Logging Pilot In Command Time
A recent letter to the editor raised the question of Pilot in Command (PIC) and whether a safety pilot could log PIC time. This is one of those "can of worms" questions. In my opinion, the FAA lawyers who prepared…
The Voice of Experience
It has been my pleasure in the past few months to administer instructor renewal flight tests to three gentlemen, each of whom has been instructing for more than 50 years. My 39 years of instructing pale in comparison. What interested…
The dreaded stall spin accident
How can you avoid the stall spin accident? Yaw is as much a culprit in causing these accidents as a stall. We all know that the improper use of rudder is the main cause of yaw. However, there are other…
Three ways to train: The right way, the wrong way, and the FAA way
Years ago when I was serving my time with Uncle Sam, a favorite phrase was "there are three ways to do something: the right way, the wrong way, and the Army way." The more I become involved in flight training,…
Be Prepared: When faced with an emergency, multi-engine pilots should remember the Boy Scout motto
The key to any emergency is the Boy Scouts’ motto: Be prepared. The good multi-engine pilot must be prepared for an engine failure. But what goes into being prepared? And what elements must the pilot consider when faced with an…
Who’s in charge here?
There seems to be ongoing confusion about who can log pilot in command time under the provisions of FAR Part 61. Unfortunately, most of this concern fails to consider the more important definition of pilot in command under FAR 91.3(a),…