Latest Posts – Page 158
Cambridge
I was just pondering whether I had anything to write about when I got a research question as a comment – how exciting! Sex Scenes at Starbucks is a speculative fiction writer living in Colorado. She is working on a novel which includes a scene with a jet flying out of Cambridge. She asked me…
Read more… 1 Feb 08
Now that’s what I call a cruise!
Forget the Queen Mary, I want to go cruising on one of these: The brainchild of Jean-Marie Massaud, the Manned Cloud is an airborne hotel that he hopes will change the way we view tourism. Manned Cloud is a hotel with a capacity of 40 passengers and staffed with 15 persons, that on a 3-day…
Read more… 23 Jan 08
Crash-landing at Heathrow : Just the Facts, Please
There is a lot of speculation going on in the press and, worse, a lot of speculation being presented as fact. The words “Absolute nonsense!” have become a frequent sound in our household as we read the articles in the popular press. I know accident reports aren’t everyone’s thing, but in the interests of understanding…
Read more… 19 Jan 08
The South Downs
Cliff and I had an appointment in Eastbourne, an English resort city right on the South Downs. As always, we arranged to arrive early, so that a delayed or cancelled flight wouldn’t mean chaos. We flew from Málaga to Shoreham via Bordeaux in a single day, so we ended up with plenty of time to…
Read more… 8 Jan 08
Incoming: 2008. I have the traffic in sight.
At the beginning of 2007 I made a really useful list of things to practice when I’m, well, out of practice. And then I never looked it again. I’m once again going through a stretch of not-flying and somehow, this year, I’ve managed to feel particularly out of touch – as if every flight were…
Read more… 31 Dec 07
Happy Christmas!
I’ve been meaning to post, I swear it! And I’ll make a specific New Year’s Resolution to do with this very website — it needs a redesign and a better focus. So expect to hear more from me in the new year. And yes, Mom, I know I tell you that every year! In the…
Read more… 24 Dec 07
Accident Reports
TNflygirl and the Beech Debonair
On the 7th of December 2023, a Beech 35-C33 Debonair crashed into terrain. The private pilot and the passenger, the pilot’s father, were both killed on impact. The private flight…
At All Costs
On the 11th of December 2024, the passenger in the right seat of a 1973 Grumman AA-5 was recording a video as they approached Pearland Regional Airport in Texas. The…
Demystifying
Trump Threatens to Ground Canadian Aircraft Over Gulfstream Certification
The US President, Donald Trump, posted the following to Truth Social last night. Based on the fact that Canada has wrongfully, illegally, and steadfastly refused to certify the Gulfstream 500,…
Another quick round of questions and answers
It’s time for another Questions and Answers session. I started this series a few years back, when a reader asked if there was a way to pose aviation questions outside…
History
Four Point Two Stars Where You Only Stop If You Have To
I always look up airports when I’m writing about them, partly out of habit and partly because I’m afraid I’ll miss an important detail. When I was writing Any Landing…
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…
Fun Stuff
Aviation Stories You Might Have Missed
I hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season. This week, I’ve put together a compilation of interesting items in the press that you might have missed while enjoying…
Nathan Pyle Strange Worlds
Thank you so much for all the kind words. I don’t quite have the wherewithal to respond to each of you individually but I very much appreciate all of you…
