Winter weather flying refresher

As the season transitions from fall to winter and the temperature is consistently below freezing, unique challenges are presented to pilots. Flight training doesn't need to stop in the winter though; in fact the colder months provide some great opportunities to expand your knowledge on weather and aircraft operations in less than ideal conditions.
172 landing

The one tip that finally helped me land better

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Making great landings consistently is easier said than done, and it's easy to fall for the latest "miracle cure." I won't offer any of those, because good landings result more from practice, discipline and hard work than quick fixes. But sometimes the right visualization is the key: if you can truly understand all the interrelated events that happen during landing, it's easier to make the correct control inputs.

Time to change the clocks

It’s that time of the year again; time to change the clock…

Corralling the crosswind

“Sporty’s Clermont County Airport, automated weather observation,…

Are You Prepared to Save Money on Flight Training?

Whether talking about flight training or any other type of training, in most cases, proper preparation can save you a lot of frustration and money. This post explains a few keys to successful preparation.

How do you pay for flight training

Whether for a career, recreation or both, you need a plan   For…
fueling 172

Top off the airplane fuel tanks? Maybe…

During flight training most pilots get accustomed to filling the fuel tanks all the way up before each flight. As you begin to fly larger airplanes you'll soon learn that topping off the tanks is more the exception than the norm.

A straight-in approach is safer than a standard pattern

While some remain staunch supporters of patterns and appropriate entries no matter the circumstances, I make a case for straight in approaches for landings in certain situations. Before you revoke my license and feed me to the tigers, hear me out.

Visibility: more than meets the eye

Visibility, unlike so many other aviation weather terms, seems so simple. It's a measure of how far you can see, right? What nuances can there possibly be? Turns out, a lot.

Self Weather Briefings

Given the recent change in technology, more weather information…