V-speeds are named airspeed limits or performance references. They are not divided into airspeed and engine-power categories. Their exact values come from the aircraft’s approved flight manual or pilot’s operating handbook and may change with weight, altitude, configuration or other specified conditions.
Continue reading V-Speeds Explained: Aircraft Limits and Performance
A pilot career does not follow one fixed eight-step ladder. Airline, instructional, corporate and other commercial flying have different entry requirements and lifestyles. Planning around a specific goal is more useful than assuming that each new certificate automatically leads to the next job.
Continue reading Pilot Career Progression: Planning Each Stage
Early reports, night duty and changing time zones can make sleep difficult for pilots. Fatigue can affect judgment and attention even when someone feels capable of continuing. Planning rest is part of preparing for a flight, and a legal duty schedule does not by itself establish that an individual is fit to fly.
Continue reading Pilot Sleep and Fatigue: Building a Safer Rest RoutineA desktop flight simulator can be an enjoyable way to explore aircraft and navigation. It can also help a student become familiar with some concepts when used alongside instruction. An ordinary computer game is not automatically an approved training device, and time spent playing does not automatically count toward a pilot certificate.
Continue reading Flight Simulator Games and Real Pilot Training
Airplane mode is a device setting that turns off cellular connectivity and changes other wireless functions according to the device. It is useful during a flight, but it is not a promise that every transmitter or feature on every phone behaves identically. Your airline and crew provide the instructions that apply aboard the aircraft.
Continue reading Airplane Mode: Prepare Your Phone for a Flight
Owning an aircraft can make sense for some pilots, but the purchase price is only one part of the decision. An airplane needs maintenance, storage, insurance and oversight even when it is not flying. The earlier version of this article suggested ownership removed storage and repair costs and guaranteed financial advantages. Those claims were incorrect.
Continue reading Aircraft Ownership: Costs and Questions to Ask
An airplane flies because its wings and propulsion system interact with the air. The useful starting point is four forces: lift, weight, thrust and drag. In steady, level, unaccelerated flight, the upward and downward forces balance, as do the forward and backward forces. Climbing, descending and turning involve changes to that balance and to the flight path.
Continue reading How Airplanes Fly: Lift, Weight, Thrust and Drag
A love of aviation can begin with a family connection, a first trip or a glimpse of an aircraft overhead. It does not require being born into a flying family. Pilots are one part of a much larger world that includes engineering, maintenance, airport operations, history and the passengers who simply enjoy the journey.
Continue reading Aviation Enthusiasm: Ways to Share the Interest
An Air Force pilot is a commissioned officer selected for specialized aviation training. The process involves education, medical eligibility, aptitude testing and selection; it is not a progression from ordinary enlisted basic training directly into a pilot seat. Different commissioning and component pathways need to be considered separately.
Continue reading How to Become a U.S. Air Force Pilot
Flying between Caribbean islands can be a practical way to connect communities separated by water. The region includes many countries and territories, and its airports range from small island facilities to major international gateways. It is more useful to understand the particular route than to assume every Caribbean flight uses a tiny airplane or a short runway.
Continue reading Pilots of the Caribbean: Island Air Travel