Tag Archives: aviation

Blogging the FARs: Pilot in Command

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A definition from FAR Part 1.1.

According the FAR Part 1.1: General Definitions:

Pilot in command means the person who:

(1) Has final authority and responsibility for the operation and safety of the flight;

(2) Has been designated as pilot in command before or during the flight; and

(3) Holds the appropriate category, class, and type rating, if appropriate, for the conduct of the flight.

How this Might Appear on Your Oral Exam

This seems like pretty simple stuff, but it always appears in an oral exam in one way or another. The examiner won’t ask for the definition. Instead, he’ll ask a question that refers to the definition, something like: “Who has final authority over the aircraft?” or, more slyly, “If the tower tells you, the pilot in command, something to do and you think it’s dangerous, should you do it?” The answers to those questions are the pilot in command (that’s you, if you’re taking the check ride) and no, respectively.

FAA examiners are very sly people. If they sense any doubt in your mind, they’ll push harder to get you to give them the wrong answer. The next question might be, “Are you sure? The tower is telling you to do it. Don’t they have authority?”

Don’t fall for this! Remember that when you’re pilot in command, you are the boss of the aircraft. But you also need to remember that if you don’t follow an ATC instruction, you better have a damn good reason why you didn’t and that reason better be somehow related to safety.

This is also covered in Part 91.3: Responsibility and authority of the pilot in command:

(a) The pilot in command of an aircraft is directly responsible for, and is the final authority as to, the operation of that aircraft.

(b) In an in-flight emergency requiring immediate action, the pilot in command may deviate from any rule of this part to the extent required to meet that emergency.

(c) Each pilot in command who deviates from a rule under paragraph (b) of this section shall, upon the request of the Administrator, send a written report of that deviation to the Administrator.

Stating the Obvious

The Part 1 definition also suggests that you can’t be a pilot-in-command until you qualify for it. For example, an airplane pilot can’t be a pilot in command of a helicopter until he/she gets a helicopter rating. And, oddly enough, a 5000-hour helicopter pilot who has been flying all kinds of helicopters but has never had any training in a Robinson R44 could not be a pilot in command of that helicopter. Why? Because there are additional regulations (specifically, SFAR 73) covering that make and model of helicopter.

The best thing to do before flying a different aircraft is to make sure you you have the rating(s) you need to fly it. When in doubt, ask a flight instructor, the company you may be renting from, or the FAA. My advice is to always fly with a flight instructor for at least 30 minutes in any different kind aircraft you’re flying for the first time. And make sure he/she signs off in your logbook before you go solo, just in case there is a problem. You (or your next of kin) want to be able to prove that you had some training in this lawsuit-happy country we live in.

Other Stuff to Check and Remember

And don’t forget the other Part 61 rules which also apply here, including qualifications, currency, etc. And the Part 67 medical requirements.

(To me, that’s the biggest problem with the FARs; they require you to look in a half dozen places just to get the answer to a question.)

By the way, the responsibilities of the pilot in command are also covered in the AIM Chapter 5, Section 5-5-1b.

Fuel Purchase Rebates for Pilots

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AOPA changes its program, I go to BP.

For years, I’ve been using my AOPA MasterCard to purchase fuel at FBOs. At first, the program offered 3% rebate on all purchases at participating FBOs. Then that percentage jumped to 5%. Since it cost nothing for an FBO to participate, just about all of them did.

Among the participating FBOs were flight schools. I earned rebate dollars on all of my helicopter flight training. Since most flight schools also do maintenance, I also earned rebates on most of my helicopter maintenance and repairs. Now we’re talking big bucks. With an annual inspection costing $2,000 or more, 5% is a truly welcome discount.

The AOPA rebate program had two problems, as far as I was concerned:

  • Rebates were not automatic. You had to go to the MBNA Web site (later the BofA Web site) to indicate which transactions were eligible. Although they probably assumed you’d look up all the FBOs in their list, I never did. I just checked off all the transactions — after all, I only used the card to buy aviation-related things — and let them figure out what was eligible or not. It was a pain in the butt because it required a trip to the Web site each month. If you forgot, that was okay — you could always do it later. But it was an extra step just to get the money.
  • Rebates were limited to $250 per year. If you do the math, that means only $5,000 of purchases could earn the rebate. I’d easily reach the limit by September or October each year. A helicopter flight student could reach it in a month or two, depending on his schedule. It would have been nicer if there were no limit.

On the plus side, the rebates, once requested and verified, showed up on the following credit card statement as a reduction of the account balance. I liked to think about it as a fuel discount and that’s how I accounted for it in my accounting records — a reduction of fuel expenses.

Well, the AOPA MasterCard moved to BofA when BofA bought MBNA. (Sounds like alphabet soup.) And they — either AOPA or BofA — decided to change the program. They now have some kind of point system that you can use to buy merchandise. Or something like that. Frankly, I didn’t look into the details. I don’t want points. I want dollars. I want to reduce my operating expenses.

Meanwhile, when I switched my maintenance to Silver State in Mesa (at Williams Gateway airport), I discovered that BP, which the FBO there represents, had a 5% rebate credit card with no limit that applied a sliding scale rate to purchases: 5% of BP purchases (at airports or auto gas stations), 2% of travel and dining, and 1% of other expenditures. Since BP is relatively common around airports, I signed up for the card and got it. Now I use that for most of my aviation-related expenses.

Well, it turns out that this Rebate program isn’t quite as convenient as it could be, either. (I think that’s how they get you — make it such a pain in the butt that you don’t bother claiming the rebate.) In order to get the rebate I have to:

  1. Create an account on the Chase.com Web site. (A one-time deal.)
  2. Log into my account periodically.
  3. Navigate to the Claim My Rewards area, which isn’t exactly easy to find.
  4. Use a shopping cart to “buy” rewards using my earned points. The options are a $25 BP Card (costing 25 points) that can only be used at BP gas stations (like I want one of those), a $25 check (costing 25 points), or a donation to charity (costing 25 points). Of course, since you can only buy in increments of 25 points, you’ll always have a balance leftover.
  5. Wait for the check(s) to arrive.
  6. Take the check(s) to the bank and deposit them.

Obviously, this isn’t the best solution either. But it does reduce my operating costs, so I do get the desired end result.

What I should do is look for a good rebate card that works everywhere and doesn’t make you work to get the rebate dollars. I’m sure they’re out there, but since I really hate applying for and having credit cards, I haven’t looked for them. I guess that should go on my To Do list for this year, right after clean off my desk.

Any suggestions? Use the Comments feature to let us know.

Flying for Bowl Games

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And keeping very busy.

My cell phone started ringing on Saturday and it didn’t stop. By Sunday afternoon, I was booked with a Grand Canyon day trip (from Phoenix Sky Harbor) on Monday, a one-hour Phoenix Tour from Scottsdale on Tuesday morning, and a 1-hour charter from Wickenburg on Wednesday. On Monday afternoon, while I was at the Grand Canyon with my passengers, the Phoenix tour turned into another Grand Canyon Charter. I turned down four Grand Canyon day trips and two Sedona day trips from the Phoenix area for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday because I was already booked. I couldn’t keep up with the messages that came in while I was airborne on Monday and Tuesday and on Tuesday morning, while at the Grand Canyon, I had to shut my phone off because my battery was nearly dead.

Why all the sudden interest in helicopter day trips and charters?

The bowl game that was held in Glendale on Monday night. Don’t ask me which Bowl game it was — I don’t follow football. I only know who played (Florida Gators and Ohio State) and who won (Florida) because my Monday passengers were Gators fans and my Tuesday passengers were disappointed Ohio fans.

Like so many Phoenix area businesses, I feasted on the influx of big budget tourists, folks who think nothing of dropping $2K for a day’s entertainment. In the case of the Grand Canyon day trips, both parties wanted to get to and see the Grand Canyon but had limited time for the visit. They simply didn’t want to make the 4-hour (each way) car ride from Phoenix. So they hired me to take them by helicopter — 1-1/2 hour from Scottsdale (each way) and 1-3/4 hour from Sky Harbor

Yesterday’s group didn’t have much time to spend at the canyon. We left Sky Harbor at 9 AM and arrived at Grand Canyon Airport barely in time for them to hop on a Papillon helicopter for a canyon overflight. Afterwards, we had an hour before we had to leave the Grand Canyon to get them back to the Phoenix area in time for their pre-game parties. They spent about 3/4 of that in Papillon’s gift shop. We did have time for a quick burger at Susy’s restaurant at Prescott Airport. I think they enjoyed that meal at a typical airport restaurant almost as much as the rest of their day. Of course, they probably enjoyed the game a lot more, since their team won.

Today’s group is just a father and his 10-year-old son who are here from Ohio for the game. They spent Sunday at Sedona and decided to fly with me to Grand Canyon for the day. I set them up with a Papillon tour and they got bumped up and upgraded to fly with Grand Canyon Helicopters (Papillon’s sister company), which flies much nicer equipment (EC130s). Although they were supposed to be on the short tour, they were put on the long tour and they apparently loved every minute of it. (What’s not to like?) We took the Xantera “taxi” to the park and I set them loose in front of El Tovar so they could walk the rim and have lunch on their own.

Now, at 1:30 PM, I’m sitting in the upper lounge (hotel guests only!), trying to produce something for my blog. There’s no wireless Internet here — and that’s a good thing. After all, I ‘m less than 300 feet from the rim of the canyon and shouldn’t even be looking at a computer. I’m meeting my passengers right outside at 3 PM for the return flight. I’ll have them back in Scottsdale by 5 PM and I’ll be shutting down on the ramp in Wickenburg before 6.

Yesterday’s flight was the first time I flew to the Grand Canyon from downtown Phoenix. It isn’t a particularly interesting flight. Not if you do a straight line, anyway. So I take little side trips. The highlight was probably the red rocks tour of Sedona about an hour into the flight. I flew my passengers past the airport and over town, then headed up the canyon where the tour operators there take their passengers. Near the end of the canyon, I pulled up, climbing at about 1,000 feet per minute to get over the edge of the Mongollon Rim. My front seat passenger was nervous, but he did okay. Then more relatively uninteresting stuff to the canyon. On the way back, I took them west of Bill Williams Mountain with a stop in Prescott, then down the east side of the Bradshaws. I showed them the ruins on Indian Mesa on Lake Pleasant before heading into Phoenix.

Got jets?Cutter Aviation, my FBO of choice at Sky Harbor, was a complete mob scene when I got there at around 3PM. Jets and other large aircraft were coming in for the game — last-minute folks who hadn’t come days before to enjoy the weekend. My helicopter was an insignificant speck on the ramp among all the jets. They started leading me to parking in a “Follow Me” car, then just drove away, leaving me to set down wherever I wanted to. I found a spot in the corner of their ramp with the Swift FBO jets parked behind me. I was only planning on being there for a few minutes, so I didn’t think it mattered too much where I parked. I escorted my passengers into the terminal there, pocketed a generous tip, said goodbye, and placed my fuel order for 20 gallons. The next guy asked for 1,680 gallons. It took a long time to fuel me, probably because the idiot with the truck was trying to fit it all in one tank. Meanwhile, big planes kept coming in and the FBO person in charge was getting more and more nervous by the minute. There were at least 50 people — pilots, national guard guys, police, limo drivers — you name it — in the Cutter terminal. The place was crazed and I wanted out. It was a pleasure to get clearance from Sky Harbor tower to follow the “river bottom” and head northwest once I’d passed Central Avenue. I logged 4.3 hours yesterday, which is more than I budget for those flights. Not a loss, but certainly not the kind of hourly rate I like to earn. My fault. I charged them my north valley rate; I should have charged for south valley, which is $200 more. The tip helped.

Today, I flew my passengers from Scottsdale, which is a shorter flight. We went past Jerome instead of Sedona on our way up. I’ll overfly Sedona with a Red Rocks tour on the way back. Scottsdale was also full of jets this morning, but I expect most of them to be gone by the time we return. At least I hope so.

It’s been nice visiting the GC these past two days. I got a chance to chat with a few old friends from Papillon yesterday: Tiny, who is now a lead pilot (he started the same season I did in 2004); Mark D, who wasn’t particularly chatty; Chuck R, who seemed embarrassed to see me; Borden, who is also friends with our good friends Elizabeth and Matt; and Evelyn. I was hoping to talk to Brenda about HAI, but she didn’t seem to be in. Today, I ran into Tom (who once rescued Mike and I from Indians — long story) at GC Helicopters, where he’s a pilot.

I had lunch at El Tovar today. It feels good to sit down and relax. Things are pretty quiet here and, if I had more time, I would have attempted a nap. Last night I had trouble staying awake until 8 PM — I was so exhausted. I’ll probably sleep well again tonight.

But the good news is, Flying M Air could shut down for the rest of the month and still be in good financial shape.

As for my blog…it’s being neglected. But I’ll get back to it soon.

Aviation Weather 1.2.5

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A Dashboard widget for pilots.

I’ve used this widget in the past and really like it. It uses your Internet connection to retrieve official TAF and METAR information for airports you enter into its interface.

From Aviation Weather 1.2.5 on Dashboard widgets:

About Aviation Weather Get current weather conditions as well as weather forecasts with the “Aviation Weather” dashboard widget. The widget shows weather data (METAR and TAF) which is used by pilots for their flight preparations. ”Aviation Weather” lets you choose any airport weather stations from its built-in database by either name or ICAO (4-letter) code. Data will be shown in its original format or translated into easy understandable texts. You can define up to 4 preset stations.

The preset feature is handy. Just program in the four airports you visit most and getting the weather at your destination is as quick as two clicks. Highly recommended for pilots.

A Professional Pilot?

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I’m not impressed.

Yesterday, my friend Ray flew me down to Mesa, AZ, in his airplane so I could pick up my helicopter, which was down there for its big annual inspection. While we were taxiing from Ray’s hangar to Runway 23 in Wickenburg, we heard the following exchange between two pilots on Wickenburg’s frequency:

Premier 1-2-3 (not the exact call sign; Premier is a small “corporate” jet): Wickenburg, this is Premier 1-2-3. Is there anyone there?

PanAm 5 (not the exact call sign; PanAm is a flight school based at Deer Valley Airport (DVT) that does a lot of practice landings at Wickenburg): This is PanAm 5 at Wickenburg.

Premier 1-2-3: Can you tell me the winds down there?

PanAm 5: The winds are shifting around a little, but they’re mostly out of the southwest at about 5 or 6 knots.

Premier 1-2-3: Oh, great. Thanks….So that means you’re using Runway 26 down there? Is that the runway number?

PanAm 5: It’s actually Runway 23.

Premier 1-2-3: Oh, thanks. We don’t have any approach charts or anything for Wickenburg so we’re kind of flying by the seat of our pants.

Yes, he really said that.

The radio went quiet for a few moments, then another pilot called to say he was 5 miles north, inbound for landing.

Premier 1-2-3: Premier 1-2-3 is about 3 miles south. We’ll be making left traffic for Runway 23.

Pan Am 5: Actually, it’s right traffic for Runway 23 at Wickenburg.

Premier 1-2-3: Okay. Thanks. Right traffic for Runway 23.

At this point, the FBO attendant came on the radio to provide wind and unofficial altimeter setting information. (It’s a good thing the altimeter setting is unofficial, since it’s off by nearly 100 feet.) She asked if the jet wanted fuel on landing and he told her he didn’t, that he was just dropping off some passengers.

We were holding short behind a PanAm plane when the jet came in, zipping past us. He was nearing the other end of the runway where the terminal was when the FBO woman came on again to ask if he knew where to park to discharge his passengers. He told her he’d been there before, then advised everyone that he was off the runway.

Ray and I had been discussing this jet pilot’s lack of professionalism while we were waiting. Both of us knew that one of a pilot’s responsibilities for a flight, as stated in Part 91 of the Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR’s). From Section 91.103, Preflight Action: “Each pilot in command shall, before beginning a flight, become familiar with all available information concerning that flight.” Surely that must include runway numbers (which are determined by magnetic course headings) and traffic pattern information. This information is available on the Sectional Chart and in the Airport/Facilities Directory, both of which are required to be on board for commercial flights. They’re also available on the Web on various airport information Web sites and on the FAA’s Web site. Heck, I’m a helicopter pilot and I’m supposed to avoid fixed wing traffic when I land at airports, yet I usually know the runway numbers and traffic pattern information just so I can get an idea of where planes might be.

This guy simply hadn’t done his homework.

The PanAm plane in front of us took off. Ray rolled onto the runway. As the PanAm plane drifted to the north of the centerline (likely because of the wind), we took off and headed south.

I’ve since given the exchange a bit more thought. What if the Jet was arriving after 4 PM, when the FBO was closed, and the traffic pattern was empty. Where would he have gotten his information. He was only 5 miles out on his first call; would he have had time to look at his chart or A/FD? Or would he have assumed Runway 26 from memory, made a left traffic pattern low over the homes on the southeast and east sides of the airport, and adjusted his approach only when he realized he was on the wrong heading — 30° off? Approaching at a heading of 260 would have put him right over the homes on Broken Arrow Road — the homes of people already complaining about noise now that the runway is 1500 feet closer to their homes. Would his action have had a long-term impact on the airport?

The point here is, all pilots are responsible for gathering information about the flight — including the airport they intend to land at. This guy acted irresponsibly and was fortunate enough to have people on the ground that could provide him with the information he needed.

But as any pilot knows, you’re not always lucky. You need to do your homework before you get on board and start the engines.