Monthly Archives: March 2016

Hints for your Aircraft

Posted on March 24, 2016 by Colin Summers

The fellow that dropped off the plane, Dick Filbey, had two good pieces of advice. Actually, he had more than that, but I am cataloging them slowly. Both can be used by other pilots, so they should be documented here.

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Synthetic Vision

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Colin Summers

One of the keys to safety in aviation is situation awareness. It is sort of a catchall for describing the environment, aircraft, and the human factors that affect a flight. Most importantly, the risks associated with the flight or the … Continue reading →

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New Skin

Posted on March 21, 2016 by Colin Summers

The plane arrived with these custom decals. While waiting for a passenger on Wednesday I started picking at on that was on the rudder trim panel. That was a small piece, about half an inch wide and twelve inches high. … Continue reading →

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Following the Half-percent

Posted on March 19, 2016 by Colin Summers

I remember a few years ago reading a news story that reported that India was raising taxes on fuel substantially to pay for environmental compliance and to address global warming. Amidst protests, they subsequently dropped the additional tax in kerosene, … Continue reading →

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Embarrassment

Posted on March 15, 2016 by Colin Summers

As I see it, the important thing with flying is to stay current. That means you can do a lot of the flying with the part of your brain that keeps the bicycle upright, or the part that keeps the … Continue reading →

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Purpose, a New Plane

Posted on March 12, 2016 by Colin Summers

What is the purpose of the landing gear hydraulic accumulator? Such a good question. Really, in some ways, a meta-question. I stare at it on the pink 3×5 flash card I have made and search my mind for the answer. … Continue reading →

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Fly Up to Stand Up

Posted on March 9, 2016 by Colin Summers

Growing up one my best friends was Marc Sedaka, whose father is the songwriter and singer of Breaking Up is Hard to Do (and a bunch more hits). Neil became famous when he was young, at nineteen he already had … Continue reading →

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Boston Landing

Posted on March 5, 2016 by Colin Summers

(This is a part of A Summer of Flying.) A couple days after the flight to Fishers Island, Dexter and I had everything packed up and we Uber’ed out to Caldwell. The plane is sitting in the sun, fully fueled … Continue reading →

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