Craning my neck as I look skyward every time I hear the sound of an airplane, catching a fleeting glimpse of a biplane as I drive under the cypress canopy trees covered with spanish moss. The sweet smell of citrus, clear skies, warm Florida sun, and the sound of airplanes tells me that it is time for my favorite aviation event of the year, Sun N Fun in Lakeland, Florida!
This event never gets old for me. My childhood fascination with planes is rekindled transforming this gray haired middle aged man into a young boy. For many pilots Sun N Fun is the annual aviation Phoenix, with the rebirth our our aviation passion occurring at this wonderful event.
I am especially excited this year since I will be able to share my passion for flight and bring you some interesting information as a field reporter for Sun N Fun Radio. Whether you are unable to make it to the event or are at the event and want to listen to interviews and keep up to date on the daily events and breaking news, tune into Sun N Fun Radio.
I will be walking around in My Stuck Mic AvCast T-Shirt so Please stop by and say hello if you see me. If you have something interesting to tells us and would like to be on Sun N Fun Radio I would love to interview you. There are many ways you can get in touch with me while at Sun N Fun. Of course you can stop by Sun N Fun Radio at the show but if you want an immediate response send me a tweet or e-mail me:
Len Costa and I will be broadcasting a live show of the Stuck Mic Avcast Saturday night at 6:30pm from the deck at Sun N Fun Radio. Our cohosts Victoria Neuville and Rick Felty will be joining us virtually on the internet thanks to the folks at LiveATC.net.
You can listen to Sun N Fun Radio right now at the Sun N Fun Radio page:
Stream it live from your mobile device Courtousy of Live ATC.net
Of course you can always visit the Sun N Fun Website for more information:
The Citrus Aviation Association is a wonderful example of how grass roots advocacy can have a positive impact on the aviation community. Last night I was the guest speaker at their monthly meeting. The members of this should be applauded for their sincere effort to promote aviation and their dedication and hard work at keeping the aviation community alive.
The business meeting came first and I was impressed by the brevity and relevancy of their discussions. These folks cover many topics in a short meeting.
There are two things about this organization that really stood out in my mind. First, they have a website with local information which promote their community. There is an informational page on the website full of local activities including activities you can enjoy for a day or for a weekend. For most of us this is why we became pilots, the adventure of finding new places and discovering new people.
Second I love the idea of “the fill a seat program”. As pilots we enjoy sharing our flying experiences. The fill a seat program offers those interested in flying or pilots looking to fly with another person the ability to place their contact information on the website. So if someone wants to go flying and bring a guest along they simply can go out to the website and see who is interested in flying.
The Citrus Aviation Association is grass roots aviation advocacy at its best. Their advocacy takes flight through community outreach programs, open house events, and introducing students to flying. Citrus Aviation Association also promotes aviation on a local level by giving a clear view of how the airport is important for the economic viability and safety of the community.
I really enjoyed speaking to the members and guests of the Citrus Aviation Association. I will be returning soon to give my presentation “Instrument Flying : Tips and Tricks”. I’m excited about the prospect of returning.
Below is the video of the presentation I gave last night “Fatigue : Recognition and Prevention”. Click “here” for notes on the presentation and links to how you can obtain your FAA Wings.
Watch the video of my presentation at the Citrus Aviation Association. For links on how to obtain Wings Credit for This course Click Here.
Are you working to obtain your instrument rating? Are you instrument rated but need to review holding patterns and inoperative instruments? Well I have discovered two simple and inexpensive training aids to benefit any instrument pilot.
Pieper training aids Holding Pattern Aid and Inoperative Instrument Aid are well worth the small investment. Both products use a static cling decal that can easily fit in your bag and can temporarily and quickly be stuck to a windscreen or other flat device.
Watch the video review of Pieper Training Aids instrument training tools on YouTube:
One of the more difficult maneuvers to master during instrument training is the proper holding pattern entry. Pieper Training Aids has come up with a simple in cockpit training aid to help you visualize the entry and is a great tool for both students and instructors alike.
Included in the Holding Pattern Aid are two Right Hand Pattern and two Left Hand Pattern Decals. Let’s see how they work:
1. Turn direct to the holding fix;
2. Overlay the Right Hand or Left Hand Holding Pattern Aid on your Directional Gyro with the large arrowhead pointing toward the inbound heading of the hold;
3. The quadrant on the bottom of the Holding Pattern Aid indicates the entry procedure.
Note: If it is a teardrop, the TDEL (Tear Drop Entry Line) indicates the appropriate heading to turn to after crossing the fix to execute the teardrop entry.
In this example we are told to hold on the 160 degree radial. Once we are heading direct towards the VOR we obtain the Right Hand Holding Pattern Aid. Then place the Aid over the DG( Directional Gyro) with the arrow head on the inbound course and the the tail on the radial. In our example we place the arrow head on the 340 radial inbound and the tail will fall on the 160 degree radial.
To determine the type of holding pattern we look which quadrant the bottom of the DG is within. In this case it is a teardrop entry. To aid us in entering the hold a Tear Drop Entry Line, labeled TDEL, shows us the proper heading to fly. In this example we are to fly a heading of 130 degrees and then turn right to 340 for the inbound leg.
Now lets see how it looks when we use it in the airplane with a few examples.
Example 1:
We are told to hold on the 300 degree radial. We turn towards the holding fix on a heading of 180. Next we take the holding pattern aid place it no the DG (Directional Gyro) with the arrow pointing towards the inbound heading of 120 degrees. To confirm we have the correct inbound heading look at the tail and make sure it points towards 300 degrees.
Since ATC (Air Traffic Control) and pilots always talk about radials from the holding fix I found it was easier for me to start with placing the tail on the radial first then confirming the inbound heading.
Continuing on with our example the third step is to look at the bottom of the DG and see what quadrant we are in. We read direct off the training aid and our initial turn will be to the right to towards a 300 heading. In the center of the training aid the holding pattern is depicted helping us confirm this is a direct entry.
Some of us who are used to the thumb method can try and confirm our analysis by placing your right thumb on the DG and seeing that we are in the direct quadrant. If you don’t use the thumb method there will be another video depicting this.
Example 2:
We wish to hold on the 210 radial with right hand turns. We are continuing towards our fix on a 180 degree heading and place the arrow head on the reciprocal of 210 which is the 030 heading. We then look down to the bottom of the DG and notice the entry is a teardrop. This is also can bee seen by visualizing the entry on the holding pattern drawn on the center of the training aid.
The Tear Drop Entry Leg or TDEL is a great tool in determining the proper heading turn when entering the holding. In our example we need to turn towards a 180 heading. which is depicted by viewing the TDEL.
Example 3:
We told to hold on the 160 degree radial left turns. Remove the Holding Pattern Aid for Left Hand Patterns and Place the large arrow on the Inbound course of 340 and the tail on the 160 radial.
We simple look down and see the entry is a teardrop with a 190 heading after we cross the fix. Again simple and easy to use.
Another great tool manufactured by Pieper Training Aids is the INOP sticker. The wonderful thing about this tool is simply stick it onto the inoperative instrument such as the attitude indicator and you will instantaneously have the instrument covered. Since it uses static cling you will no longer have to wet the back of the sticker which is common in older Inop training devices.
When you want to remove the device simple pull it off the instrument and stick it to the windscreen or other smooth flat surface. When you are ready to use it again, peal it off the flat surface and place it over the instrument you want to cover up and simulate being inoperative.
After using Pieper training aids in the airplane we wanted to see if there was any application in the simulator. I found the tool helpful as an aid in the simulator while teaching holding pattern entries. The inop sticker was not quite as useful since the training device can simulate system failures more realistically.
I would recommend Pieper Training Aids Holding Pattern Aid and the Inop stickers because they are easy to use, low cost, and are a great training tool. To find out more about Peiper Training Aids go to PieperTrainingAids.com.
David Allen of Other People’s Airplanes creates wonderful HD videos taking you into the cockpit of many types of airplanes. During the Sebring Sport Aviation Expo I spent some time with David when he was wrapping up his show at Sebring. I hope you enjoy the video:
Interviews in this video:
Mike Hansen of Hansen Air Group about the Fk12 Comet, the an aerobatic biplane with tandem seating.
I attended the event for several days and interviewed some interesting people for the Stuck Mic AvCast. Read show notes and listen to the Sebring podcast by clicking here.
In this episode of the Stuck Mic AvCast, we took a slight deviation from the normal show format once again as we interviewed a very special aviator about her first novel, an aviation thriller involving airline accidents, conspiracy, and more. Join us in meeting Karlene Petitt, author of Flight For Control, as we learn about the 8 airlines she’s worked for in her flying career including the inspiration and backstory behind the book. If you haven’t read Flight For Control, you should. Len read it in 3 sittings, it was that captivating! A must read, highly recommended.
When I think aviation clothing I envision a t-shirt with a cockpit instrument and a caption of “watch your attitude”. This type of clothing appeals to some aviation geeks like myself, but it does not appeal to the average person looking to purchase a shirt. That has changed with V1 Clothing
Jeff Garrone has created a stylish and at times edgy line of clothing with an aviation theme. Although many of his designs focus on a younger audience, some of his designs can be worn by those who enjoy a more subdued and traditional style such as myself.
Recently I meet with Jeff to discus his very creative line of aviation lifestyle clothing. While speaking with Jeff I discovered he also has an outstanding and stylish aviation flight bag that can be used by pilots and individuals looking for a day bag.
V1 Clothing is for those looking for stylish aviation clothing that can worn every day. The clothing and the flight bag he designed is made from quality materials and comes with a no hassles guarantee.
Enjoy the video review and demonstration of the Aviation Pro Pack.
I'm excited to be volunteering at the Women Of Aviation Fly It Forward Event at Frederick Municipal Airport in Maryland. Female pilot numbers are steadily increasing but still only represent six precent of the total number of pilots. We need to promote more women in aviation to keep the aviation industry viable.
The Fly It Forward Event will introduce women all ages to aviation through introductory flights. There are also many activities and some some great guest speakers including Sarah Fraher of the Discovery Channel's Flying Wild Alaska. Sarah will be speaking to potential aviators about learning to fly and being a bush pilot in Alaska. I’m also excited to listen to aerobatic pilot Jane Wicker who will speak about her Stearman and aerobatics.
To view a full list of the events visit Fly It Forward. Check out the promotional video at the top of this post to learn more from the promoter of this event Victoria Neuville, co host of the Stuck Mic Avcast.
Watch a live broadcast of the event below or click here for the online channel.
This is Episode 19 of the Stuck Mic AvCast, an aviation podcast about Learning To Fly, Living to Fly, and Loving to Fly! Today’s show is all about Personal Pilot Limitations, Flying With A CFI, First Impressions of the Cirrus SR22, Single Pilot Resource Management, Red Tails the Movie, and more!
Pre-Flight
This is the part of the show where we share our announcements. First on the list today is a congratulations to our very own Carl Valeri for his appointment under the Tampa, FL FSDO as an aviation safety representative! Great job, Carl, and thanks for your dedication to keeping general aviation pilots safer.
Second announcement is that Carl and Len of the Stuck Mic AvCast crew will be broadcasting LIVE on Sun N Fun radio Saturday, March 31st at 6:30PM Eastern or 2230 Zulu. You can tune into AM 1510 on your radio for those folks in the Florida area OR find us through the Sun N Fun radio streaming broadcast provided by our friends at LiveATC.net at LiveATC.net/snf! We’re working on some additional air time during the week long event so keep an eye on our Stuck Mic Twitter feed for more info.
And for our third and final announcement, over the last few episodes you’ve been hearing us talk about the Women Fly It Forward event our very own Victoria Neuville is hosting at the Frederick Municipal Airport, Frederick, MD. She’s excited to announce that registration had to close 3 weeks early due to the overwhelming reception and interest by local area women. Some 250 women are signed up to fly at this general aviation event on March 10, 2012 and we’ll be there volunteering and sharing the days events online. Congratulations to you Ms Neuville and your hard work to expose more women to the wonderful world of aviation! Join us for the LIVE video broadcast of Women Fly It Forward on Ustream.
Today I want to take you along for a short journey during my first flight in the Cirrus SR22 GTS, truly a revolutionary airplane and personal transportation breakthrough. Watch my first flight in the SR22 GTS below. A transcript of the video is available after the video.
It stood poised and ready to fly. With smooth lines one could imagine the wind rushing quickly over its sleek body. This is not a traditional airplane. The forward doors are opened with the push of a button. The door raises upward and rotates forward, giving an unobstructed view of this modern personal transportation device. The cockpit looked more like a luxurious sports car than a general aviation airplane. I knew I was in for a treat when I saw this stylish and functional design.
Jeff from V1 Clothing will be giving me my introductory flight in the SR22. After his walk around and an easy climb into the cockpit I settled into the ergonomically designed seat surrounded by a continuously curving cockpit. We both commented how this airplane was more sophisticated in many ways than the airliners we have flown.
After a quick tour of the Interior’s amenities and briefing me on how to exit and enter the aircraft he added another item to the safety briefing I have never been exposed to, the parachute handle. Situated between us in the divider above the two doors is a red handle whose operation consists of a simple pull and we are floating to the earth. I asked “when would we ever use such a device”. He said this could save your life especially over inhospitable terrain including water, but like any parachute you will need some altitude before pulling the chute.
The large engine rumbled to life with a simple but thorough starting procedure. One thing that made me feel at home is the simple t-handle throttle similar to the jet I fly at work. The only difference was a mixture control next to the handle. I turned to him and said where is the prop control? He responded with a smile “the prop is controlled automatically.” Wow! how simple can you get!.
He let me taxi the plane which took some getting used too but since I had flown many Grumman products I had experience with the castering nose wheel. For the first few turns I had to remind myself to tap the breaks instead of using the rudder or a tiller to steer. As with any castering nosewheel it becomes second nature in short order.
During the taxi one of the most notable items is the amazing visibility afforded by the windows that surround you. It almost reminded me of the great visibly from my days in the bubble canopy of the piper tomahawk. Oh and one even more important item, especially in Florida is the air conditioning. What a great feature. No more having to keep the door cracked open. Simply turn it on and it works wonderfully, just like a car.
Some unique items installed in this plane which I didn’t have much time to be schooled on is the separate alternators and their importance, but we did make sure number two alternator was running properly during the run up and especially during takeoff.
We align ourselves with the runway and pushed the power forward and away we go. A unique noise you will hear from the engine is the propeller adjusting as we gain power and airspeed down the runway. Exceleration was quick and we were off the ground in short order pulling the nose up and climbing rapidly away from the ground.
Noise in the cockpit is similar to many single engine aircraft during takeoff if not slightly less but that could be attributed to the Bose noise canceling headsets I was using. Ours was a short flight but once underway Jeff let me do some maneuvers such as steep turns and some slow flight. This is a comfortable aircraft in all flight regimes with great responsiveness to control inputs.
A unique flight control design is the single handed side yoke which helps you keep coordinated turns through linkages with the rudder. This was slightly odd during takeoff and I was anticipating a foreign feeling during our landing. At times I felt as if the controls were fighting me but I’m sure with experience this will feel more natural.
Steep turns are a dream. With the hat trim tab on the control yoke I’m able to trim all the forces out of the controls during all phases, especially steep turns. Wow talk about reducing fatigue while flying. Not knowing how to use the autopilot, Jeff demonstrated the ease of use and it seemed to operate very similar to the airliners we both fly with a flight director guiding the way. When he looked at me and said do you want to see something really cool? Normally this is the last words you hear before someone does something really dangerous but since this was a demo flight I felt more at ease and said “sure”.
He then put the aircraft into a nose high unusual attitude and then pushed a button on the autopilot. Immediately and smoothly the autopilot lowered the nose and leveled the wings. Auto leveling autopilot! What a great safety feature especially if you succumb to spacial disorientation.
With a ballistic parachute, auto leveling feature, and a flight display on a large screen, I can see how this would be a very safe platform for anyone looking to transport their family economically and quickly. Speaking of economics, lets first look at fuel consumption.
After leveling off to pick up our friend in Plant City, FL, we accelerated quickly to 160 knots. This was a respectable speed especially with our fuel burn of only 14 gallons per hour. This is similar to the 182 I fly but I fly 30 knots slower thus on miles per gallon basis we where saving on fuel in the Cirrus. The largest expense for this airplane is the acquisition cost and for a used Cirrus with much less equipment you are looking at least three hundred thousand or more.This might not be as economical for many of us, but it’s hard to put a price on all the safety features.
The GTS variant of this aircraft includes TKS anti icing system, or weeping wing and electronic propeller, or hot prop. With approval for flight into known icing conditions this makes me feel much safer than in most unequipped aircraft, although it is more of a system to get you out of icing than to fly continuously in icing. With that said I sure would love this feature on my airplane.
The other wonderful safety feature is the incredible visibility and traffic alerting equipment. It has been proven that you will see traffic earlier if you are given a warning as to the traffic in the immediate area. You will be looking towards the known traffic earlier and in the right direction. Again another safety benefit.
As we descended for landing the positioning of the flaps was a simple flip of a switch. As we place full flaps and decelerated I noticed the amazing view out the front window. Most noticeable for us high wing pilots is the lack of having to duck your head and look around the wing above you. Although it is still important to clear the traffic below you. The nose down attitude enabled us to view a very large area in front and around us.
During round out and flair I noticed that the controls were light but had some resistance which prevented over controlling during the flair. With mechanical attachments between the roll input and the rudder it seemed slightly unnatural during the landing but I did not feel as if I could not cross control to land in a proper wing low position which was good on this day with winds 12 knots gusting to 18.
A full stall landing and the roll out seemed familiar until I was reminded that the nose wheel is not attached to a steering mechanism. As I tried to turn toward the taxiway exit I notice it was not turning as quickly as a normal aircraft. About that time I said to myself, “Oh yes, castering nose wheel”, and with a slight touch of the break I was turning in the correct direction.
Of course parking is great in that you can turn the aircraft in a circle very easily and in a small area. I got a chuckle from Jeff when I immediately opened the door to let air in after landing. He looks at me and then pointed to the air conditioning knob. I smiled and said, “ah the luxury of air conditioning.” I then closed the door and turned the air-conditioning on high which cooled us down quickly.
After we stopped to pick up our friend Ray, it was my turn to be a passenger and see how comfortable the back seat is. After reclining in the seat and the air-conditioning was started I felt as if I was sitting in the back of a luxury car. The air conditioning worked so well that it was almost too cool. As I looked around the cabin I realized I didn’t have my sunglasses on and it did not seem bright. It is then I asked about the windows and he said they where tinted.
The other great part of being a back seat passenger in the Cirrus is the incredible views out the windows and below. The slim wing mounted forward on the fuselage gives the rear seat passengers a wonderful view of the world below. For the first time I truly felt comfortable in the back seat of a small plane. Great leg room and the ability to recline allowed me to get quite comfortable.
I spent the rest of the day taking video of central Florida. After landing it was my turn to take off again and we where headed back to home base. With my initial excitement waning I began looking more intently at the details of the aircraft.
Two large screens in front made it easy to fly from either seat. The large electronic attitude and heading reference system made it very intuitive to fly and the airspeed and altitude tape made it easy for me to navigate using small eye movements. I think my favorite display on the right which included a navigation screen and a systems screen that was very useful during startup and leaning. Used in navigation mode it would be hard to get lost with such a large map in front of you at all times.
There is much functionality behind this multi function display including safe taxi and a large charts database. There is almost no reason to have your own charts with you except for the safety of redundancy.
As far as ergonomics this is a wonderfully laid out cockpit and cabin which obviously included much customer input during design. The only draw back that I can see is the fact that if you are tall you will need to recline the seat slightly to fit into the cabin. My legs are short and my head was touching the ceiling if I pulled the seat full forward. This was remedied by a slight recline giving me the feeling of being in a high performance aerobatic plane or fighter.
Overall the Cirrus was a joy to fly. A truly great cross country airplane with amazing electronics and multiple layers of safety you normally would see built into a transport category aircraft, baring the extra engine. I would feel comfortable flying over unfriendly terrain knowing I could use the parachute if I lost an engine. I also think that flying over water would be somewhat safer since the risk of flipping over once we hit the water would be alleviated. This was demonstrated recently by a water landing done by a Cirrus in the Caribbean.
If I had the money and wanted to fly long distances this would be the plane to buy. The only thing missing to compare this to a cabin class airplane is the second passenger entry and the toilet. Otherwise your friends and family would be more than comfortable flying to exotic locations and you would feel more comfortable flying them there because of the many safety features.
I hope you enjoyed coming along with me on my introductory flight in the Cirrus SR22 GTS. If you have never been in a Cirrus I encourage you to see for yourself what in my mind is the safest, most stylish, and most comfortable four seat aircraft on the market.
This has been Carl Valeri and links to more information about the Cirrus can be found at ExpertAviator.com. Special thanks to our friends at V1Clothing for the demonstration flight.
During the Sebring 2012 U.S. Sport Aviation Expo I had the pleasure of speaking with a wide variety of aircraft manufacturers. One aircraft that caught my eye is reminiscent of the golden age of flight and is designed by Haim Aviation.
To listen to to my interview with Thierry from Haim Aviation click the play button bellow or download the interview to your mobile friendly device by clicking here.
The following is the most recent press release from Haim Aviation with links to follow the progress of this prototype.
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The Sam LS doesn’t look like the rest of the LSA on the market: The Sam LS from Haim aviation has a funky 1930’s retro look, complete with a greenhouse canopy and art deco wheel pants. The Sam LS has a retro silhouette but it’s a modern design. It’s a low wing, semi-monocoque structure using a 4130 steel protection cage, covered with aluminum. Designed to welcome tall persons, the cabin offers comfortable space to accommodate 6'.6'’ pilots in a tandem configuration with the pilot in the front.
Tricycle and classical configurations are available. The Sam is powered by a Rotax 100hp, and features a glass cockpit with a 10’’ Dynon skyview and back-up instruments. The Sam was designed to accept three different wings without any additional airframe modifications. This architecture offers the possibility to modify the aircraft's flight characteristics by simply changing the outboard wings.
We are currently building the prototype in our production facility at the Lachute airport in the Montreal region of Canada.
The Sam was designed compliant with LSA - ASTM standards and the Canadian AULA standards.
Its modularity makes the Sam perfectly adapted for leisure flights, long-distance flights as well as for short take-offs and landings.
The Sam LS will be unveiled at Oshkosh 2012. Introductory price of the ready to fly version will be USD135.000. The first 5 orders will receive more than $4,000 in additional equipment including leather interior, 600X6 tires, complete dual control system as well as a 7'' Dynon screen for the passenger.
I will be walking around in My Stuck Mic AvCast T-Shirt so Please stop by and say hello if you see me. If you have something interesting to tells us and would like to be on Sun N Fun Radio I would love to interview you. There are many ways you can get in touch with me while at Sun N Fun. Of course you can stop by Sun N Fun Radio at the show but if you want an immediate response send me a tweet or e-mail me:
I'm excited to be volunteering at the Women Of Aviation 
