"Landing lights on!" - CFI "But we're taking off!" - Student The use of lights is in part regulated and in part courtesy . It's not uncommon for student pilots to confuse when/where lights are supposed to be used, especially if the lights used for takeoff are called "Landing" lights... So let's go through each light system on the aircraft, understand when it's required and what it's used for. Then, let's go through a fictitious flight in the day and in the night to see t

"You should know the previous airliner went missed" - What an instrument student doesn't want to hear from ATC An instrument approach procedure (IAP) is designed to get you low enough clear the weather and land safely. But what else should a good instrument pilot know? Well, there are a few regulations that dictate precisely how you're supposed to behave. Let's take a look. Under IFR, landings are dictated by 14 CFR 91.175 . Like every good regulation, it starts by stating th

He said I have to buy one of those spinny things? - Student Pilot Congratulations, you've decided to begin your journey to become a private pilot. As all things, you will need to purchase some class materials. Let's make a list together! 1) Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) Once upon a time, pilots had to do a lot of work "by hand". Today, many pilot tasks are replaced by an EFB which has your digital charts, weigth and balance functions, flight planning tools, and a lot more. Ther

What?!? I can't get paid for that? - Every new Commercial Pilot (CPL) WARNING This is not legal counsel. Consider this academic guidance only. For absolute answers, buy AOPA Pilot Protection Services . Becoming a commercial pilot is a great achievement. It means you can masterfully control an airplane in various energy states, execute advanced maneuvers, and sometimes get paid to fly . Commercial pilot privileges are not very easy to understand but with a little effort, you

"There are two engines and six levers. Great." - Multi Student Lesson 1: Welcome to Multi-engine! GROUND (2.0) Pros and Cons of...

"I am flying at either 130, 145, or 125 kts. Not sure which." - New student pilot Indicated Airspeed (KIAS) What you see on your airspeed indicator is called... indicated airspeed. If in knots, we abbreviate the term as KIAS (knots indicated air speed). Kinda easy, huh? On the image above, it's the 143 knots on the speed tape. This is the speed experienced by the pitot-static system . That being said, indicated airspeed is only accurate at standard sea level conditions. Why i

"I shall follow the glideslope to the DA" - IFR student shooting a VOR approach Table of Contents To simplify the scrolling back and forth, this is the table of contents for this article. Ground-Based Navigation Approaches Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range (VOR) Minimum Operational Network (MON) Stabilized Descents Dive and Drive Localizer (LOC) Instrument Landing System (ILS) CAT I, CAT II, CAT III a/b/c RNAV (GPS) - Based Navigation Approaches Lateral Navigation (LN

"NAVLOG?? Not more of this witchcraft!!"   - The student who just read the previous article Yes, I know you have an Electronic Flight Bag (EFB). Garmin Pilot or ForeFlight give you all you need to know for a cross country flight. But do you know how it works? What is the math behind this mystical tool that determines your ETA and fuel requirements? All pilots should be able to complete a NAVLOG. Private, commercial, and on. And to be honest, this is valid for both VFR and IFR

"If you're asking if you can, the answer is yes. If you're asking if you should, that's a different story" - Dr. Tizi Question: If I am cleared for an ILS approach and during the final approach segment I lose my glide slope (GS), can I continue the approach and fly localizer (LOC) minimums to Minimum Descent Altitude (MDA) ? Answer: YES This question was asked by my friend Josh who just wanted a sanity check prior to a checkride. The answer is simple, yes you can! However, in

"I have no clue what she just said" - IFR Student attempting to read back a clearance The Segments of an Approach The instrument approach procedure (IAP) is traditionally composed of three segments: Initial approach segment , which is from the initial approach fix (IAF) to the intermediate fix (IF). The purpose of the initial segment is to guide you to the final approach course (FAC), which gets you aligned with the runway (or at the very least to the final path to the runway

" Have a what ready ?" - Student pilot Although a stage check is an exam, my role as a stage check instructor is to make sure you connect the dots. As such, please communicate clearly with me - I am here to help you. Don't hesitate to ask questions or clarifications. A stage check should NOT be a surprise. NOTE : For all stage checks, I expect to see clear evidence of the following: Checklist usage Runway Incursion Awareness Aeronautical Decision Making Safety Culture & Risk

"How do I do this again?" - IR Pilot who hasn't flown IFR in years As a CFII, I am authorized to conduct Instrument Proficiency Checks...

"Skyhawk 7TW you are 5 miles from the FAF, turn left heading 130, maintain 2000 until established, cleared RNAV 10 approach" - ATC "Do Whaaaaaaaaa?" - Instrument Student STAGE 1 : Precision Flying & Basic Instrument Approaches Lesson 1: Introduction to Standard Rate and Basic RNAV GROUND (1.5) Precision Flying (new tolerances) Magnetic World RNAV World Flying the Attitude Indicator (right side of power curve) Standard Rate of Turn (rules of thumb: bank angle / timed turns

"Tower, be advised, student pilot solo" - Student Pilot on Solo Cross Country STAGE 1 : Introduction to Flight and High Altitude...

"I filed direct" - Everyone. Everywhere. All the time. Generating an IFR flight plan is part art and part logic. It is highly dependent on your geographical area (mountainous, coastal, etc.), and how far you are willing to travel to fly pre-checked routes vs. "direct". Here is what I teach my students. I recommend pilots plan their route on SkyVector.com . It's so simple, so quick to use, and is extremely user-friendly (trust me, I have a PhD in this stuff) for planning purpo

" You're an IFR pilot. Stop whining!" - Dr. Bill ^Yes, those are goats. What is this thing? An Obstacle Departure Procedures, abbreviated as " ODP ", is a prescribed route that allows pilots to depart an airport under IFR without risking colliding with obstacles. Because departures from an airplane could occur in multiple ways, it usually provides guidance for specific turns. For example, if there is an obstacle to the right of the departure end of the runway, the ODP might

"Ahhhhh $h1t" - ATC when IFR pilot doesn't close the flight plan on the ground Under IFR we have the luxury of having our IFR flight plan...

" I hate this " - student pilot tuning the heading bug instead of the course selector What is a VOR? A VOR, or " V ery High Frequency O mnidirectional R ange", is a ground-based navigational facility that emits radio frequencies to provide radial-based navigational guidance. Aircraft possess a VOR antenna (typically shaped like a "V" on a general aviation airplane's tail) to receive the radio signals. There are many different types: VOR, VOR/DME, VORTAC, etc. Each has a spec

“I’m on downwind” – Student; “Left or right? What runway??” – Other pilots Traffic pattern operations are necessary to ensure...

"Do not acknowledge further communications" - ATC "Roger" - IFR student There are some type of approaches that you just never do. And then there are those that you don't even see in training very often: they might be slowly dying (NDBs), or not available in your area (PARs and ASRs). We in the Savannah area are lucky to have both Hunter Army Airfield (KSVN) and Beaufort Marine Corps Air Station (KNBC MCAS) that can perform non-precision radar approaches. There is both a non-p