Flying Reference Sites Flying Reference Sites I'm always on the lookout for book or web sites that take the complex government regulations, TERPS, weather programs and explains it in pilot talk, in a way that I can understand, and puts it in perspective of real world flying.
My objective is to move from being a technician (sure I can fly the procedure) to a artist. It's a continuing quest, isn't it? That's what makes it so fun.
You'll see a lot of articles by John Deakin, an X-airline pilot, passionate pilot, Bonanza driver, and a mad man for the facts. He writes for AvWeb and in my opinion, one of the best because of his never ending quest to get the real facts behind everything and bust the old wives tails. He even wrote his own bio (I guess that guarantees it will read like the legend he thinks he is ;)
I don't believe everything I read and hear and approach everything with a questioning attitude. If something makes sense, had credible data behind it, I tend to value that more than the "Old Wives Tail".
Below are a list of sites, that in my opinion, merit a read. If you have a site that you would recommend, drop me a line so I can read (and I'll put it here). As a low time IFR pilot, I'm always on the lookout for weather related and TERPS articles.
Chris Claborne, "WebMaster", "Moondogger", "Chaos"
SIAPs that just make sense. John Deakin, Avweb writer, take the
Standard Instrument Approach Procedure (SIAP), and not only makes sense of it
but puts it to real world tests and explains the method behind the seemingly
madness.
http://www.avweb.com/articles/pelperch/pelp0053.html
Sloppy, Sorry, VNAV. John Deakin explains the relatively new
VNAV entries on the Jepp charts, who uses them, and why maybe you shouldn't.
http://www.avweb.com/articles/pelperch/pelp0024.html
A followup to VNAV and loving CANPA.
http://www.avweb.com/articles/pelperch/pelp0025.html
Articles by Wally Robers, who in my opinion (and others that I respect) is an authority, are definitely worth a read. Check out his web site at terps.com. He not only makes sense out of the TERPS but talks talks first about the real world and then applies the TERPS. He also explains how some of this stuff is decided by the FAA which help further your real understanding.
GPS Approach Concepts.
http://www.terps.com/ifrr/jan97.pdf
Read all of Wally's articles published in IFR Refreshser.
They are worth it!
http://www.terps.com/ifrr/
A great place to go for all your TERPS needs, where else but terps.com
http://www.terps.com
IFR departures from non-towered airports... This article by Don
Brown, a ATC controller and writer for AvWeb, explains the whys
and wherefores about this seldom used procedure by us Southern Californians.
http://www.avweb.com/articles/sayagain/sa0010.html
USE A HANDHELD GPS - IFR
http://www.avweb.com/articles/pelperch/pelp0011.html
I've been looking for some good reference books and web sites on weather that talk in non-government terms and from a pilot's perspective. Here are a few.
Flying the Weather Map, by Richard L. Collins. (click to buy from Amazon.com)
This is one of the best books that I've come across. Richard L. Collins
does a great job of covering the basics of weather and what is really going on
in order to build on real useful knowledge. Once he completes that,
Richard takes you on 40+ actual flights where he talks about the briefing that
he got, what the weather is really like and what the NOOA maps showed after the
flight (since they always look at the past).
You learn more than just about weather. You learn about how to work with
FSS, what to ask, and why forecasts are sometimes so different than actual when
they shouldn't be. After reading this, I felt a lot more confident about
my IFR weather planning and flying and look at the weather with a whole new mind
set.
Go ahead, abuse your engine, by John Deakin. Wipe out a bunch of
"Old Wives Tails" and read this one.
http://www.avweb.com/articles/pelperch/pelp0008.html
Mixture Magic.
Completely demystify leaning and learn what's going on when you lean, how to
lean and cleans your mind of all the "Old Wives Tails" by seeing the
data and facts behind John Deakin's recommendations. One of the best all
around articles on this that I have seen.
http://www.avweb.com/articles/pelperch/pelp0018.html
Don't pull power on take-off, Rick Durden. Break this myth and
some others (according to Rick).
http://www.avweb.com/articles/lounge/tpl0030.html
Go ahead and run the tanks dry. John Deakin stomps out another
"Old Wives Tail"
http://www.avweb.com/articles/pelperch/pelp0007.html
Putting it all together. Combine all of Johns articles on how to
use all three levers in the cockpit.
http://www.avweb.com/articles/pelperch/pelp0019.html
Fire breathing turbos. John gives an in depth look at turbocharged
aircraft leaning, the science and what is going on behind the sceens. I
think there is a lot to learn here. Learn more about your engine in one
hour than a year in school.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Flying with one engine out. I like the common sense approach to
flying twins in this article
http://www.avweb.com/articles/pelperch/pelp0004.html
Optical
Illusions. This article describes one pilots lesson on night
optical illusions. This is required reading before your next night hop.
http://www.aopa.org/pilot/never_again/2002/na0204.html
