I (along with my team members) have to do a quick presentation in my economics class. Our topic deals with airlines in the north and how they can stay in business.

Because the presentation only needs to be 10-15 minutes it doesn’t go into great detail.

In any case, feel free to view the pdf of the presentation if you like.

I have asked this question before, but I’m hoping that new visitors to the site can answer it.

Is there any good flight planning software out there?

AeroPlanner is great, if you fly in the USA. Is there an equivalent for Canada?

VFR planning for now but ideally the solution will also support IFR planning too.

The winds were still gusty when I arrived to the airport. I still, however, wanted to do the exam.

I went outside to get the plane ready. I had to pre-warm it using a portable heater. I suspected that the unit was out of fuel because it would not ignite. Regardless I decided to continue the walk around until another heater was available.

The first thing I checked was the fuel… Full Tanks? Damn! I needed half tanks to keep the plane in the Utility category to perform the necessary exercises for …

I have my flight test booked tomorrow for 9am. However I’m not sure if I’ll be going. Winds are forecast to be gusting to 25 knots at 7am (as far as the forecast goes). So lets hope that they die down in the following two hours.

I went on a flight the other day. It was a perfect winter day for flying. It was also the first time this year I had to get the plane de-iced. Headed up to the north to practice some exercises to keep sharp for my …

Iain Anderson came up with an idea to create a short film using the 50 official airport icons.

The tune is catchy and the short is only a few minutes long. Check it out at his website, funwithstuff.com.

Weather has been too crappy to complete the PPL exam. I’ve been pretty busy at work lately too, so I guess it worked out.

Interesting clip (the player only works in IE):

A KingAir decompresses at 20,000′ and the pilots are unable to use the oxygen supply to remain conscious. The airplane goes into a dive as the pilots are passed out. The report states that at 7000′ the pilots wake up and take the plane out of the dive and land it safely.

The resulting dive caused the wings to bend and …

Environment Canada has a snow squall warning in place for Barrie extending to Oshawa. As I look out my window right now I see clear blue skies. It’s amazing how 40 kms can make a huge difference when it comes to weather.

I’ve been keeping a close eye on the weather radar too:

The winds are also going to pick up as well and change direction such that the cross-wind component would be too nasty.

So, the exam has been rescheduled for Monday morning. I’m hoping I can get a flight in regardless …

The flight portion of my PPL exam is scheduled for Tomorrow morning.

Hopefully the weather will hold up. The Weather Network is showing a temperature of -11°C and “a few flurries” for the time of the flight.

I passed the ground portion of the test.

I decided against doing the flight portion because:

1. The TAF was showing 3SM visibility and Snow during the time of the test.

2. The upper winds were ~35KTs at 3000′

I’m not happy with my performance on the ground portion at all. However, all that matters is if you pass or fail, right?

I have the flight portion booked for Monday morning. Let’s hope the weather is good!