It’s been a year since the cospas-sarsat program stopped monitoring 121.5Mhz for distress signals. However, Transport Canada has provided a grace period for aircraft owners to move to the new 406Mhz ELTs. This means that potentially nobody is listening on 121.5Mhz for the ELT signal. The new system offers way more advantages to the old…
I spent the last two hours cleaning up my logbook and putting in missing entries. Let this be a lesson! Always update your logbook after every flight! I’ve updated the my hours on this site, on the left hand side. It’s nice to see that I’ve broken the 200 Hour mark. Shame I don’t have…
Here is a funny clip from the Rick Mercer Report (a show on CBC here in Canada) about the recent security changes for flights in to the USA. He also has an interesting (and funny) look at some of the behind the scenes at Vancouver International Airport.
The United States Coast Guard is going to terminate the LORAN-C service this February. The full service shutdown wont be complete until October of this year. Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security has certified that the Loran-C system infrastructure is not needed as a backup to the GPS system or to meet any other federal…
Here is a list of some Aviation related events that I have put in my calendar for this year. I doubt I will be able to get to them all. January 20 – Transport Canada System Safety Seminar – Raising the Bar May 29-30 – Wings and Wheels at Downsview July 26 – Oshkosh (anyone…
“…If the engine fails on take-off with insufficient runway remaining, I will trim the aircraft for best glide and try to land withing 30° of the runway centreline.” Ahh, the take-off briefing! This particular line is an important one. It’s not advisable to try to turn around after an engine failure on take-off. This video…
Picture this: Flying home with your family, on a King Air. You have flown single engine airplanes before, but nothing as complex as a turbocharged, retractable gear, multi engined aircraft like the King Air. You decide to travel in the co-pilots seat while the pilot of the aircraft takes off and flys you home. 10…
SIgmets are a way of letting pilots know of dangerous flying conditions in a particular area. The danger could be thunderstorms, hail, a tornado, or even a radio active cloud! They are issued by Environment Canada and is disseminated to pilots over the radio by Flight Service Stations and ATC. I’ve heard a sigmet broadcast…
I hope everyone has a good Holiday! Just a little something to get you in the mood.. The Song is called “Snoopy’s Christmas” by The Royal Guardsmen.
Pireps, or Pilot Reports, are a good way to disseminate timely and important information to other pilots and controllers. A Pirep is used by pilots to let other pilots know of conditions that may not have been forecast or expected. For example, a pilot of a 747 might report turbulence so that air planes behind…