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Factual Version of the Clipper Eclipse crash featured in the Oatmeal

This week The Oatmeal presented a comic strip entitled It’s going to be okay about Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, who survived a plane crash in 1947. It’s a motivational comic meant, the author says, to remind us that our journeys are short. You can read the comic here: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/plane. It’s a lovely…

Read more… 13 Nov 15

Very little official information: Kogalymavia (Metrojet) Flight 9268

Obviously right now the issue on everyone’s mind is the Metrojet A321 lost in Egypt. News is coming in faster than I can filter it and I strongly suspect that by the time I post this, the information will be out of date. Certainly, I’ve had to throw away one draft today already! Let’s look…

Read more… 6 Nov 15

Amazing MD-80 Departure from Princess Juliana

I admit, I have a soft spot for island runways. And one of the most famous island runways is runway 10 at Princess Juliana International Airport on Sint Maarten, with low-altittude final approaches happening very close to Maho Beach. Princess Juliana airport is regularly the subject of viral videos showing aircraft coming in low over…

Read more… 30 Oct 15

Glasgow helicopter crash mystery: 76kg of fuel in tank

Today the British Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) released their report on the Eurocopter EC135 which crashed into Glasgow city centre two years ago. On the 29th of November 2013, the helicopter crashed through the roof of the Clutha Vaults Bar while there were over a hundred people on the premises. The crash killed the…

Read more… 23 Oct 15

Cessna 172 engine failure and forced landing at 400 feet

I was pointed to a version of this video on LiveLeak with no information (why do people DO that?) but luckily it did include a great shot of the aircraft including registration number, so it wasn’t hard to find the original video and look up the details. The video as a stand-alone is pretty cool…

Read more… 16 Oct 15

The Hurried Walkaround

This is a guest post by John Hill, who originally shared the story on the Professional Pilots Rumour Network. John’s been flying all his life and his story of a lessoned learned after a hurried walk-around is as intriguing as it is instructive. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I’ve been…

Read more… 9 Oct 15

Accident Reports

Farewell Flight Turns Fatal in Cairns

On the 12th of August in 2024, a pilot fatally crashed a Robinson R44 into the top of a hotel building in Cairns, Australia. The pilot held a commercial helicopter…

No Masks, No Oxygen, No Chance

On the 4th of June 2023, a Cessna Citation 560 aircraft crashed in Montebello, Virginia, killing the pilot and three passengers. The NTSB released their report on the 14th of…

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

How the B-52 Lands in Crosswinds

I’m here, defeated but not yet horizontal, the victim of a relentless summer cold that feels like the universe’s revenge for something I can’t even remember. If I don’t make…

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…