by Mike Busch | Feb 1, 2017 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
Comparing individual aircraft to others of their ilk. Last month, I described some interesting studies my colleagues and I have been doing with “big data” collected from digital engine monitors aboard more than 7,000 airplanes over more than a million flights. We...
by Joe Godfrey | Jan 19, 2017 | SavvyAnalysis Puzzlers
As we enter our 5th year of Savvy Analysis Pro, we have – as the guy on TV says – seen a thing or two in terms of the Savvy Test Profile. We decided it was time for an update, and I thought this month’s Puzzler would be an ideal time and place to...
by Mike Busch | Jan 1, 2017 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
Analyzing data from a million GA flights can yield interesting results. Pilots have long suspected that when it comes to headwinds and tailwinds, the deck is stacked against them. I think the late Bob Blodget, Senior Editor of FLYING Magazine, captured how most...
by Joe Godfrey | Dec 15, 2016 | SavvyAnalysis Puzzlers
Corroboration – evidence that supports a proposition that already has some supporting evidence – is an important component of engine data analysis. Corroboration can come from other data, or from the pilot who submits the analysis request. In analyzing the...
by Mike Busch | Dec 1, 2016 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
If a plane is listed for sale cheap, there’s always a reason. “Hey Mike, this is Danny in Louisiana,” read the email. Danny is one of my clients who used to own a Cirrus SR22 and now flies a Cessna 182 Katmai STOL conversion. “Would you look at this 1965 Cessna 310I...
by Joe Godfrey | Nov 15, 2016 | SavvyAnalysis Puzzlers
I’ll admit stealing the title from Stephen Jay Gould’s work on paleontology. I’m a big fan of his writing and he left us far too soon. So what’s the connection to engine data? It’s a stretch, and it’s not my area of study, but...
by Mike Busch | Nov 1, 2016 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
When the pilot of a round-the-world flight found himself AOG in Iceland with electrical issues, remote diagnosis saved the day. Ademilola “Lola” Odujinrin has a passion for aviation. He’s 37 years old, resides in Nigeria with his wife and two school-age children, and...
by Joe Godfrey | Oct 15, 2016 | SavvyAnalysis Puzzlers
Recently I was talking with fellow pilots about flight diversions – things that pop up in flight that would cause you to change your plans and make a precautionary landing. We covered the obvious examples like fire and engine failure, then added control failure,...
by Mike Busch | Oct 1, 2016 | AOPA Pilot Magazine, Magazine Articles
A&Ps are trained to find things wrong with your aircraft. But there’s a time and place for that, and it comes once a year. It was the week before AirVenture 2016. Normally, I would never perform any maintenance on my trusty Cessna 310 immediately before departing...
by Joe Godfrey | Sep 15, 2016 | SavvyAnalysis Puzzlers
Like millions of others, last week I saw Sully recently. If you’re a pilot, I don’t see how you avoid wondering what you would have done with a powerless airliner at 2800 feet and no good options. I’m not giving anything away to tell you that...
