The Engine Failure in Cruise, Best Glide, and the ABC Flow That Buys You Time When It Gets Quiet
Master the engine failure in cruise with the ABC flow - airspeed, best field, checklist - that keeps a bad day from becoming fatal.
Patterncheckride prep
The Spot That Doesn't Move, the Aiming Point on Final, and How Your Windshield Tells You Exactly Where You're Going to Land
The aiming point is the one spot on the runway that stays still in your windshield - here's how to read it and land exactly where you plan.
PatternRoger, Wilco, and Affirmative, the Three Little Words on the Radio That Almost Every Pilot Says Wrong
Roger, Wilco, and Affirmative each mean something specific on the radio - here's how to use all three correctly.
PatternThe Positive Exchange of Flight Controls, the Three Words That Stop Two People From Flying the Same Airplane at Once
Learn the three-step positive exchange of flight controls - say it, hear it, confirm it, see the hands - so only one pilot ever flies the airplane.
PatternFederal Aviation Regulation Ninety-One Point One Thirteen, the Right-of-Way Rules, and Who Actually Yields When Two Airplanes Are Pointed at the Same Piece of Sky
A pilot's plain-English guide to FAR 91.113 right-of-way rules: who yields in converging, head-on, overtaking, and landing situations.
PatternFederal Aviation Regulation Ninety-One Point Three, the Rule That Lets You Break the Rules, and What Pilot in Command Really Means When Everything Goes Sideways
FAR 91.3 makes the pilot in command the final authority and lets you deviate from any rule in an emergency - here's what that really means.
PatternSlow Flight, the Twenty Seventeen Rule Change, and Flying the Back Side of the Power Curve Without the Stall Horn in Your Ear
The 2017 ACS changed slow flight to keep the stall horn silent - here's how to fly it right and why it matters.
PatternTurns Around a Point, the Egg That Should Have Been a Circle, and the Wind Correction Every Student Forgets on the Downwind Side
Master turns around a point by matching bank to groundspeed - steepest on downwind, shallowest on upwind - to fly a true circle, not an egg.
PatternClass Delta and the Magic Words, Why Hearing Your Own Callsign Is the Whole Ballgame
Learn the one rule that governs Class Delta entry: you're only cleared in once the controller says your callsign back to you.
PatternFederal Aviation Regulation Ninety-One Point One Fifty-Five, the VFR Cloud Clearances, and the Three Hundred Two Thousand Rule Nobody Can Recite Under Pressure
FAR 91.155 sets VFR cloud clearances and visibility minimums - learn the 3-1-5-2000 rule and why it keeps you alive.
PatternThe Soft-Field Landing, Keeping the Nosewheel Flying, and the Touchdown That Isn't the End of the Maneuver
Learn the soft-field landing the way examiners actually grade it: keep the nosewheel flying and hold back pressure long after touchdown.
PatternThe Wind Triangle, Wind Correction Angle, and the Difference Between Where the Nose Points and Where the Airplane Actually Goes
Learn the wind triangle, wind correction angle, and why your nose and your track point in two different directions.
PatternTrim Off the Pressure, Not the Attitude, and Why Chasing the Altimeter With the Trim Wheel Is the Habit That Wears Students Out
Learn to trim off control pressure instead of chasing the altimeter, the habit that tires students out and hurts their landings.
PatternThe Go-Around, Pitch Then Power Then Flaps, and the Landing You Give Up On Before It Ever Goes Bad
Learn the go-around the right way: pitch, power, then flaps - and how to make the decision early before an approach goes bad.
PatternThe Maximum Elevation Figure, the Big Blue Numbers in Every Sectional Quadrangle, and How to Pick a Cruise Altitude That Actually Clears the Highest Thing Out There
Learn to read the blue Maximum Elevation Figure on sectional charts and use it to pick a safe, legal VFR cruise altitude.
PatternAIRMET Sierra, Tango, and Zulu, the Three Weather Advisories Hiding in Every Briefing and What Each One Is Actually Warning You About
Learn what AIRMET Sierra, Tango, and Zulu each warn about and how to turn them into real go/no-go decisions.
PatternThe Soft-Field Takeoff, Weight Off the Nosewheel, and the Airplane You Fly Off the Ground Before It's Ready to Fly
Learn the soft-field takeoff step by step: get weight off the nosewheel early, lift off at low speed, and accelerate in ground effect before you climb.
PatternFAR Ninety-One Point One Fifty-Five, the VFR Weather Minimums, and the Three-Cornered Cloud Clearance Rule Every Pilot Memorizes and Half of Them Get Backwards
A clear breakdown of FAR 91.155 VFR weather minimums, the 3-152 cloud clearance rule, and how the numbers change by airspace and altitude.
PatternFAR Ninety-One Point One Seventy-Five, the Approach Ban, and the One Thing That Legally Lets You Leave Minimums and Land Off an Instrument Approach
FAR 91.175 requires three conditions before you can descend below DA or MDA and land off an instrument approach - here's what they are.
PatternSlow Flight, the 2016 ACS Rewrite, and the Maneuver You Now Fly With the Stall Horn Silent
How the FAA's 2016 ACS rewrite changed slow flight - and how to fly it to standard with the stall horn silent.
Pattern