Flying at night is one of the many privileges we have as private pilots, and what good is a privilege if you don’t exercise it? But night flight isn’t without some challenges. Here are my top 3 hacks to make your night flights more enjoyable.
Posted in PIREPs
Based near Portland, Oregon, Lightspeed Aviation is a company deeply rooted in the aviation industry. They are well known for providing great pilot headsets at a good value, backed by a friendly support team. The premium Zulu 3 and budget-friendly Sierra have become top choices for pilots of all ratings.
You might ask yourself, “Besides $200, what’s the difference between the two?”
Posted in PIREPs
The famous green domes of David Clark headsets have been around longer than most of us have been flying, with a legendary reputation for durability. A little known fact is that David Clark started in aerospace by making high altitude spacesuits for the military. Communication became part of the suits, so speakers and microphones were developed. David Clark made their first pilot headset in 1975 and quickly became a mainstay in cockpits around the world.
When going through the plethora of data available about aviation headsets, you will inevitably come across the abbreviation TSO. This stands for Technical Standard Order and it is the FAA’s way of saying an item is approved for use on an airplane. Why does that matter? We'll explain.
Do do you have the right equipment for flying kids? Here are the top 5 products you need to help make sure kids have an enjoyable flight.
Posted in PIREPs
Many pilots chase the latest technology, from active noise reduction to Bluetooth audio. But while these headsets are impressive, there is another option: in-the-ear. Is this type of headset right for you?
Posted in Headsets
Oxygen systems are only for turbocharged airplanes and flights above 12,500 feet, right? Wrong. Even pilots of normally aspirated airplanes will find plenty of uses for a good portable system, from increasing passenger comfort to flying safer at night. Here's our advice for when to use oxygen and how to choose the right system.
Posted in PIREPs
Performance + Durability = Game Changer
We first arrived in the Iraqi desert early in 2004. The invasion dubbed “shock and awe” happened in 2003, so our battalion was part of the rebuilding phase. This was well before all the fancy armored vehicles appeared in theater. The “armor” on our trucks and humvees consisted of sheet metal we cut via torch and welded together. This armor “worked” for bullets, but not so much for IEDs. We would later learn the hard way that the IEDs were a much larger threat.
Gearcreep: When stuff is left laying around and starts getting in the way of important tasks.
For anyone who has kids, gearcreep is a daily adventure. Books, bags, lunchboxes, one blue sock, and clarinet reeds somehow can’t cross the forcefield that is found approximately 10 feet inside my front door. Eventually, the forcefield can’t hold back the massive piles of junk and the gear starts creeping across the floor, only to be found at 2 am while stumbling down the hall to the bathroom.
Posted in PIREPs
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