Ask a Flight Instructor

Archive for February, 2008

I wish I could say that all my wisdom in flying is due to the fact that I read it in an flying magazine, airplane manual or learned it from listening to a wise old flight instructor but the truth of the matter is that I have learned a great deal the hard way and let’s just keep it at that.

Today I learned an important lesson and I want to pass this along to you. When ordering aviation gasoline in Canada, make sure you either a) specify U.S. GALLONS and let the FBO do the conversion or even better b) specify the fuel order in LITERS.

In case you don’t have this conversion memorized:

1 liter = 0.264 US gallons

or

1 US gallon = 3.785 liters

It doesn’t make a difference if you are ordering JetA or 100LL, the conversion is the same (weight of course is different with those two fuels) So if you are ordering say, 200 gallons of Avgas that would be 757 liters.  200 liters of gasoline is only about 52 gallons.  That could make a a little bit of a  difference for your flight wouldn’t you say?

Now the part I did learn and remember from that wise old flight instructor is to always verify the amount of gas you ordered and how much actually made it into your airplane so thankfully crisis was adverted.

Fly safe out there.

The FAA has a system designed to help operators, like airlines, stay ahead and updated on current policies and regulations so that they can stay in compliance.   There are actually a couple of programs.  The first is Safety Alert for Operators (SAFO) and the second is a Information for Operators (InFO).  The InFO contains information that is not as critical for safety.  You can read more information about the InFO program here

On Feb 13, 2008 the FAA issued a Information for Operators update that actually has some implications for all pilots, from private through ATP.  The InFO states that the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) standards are now requiring, effective March 5, 2008, that all pilots operating internationally have a certificate with an endorsement of language proficiency.   In other words….if you are flying internationally, you have to have an endorsement on your pilot certificate that says “English Proficient”

Here is the document:Info08008

You can obtain a replacement certificate with this added endorsement by going to:

http://www.faa.gov/licenses_certificates/airmen_certification/airmen_services/ 

Once you create a user name and logon, you can for $2.00 request a replacement pilot certificate.  Be sure to select “English Proficiency” as the reason for the replacement.  If your pilot certificate is still your social security number (gasp!) you can request to have that changed and get the language endorsement for free.

I would encourage everyone to request this new endorsement as you never know when you might find your travels taking you to far off exotic places such as Canada, Mexico or the Caribbean.

Fly Safe!

One of the hardest parts about being a professional corporate pilot (at least is the case with my organization) is the demand or expectation that you are aware of the current market prices of many different airplanes.   With a highly volatile aircraft market, I find myself constantly searching for new resources that I can use to stay abreast of general aviation market conditions.

One of the tools that I use is: http://www.airplaneblog.com

I like the fact that mixed in with the news feeds is listings of aircraft that I might be interested in.

I’d encourage you to look at it and let me know your thoughts by replying to this post!

Fly safe.

Once a month in my email inbox I receive a safety bulletin from the NASA aviation safety reporting system, also known as Callback.  It summarizes and highlights selected reports from the NASA reporting forms.  Think of it as a “Not Top-10 Plays” of aviation.  NASA reporting forms is a volunteer system designed for pilots and other flight crew members to report aviation incidents that they have been involved in.  The ASRS monitors these reports to bring out deficiencies in the National Airspace System and training programs.  Also, NASA is obviously very interested in human factors study so this helps that program as well.  If you haven’t heard about the ASRS system, I would encourage you to read more here.

This month’s report was a entitle, “Out of the Ordinary” and made for some interesting reading.  I especially liked the story about the truck on the runway who realized that an airplane had just landed behind him! Reading it, made me think of this infamous video.

I would encourage you to subscribe to and read these reports.  I always learn a lot from reading other people’s mistakes and identifying ways that I could make the similar decisions that lead to these incidents.  Incidents and dangerous situations can and do happen to EVERY pilot and it is important to make sure these don’t lead to accidents.

I would also encourage you to submit NASA reports when incident’s do occur.  As pilots, we are often not fond of admitting our mistakes but it is important that we do, so that the community and regulators can keep an eye on trends in the industry.  NASA reports can help keep your certificate from suspension in very certain circumstances.  If the FAA is investigating a incident that might have resulted from a unintentional regulation violoation and discover that a NASA report was filed you may receive a waiver.  Read Advisory Circular 00-46D and FAR 91.25 for more information.