General

Imagine flying in a world where every country had different rules. Pilots of international flights would have to mark each border they crossed by speaking to controllers in a different language or by being licensed by every government they come in contact with. In short, international aviation would be a lot harder than it is […]

Wilco is one of many unique phrases that people hear when listening to pilots speak over the radio. Shorthand expressions help aviators communicate more efficiently over two-way radios. So, what does ‘wilco’ mean and where does it come from?  TLDR – Wilco means “will comply.” It is a shorthand originally developed for two-way radio communication. […]

Air shows are intended to provide a fun time for the entire family. Unfortunately, disasters have occurred over the years. From minor injuries to major loss of life, air shows create safety risks for spectators and aviators. These are the worst air shows in the history of aviation. The early air shows of the 1920s […]

Pilots spend a lot of their time talking over two-way radios, which are fickle beasts on the best of days. They’re subject to interference and equipment issues. To make matters worse, pilots are often shouting over wind and engine noise. There are standard words and phrases used over the radio to make communication more straightforward. […]

Aircraft, just like cars or boats, need maintenance and may even break down occasionally. When they do, they need to be moved back to their base for maintenance. Since these flights are generally different from what the plane does typically, pilots and crews have different ways to refer to them.  What is a Ferry Flight? […]

There are more than a hundred different types of clouds. Luckily, they aren’t hard to learn because they are categorized in a very logical order. Once you learn a few basic definitions, you’ll be identifying every cloud in the sky with no problems. Clouds are classified based on their physical characteristics, and further on where […]

John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Baines Johnson were the first two Presidents to “share” Air Force One, albeit for reasons neither one of them would have wished.  After JFK’s assassination in Dallas on November 22nd, 1963, LBJ became the first President to be sworn in aboard an airplane. Here are a few further facts about […]

Shows like Airplane Repo make the business look exciting. Who wouldn’t want to be able to confront the rich and famous before flying off into the sunset, their private plane in tow? Of course, actual airplane repo jobs are a little more difficult than that. For one thing, there’s a lot more to it than […]

The attractive woman in the Panama hat strolling through her garden heard the unmistakable sound of the Stearman – Boeing – Model 75 biplane and looked up just in time to see the open cockpit crop duster careen past. She wondered aloud, “How low are those things supposed to fly?” Good question. The only correct […]

If you have a fascination with fighter jets, chances are you’ve always wanted to strap into some of the most dynamic aircraft in the world and take them for a whirl yourself. That’s probably not going to happen in real life. So why not take to the skies in video games? Here is a list […]