Meg Godlewski

3 days ago | flyingmag.com | Meg Godlewski

Question: What does the term “demonstrated crosswind component” mean? I just started flight training, and the flight school aircraft have placards that read “maximum demonstrated crosswind velocity 15 knots.” Does that mean I can’t fly when the winds are above 15 knots? Answer: The demonstrated crosswind component is the maximum velocity of the crosswind component that was experienced during the certification tests, and the pilots were still able to maintain adequate control of the aircraft.

3 days ago | flyingmag.com | Meg Godlewski

Inadequate training, guidance, and oversight on the part of the Boeing Company are to blame for the loss of the door plug from an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 in January 2024. On Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) held a lengthy hearing to discuss the investigation into the event. The FAA was also cited for ineffective oversight of Boeing’s known recordkeeping issues.

4 days ago | flyingmag.com | Meg Godlewski

The private pilot was well into earning his instrument rating. Every training flight consists of multiple approaches that terminate in a missed approach, followed by the return to the home airport for a full-stop landing. His flight planning skills were good, his scan was spot-on, and his radio skills were improving with each flight. Unfortunately, his landings had become a bit rough. Too fast. Not on centerline. They were passable, but not the level of precision on which he prided himself.

1 week ago | flyingmag.com | Meg Godlewski

The National Transportation Safety Board has released the preliminary report on the pre-dawn crash of a Cessna Citation S550 in San Diego last month, killing all five people on board and setting a military neighborhood ablaze. The privately owned jet was at the end of an all-night flight that began on the East Coast around midnight local time. The pilot of the jet was the aircraft owner.

1 week ago | flyingmag.com | Meg Godlewski

When it comes to curbing poaching activity in South Africa, one of the most useful tools is a small general aviation airplane. Leaders at Atlanta-based Elephants, Rhino & People (ERP.ngo) can tell you all about it next month at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The organization will be at the show for the first time, and to celebrate, it has launched a campaign to fund its second airplane, a CubCrafters NX Cub to be used for anti-poaching and herd monitoring flights in South Africa.