The Honest Guide to Aircraft Ownership: Paperwork & Pitfalls (Part 2)
In 2026, relying solely on old-school analog gauges is outdated. The “Engine Instruments… In the Green” checklist belongs to the era of the woolly mammoth.
The Honest Guide to Aircraft Ownership: Paperwork & Pitfalls (Part 1)
(Or: How to part with a bank account’s assets with great ease) This article was totally researched and written without the use of AI. After all the reflection and research, the dream finally becomes a reality. You take possession of your first airplane. In these pages, I previously covered the pre-purchase phase in a 4-part… Read more »
Inertial Navigation
Gyroscopes: Great Travelers Historically, guiding aerial navigation relied partly on science and partly on art: dead reckoning. Solid pre-flight calculations and flying strictly by compass heading, then applying en-route corrections using the ocular system v1.0, were essential. This system still works with very satisfactory efficiency. Things became complicated when weather deteriorated and there was no… Read more »
Ignorance Is Bliss
Acquiring visual contct with nearby trafic is imperative, Technology helps but is not a complete solution.
Measured Efficiency
Recently, in another article, I discussed the installation of electronic magnetos on the PA-30. It’s important to understand that the STCs (“Supplemental Type Certificates”) offered by electronic magneto manufacturers are essentially identical in their basic purpose. You replace an older, heavier component with a lighter and more efficient one. The main objective is to eliminate… Read more »
The silent killer
Dealing with carbon monoxide in flight I have written in 2019 about carbon monoxide detectors. This was following an aircraft accident involving a football star in the UK, with fatalities caused by lethal dose of carboxyhemoglobin within the blood vessels or carbon monoxide poisoning. We all agree that the most important cause of lethal accidents… Read more »
When all else fails
Last January 2024, just after the holiday season, I undertook a “training flight” to cover the recency regulation for my IFR qualification. In Canada, it is required to log 6 hours of IFR flying, shoot 6 approaches to minimum and accomplish this within 6 months of a proposed IFR flight. The weather was impeccably VFR.… Read more »
Emags follow-up
About 4 weeks ago we took-off for the Yukon for a 2 week vacation. Canada’s vast expanse had us covering 2500 nm for about 16 hours of flying – one way (CZBM – CYQT – CYQR – CYXJ – CYXY). This happened to be an excellent test to follow-up the electronic ignition ( emag )… Read more »
Time for a magneto upgrade
Improving the old reliable magneto with an electronic ignition system General aviation aircraft engines have been around for ages. The technology has evolved into super reliable propulsion source. One does not have to dwell too long on the punishing environmental and certainly difficult operating conditions. Yet well maintained and operated there is an excellent chance… Read more »
Canada becomes a safety dunce.
ICAO gives Canada a C grade (64%) in air safety. Let’s be clear: the only way to truly punctual efficiency of flight safety is to count the number of accident over flight hours. Granted, this is rather cold as a statement but nonetheless reflects on reality however unpleasant it is to explain. However, professional observation… Read more »