Our goal at Sporty's is to make flying safer, easier, and more fun. Sometimes we do that with a great new product, but sometimes we do that with original content. Every year, our media arm produces hundreds of articles, videos, and podcasts to educate and inspire pilots around the world. As we close out the year, we thought you might enjoy this list of "greatest hits" from 2022.
Articles
In addition to our main website at Sportys.com, we publish four online magazines that focus on important topics in aviation: iPad Pilot News covers apps and accessories, Flight Training Central serves up tips to improve your flying skills, Air Facts shares stories and lessons learned from other pilots, and Flight Sim Update is your guide to the fast-moving world of home simulators. Plus, our Product PIREP series on the Sporty's blog delivers hands-on demos of the latest pilot gear. If you missed something this year, it's OK—we published more than 400 articles across these sites in 2022! Here were the top 10:
- Flight simulator buyer’s guide—2022 edition
- The $20/hour Cessna 172 experiment—update
- What’s the best ipad for pilots—2022 buyer’s guide
- Quiz: can you identify these airport signs and markers?
- Old and bold—not
- Maximize iPad battery life—charging, temperature, and storage
- VFR flight following—a pilot’s guide
- Top 10 aviation weather apps
- Comparing Microsoft Flight Simulator and X-Plane (part 1)
- What’s wrong with Pilatus PC-12 pilots?
Videos
It's no secret that pilots love YouTube, and we do too. This year the Sporty's team posted 110 new videos to our channel, from product demos to flying tips. You definitely responded, watching over 125,000 hours of our videos. That's 14 years! Here were the five most popular videos:
- How to land a tailwheel airplane, with Patty Wagstaff
- How to use self-serve fuel facilities at the airport
- Cessna 172 gliding distance, with Spencer Suderman
- Garmin D2 Mach 1 Smartwatch—unboxing and basic operation
- What’s the best aviation headset?
Podcasts
Every two weeks, Sporty's Pilot's Discretion podcast brings you authentic conversations with some of aviation's most interesting people. From honest discussions about flight training to fascinating stories from world famous airshow pilots, this podcast is for anyone who loves to fly. This was our best year yet, with 26 episodes heard in 56 countries. Here were the top 5 episodes:
- Air traffic control tips and tricks, with RJ Ratliff
- Understanding aerodynamics and checkride tips, with Catherine Cavagnaro
- Unleaded avgas and flying taildraggers, with Paul Bertorelli
- Lessons learned as a pilot and mechanic, with Chelsea Smith
- Aviation trends, both hype and reality, with Richard Aboulafia
Webinars
For pilots who want to dive deeper on important aviation topics, we are proud to offer these live, interactive events. In 2022, we presented 12 new webinars on a wide range of topics. You can watch the video recordings of our five most popular ones below, and keep an eye on our webinar page for the 2023 schedule (coming soon).
- ForeFlight—What’s New and Advanced Tips
- Flying with Datalink Weather
- Tailwheel and Backcountry Flying Tips, with Patty Wagstaff
- iPad Proficiency Check
- Aviation Quiz Hour
Stay in touch in 2023
Want to keep up to date with the latest news from Sporty's and from around the aviation world? With our email newsletters, videos, and social media channels, it's easy!
- Sign up for Sporty's Fast Five newsletter - Saturday morning's most interesting email
- Follow us on social media: Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Twitter
- Subscribe to our YouTube channel
- Listen to our Pilot's Discretion podcast
- Sign up for one of our email newsletters
- Come visit us in Ohio!
