My first real aviation job was with the Miles Lab (now Bayer) corporate flight department. I probably had fewer than 500 hours of total flying time, and it was my big break – a chance to fly an aircraft that didn’t require walking on the wing to enter the cockpit. The chief pilot assigned me… Read more »
Many of us remember the destruction of Chicago’s Meigs Field in 2003, once the busiest single-strip airport in the United States. Former Chicago Mayor Richard Daley forced its abrupt closure and ordered the midnight bulldozing of the runway to repurpose it into a park, dealing a major blow to commercial air travel for the city.… Read more »
Winter weather has arrived in the Great Lakes region, and at Sweet Helicopters (Enstrom’s sister company in Fort Wayne), our Director of Operations Keith Shivers tells me we’ve already seen our fair share of HAA and VIP flight cancelations due to unexpected icing conditions. It should come as no surprise that helicopters are more susceptible… Read more »
I recently pulled out an old Sweet Helicopters T-shirt with our old slogan printed across the back. It read, “No runway, no problem!” I wore it proudly, especially around my airplane-obsessed friends who would talk trash about rotorcraft. Not even the biggest helicopter critic can question the exceptional maneuverability of helicopters, which allows us helicopter… Read more »
Whenever you transition from a rotorcraft-friendly airport to a more rural environment, you’re bound to experience a few growing pains. A good friend compared the initial presence of a new helicopter as a “bull in a China shop.” The biggest challenge? Managing rotor downwash. Rotor downwash is a byproduct of a rotor disc generating thrust.… Read more »
Even full-time pilots might find themselves baffled by the catch-22 of logging rotorcraft turbine time. In order to affordably acquire turbine time, you need to have logged hundreds of hours already. Last month at Rotors ‘n Ribs, an experienced pilot, who recently discovered his love for helicopters, asked me if I knew the secret to… Read more »
Moving a helicopter after it shuts down can be a cumbersome task, which a helicopter dolly can help simplify, turning it into a one-person job. I frequently utilize an old dolly the Indiana State Police left behind at Goshen Municipal more than 20 years ago. But just because a dolly or moveable platform is available… Read more »
This month saw Hoosier voters head to the polls for Indiana’s primary election season. With both parties’ candidates virtually locked in, we can expect the 2024 general election campaigns to shift into high gear, and with that, an increase in temporary flight restrictions (TFRs) across the campaign trail. You’ll remember, that in last month’s newsletter, we… Read more »
The 2024 Major League Baseball is here! Even if you’re not an avid fan of America’s pastime, if you plan to fly through a major U.S. city, you need to be aware of what are called Sporting Event Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs). There are actually eight types of TFRs within the National Airspace System, but… Read more »