by Mike Busch | Dec 6, 2023 | Savvy Stories
Allen is the proud owner of a 1979 Grumman-American AA-5A “Cheetah” based northeast of Detroit, Michigan. On the morning of April 25, 2020, he was taking off from a 4,000-foot runway to fly home when his aircraft hit a bird and lost power. He was able to abort the...
by Mike Busch | Dec 1, 2023 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
Why is GA maintenance done on a T&M basis, which places all the risk on the aircraft owner and none on the shop? A successful surgeon put his Beechcraft Baron 58 in an Arkansas shop for a makeover. He wanted both engines overhauled, new paint and interior, and the...
by Mike Busch | Nov 23, 2023 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
That ubiquitous key-operated ignition switch is fraught with peril On July 26, 2018, private pilot Lanny Steven Kramer of Sarasota, Florida, and his wife Fran flew to the Cleveland Regional Jetport (RZR) in Cleveland, Tennessee to run some errands, after which they...
by Joe Godfrey | Nov 17, 2023 | SavvyAnalysis Puzzlers
It’s a logical question. You see something abnormal in the data and you wonder if your powerplant management triggered or provoked what happened. I’d say about a third of the tickets I work include some form of the question. Another popular question is...
by Joe Godfrey | Oct 15, 2023 | SavvyAnalysis Puzzlers
I never watched MacGyver. It’s not like I watched it once and thought it was junk and never went back. I just never watched it. It must’ve been on when I was busy doing something else. But I think it’s cool that his name has entered the...
by Mike Busch | Oct 1, 2023 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
My hapless blunder en route to Oshkosh triggered a series of incredibly fortuitous events. It was mid-July and my annual pilgrimage to AirVenture Oshkosh was rapidly approaching. I’d finished preparing PowerPoint for the 11 different presentations I would be making....
by Joe Godfrey | Sep 18, 2023 | SavvyAnalysis Puzzlers
When I taught in the classroom one of my favorite scenarios was teaching software. Typically I would introduce a concept, give examples of its application in the real world, and then show the students how to do it in the software. Inevitably, in a group of 25...
by Mike Busch | Sep 1, 2023 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
A maintenance-aware owner is the last line of defense against maintenance errors Corey owns a 1978 Bonanza A36 and is quite involved in its maintenance. He does his own oil changes and other preventive maintenance. He even bought his own borescope and uses it to keep...
by Joe Godfrey | Aug 11, 2023 | SavvyAnalysis Puzzlers
Years ago my wife got a set of books as a gift. It’s the series devoted to sweating the small stuff in life. I guess the gifter thought she needed help prioritizing. They’re on the bookshelf in her office still shrink wrapped – so much for sweating....
by Mike Busch | Aug 1, 2023 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
If you ask FAA lawyers what a regulation means, the answer might surprise you We’ve all studied the regs. If you’re a pilot, you’ve spent hours poring over Part 61 (pilot certification, ratings, currency) and Part 91 (operating rulese, owner responsibilities), both of...
