Greetings!
For most of us the air show season begins with the annual Sun N Fun Fly-in at Lakeland, Florida. Despite the torrential rain in Central Florida during the week the weekend looks like good weather. There are many indoor exhibits and seminars so the rain will not be spoiling our day. I hope to see you there and will be posting pictures on our Facebook page.
At Expert Aviator our goal is to increase your aviation knowledge one blog post at a time. Please feel free to send us questions or suggestions for a future blog post to cvaleri@valeriaviation.com. March 20th is the first day of spring which means thunderstorms are right around the corner. Check back with us online for future articles concerning thunderstorm hazards and avoidance.
Have a safe flight,
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Reclining on the wooden bench on this humid morning, I watched the cool mist slowly dissipate. The only noise was the dew dripping from the hangar. The thin fog covering the grass seemed like a silk bed sheet covering the sleeping grass below. I took a deep relaxing breath noticing the smell of fresh cut grass. The only movement was from small birds and an occasional dear grazing, lulling me into a catatonic state.
My peaceful respite was suddenly interrupted by a grinding noise followed by an explosive burst from the small airplane. The engine rattling to life caused a rush of excitement and adrenaline through my body. I sat upright in anticipation of watching a small plane take to the air.
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Ask Expert Aviator
Feel free to ask us anything related to aviation.
Want to know what a ground stop is and why you have to wait for three hours in Orlando before leaving for New York? Ever wonder what it means when the controller says "resume own navigation"? Looking for clarification on something you heard in the media, from a pilot friend, or flight instructor? For answers to these and all your aviation questions send us an e-mail at cvaleri@valeriaviation.com . |
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Approaching Houston we were issued the clearance "turn right heading 320 maintain seven thousand expect TRANN". Without further instructions what do we do next if we lose communications?
If you lose communications you must comply with FAR 91.185 which states if we lose communications and we cannot continue in visual conditions we must fly to the fix we were told to expect in the clearance. While being radar vectored the controller should tell you what to expect next in case you lose communications. In our case the controller issued instructions to expect TRANN intersection. Therefore, we should fly direct to TRANN if we lose communications.
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 Sometimes the most difficult decisions we make are on the ground especially when taxiing on an airport with many intersecting runways. One airport I notice I must pay more attention to while taxiing is Louisville Airport (KSDF). One day while leaving we were given instructions to taxi to Runway 35R via Delta cross Runway 29. We crossed 29 and began approaching the end of 35. As we approached the runway we noticed bright flashing yellow lights in the pavement and two alternating yellow lights on either side of the runway.
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 Did you know bird strikes cause over $650 million dollars of damage to aircraft in the United States?
Do you know what is the biggest killer of migratory birds? Have you ever had a bird strike your aircraft and wonder if there was anything you could have done to prevent the unwelcome encounter? For answers to these and other questions I invite you to view the Bird Strikes Hazards and Avoidance Safety Seminar. Read On...
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