Just last Friday, I had another alternator failure. In terms of equipment failures, charging system failure is the one I’ve seen most often. I’ve had a dozen or more failures in 7000 hours of flying. Depending on the situation and airplane, this failure can be anywhere from a non-event up to a serious emergency. Let me describe my recent experience on a VFR instructional flight and discuss some other possible scenarios. Continue reading
Sundays are normally my non-flying days. I’ll often be found on my bicycle on the roads around Altadena, Pasadena, and La Canada. This Sunday found me and cycling buddies climbing the Angeles Crest Highway (ACH) from La Canada to Clear Creek Junction. It was a cool, cloudy, and foggy morning. As we climbed through the clouds, visibility was very poor (sometime as low as 200 ft).
Visibility at Clear Creek
Part way into our climb, a stream of fire and sheriff vehicles began passing us going uphill; we also heard a helicopter overhead above the clouds. Experience led us to expect another motorcycle crash on the road. Only when got to Clear Creek (3600′ MSL) did we hear they were looking for a downed airplane. Details were non existent, but my first guess was VFR into IMC (pilots who aren’t trained to fly in the clouds ending up in the clouds with deadly results). Continue reading
On April 1, 2016, the FAA implemented a new process for getting a student pilot certificate. Students apply through the FAA’s IACRA system; a Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) can approve the application.
Students must have both a medical and student certificate prior to solo. I recommend that students apply for the student pilot certificate as soon as they start their flight training. Continue reading
Every pilot should be familiar with requirements for a Flight Review (often called the Biennial Flight Review or BFR); the requirements are in 14 CFR 61.56. Basically, a pilot needs a flight review every 24 calendar months – pass your checkride or have a flight review on 4/10/16 and you need a flight review by 4/30/18.
A flight review is performed by a Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) and can be done in any of the category/class/type of aircraft for which you are rated – if you are an airplane (SEL), helicopter, and glider pilot, you can do a flight review in any of them. The specific requirements are rather terse: Continue reading
Foreflight – this has become the defacto standard for pilot apps. It does almost everything a pilot needs for flight planning, preflight weather and NOTAM checks, in-flight charts and airport information and much, much more. One big downside – it is iOS only. I have an iPad mini that I use exclusively for Foreflight. It can get expensive, but the cheapest subscription ($99/yr as of 2021) is cheaper now than the cost to keep up to date on the Terminal and Sectional charts for LA. Most students will do fine with the cheapest version. I personally use the middle version (Pro – $199/yr), but have students who prefer the $300/yr version.
AviationWeather.gov – I still do most of my weather “quick looks” here. I keep booked marked links that will give me common lists of METARs and TAFs. I can get a quick 
check of PIREPs, METARs, SIGMET/AIRMETs, and radar right off the front page (ensure you have the right things checkmarked) or I can bookmark a version that will show me my local area. With the movable maps, I have to be careful where my cursor or finger is to avoid unexpected scrolling or zooming, but I’ve learned to work around it. Continue reading
We spend a lot time preparing for solo flight. Now let’s talk about actually soloing – flying on your own, prior to earning your private pilot certificate. Solo flight is a key difference in how we approach learning to fly versus learning to drive. In most cases I’m aware of, drivers are unable to drive by themselves until they have earned their drivers license; not so with flying! Continue reading
Though I log a lot of PIC during instrument training flights, I frequently have to go out with an instructor or safety pilot in order to keep up my currency. Over the years, I’ve come up with a “workout” that can get my necessary hold, intercept, tracking, and 6 approaches, while flying a variety of approach types. If you are lucky with vectoring, get prepared quickly in the air, and do missed approaches, this can be completed in much less than 2 hours. I’ve mapped out the rough line I typically end up flying (minus the necessary hold at PDZ). If you are rusty, this may not be the workout for you or you may at least need to ask for delaying vectors, extra turn in a hold, or land at some of the airports to give you time in between
SoCal Instrument Workout
This shorthand list is designed to highlight key differences and concepts for pilots transitioning from a 172 to a 182RG (retractable gear). Some items may be specific to a particular example of the 182RG or wishes of the owner and/or club. Continue reading
When walking or driving a car around an airport, airplanes should always be given the right-of-way. Remember that you can more easily see the airplane than they can see you.
Even if an airplane’s engine is not running, you should pay attention. Any aircraft with people inside of it or any lights illuminated should be treated with extreme caution and an extra wide berth. Don’t count on the pilot noticing you.
I’ve had several cases recently of people coming very close to an airplane on foot and on a bicycle, just as we were about to start the airplane. In both cases, the airplane’s beacon was flashing and we had yelled “CLEAR” in preparation for starting. Even with those precautions they came much closer than I felt was safe.
I’m proud
to announce that for the second year in a row, I’ve been selected to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association’s (AOPA) Flight Training Excellence Awards Honor Roll, a title given to high scoring flight instructors from AOPA’s 2014 Flight Training Poll. This honor was awarded to 75 instructors in the US.
The Flight Training Excellence Awards were created to highlight the best the flight training industry has to offer. “We feel it’s important to recognize flight training providers, like David, who create a quality customer experience and instill a lifelong passion for aviation among their students.” said Brittney Miculka, director of pilot community development for AOPA.
To select the award winners, AOPA invited those who have taken flight training within the last 24 months to complete the Flight Training Excellence Poll. Each individual could nominate up to one flight school and one flight instructor. The online poll was conducted from June 3 to August 23, using a process that contains several safeguards designed to ensure fair competition. AOPA’s poll had more than 3,600 respondents.
More information about David’s flight training can be found at http://WingsByWerntz.com