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Top Stories
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Advocacy
The FAA has released the recommendations of its drone registration task force, moving the agency one step closer to establishing registration procedures ahead of anticipated record holiday sales of drones. Read more...
 
AOPA Live This Week
Dr. Claudius Klimt finds a new adventure in learning to fly a gyrocopter, and it's much different from flying an airplane. After a multiple sclerosis diagnosis ended Benjamin Parker's military career, he turned to general aviation to start over, but he had to battle the FAA to receive his medical certificate. And, just ahead of the holiday shopping rush, the FAA releases recommendations from the drone registration task force. Watch AOPA Live This Week®, Nov. 26...
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Technique and Safety
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Video
One of the challenges of flying is weather assessment. It's easy when the weather is great (or terrible), but what about those times when visibility is marginal at a couple of reporting stations or the ceiling is forecast to drop an hour after your arrival? In Weather Wise: VFR Flight Planning, the AOPA Air Safety Institute explores issues VFR pilots face and explains how to get a big-picture understanding of the weather. Watch the video...
Article
Find a remote island airport at night, land at Boston's Logan International Airport in a Cessna 172, fly the Hudson River VFR Corridor, encounter VFR flight into instrument conditions, and more in PilotWorkshops' new Real World VFR video program. The series of 10 recorded flights includes pre- and post-flight briefings. Read more...
Login required
It looks like a localizer approach, but an LDA approach has a twist at the end. Learn more when you tackle this unusual approach into Connecticut's Hartford-Brainard Airport. Do you have the skills to find the runway in instrument conditions? Take the quiz...
Pilot Protection Services
Does your obligation to see and avoid other aircraft trump any right-of-way priority you may have? The answer is a resounding yes. A pilot's obligation to see and avoid other aircraft at all times (with the exception being in actual instrument conditions on an IFR flight plan) is completely independent of any right-of-way claim. Read more...
Webinar
Join Lockheed Martin and AOPA Dec. 10 at 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time to learn more about advanced flight planning capabilities available at www.1800wxbrief.com. Lockheed Martin's Pilot Web, which provides direct access to weather briefing, flight planning, and flight plan filing information, is free to pilots. Lockheed Martin staff will be on hand to answer questions during the webinar. Register...
Blog
The notion that engines run on air is no more absurd than attempting flight with insufficient fuel in a tank connected to the engine, writes AOPA Air Safety Institute Senior Safety Advisor Bruce Landsberg. Read more...
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Advocacy
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Advocacy
The FAA has received investment approval for the first phase of its plan to decommission lesser-used VORs and has announced a list of the first 35 to be cut as part of a plan to create a minimum operational network that will serve as a backup to ensure aircraft can land safely in the event of a widespread satellite navigation outage. Read more...
Advocacy
Pilots may be missing important sounds, including cockpit warnings, when wearing noise-canceling headsets, the FAA warns. Read more...
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Health
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Video
The FAA has added kidney stones to the list of conditions that aviation medical examiners have the authority to review and issue medical certificates for without having to force pilots to go through the special issuance process. Learn more in this AOPA Live video...
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Technology
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Article
You're going to see a lot more futuristic, swept-blade propellers on King Airs next year. Hartzell, which already offers the curvy propeller blades on the King Air C90 and B200 series, will make them available for the King Air 350 next year. Read more...
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Opinion
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Blog
Most airplanes with turbocharged or normally aspirated engines achieve their best efficiency, and in many cases, their best speed, at the high end of the altitude spectrum, according to Opinion Leaders blogger Mike Busch. Read more...
Blog
Opinion Leaders blogger Rob Mark writes, "Finding young people to grab the reins from us old guys in aviation is a bit like the weather ... everyone talks about why we need to do something, but not everyone is clear about how to actually make that happen." Mark suggests that teaching young professionals how to network is a key first step. Read more...
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Gear
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AOPA Foundation focus
Watches for every kind of aviator and two pieces of unique aviation jewelry are available to the highest bidder in the AOPA Foundation's online auction. Only 750 AOPA 75th Anniversary Breitling Navitimers were created, with serial No. 1 reserved for this year's auction. Proceeds support the AOPA Air Safety Institute and other foundation initiatives, and all donations are tax-deductible. Read more...
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Travel
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Article
Staniel Cay Airport reopened Nov. 18, with a newly paved 3,000-foot-by-75-foot runway, according to the Bahamas Ministry of Transport and Aviation. Read more...
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Financial
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Article
Skipping a prepurchase inspection could be one of the most costly decisions you'll ever make when buying an aircraft. Read more...
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News and Notes
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Article
Four years after jumping into the high-end pilot headset market, Sennheiser is jumping out. The company announced pilot headset sales will cease in February, though product support will continue as the company focuses on other audio products. Read more...
Slideshow
A select group of NASA pilots fly the WB-57, a Cold War holdover that operates (strictly for science) much like the more famous U-2. Their pressure suits, in-flight menu, and many of the challenges are identical. NASA assembled its fleet for the first time in decades for a formation photo op, and AOPA got a firsthand look. Read more...
Article
Where2Ride, a free mobile app from SocialFlight, the maker of a popular aviation event app, presents motorcyclists with interactive maps of cycling events, destinations, and popular bike rides, the company announced Nov. 17. Read more...
Article
With 5 billion gallons of fuel saved, Joe Clark, who led the development of record-setting and fuel-saving winglets, was honored by his peers in November. Read more...
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Career Opportunities
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Aviation job board
If you are a self-starter, find reward in cultivating relationships, are skilled at communicating across all levels of an organization, and can synthesize data, join the city of Torrance as the airport business manager today! The successful candidate will have a property management background and strong supervision, accounting, and administrative skills to manage the operational activities at California's Torrance Airport. Read the full job description and apply today!
AOPA career opportunities
Ever dream of turning your passion for aviation into a career? AOPA is looking for a Southern regional manager, Western Pacific regional manager, major gift officer, and account executive.To learn more about other AOPA career opportunities, visit AOPA Online.
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Question of the Week
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Question
You're planning a night cross-country into Eastern Slopes Regional Airport. While reviewing all available information pertaining to your flight, you notice that the approaches into the airport have a snowflake symbol with -18°C/0°F beside it. What is the significance of this symbol?
Answer
The snowflake symbol on the instrument approach plate denotes a cold temperature restricted airport. The temperature beside the snowflake lets the pilot know that special procedures must be followed if the temperature is at or below what's indicated. The special procedures include altitude corrections and additional considerations when communicating with ATC. This procedure is explained in depth in the Notices to Airmen publication under Part 4, Section 1. Information about cold temperature restricted airports for 2015 is available online.
Got a question for our technical services staff? Contact AOPA. |
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Education and Seminars
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Flight Instructor Refresher Courses
Dec 5-6 - Denver, Colorado; Orlando, Florida; and Northbrook, Illinois
Jan 9-10 - Spokane, Washington; Charlotte, North Carolina; San Antonio, Texas; Santa Clara, California; and Ridgeland, Mississippi
Jan 16-17 - Portland, Oregon; Bellevue, Washington; and Elkridge, Maryland
Jan 23-24 - Rockford, Tennessee; Long Beach, California; and Ypsilanti, Michigan
For a complete schedule, see AOPA Online. Can't make it in person? Sign up for the Air Safety Institute's Online eFIRC.
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Air Safety Institute Safety Seminars
Jan 11 - Reno, Nevada; and The Woodlands, Texas
Jan 12 - Sacramento, California; and Houston, Texas
Jan 13 - Milpitas, California; and San Antonio, Texas
Jan 14 - Santa Rosa, California; and Austin, Texas
Topics vary—for details and a complete schedule, see AOPA Online.
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Rusty Pilot Seminars
Dec 3 - West Windsor, New Jersey
Dec 5 - Scottsdale, Arizona; and Winter Haven, Florida
Dec 12 - Stow, Massachusetts
Dec 16 - Lancaster, California
For a complete schedule, see AOPA Online.
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ePilot Editors:
Alyssa Miller
Jim Moore
David Tulis
Production Assistant:
Melissa Whitehouse
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Contributors:
Mike Collins
Sarah Deener
Dave Hirschman
Tom Horne
Alton K. Marsh
Warren Morningstar
Dan Namowitz
Jill W. Tallman
Elizabeth Tennyson
Ian J. Twombly
Julie Summers Walker
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