrictions. It is not a customs airfield. There is no air traffic control and the radio is in French. The runway is 819 metres of grass. I didn’t get…

Read more… 3 Oct 08

The View From Above

Aviation Video: F-16 Dead Stick Landing The most amazing thing I’ve seen this week was via Jetwhine: this amazing video of an F-16 landing dead stick with an engine out.Jetwhine writes: For those of you who may not be familiar with a Head Up Display used in the F-16, the pilot essentially views the information…

Read more… 27 Sep 08

Just Being Helpful

Cliff taxied the plane over to the pumps and I hopped out to get us some fuel. “I’ll get out in a moment,” Cliff said. “I just want to put our route into the GPS first.” “No problem.” I walked over to the tiny booth behind the pumps and tapped at the door. A pale…

Read more… 19 Sep 08

Travel Photographs

We arrived home yesterday after a lovely trip getting caught up with everyone. We went to England to drop Connor off at school (*sniffle*) and to see Cliff’s mum then on to Strasbourg to check out Tony’s new digs, from there a quick jaunt to Mannheim to visit with my grandmother and then last night…

Read more… 13 Sep 08

Old Town Churchyard

The following morning, we left our hotel to do some exploring. Our hotel was in Hugh Town, known locally as just the Town. ‘The Town’ has a feeling unlike any other part of Scilly – built-up and almost urbanised. But there is usually a friendly feel to the place with people stopping in the street…

Read more… 5 Sep 08

Accident Reports

Hand on Thrust, Brain on Autopilot

On the 28th of June 2024 a Boeing 777-236, registered in the UK as G-VIIT, rejected a take-off after reaching V1 during the take-off roll on 26L at London Gatwick…

Challenger 300 Fatal Upset Wasn't Turbulence

On the 3rd of March 2023, a passenger in a private jet died after severe injuries in the cabin, which were originally reported as caused by severe turbulence. This was…

Demystifying

How to tell a Russian Su-27 from a British Typhoon

This is not an article that I ever thought I would feel compelled to write! However, given the confusion over a photograph chosen in a regional English paper, apparently it’s…

How to tell an F-16 Fighting Falcon from a Eurofighter Typhoon

There are a number of reasons why you might need to quickly point out the differences between a General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon and a Eurofighter EF2000 Typhoon. You might…

History

Gladys Ingle Inflight Wheel Change: Emergency Action or Stunt?

This video of a mid-air wheel exchange goes viral once a year or so, but I never get tired of watching it. Last week, it showed up on Reddit and…

The Disappearance of the Hawaii Clipper May Not Be as Mysterious as Was Thought

This week, we have a guest post by J.B. Rivard who wrote an article for the American Aviation Historical Society (AAHS) and used one of my articles as a reference.…

Fun Stuff

Friday Lightness: A Short Respite from Crash Reports

It seems a good time for something a bit more lighthearted. After weeks of analyzing serious incidents and technical failures, I thought I could a moment to appreciate aviation humuor…

Flights of Fantasy: Aviation April Fools Worth Celebrating

I’m going to admit that I’m not a great fan of April Fools’ pranks, especially not attempts to trick people into believing something and then pulling the rug out from…