I am going to be out flying today, so if I see the culprit who did this, I'll be sure to let you know...
ent from the 1,100 that will graduate this year, the Air Force Times is reporting. The Times says there will be a slight bump in trainees in 2009 to about 1025, which is expected to remain constant for several years. The newspaper says the reduction is directly related to the decline in the number of aircraft and will be particularly felt in the fighter pilot ranks. "If the Air Force did not slow down pilot production, the service's fighter squadrons would be overwhelmed by first-assignment pilots who could not get adequate training because there wouldn't be enough jets or instructors," the newspaper reported.
You don't often think about the behind the scenes work that has to go on at the airports. This is a picture of the Lincoln Nebraska airport last tour when that big ice storm hit. Runways need to be kept clean since contaminated runways increase the takeoff and landing distance of the airplanes. Even though LNK's runway is 10,000 feet long, there's still a safety issue - don't want to go slipping and sliding at 100 miles per hour! The taxiways and ramp (where we were parked when this picture was taken) need to be clear as well. Just like in a car, the airplane can slide on the icy pavement. In fact, when starting an airplane on an ice covered ramp, caution must be used to prevent the thrust from the spooling up engine during start to overcome the set brakes! It has been known to happen...Quote of the day:
'There's a special place in Hell for women who don't help each other.'
Sterile Cockpit Rule From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
'The Sterile Cockpit' - from NASA ASRS
The Sterile Cockpit Rule is an FAA regulation requiring pilots to refrain from non-essential activities during critical phases of flight,[1] normally below 10,000 feet. The FAA imposed the rule in 1981 after reviewing a series of accidents that were caused by flight crews who were distracted from their flying duties by engaging in non-essential conversations and activities during critical parts of the flight.
Hi all, 
I have talked before about some of the nicer FBOs having snooze rooms and wide screen tvs. Free gourmet coffee, popcorn, cookies and wifi. Not here. The tv doesn't get any channels. There is a computer, but with virus alerts popping up. And the smell... whew. It does get humid down here.
AIR FORCE ASSOCATION
Lynda,
This week, I decided to send you a complete multimedia workshop rather than the standard "Tip of the Week". In this 17 minute workshop, Rod Machado offers some great tactics for flying non-precision approaches. You'll benefit from Rod's practical advice and enjoy his entertaining delivery. You can view the
workshop online using this link... http://www.pilotworkshops.com/public/344.cfm
Enjoy!
Mark Robidoux
PilotWorkshops.com
It was a very chilly -18 degrees C. It made the air freeze in your nose and throat. Can you imagine spending the entire winter here?
zest and determination really shines! She says even though there have been no professionals in her family thus far, she has learned about ambition from her parents. And an encouraging high school guidance counselor aided her search for careers and to find out more about opportunities in aviation.
, and ambition is what I have carried with me throughout my life. I would love to pass on my ambition to future female pilots out there; motivate and support them in any way possible. My future is based on goals, challenges, and the triumph of flight. My passion for flying has taken me this far and is continuing to take me even further, a place where the sky is the limit,”
As Brenda says, “Someday my name will be in a pilot’s certificate, someday my name will be on scholarship awards, and someday you will remember my passion and ambition and share it with those around you. Someday I will look down from my jet to those who looked down on me and I will make another girl out there look up to me. Someday.” You can email Brenda at bb_brenda1188@yahoo.com 
Last weekend I went to NASA Glenn Research Center and had the opportunity to teach over 100 Brownies how to fly!
Girls With Wings wants to stress that it supports your goals of flight training and additional ratings, and is a corporate member of Women in Aviation, Intl. We support the same mission!
Airplane Owners and Pilots Association (of which I am a member), has many resources for pilots online. For example: AOPA Air Safety Foundation Thunderstorm Avoidance Minicourse.Thanks for checking out the Girls With Wings blog.What if the worst happens and you find yourself in the belly of the beast? You can increase your chances of surviving a thunderstorm encounter by taking a few, simple steps. First, throttle back and slow down before getting into severe turbulence.
Aiming for maneuvering speed (Va) can help protect the airframe from being overstressed by the violent air currents of a thunderstorm, but don’t try to “chase” a particular airspeed. As the airspeed needle swings wildly, you’ll be doing well to hold the average of the swings somewhere near the published Va.
The second step is to make the airplane as aerodynamically “dirty” as possible without lowering the flaps (which usually reduces structural strength). In complex aircraft, extend the landing gear. The added drag reduces the potential for rapid acceleration and, in turn, the potential for loss of control, or excessive airframe loads.Finally, maintain a very loose straight-and-level flight attitude and forget about holding a particular heading, altitude or airspeed. Trying to exercise precise aircraft
control in a thunderstorm is both futile and counterproductive: It’s impossible, and it greatly increases the odds of damaging the airframe.
This message was posted by Laura Smith, a first officer with Southwest Airlines and a huge advocate for women in aviation. She additionally wrote:
According to NASA Oceanography at http://science.hq.nasa.gov/oceans/living/color.html, blue water in the Caribbean Sea looks blue because the sunlight is scattered by the water molecules. Near the Bahama Islands, the lighter aqua colors are shallow water where the sunlight is reflecting off of the sand and reefs near the surface.
What is "lat long" or latitude and longitude?
When looking at a map, latitude lines run horizontally. Latitude lines are also known as parallels since they are parallel and are an equal distant from each other. Each degree of latitude is approximately 69 miles (111 km) apart; there is a variation due to the fact that the earth is not a perfect sphere but an oblate ellipsoid (slightly egg-shaped). To remember latitude, imagine them as the horizontal rungs of a ladder ("ladder-tude"). Degrees latitude are numbered from 0° to 90° north and south. Zero degrees is the equator, the imaginary line which divides our planet into the northern and southern hemispheres. 90° north is the North Pole and 90° south is the South Pole.
The vertical longitude lines are also known as meridians. They converge at the poles and are widest at the equator (about 69 miles or 111 km apart). Zero degrees longitude is located at Greenwich, England (0°). The degrees continue 180° east and 180° west where they meet and form the International Date Line in the Pacific Ocean. Greenwich, the site of the British Royal Greenwich Observatory, was established as the site of the Prime Meridian by an international conference in 1884.
To precisely locate points on the earth's surface, degrees longitude and latitude have been divided into minutes (') and seconds ("). There are 60 minutes in each degree. Each minute is divided into 60 seconds. Seconds can be further divided into tenths, hundredths, or even thousandths. For example, the U.S. Capitol is located at 38°53'23"N , 77°00'27"W (38 degrees, 53 minutes, and 23 seconds north of the equator and 77 degrees, no minutes and 27 seconds west of the meridian passing through Greenwich, England).
Information from http://geography.about.com/cs/latitudelongitude/a/latlong.htm Map is from http://worldatlas.com/aatlas/imageg.htm
Also, Hawker Beechcraft is the company that makes the Beechjet, which is the airplane I fly.
In the movies, they always seem to swagger a bit. A hat cocked slightly to the side, shoes polished to a high shine. They move at a steady pace, never looking rushed, always relaxed and followed by a well dressed gaggle of flight attendants, all walking through a brightly lit, impeccably clean airline terminal somewhere. A hushed reverence silences the gate area when they show up, doling out a nod and a smile to the small children who point up at them, maybe a wink for the pretty girl stealing glances at them. And then as suddenly as they appeared, they are gone, disappearing down that long dark jet way. That was your flight crew, ladies and gentlemen, and that old stereotype, like Elvis, has just left the building....
Thank you to my local Ninety Nines, Lake Erie Chapter, for bestowing this title. This annual award recognizes the achievements of a member by honoring her as Woman Pilot of the Year. I am flattered, since I don't seem to make many of their meetings because of traveling for work, but they said since I work as a pilot, they'll let it slide...
Here is an airport in Maine we flew to last tour, just as the leaves started changing. What a beautiful day to fly!
We did see snow along the way.... Which means fall will soon be over! I thought I would include some interesting tidbits about the snow.
15 Things You Never Thought YouNeeded to Know About ... Snowby http://www.sixwise.com/
Get ready!
