By Time Genc Flying is awesome. Flying an aircraft is one of the best feelings and one of the most unique accomplishments out there. It’s pretty special, so keep that in mind when I ask this next question… How much fun is it to have to fly for 40
By Chris Webb Editor’s Note: Ah, the elusive perfect landing. We have all been there, right? Nice stable approach, airspeed and altitude nailed, no wind and we are lined up with the numbers as precisely as can be. 50 feet, 20 feet, 10 feet, the swish. A small gust
By Rick Farmer It’s February and you just took off from an airport in northern Illinois. Cruising along at 7,500 feet, you start to feel a little nip in the air. You reach over to turn on the cabin heater and presto, both you and your passengers are nice
Every month at 3 of our locations— Morristown, New Jersey; Addison, Texas; and Pompano Beach, Florida—groups of students gather together to help each other become Certified Flight Instructors (CFI’s). We call this our very own CFI Academy. We offer a 15-day CFI-A Academy (only in Morristown) and 30-day combined
American Flyers’ academies are based upon group-centered learning. Each course is made up of a group of students that all have one major thing in common: their love for flying. Students are often taught together in the classroom, providing them with the opportunity of studying together and helping each
By Steven Daun, National Chief Pilot Airworthy… We hear the term every day in aviation, but what does it really mean to pilots? Who is responsible for determining if an aircraft is airworthy? How do we determine if an aircraft is airworthy? An aircraft that is “flyable” is not
By Steven Daun, National Chief Pilot There are 609,000 pilots in the United States. Of those, roughly 80% are “general aviation” pilots. The population of the United States is 327,000,000. When you do the math, you see that pilot’s makeup .19% of the U.S. Population. This means that pilots
By Steven Daun, National Chief Pilot Winter is here and with it comes significant variation in the weather. It is important to note that when we discuss “winter weather” we are not just speaking about it being cold outside. Winter weather encompasses many different topics. For this article, we
By Steven Daun, National Chief Pilot The majority of a pilot’s flight training is during daytime in VFR conditions. Instructors do this for several obvious reasons, which we aren’t going to discuss in this article. For most students, the excitement comes when they are getting close to doing their
Flying is a lifestyle, it’s a mindset. It’s not just your exciting hobby, it’s an exciting hobby that can be enjoyed together with a significant other and can be used to go to fun places. So many years ago, my dad bought all of us kids a snowmobile… and
Over our 80-year history, we have become known as the ‘Finish-Up Experts’. That’s not a surprise to us, as we have always, and will always continue to cater to the individual looking to complete their private, commercial or instructor license and/or instrument rating. What is a surprise is that
Every airplane checklist has a story. Sometimes the story tells the tale of a responsible pilot who double checks all of the boxes on their list, while other times the pilot has forgotten to check even the smallest detail before take off resulting in an unintentional accident. Each time
Sunglasses help defend a pilot’s most important sensory asset: vision. A quality pair of sunglasses is a basic necessity in the cockpit to enhance performance. In addition to reducing the impacts of unforgiving sunlight, sunglasses also decrease eye fatigue and provide protection for the ocular tissues from exposure to
By Mike Bliss When we first learned to drive, we were taught the importance of defensive driving. We learned how to develop the habit of anticipating situations before they happened and to be prepared to take action as we identified hazards in our path. These same skills are equally
By Ian Dasho As most pilots in airline academy and flight instructors who have completed a certified flight instructor course know, the airplane is not an ideal classroom. Fun but not ideal. Simulators can provide a practical learning environment, free of stress and distractions, which will allow student pilots
Building a new life together, Jonathan and Janette Mason, of McKinney, Texas, discovered that beyond their love for each other, they shared a passion for flight. Just months after tying the knot, Jonathan encouraged his bride to pursue her 15-year dream of becoming a pilot, then decided he’d like
By Tim Genc Recently, we had a former graduate send us a coupon he had found in a very old aviation publication. It advertised an hour-long airplane ride for $5. We had a good chuckle over the clipping and talked a little bit about aviation and the industry. As
In our history as American Flyers, we have been blessed to have many wonderful, long-term employees. From instructors, to operations staff, to mechanics, there are many people over the years that have contributed to the overall success and longevity of this company. I, myself, have had the pleasure of
By Tim Genc It is widely accepted that in theory – his iPhone was still on Spain-time, so we’re not exactly sure – Christopher Columbus sighted and landed in the Bahamas in mid-October, 1492. He navigated across the Atlantic and found an island he named San Salvador, thus marking
By Rick Farmer A question I have heard asked many times, by those who want to become a commercial pilot or private pilot or just like flying, is “how long will the battery last if the alternator fails?” Well, this question is very hard to give an accurate and
The development of GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) or GPS has upgraded the accuracy of the Airways around the world. The WAAS (Wide Area Augmentation System) was added to the GPS to further enhance the positional accuracy. Using an advanced FMS (Flight Management System), today’s airplanes are capable to fly
By Ian Dasho For many pilots, whether just starting out or completing a CFI academy, this time of year means that they are either preparing to go back to school or preparing others to go back to school. Either way, American Flyers knows that from mid-August to mid-September many