This week I want to recommend a very good article on Titan that I think you will enjoy. This article in New York Magazine is interesting, intelligent and well-written. If you read only one thing this week, I think it should be this. This is the type of essay that I aspire to writing, seamlessly…
Read more… 7 Jul 23
I have been sitting on this collection for some time now but I feel like we could use a bit of light humour today. I share these stories not to dissuade anyone from learning to fly but instead (I hope!) to encourage students; no matter how poorly you reacted to your first stall, I bet…
Read more… 30 Jun 23
On the 21st of November 1956, the M-200 Myest (Месть, meaning vengeance or revenge) collided with a Russian destroyer and sunk to the bottom of the Baltic. The M-200 Myest was a Malyutka-class small torpedo submarine of the XV series, built in Leningrad in 1940. The XV series was an extended version with six watertight…
Read more… 23 Jun 23
Yesterday, two F-5 Tiger aircraft collided over Central Switzerland during a practice flight. The Patrouille Suisse is one of four Swiss Air Force aerobatic teams. Formed in 1964, the team has been flying F-5 Tigers since 1995. All of the team members are military pilots or air traffic controllers who perform with the Patrouille Suisse…
Read more… 16 Jun 23
The aircraft was a Grumman American AA-5, a four-seater light aircraft developed by American Aviation, which was bought out by Grumman shortly after production started. Registered in the UK as G-BBSA, the Traveler was forty-seven years old. This was one of the original AA-5 Travelers, which ceased production after only one year to be replaced…
Read more… 9 Jun 23
Last week was the RAeS Future Combat Air & Space Capabilities Summit. This was organised by the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) to discuss the future of combat air and space capabilities. The summit centred around presentations and to discuss the future of air and space combat power. The summit took place in London with 70…
Read more… 2 Jun 23
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…
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…
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…
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…