On the 29th of July 2023, a mid-air collision of a helicopter and a gyrocopter at Oshkosh left two dead and two seriously injured. The helicopter, registration N193AZ, was a RotorWay Exec 162F: a kit-built aircraft manufactured by RoterWay International. The gyrocopter, registration N221EL, was an ELA 10 Eclipse: a two-seater Spanish model. It was…
Read more… 1 Sep 23
On the 2nd of March, 2023, a Vans RV-9A struck a vehicle while coming into land at Henstridge Airfield. The Vans RV-9A is a Van’s Aircraft kit plane, a kit for enthusiasts to build an aircraft themselves. The RV-9 is a two-seater low-wing aircraft; the original model is a tail dragger, but the RV-9A has…
Read more… 25 Aug 23
I’m in Dresden at the moment and I’m afraid I haven’t had a free moment to write you a new article. Luckily, lots of other people are on the internet and have shared some fun and interesting aviation posts. This great clip was posted to Reddit: Every foot of that runway was used that day…
Read more… 18 Aug 23
Redditor jmcmanna is a controller in the Chicago area, with references to working O’Hare (ORD) and Midway (MDW) International Airports. Jmcmanna is an active participant on the flying subreddits that I follow and regularly responds to pilots with questions about ATC and procedures. It’s a great look “behind the scenes” from someone who is clearly…
Read more… 11 Aug 23
On the 7th of September 2010, a Tupelov Tu-154M (registration RA-85684) suffered a complete loss of electrical power during a cross-country flight to Moscow. The Tupolev Tu-154 is a three-engine Soviet jet originally developed to meet Aeroflot requirements for a medium-range airliner. Production started in 1970; the last TU-154 was manufactured in 2013 by Aviakor…
Read more… 4 Aug 23
I’ve lost most of the day to unexpected research and one of the fascinating items that I discovered was the Air Force Historical Research Agency and their amazing photo collection. This collection includes a thousand old photographs of flight! I was drawn in by some of these of the Wright brothers and their aircraft, many…
Read more… 28 Jul 23
Ferry Tank Failure: Successful SR22 Ditching in the Pacific
In 2015, I shared a video of an SR22 whose pilot successfully deployed his Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) off of the coast of Maui, Hawai’i. I wrote at the time…
The Man in the Right Seat at Prestwick
On the 23rd of April 2024, a Piper Archer II crashed in South Ayrshire, Scotland, after losing power. There were two on board. Both suffered serious injuries and the light…
Meowing on Guard (an attempt at an explanation)
Last week a video went viral and it’s been fun to see the mainstream media coverage try to cover two pilots who were heard making animal noises on the radio. …
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,…
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…