As more than a few commenters have posted on Youtube, you may want to mute the song accompanying the footage as soon as you start the video!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQnDPIkaJ34&w=480]
Cross country flying tips and safety quiz
Scott Spangler, the blogger behind the Jetwhine blog, has mentioned a recent email from the AOPA Air Safety Institute that contained a link to its safety quiz on cross country flying. The quiz contained 10 questions about a 350 mile VFR trip from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, to Festus, Missouri and even comes with blow-up sectional chart images on which to search for the correct multiple-guess response.
However, Scott wrote that despite his confidence going into the test, his test results were “humbling” and he figures that the test questions were based on their research about what areas pilots “screw up the most.”
Meanwhile and before you take the quiz, you might want to check out a recent video put together by Jason Schappert for his MzeroA.com site about how to choose great cross country checkpoints. Jason recommends that you avoid using cell towers, private airports, small bodies of water and cities as checkpoints and opt for public airports, large roads, rivers and large landscape changes instead.
Jason has a number of other videos covering cross country flights here that would also be well worth reviewing to help you brush up on your cross country flying skills before taking the AOPA test or going on a cross country flight.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MV7jcT3gK-M&w=480]
Intense spin recovery video
Hat tip to Sulako’s Blog for finding and posting this intense video of a skydiving flight that could have turned into a fatal accident when the pilot accidently stalled the aircraft while slowing to allow the jumpers to jump.
Apparently, the aircraft went below the minimum safe approach speed on run-in causing a stall and subsequent spin. The skydivers then exited the aircraft and the pilot was able to recover and land safely.
The aircraft was then inspected and no defects were discovered but as a precaution, it will undergo stress analysis. Likewise, the pilot will be receiving extra training to avoid a re-occurrence while all pilots with the company will have more intense stall and spin training in order to be able to identify and recover from situations where a stall or a spin may occur.
Sulako used the video provide the following suggestions to pilots should they ever encounter a similar situation:
- Neutralize the controls by moving the control column to the neutral position, wings level.
- Apply full rudder in the opposite direction of the spin.
- You may need to check forward on the controls a “wee bit” to break the stall.
- Once rotation stops, level the wings and ease out of the resulting dive, reducing power if necessary once above stall speed.
However, Sulako also pointed out that some aircraft DO NOT RECOVER from spins – meaning you must focus on NOT putting these types of aircraft into a situation that may cause them to spin. Moreover, some types of aircraft will have non-standard stall or spin recovery techniques that you will need to know in order to recover.
Hence, Sulako’s entire post is well worth reading – along with all of the relevant documentation the aircraft you fly comes with that.
How aircraft propellers are made
Hat tip to FlightSchoolList.com for finding and posting two interesting videos about how aircraft propellers are made. In the first video, hiVelocity Media traveled to Piqua (Ohio) to visit Hartzell Propeller – which began as a lumberyard in the late 1800s and made its first propeller blade back in 1917. Hartzell Propeller’s first aircraft propellers were made of wood that was glued and laminated together but today they are made out of either forged aluminum alloy or composite (Kevlar or carbon) – the later being lightweight, strong and will literally last forever.
Meanwhile, the second five minute video comes from the Discovery / Science Channel’s "How It’s Made" Airplane Propellers episode:
Finally, "How It’s Made" also has the following video about how traditional wood aircraft propellers are made:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvLra7G31cU&w=480]
The best video for general aviation pilots about icing
The icing branch at NASA’s Glenn Research Center has developed a number of in-flight icing education and training aids for pilots and operators alike, including this hour long video. And while the “actors” recreating the icing incidents in the video will probably not win any Academy Awards for their acting abilities, this is probably the best video you will find that is intended for general aviation pilots about icing.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_D8tcnL2uQ&w=480]
The drone wars are beginning…
The US Congress has recently approved legislation to allow unmanned aviation vehicles (UAV) or unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) to have greater freedom over US airspace rather than just along the Mexican border and within restricted airspace. However, both Max Trescott and David Cenciotti have noted on their respective blogs the potential safety nightmare for general aviation pilots when the use of drones becomes more widespread.
Nevertheless, David’s post did a good job of explaining how drones were used both safely and effectively in the recent air operation over Libya. In fact, they operated very much like normal aircraft to the point that their controllers would ask ATC for clearances to change altitude or to cross controlled airspace.
On the other hand, Max noted that so far, there has been at least one mid-air collision involving a drone and a normal aircraft. Specifically and in August 2011 over Afghanistan, a 450-pound UAV hit a C130 cargo plane – causing damage to the aircraft and forcing an emergency landing (the UAV was destroyed).
Moreover, a recent ABC News segment has noted that military drones are already being used by everyone in the US from real estate agents to paparazzi – leading to both safety and privacy concerns:
Apparently though, most other countries still limit the use of UAVs in their airspace with the UK providing a small area over the Irish Sea for the training of UK personnel on WatchKeeper and other systems.
Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see what specific rules the FAA comes up with for UAVs and just what ordinary people end up using (or abusing)them for.