Being a “good stick” is not enough. Good pilots are thinking their way through the air as well as simply moving controls. What comes next in flight is absolutely as important as what is happening right now. Jack J. Pelton EAA CEO, Sport Aviation magazine, Nov 2016 “Being ahead of the plane” they call it. And if you can always answer the question, “what are the next two things,” then you are really mentally ahead—pilot not passenger.
Great advice on doing the right thing. From one of the best basketball players of all time Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, also known as Airplane! co-pilot Roger Murdock:
“The real need is for a fully aerobatic training aeroplane to be provided so that airline pilots can practise real flying manoeuveres and recovery from unusual attitudes. … There are too many senior transport pilots flying who have just about forgotten how to fly an aeroplane.” The Chief Test Pilot of the UK Airworthiness Authority wrote this in the last paragraph of his classic book. Fifty years ago. Long before AA587, AF447, and so many more. But we still don’t do this. Most airline pilots have never gone past 60 degrees of bank, and our simulators aren’t realistic for high … Continue reading Aerobatic training?
Automation complacency, and the need to stay proficient in manual flying are not new ideas. Fifty years ago the chief test pilot of the UK airworthiness authority warned us, in his (clearly) still relevant book Handling the Big Jets. The full quote, from page 316, is: “Do not become lazy in your professional lives. The autopilot is a great comfort, so are the flight director and approach coupler. But do not get into the position where you need these devices to complete a flight. Keep in practice in raw I.L.S., particularly in crosswinds. Keep in practice in hand-flying the airplane … Continue reading Do not become lazy
Simulators cost millions of dollars. But all of us can use our ‘brain simulators’ to become better pilots. Mélanie Astles is a five time French Aerobatic Champion and now is the first woman to compete in the Red Bull Air Races. Quote comes from an article in espnW.com by Tony Rehagen: For pilot Melanie Astles, to air is divine (15 October 2016).
