Ready For Takeoff - Turn Your Aviation Passion Into A Career
613 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 month ago - ★★★★★ - 136 ratingsThe Ready For Takeoff podcast will help you transform your aviation passion into an aviation career. Every week we bring you instruction and inspiring interviews with top aviators in their field who reveal their flight path to an exciting career in the skies.
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Episodes
RFT 311: Takeoff Alternate
July 25, 2019 06:01 - 5 minutes - 9.14 MBOperations Specifications (OPSPECS) are the specifications that the FAA assigns to airlines for such things as authorized routes, types of equipment, VFR and IFR operations, and alternate requirements. OPS Spec C055 discusses the requirement for alternate airports. From https://blog.airployment.com/common-121-takeoff-minimums-and-takeoff-alternate-questions/: One area that is sometimes difficult for new Part 121 pilots to comprehend is the exclusivity of takeoff minimums from landing...
RFT 309: UAL Flight 232
July 18, 2019 17:45 - 10 minutes - 15.5 MBUnited Airlines Flight 232 was a regularly scheduled United Airlines flight from Denver to Chicago, continuing to Philadelphia. On July 19, 1989, the DC-10 (registered as N1819U) serving the flight crash-landed at Sioux City, Iowa, after suffering a catastrophic failure of its tail-mounted engine, which led to the loss of many flight controls. At the time, the aircraft was en route from Stapleton International Airport to O'Hare International Airport. Of the 296 passengers and crew on board, ...
RFT 308: Military/Airline Pilot Tiffany Behr
July 15, 2019 06:01 - 28 minutes - 39.8 MBTiffany Behr comes from a long line of military aviators, and was introduced to flying at an early age when she want flying with her father. She attended Kansas University and then entered Air Force Undergraduate Pilot training at Laughlin Air Force Base in Del Rio, Texas. Her initial flying assignment was to C-130s, where she deployed on combat missions in Afghanistan. Her next flying assignment was in the RC-135, OC-135 and WC-135. Following that, she was selected to fly Presidential S...
RFT 307: Tailstrikes
July 11, 2019 06:01 - 10 minutes - 14.7 MBA tail strike can occur during either takeoff or landing. Many air carrier aircraft have tail skids to absorb energy from a tailstrike. On some aircraft, the tail skid is a small bump on the aft underside of the airplane, while on others it is a retractable skid that extends and retracts with the landing gear. Most tail strikes are the result of pilot error, and in general, landing tail strikes cause more damage than takeoff tail strikes. In 1978, Japan Airlines flight 115 experienced a ...
RFT 306: Combat Flight Nurse Nikki Selby
July 08, 2019 06:01 - 20 minutes - 29.2 MBLt. Commander Dominique (Nikki) Selby was a Critical Care, Trauma and Enroute Care Nurse for the US Navy. She deployed to various regions to include Haiti, Afghanistan and various countries in the Middle East as an in-flight critical care nurse, ICU, trauma and Fleet Surgical Team nurse operating in austere conditions (Role II and Role III facilities). She is currently a Course Coordinator for the Advanced Trauma Course for Nurses and a Training Site Facilitator for ACLS, and teaches classes...
RFT 305: Hypoxia
July 04, 2019 06:57 - 14 minutes - 20.8 MBThere are four types of Hypoxia: Hypoxia means “reduced oxygen” or “not enough oxygen.” Although any tissue will die if deprived of oxygen long enough, the greatest concern regarding hypoxia during flight is lack of oxygen to the brain, since it is particularly vulnerable to oxygen deprivation. Any reduction in mental function while flying can result in life-threatening errors. Hypoxia can be caused by several factors, including an insufficient supply of oxygen, inadequate transportation ...
RFT 304: F-18 Pilot/CEO Morri Leland
July 01, 2019 06:01 - 33 minutes - 47.3 MBMorri Leland is the Chief Executive Officer of Patriot Mobile. He assumed the role of CEO in 2017. As CEO, Morri is focused on helping conservative consumers and businesses throughout the United States protect and defend their rights and liberty and ensure these freedoms remain for generations to come. For more than 30 years, Morri has led global teams to excel and exceed growth expectations. Prior to joining Patriot Mobile, he served as Deputy Vice President for International Busine...
RFT 303: Postflight Debriefing
June 27, 2019 18:28 - 7 minutes - 11.5 MBFrom AVweb: Pull the mixture or condition lever and the propeller comes to a stop. Turn off the switches and what had been saturated with noise and vibration becomes still and quiet. After removing your headset and while sitting in the momentary silence that follows a flight, perhaps you’ll hear the engine ticking as heat dissipates. It’s time to pack up and leave the cockpit: Your work is done, right? No, not quite. To get the full benefit of the experience you just had, to learn from eve...
RFT 302: NASA/Airline Pilot Craig O'Mara
June 24, 2019 05:04 - 35 minutes - 49.9 MBCraig O'Mara didn't start out intending to be a pilot. He was a bird-watcher, and became more interested in flight as he watched the birds, and started flying as a teenager. He soloed as a 16-year old, and received his Private Pilot certificate on his 17th birthday. In 1979 he joined the Air Force Reserves as a C-9 pilot, flying air ambulance missions all over the United States, as well as overseas. He flew the C-9 for a total of 20 years. In 1985 he was hired by United Airlines, and ser...
RFT 301: Preflight Briefing
June 20, 2019 17:44 - 10 minutes - 15.5 MBYour preflight briefing will depend on what type of flight you are planning - a training flight briefing will be quite different than an airline brief. But there are some factors that will be common to all flights: Mission Objective Weather NOTAMS Aircraft Performance Aircraft Maintenance Status Route of Flight Fuel Takeoff Briefing (PF) Departure/Arrival Airports Rejected Takeoff Automation Crew Member Duties/Expectations Arrival/Approach/Missed Approach Risks ...
RFT 300: Air Force/Airline Pilot George Nolly
June 17, 2019 06:01 - 1 hour - 84.2 MBSpecial thanks to Shreenand Sadhale for suggesting this episode! Cliff Notes version of my career: Air Force Academy Undergraduate Pilot Training O-2A Forward Air Controller, Danang, Vietnam B-52 copilot, Mather Air Force Base F-4 Aircraft Commander, Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base F-4 Aircraft Commander, Kadena Air Base, Okinawa T-39 Aircraft Commander/Instructor Pilot, Kadeena Air Base, Okinawa O-2A Instructor Pilot, Patrick Air Force Base, Florida B727 Flight Operations...
RFT 299: Get Out Of Jail FREE
June 13, 2019 06:01 - 8 minutes - 12.8 MBFAR 91.25 refers to the NASA Aviation Safety Reporting Program, and Advisory Circular AC 00-46E Explains the program. AOPA has an excellent article about the program. The Aviation Safety Reporting System, or ASRS, is the US Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) voluntary confidential reporting system that allows pilots and other aircraft crew members to confidentially report near misses and close calls in the interest of improving air safety. The ASRS collects, analyzes, and responds t...
RFT 298: B-2/Airline Pilot Keith Reeves
June 10, 2019 06:01 - 38 minutes - 54.5 MBKeith Reeves wanted to be a pilot ever since he was a child, living on base at Kadena Air Base, Japan, and hearing the local F-4s and SR-71s taking off. When the family relocated to Selfridge Air Force Base he got the chance to get close to airplanes. A friend on base took him up for a flight in a General Aviation plane, and he was hooked. He attended the United States Air Force Academy, and flew with the Academy aero club. Before Undergraduate Pilot Training, he served as an engineer at...
RFT 297: D Day 1944
June 06, 2019 06:01 - 6 minutes - 10.4 MBOperation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings (Operation Neptune, commonly known as D-Day). A 1,200-plane airborne assault preceded an amphibious assault involving more than 5,000 vessels. Nearly 160,000 troops crossed the English Channel on 6 June, and more than two million Allied troops were ...
RFT 296: Marine C-130 Pilot Angel Smith
June 03, 2019 06:01 - 14 minutes - 20.8 MBAngel Smith started out in the Marines as an enlisted aviation radio repairman and then separated to go to college. Once out, she encountered a Marine recruiter who was trying to sign up women pilots, so she took the flight test and was hooked. After she received her undergraduate degree (she now has a masters degree and is now finishing up her doctorate) she attended Marine Officer School, then went to pilot training at Pensacola for her first flight at the controls of an airplane. She ...
RFT 295: Laws of Learning
May 30, 2019 23:27 - 9 minutes - 13.7 MBReadiness The basic needs of the learner must be satisfied before he or she is ready or capable of learning (see Chapter 1, Human Behavior). The instructor can do little to motivate the learner if these needs have not been met. This means the learner must want to learn the task being presented and must possess the requisite knowledge and skill. In SBT, the instructor attempts to make the task as meaningful as possible and to keep it within the learner’s capabilities. Students best a...
RFT 294: Memorial Day
May 27, 2019 19:11 - 13 minutes - 20.1 MBMemorial Day endures as a holiday which most businesses observe because it marks the unofficial beginning of summer. The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) advocated returning to the original date, although the significance of the date is tenuous. The VFW stated in 2002: In 2000, Congress passed the National Moment of Remembrance Act, asking people to stop and remember at 3:00 PM. On Memorial Day, the flag of the United States is raised bri...
RFT 293: The Flight Review
May 23, 2019 05:06 - 6 minutes - 10.1 MBThe document that specifies the requirements of a Flight Review is AC 61-98B. From 61-98B: Under § 61.56(c) no person may act as PIC of an aircraft unless within the preceding 24 calendar-months that person has accomplished a satisfactory flight review in an aircraft for which that pilot is appropriately rated. An appropriately-rated instructor or other designated person must conduct the flight review. The purpose of the flight review is to provide for a regular evaluation of pilot skills...
RFT 292: Rescue Flight Engineer/Martial Artist Gregory Poole
May 20, 2019 05:34 - 25 minutes - 36.2 MBGregory Poole is a former Coast Guard flight engineer, based in Southern California. When he was a teenager, he saw a poster of a military helicopter, and that was his inspiration to enlist. His training was in North Carolina, learning avionics, electrical, mechanical and rescue. He cross-trained in numerous fields. As an early flight engineer, he performed a rescue at the bottom of a cliff where a car had gone off the road, and he had to conduct the rescue with the rotor blades inches f...
RFT 291: Off To Tinseltown!
May 16, 2019 14:51 - 10 minutes - 16 MBIn May of last year I was accepted into the Writers Guild Foundation Veterans Writing Project. The program accepts 50 veterans each year (I was turned down the previous year) and holds a 3-day Retreat to launch the year's activities. We were divided into groups of about 8 veterans and paired with working screen writing professionals to brainstorm our topics and refine our writing process. Then we were mentored throughout the year by more professional writers, with meetings twice each mont...
RFT 290: Aeromedical Evacuation/Airline Pilot Tom Cappelletti
May 13, 2019 06:01 - 17 minutes - 25.2 MBTom Cappelletti wanted to be a pilot ever since he was a child, but his first Air Force assignment was as an engineer. Yom spent three years at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base as a Test Program Manager before getting an assignment to Undergraduate Pilot Training in the Reserves. After earning his wings, Tom flew the C-9 aeromedical evacuation aircraft, flying patients and their families to medical facilities all over the united States. He has landed virtually everywhere that has 5000 feet ...
RFT 289: Normalization of Deviance
May 09, 2019 06:01 - 5 minutes - 8.82 MBFrom NCBI: Normalization of deviance is a term first coined by sociologist Diane Vaughan when reviewing the Challenger disaster. Vaughan noted that the root cause of the Challenger disaster was related to the repeated choice of NASA officials to fly the space shuttle despite a dangerous design flaw with the O-rings. Vaughan describes this phenomenon as occurring when people within an organization become so insensitive to deviant practice that it no longer feels wrong. Insensitivity occurs ...
RFT 287: Atmospheric Stability
May 02, 2019 06:01 - 7 minutes - 11.5 MBFrom the Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge: The stability of the atmosphere depends on its ability to resist vertical motion. A stable atmosphere makes vertical movement difficult, and small vertical disturbances dampen out and disappear. In an unstable atmosphere, small vertical air movements tend to become larger, resulting in turbulent airflow and convective activity. Instability can lead to significant turbulence, extensive vertical clouds, and severe weather. Rising ai...
RFT 286: Airshow Pilot Patrick McAlee
April 29, 2019 06:01 - 32 minutes - 45.5 MBPatrick McAlee is a dedicated and highly-skilled, aerobatic pilot who mixes his intense personality with his hardcore passion to produce a unique and entertaining product unlike any other. During his routine, Patrick executes his maneuvers to a choreographed music playlist all while practicing precision, professionalism and safety. Since its first inception, Pat’s dream has led him to fly shows all across the nation. He has logged over 1,000 aerobatic hours and over 10,000 hours in over thir...
RFT 283: Flying A Manual ILS
April 26, 2019 01:38 - 7 minutes - 11.1 MBIn this age of flight directors, flight management computers and autopilots, it's easy to get into the mode of letting the automation do all the work. And that's good if it enhances safety. But it's really important to keep your basic stick-and-rudder skills current, and that includes flying an ILS approach without any of the bells and whistles. So let's discuss a hand-flown ILS flown WITHOUT a flight director or autopilot. The key to successfully, easily flying a manual ILS is prepara...
RFT 284: Navy SEAL/Cropduster Mike Rutledge
April 22, 2019 06:01 - 36 minutes - 51 MBFrom the Fighter Sweep website: Michael Rutledge is a 30 active duty year veteran with almost 12 years enlisted including a 3-year assignment as a Helicopter Rescue Swimmer, followed by 8 years as a Navy SEAL. While at SEAL Team One, he served as an M-60 gunner, Air Operations Specialist, Advanced Training Instructor and Platoon Leading Petty Officer. In 2002, Mike transferred to the U.S. Army to become a Warrant Officer Aviator. Upon graduation from flight school, he was directly assigned ...
RFT 283: The Last Goblet
April 18, 2019 06:01 - 7 minutes - 11.8 MBThe Doolittle Raid, also known as the Tokyo Raid, on Saturday, April 18, 1942, was an air raid by the United States on the Japanese capital Tokyo and other places on the island of Honshu during World War II, the first air operation to strike the Japanese Home Islands. It demonstrated that the Japanese mainland was vulnerable to American air attack, served as retaliation for the attack on Pearl Harbor, and provided an important boost to American morale. The raid was planned and led by Lieuten...
RFT 282: Marine Helo Pilot Steve Mount
April 15, 2019 06:01 - 43 minutes - 60.7 MBFrom Communities Digital News: There are those who take uncertain steps on IED-ridden battlefields, take to contested waterways, and fly unguarded skies as dangerous threats lurk below. Protecting freedom is how over a million active-duty military men and women support their families. These Brothers in Arms fight and die, for each other, and for those who can’t fight for themselves. Since the Global War on Terror began on September 11, 2001, America’s warriors have faced evil on a hei...
RFT 281: No Flap Takeoff
April 11, 2019 06:01 - 6 minutes - 10.4 MBThere have been numerous air carrier accidents in which the crew attempted takeoff without the leading and trailing edge flaps extended to the takeoff position. Unlike many general aviation airplanes, large turbojet aircraft require high-lift devices (leading and trailing edge flaps and slats) for the airplane to safely get airborne. In some of these accidents, the Takeoff Warning System (TOWS) was intentionally disabled, preventing the crew from receiving a warning of incorrect airplane con...
RFT 280: Marine Major/Author Scott Huesing
April 08, 2019 06:01 - 20 minutes - 29.1 MBScott A. Huesing is a proven combat leader. He is a retired United States Marine Corps Infantry Major with 24 years of honorable service, both enlisted and as a commissioned officer. His career spanned 10 deployments to over 60 countries worldwide. Throughout his numerous deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Horn of Africa he planned, led, and conducted hundreds of combat missions under some of the most austere and challenging conditions. Scott is a published author since 2005. His bes...
RFT 279: The Uberlingen Crash
April 04, 2019 06:01 - 3 minutes - 5.89 MBFrom Wikipedia On the night of 1 July 2002, Bashkirian Airlines Flight 2937, a Tupolev Tu-154 passenger jet, and DHL Flight 611, a Boeing 757 cargo jet, collided in mid-air over Überlingen, a southern German town on Lake Constance. All 69 passengers and crew aboard the Tupolev and the two crew members of the Boeing were killed. The official investigation by the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (German: Bundesstelle für Flugunfalluntersuchung, (BFU)) identified as...
RFT 287: Atmospheric Stability
April 04, 2019 06:00 - 7 minutes - 11.5 MBFrom the Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge: The stability of the atmosphere depends on its ability to resist vertical motion. A stable atmosphere makes vertical movement difficult, and small vertical disturbances dampen out and disappear. In an unstable atmosphere, small vertical air movements tend to become larger, resulting in turbulent airflow and convective activity. Instability can lead to significant turbulence, extensive vertical clouds, and severe weather. Rising ai...
RFT 278: Air Traffic Controller Gabriel Staschill
April 01, 2019 06:01 - 29 minutes - 41.7 MBGabriel Staschill is an ATC controller in Germany, and he shares insights into the similarities, and differences, between air traffic controllers and pilots.
RFT 277: EGPWS
March 28, 2019 06:01 - 7 minutes - 10.7 MBFrom Wikipedia: In the late 1960s, a series of controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) accidents took the lives of hundreds of people. A CFIT accident is one where a properly functioning airplane under the control of a fully qualified and certified crew is flown into terrain, water or obstacles with no apparent awareness on the part of the crew. Beginning in the early 1970s, a number of studies examined the occurrence of CFIT accidents. Findings from these studies indicated that many such ...
RFT 276: French Navy Pilot Pierre-Henri Chuet
March 25, 2019 06:01 - 31 minutes - 44.7 MBPierre-Henri (nick name Até) is a dual Canadian and French citizen. Até grew up on RAF Linton-On-Ouse with an exchange instructor father on the RAF Jet Provost. After being Europe’s youngest pilot at 15 in 2001 and flying in the French national Precision Flying team for the 2006 World Championships, he joined the French Navy to fly jets. After 26 months as an exchange Officer in the US NAVY he graduated as a Naval Aviator and flew Super-Etendard from the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle...
RFT 275: WAI Recap With Jennifer Aupke
March 21, 2019 06:01 - 10 minutes - 15.1 MBThe Women In Aviation conference was held in Long Beach from 14-16 March 2019. Our previous guest, Jennifer Aupke, attended and is providing an exciting recap of the event, including her meeting with notable aviation luminaries. WAI Membership is open to women and men from all segments of the aviation industry, and all members may participate in their numerous scholarships. For more membership information, visit the WAI website.
RFT 274: Combat Rescue Pilot Jennifer Aupke
March 18, 2019 06:01 - 29 minutes - 40.8 MBExperienced Combat Rescue Instructor Pilot 👣 with a demonstrated history building teams and innovating for military officer training and combat planning and operations. Experienced in planning, programming, budget and execution operations at multiple levels as well as requirements management and operational test and evaluations. 340 combat hours and 76 saves. Motivational speaker, blogger, and change agent. Previously served as executive officer to MAJCOM leadership (Four and Two star gene...
RFT 273: Chief Pilot Deborah Hecker
March 13, 2019 06:01 - 31 minutes - 44.3 MBDeborah Hecker originally had no intention of becoming a pilot. She graduated college with a degree in International Relations with the intention of becoming an attorney, went backpacking through the Middle East, and returned to study for her LSAT (Law School Admissions Test). On her birthday, a friend gave her a present of an airplane introductory flight, and she was hooked. She bought a used Cessna 172 and pursued her ratings. She built up her time and got her first flying job flying aut...
RFT: Airline Pilot/Martial Artist Valerie Walker
March 07, 2019 07:01 - 33 minutes - 47.1 MBAdapted from Aero Crew News Captain Valerie Walker started her aviation career in unconventional, adventurous ways full of interesting challenges. She was a flight instructor, police aerial patrol pilot in fixed wing and helicopters, DC-3 bush-pilot in Botswana, South Africa, Flight Test Pilot for Plane & Pilot and Air Progress magazines, plus various freelance aviation jobs. She was hired into Western Airlines’ first class to include a female airline pilot and many years later retired fro...
RFT 270: F-111/O-2A Pilot B/Gen Rico Aponte
March 04, 2019 07:01 - 18 minutes - 26.2 MBFrom Wikipedia: Aponte was raised and educated in San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico. After receiving his primary and secondary education, he enrolled in the University of Puerto Rico and joined the campus ROTC program. On December 29, 1972, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. Aponte was assigned to Moody Air Force Base in the state of Georgia and completed his pilot training in August 1974...
RFT 269: NAT Changes
February 28, 2019 07:01 - 4 minutes - 7.53 MBFrom Ops Group Starting 28th March 2019, a new trial will be implemented on the NAT called ASEPS (Advanced Surveillance Enhanced Procedural Separation) using ADS-B in the Shanwick, Gander and Santa Maria FIRs. Compliant aircraft will see a reduction in longitudinal separation to as close as 14 NM. This is not restricted to particular tracks or altitudes, just between properly equipped aircraft – you’ll need RVSM/HLA approval, ADS-B, and to be fully PBCS compliant (that means meeting the...
RFT 268: F-14 Pilot/Keynote Speaker John Ramstead
February 25, 2019 07:01 - 48 minutes - 66.9 MBFrom John Ramstead's webpage: John started out his career as a Navy F-14 pilot and flew combat during Desert Storm. Following his Navy career, he became a successful startup entrepreneur and then joined the management team of a Fortune 100 company. Four years ago he had a near fatal accident that put him under hospital care for two years and required 23 surgeries. This taught him what is truly important and how to move from success to significance. Today he is the founder of Beyond I...
RFT 267: Airline Pilot Beth Powell
February 21, 2019 17:13 - 18 minutes - 26.7 MBBeth Powell was recently featured in Essence magazine as one of the few female African-American airline pilots operating in the United States. Beth's interest in flying began when she was 15 years old and took an introductory airplane flight in her home country of Jamaica. She was immediately hooked, and started taking flying lessons when she was 16. She soloed at 16 and received her Private Pilot certificate when she was 17. To pay for her CFI lessons Beth worked three jobs, and finall...
RFT 266: Military/Airline Pilot Jason Harris
February 18, 2019 07:01 - 34 minutes - 47.1 MBJason Harris attended the Air Force Academy, planning to be an attorney. Instead, after meeting original Tuskegee Airmen, he became interested in flying. He participated in the glider program, as well as free-fall skydiving five times. After graduation he attended Undergaduate Pilot training and then flew the C-130, flying four combat deployments in the Middle East. After his C-130 assignment, he flew special operators in Cessna Caravans on classified missions, often landing on unimproved ...
RFT 265: Terrain Escape Profile
February 15, 2019 16:38 - 6 minutes - 10.2 MBFrom Skybrary In commercial operations, it is highly desirable that the most direct route between two airports be flown whenever possible. Where that route involves the overflight of extensive areas of high terrain, it is critical that escape routes and procedures be developed and used in the event that an emergency requires that the aircraft must descend to an altitude that is below the Minimum Obstacle Clearance Altitude (MOCA) (MOCA). In many parts of the world, aircraft are routinel...
RFT 264: Aerobatic Champion Gerry Molidor
February 11, 2019 07:01 - 30 minutes - 43.5 MBFrom the Phillips 66 website: As a 39-year veteran for a major Chicago airline and Line Check Captain on the globally flying B-777, it is no wonder Gerry has over 30,000 hours of flying time. Being a Certified Flight Instructor, former three-time US Advanced Aerobatic Champion and Captain of the Gold Medal Winning 1997 US Advanced Aerobatic Team, it only makes sense that Gerry serves as President Emeritus and current director at the International Aerobatic Club. Gerry is type rated on the L...
RFT 263: Black History Month Pilot Recap
February 07, 2019 07:01 - 7 minutes - 11.8 MBHere are some of the incredible black aviators we've met on this podcast: RFT 015 Brenda Robinson - Brenda was the first female African-American to earn gold wings as a navy aviator. RFT 017 Donnie Cochran - Captain Cochran was not only the first black member of the Blue Angels naval aerial demonstration team, he later returned as the team's commander. RFT 045 Dick Toliver - Colonel Toliver was the first African-American to graduate from the Air Force Fighter Weapons School. RFT 068...
RFT 262: Scholarship Winner Megan Gerding
February 04, 2019 07:01 - 14 minutes - 20.5 MBMegan credits her life’s passion to one day: July 3, 2015. That’s the first day she took an introductory flight at Sporty’s Academy (flyGIRL’s partner in crime for the scholarship program). Before that day, she was, like many young people, unsure about what she wanted to do with her life. “I remember walking away from the airport thinking, ‘everything just changed; I want to be a pilot.’” When she first heard about the flyGIRL opportunity, Megan had already earned her Private Pilot’s Lice...
RFT 261: No Useless Information
January 31, 2019 07:01 - 5 minutes - 8.75 MBWhen it comes to aviation, there is no such thing as useless information. If you've read this story on my author website, you will read how seemingly useless information saved my life 50 years ago. A recent episode of Air Disasters highlighted the crash of Atlantic Airways Flight 670. In that accident, the BAE-146 aircraft was attempting to land with a slight tailwind on a short damp runway which had a major drop-off at each end. The airplane was unable to stop, and went off the end of...
RFT 260: Pilot/Author Ric Hunter
January 28, 2019 07:01 - 36 minutes - 51.2 MBFrom Ric's Website: Ric Hunter is a 27-year combat veteran of the Air Force; he retired as a colonel. He has 4000 flight hours in high-performance aircraft including the F-4 Phantom and F-15C Eagle. He commanded an Eagle squadron and was a 3-time Top Gun. After active duty service, Ric became a freelance writer/photographer for magazine feature articles in aviation, and hunting and fishing magazines. He was founder and president of the Panama City, Florida, Writers Association. After attac...