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1500 questions
34
votes
1 answer
How does a towed banner maintain a steady tilt?
Today a small airplane is towing an advertising banner, about 20 by 30 feet, in a circular path around my town's university campus. The banner stays tilted about 45 degrees to make it easier to read by those whom the airplane is circling. Winds…
Camille Goudeseune
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34
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5 answers
Why is the PIC position for helicopters the right seat, rather than the left seat as in airplanes?
So far as I am aware, in a fixed wing aircraft having side-by-side seating and dual controls but only a single set of instruments, those instruments are always positioned in front of the left seat. Even when an aircraft (such as commercial air…
Anthony X
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34
votes
2 answers
Starting on the left magneto only - why?
I had been flying a PA-28 Archer III for quite a few months before I sat down to properly read through the POH. Something stood out to me about the starting procedure (emphasis mine)
Open the throttle lever approximately 1/4 inch. Turn ON…
Jamiec
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34
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2 answers
How is altitude reached by aircraft flying above the stratosphere measured?
Aircraft flying above the stratosphere (above 30km) are rare, but there is still the X-15 and the spaceship two. For those aircraft, maximal altitude is measured to within 500 ft.
As described in this question, barometric altimeters are not accurate…
Manu H
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34
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2 answers
Should I contact ATC if I don't have a transponder?
The flight school I usually rent from is under the shelf of class C airspace. If you're going out to a practice area, the standard procedure is to contact approach control and get a squawk code, so they can better coordinate traffic. However, it's…
HiddenWindshield
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34
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7 answers
What does “Ground loops are costly. Fly them until they stop” mean?
In one of the earliest scenes of William A. Wellman's 1942 film Thunder Birds, a sign can be seen in a room of a USAAF base (some relax or briefing room, apparently), which says:
Ground loops are costly. Fly them until they stop.
I am not…
DaG
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34
votes
7 answers
Can jet airplanes operate on 'rough' airfields?
A question I've always wondered is: can jet aircraft - not turboprop in this case - operate from 'rough' airstrips. My definition of 'rough' is grass or maybe a smooth mud airfield. I know that there's the dry lake at Edwards AFB that is used by…
user1352057
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34
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4 answers
Why are there many pilots who don't say "mayday, mayday, mayday" to declare an emergency?
I've been listening to some ATC from some major commercial pilots and in every video where there's been some confusion about declaring an emergency they've used some terminology other than "mayday, mayday, mayday" (here's an example).
Given that…
Clinton
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34
votes
3 answers
What can a pilot do if an air traffic controller is incapacitated?
I watched this video:
where a Las Vegas controller is on duty alone and suffers a stroke.
The pilots become quite uncomfortable with the situation and basically everything is stopped.
Someone finally calls the company and gets them to check up…
Christian
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34
votes
2 answers
Why are Oscar, India, and X-Ray (O, I, and X) not used as taxiway identifiers?
An old CAR "Licensing of Aerodromes" document indicated that taxiways may not be designated by O, I, or X.
Is this still in effect today? Why were (or are) those not used as taxiway identifiers?
My guess is that the shapes of those letters could…
Ryan Mortensen
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34
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8 answers
Why do airplanes bank sharply to the right after air-to-air refueling?
Whenever I see videos on YouTube they bank really sharply to the right after disconnecting from the tanker. Why wouldn't they do a more shallow 30-degree bank?
See this video for reference:
pythonhelpthrow
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34
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3 answers
How long to clear the 'suck zone' of a turbofan after start is initiated?
I recently found this (IMO funny) picture. All funny and all. But let's make this a real situation.
Let's suppose I see my crush and his BF doing this, and I come with this 'genius' idea (alright, it's anything but a genius idea, but still) to…
Hugo Woesthuis
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1 answer
What is the purpose of a walled area in the vicinity of Heathrow Airport?
Looking at a satellite map to the East of Heathrow Airport, there is a small passenger jet parked in a walled off area. Looking at the aerodrome chart the entire area is listed as Bealine Base, which I assume is used for BA operations. What it the…
mfurseman
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6 answers
Why can't the A320's computer-imposed limits be overridden?
Under the investigation section of US Airways Flight 1549, it is noted that
[The pilot] asserted that insufficient credit was given to the A320's fly-by-wire design, by which the pilot uses a side-stick to make control inputs to the flight control…
Cloud
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34
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1 answer
Why are aircraft coloured in yellow during construction, repair or overhaul?
Why are aircraft usually coated with "yellow", while either during construction or repair and overhaul?
What exactly is the purpose of it?
Scramble shravan
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