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Hired!
A photo to send home, from KGYI, October 2013. A successful career move happened since my last post. I am now the newest flight instructor at US Aviation Academy based on the North Texas Regional Airport! Leading up to this development, my commencement ceremony at Eastern Michigan University (EMU) was in April, followed by my…
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New Circling Procedures in Michigan
Starting with the current chart cycle from August 22, the radius of protected airspace for new circling approach procedures has increased. This change will mainly affect airplanes in approach categories B through D. While the procedures are flown in the same way, the requirements for a larger protected airspace may result in higher altitudes being…
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First R-ATP Authorizations Announced
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) this week issued the first Letters of Authorization for universities to make their graduates eligible for an airline pilot certificate under FAR 61.160. These three universities can now officially certify graduates as qualifying for a restricted privileges airline transport pilot (R-ATP) check ride.
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CFIT Training Aid
Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) prevention is one of the main topics of Single-pilot Resource Management (SRM). As a pilot, I do want to avoid flying into terrain! I also enjoy studying any aspect of aviation. Sometimes this means tracking down an obscure publication, and I do enjoy that challenge as well. I found several…
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R-ATP Regulation to Reality
The newly-promulgated FAR 61.160 went into effect last week. Already, I am seeing positive changes in the aviation industry. Hiring is on a rapid up-swing, and rumors are starting to circulate about a liberal interpretation of the new first officer qualifications and certification rules. While discussing the potential for a pilot shortage last year, I…
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Deciding Not to Land
In response to the recent Air Safety Institute blog about the Asiana crash at San Francisco, I am addressing the point of developing basic “stabilized approach” skills and how they are used in flight training. Bruce Landsberg wrote: I absolutely agree that students will be working it all the way down and that is part…
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First Officer Qualification Rule in Detail
The new first officer qualifications are a hot topic. On July 10, the FAA released its Final Rule, which should appear in the Federal Register next week. Everyone has something to say about this. But opinions aside, all I can I find on the web is the text of the new rule and several paraphrased…
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Eastern Michigan University Graduation
I always thought college graduation would be like high school graduation; a happy day that goes by too quickly. But in many ways, my college graduation stretched over two months filled with celebrations, gifts, studying, and so many exams that I’ve lost count! Over the past two months, I’ve had several new experiences and accomplishments: Attended…
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College Admission & Advising
After deciding which flight school to attend, the next step to becoming a pilot is to get admitted to the school. At smaller schools, this process may be as simple as signing a couple of forms and making an initial payment. When I decided to attend EMU, the Office of Admissions there refused to review…
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St. Ignace Fatal Flight of Amazon.com Exec
Last month, the NTSB published a factual report on the St. Ignace, Michigan accident of 2011 that killed an Amazon.com executive. Here exists an opportunity to analyze the available information in great detail and to try to answer more questions about what happened.