I had the pleasure of getting a one-on-one tour at the Toronto Area Control Centre from a blog reader last week. I had previously wrote about a group tour I had with one of my Seneca classes. Most of the information on that post is still relevant today. This time around I was able to…
NavCanada offers quite a bit of weather related services in addition to their regular air traffic control duties. One of the features that I’ve started using is called PATWAS or Pilot’s Automated Telephone Weather Answering Service. PATWAS allows you to get a “poor mans” weather briefing over the telephone by having an automated system read…
So I was looking through the latest version of the CFS (December 17th, 2009) and the Barrie-Orillia (Lake Simcoe Regional) airport identifier has changed. I popped on the airport’s website and they have confirmed it: Effective December 17, 2009, the Lake Simcoe Regional Airport’s ICAO Identifier will change to CYLS, replacing the current identifier, CNB9….
Pretty cool video from one of the guys that worked on the Ice Pilots show. Be sure to click on the “full screen” link. Ice Pilots NWT Time-Lapse from Reel Earth Productions on Vimeo.
I’m trying to find some resources on things to think, worry, know about when it comes to owning an airplane. Specifically I want to calculate the total cost of ownership when it comes to having an airplane. I know you’d have to factor in insurance, fuel, oil, and hangar space. However, are there formulas or…
While I was vacationing in Samoa, I hade the opportunity to take a quick flight from Savai’i to ‘Upolu on a Polynesian Airways twin otter. I arrived at Maota airport to find only two other people on my flight: A father and son who were on their way back to American Samoa via Apia (where…
Terrace Bay, Ontario used to have an airport. However in 2005 the city council voted to close the airport to save the community approx $40,000 a year. It’s a shame whenever an airport in Canada closes, especially for the people who work there. I came across the final METAR for CYTJ, it reads: CYTJ 242100Z…
Starting in December, NavCanada is changing the abbreviation used for the term “below”. Currently it is “BLO”, but the new one will be “BLW”. AIC 27/09 has the details: Beginning 17 December 2009, the Canada Flight Supplement (CFS) will print the abbreviation “BLW” for “below” in all text and charting instances. The abbreviation “BLO,” currently…
I’m back from vacation! I do have a vacation specific post to talk about, but in the mean time check this out. Ice Pilots NWT is a 13-episode real-life docu series about an unorthodox airline in the Canadian North. Yellowknife-based Buffalo Airways flies WWII-era propeller planes – big old aircraft built by “Rosie the Riveter”…
Here are some statistics I gathered from CADORs regarding airplanes getting hit by lasers (for 2009): May: 7 June: 4 July: 7 August: 26 September: 18 One particular report I read noted that the copilot was injured by the laser: From CADORS 2009O1962: UPDATE Supplemental information received from Canadian Helicopters Ltd. [2009/09/09]: The operator voluntarily…