Latest Posts   –  Page 3

“A Group of Pissed Off Hornets”: An Instructor’s Snapchat Story of a Fatal Flight

I don’t like to be negative about flight instructors; it’s a difficult job that usually pays badly and requires superhuman levels of focus and patience. I had two amazing instructors who very much loved flying and were excited to share their passion with me. But of course the fatal accidents caused by bad instructors are…

Read more… 3 Oct 25

Pilots or Toilets: Is This Viral ATC Audio Real?

There’s a YouTube video by ATC Audio making the rounds with a shocking title: She says Both Pilots INOPERATIVE. Real ATC Audio. The video claims to have real ATC audio of Tap Air Portugal flight TAP484H, a scheduled passenger flight from Lisbon, Portugal to Nice, France. The audio covers an aviation miscommunication which led to…

Read more… 26 Sep 25

The Mystery of the Caged Tyres and the Porcupine Who Flew Home

This photograph was posted to r/shittyaskflying, a subreddit dedicated to asking silly questions and giving silly answers. In this case, the photograph is enough to make one wonder what’s going on. The caption reads: Why all the wheel chocks? Strong winds? The answers are predictably hilarious. No_Mathematician2527 writes: Stops porcupine from chewing the tires. Why…

Read more… 19 Sep 25

Best Speed across the Runway: VH-EWW at Gold Coast Airport

On the 6th of February 2024, a student pilot and instructor met at Gold Coast Airport in Queensland for a dual training flight. The clear lesson learned that day was a common one: if the approach is not stabilised, go around! But to be fair, the instructor did go around, just …a little bit later…

Read more… 12 Sep 25

Greg Bagwell on Scheduling a Combat Air Patrol

I was fascinated by Greg Bagwell’s thread on X/Twitter last week and I can’t help wanting to share it with you. Greg Bagwell CB CBE is a retired senior Royal Air Force commander who served 36 years, ending his career as Deputy Commander (Operations) at RAF Air Command – the service’s most senior operational role. He…

Read more… 5 Sep 25

Sky Diver Pulled from Aircraft After In-Flight Deployment

On the 1st of August 2024, the École de Parachutisme Sportif de Vannes Bretagne organised a parachute drop for 14. The sky diving centre is a non-profit operating their aircraft under AIR OPS. The aircraft was a Cessna 208 Caravan, a single-engine turboprop, registered in France as F-HVPC and owned by the sky diving centre. It…

Read more… 29 Aug 25

Accident Reports

Bomber 139's Third Run: What the Investigation Found

In order to follow this analysis, you’ll need to have the details of the flight and the crash from last week’s article about the flight. When we last saw Bomber…

Bomber 139's Third Run: Downhill to Disaster

On the 6th of February 2023, a Boeing 737-3H4 Large Air Tanker crashed into a ridge line of 222 feet elevation in Fitzgerald River National Park in Western Australia. There…

Demystifying

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…

Durga Puja Pandal Shows Air India Flight 171 Crash

The following video from a religious festival in West Bengal, India, has caught a lot of social media attention. It shows a detailed representation of an Air India Boeing Dreamliner…

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

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…