Do lower numbers really mean a lesser product? Is an iPhone 6 really better than an iPhone 5? Is a PT6-35 really better than a PT6-34? Is a 4-blade prop better than a 3-blade prop or a 2-blade prop? And is a Continental 550 really better than a Continental 520? The answer is to all…
I was excited about this one…I’ve flown the NAT (North Atlantic) to Europe and beyond many times, but I’ve never flown the NORPAC (North Pacific). On this ferry flight I got to fly the mighty King Air 350 from Fargo, ND to China through some of the coldest parts of our planet. I was especially…
We’ve all heard it said…”reduce the throttle by no more than 1-inch every minutes to ensure you don’t shock-cool your engine”. Does this advice apply to a PA46 engine? Can a PA46 engine (Lycoming 540 or Continental 520/550) really be shock-cooled? How should the engine temperature be managed? Metals expand and contract with temperature, and…
There’s something special about flying a Biplane. It is a catalyst for all the aviation sensory perceptions…a smorgasbord for everything you smell, feel, see, and hear. When the engine coughes to life, the small amount of oil that almost always exists in the bottom cylinders gets burned and exhausted into a belch of smoke and the…
I’m super-excited about this ferry flight! Not only do I get to fly a great airplane (King Air 200), but I also get to do much of the trip with my son (Ben). This flight promises to have everything…the barren land of Canada and Greenland, the wetness of Iceland and Ireland, the beautiful lands around…
One of my good customers, Dave Boyle, had an unusual occurrence recently, and I thought it might help the PA46 community to understand the situation. Dave is an excellent pilot, is the self-assigned “maintenance manager” in the 3-person partnership that owns a very nice 1987 Malibu, and is a good friend to our PA46 Community.…
Tom Thomason learned of Elie Vannier’s VERY nice Jetprop (N43CH) that was for sale, and promptly began a pursuit to purchase that ended with our going to Elie’s hometown of Lausanne, Switzerland. Decked out with great avionics, great paint, and stellar maintenance history, we knew this airplane was going to be nice. But…the best part…
I’m a “headset snob”. There…it’s out. Guilty as charged. I have used all of the various headsets in the aviation marketplace and I like to use my own headset, and I use the UflyMike Adapter exclusively (https://uflymike.com). Even if a customer has one of the other premium brands already fitted in the right seat, I’ll…
You know the old joke…”What’s the landing light used for in a single-engine airplane with an engine failure at night?” Answer: “You turn it on when you near the ground…if you don’t like what you see, turn it off!” A weird parallel can be made with the windshield heat and the PA46. Suffice it to…
Need I even print a word? Is there anything that needs to be added to make this any clearer? Bottom line…texting while taxiing can cost you dearly. And, it’s not just texting. During recurrent training, one of my pet peeves is to see pilots fumbling with the avionics while taxiing. I’m going to bet that…