Pilots and Controllers Forum  Howard Deevers  Have you ever felt uncomfortable talking to Air Traffic Controllers? How about the Ground and Tower Controllers at the Control Towered airports? Not sure about procedures to fly into Class B, C, or D airports? We have the answers for you. The Scottsdale FSDO reached out to the Southern Arizona FAASTeam to provide a forum where… Read more...Pilots and Controllers Forum

Greetings From Chicago Center  Howard Deevers  My road trip (not flying) took me to the Quad Cities last month (Moline, Davenport, Rock Island, Bettendorf). My grandson, Nathan, is an air traffic controller at Chicago Center. He heard that I was coming to Illinois and said that he could arrange a tour of Chicago Center, if I would like. How could I pass that up? So, he made… Read more...Greetings From Chicago Center

Electronics in the Summer Heat, Have a Backup!   By Bill Cassels  Early in the year we decided to fly our S35 Bonanza from Mogollon Airpark to Redding, CA. My youngest daughter lives in Redding, and we were going to spend the week visiting and then capture the four-year-old grandson for a month or so. Since we’d be going somewhere near the California coast, about April… Read more...Electronics in the Summer Heat, Have a Backup!

DENSITY ALTITUDE, Who Cares?  Howard Deevers  Remember when we went through our private pilot training and the instructor first mentioned density altitude? Most of us had never heard of the term before. I sure don’t remember it being in any of my math or physics courses in high school or college. Even my instructor didn’t spend much time on the subject in… Read more...DENSITY ALTITUDE, Who Cares?

De-ja vu, All Over Again  Howard Deevers  The opinions expressed here are my own, and not necessarily those of Arizona Pilots Association or any other aviation association. It was like hearing an echo, the same words, with a few more added, but from a different President. Trump said: The nation’s air traffic control system was designed when far fewer people… Read more...De-ja vu, All Over Again

VFR CROSS COUNTRY FLYING  Howard Deevers  Long cross country flights are lots of fun, IFR or VFR. Traveling for pleasure, for business, to visit family, or on a vacation, and using your airplane is what flying is all about. When weather permits, flying VFR can be even more fun. At the lower altitudes that most of us will fly, you can see much more of the country. Flying at… Read more...VFR CROSS COUNTRY FLYING

OH, NO! ANOTHER NEW FORM TO FILL OUT  THE ICAO FLIGHT PLAN  Howard Deevers  Yes, it is true. Starting in June, 2017 pilots will be required to use a new Flight Plan. Actually we were to begin using it in January, but that got extended. The new Flight Plan is in the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) format, but don’t worry; it still has an FAA form… Read more...OH, NO! ANOTHER NEW FORM TO FILL OUT - THE ICAO Flight Plan

AGING IPADS, AND OTHER AVIATION ELECTRONICS  Howard Deevers  It seems strange to even talk about aging iPads, since they have only been around for as little as 7 years. “Electronics” in aviation go back to before WWII. They were fairly simple systems, such as the “Automatic Direction Finder,” or ADF as we call them. Radios were tube type, and not very… Read more...AGING IPADS, AND OTHER AVIATION ELECTRONICS

Owner Assisted Annuals  Howard Deevers  Disclaimer: I am not an A&P. These opinions may not reflect those of Arizona Pilots Association. Most of us want to keep the cost of flying as low as possible, so we can keep on flying. One way to do that is to assist in the Annual on your airplane. 91.409 requires an annual inspection of every certified aircraft. Of course, you… Read more...OWNER ASSISTED ANNUALS

FLYING IN MEXICO  Mexican Government Aircraft Intercept  Howard Deevers  The second weekend in December I flew a dentist, and his son, to El Rosario, Baja, Mexico for the Flying Samaritans. The SAM’s, as they are called for short, take doctors, dentists, nurses, and chiropractors to their clinic in the small town of El Rosario (on the Pacific side of the Baja) to… Read more...FLYING IN MEXICO