Sporty's PIREPs

Master flight instructor Rich Stowell says manual flying skills and decision-making skills are complementary, but they’re often presented as an either/or choice. The spin master explains why that’s wrong and illustrates it with his “power-push-roll” recovery for spiral dives, an overlooked threat in aviation. He also shares a new way to train pilots, which he calls “learn-do-fly,” emphasizing the importance of teaching at the correlation level. In the Ready to Copy segment, Rich talks about the biggest mistake CFIs make during stall training, tips for hand-propping vintage airplanes, and what martial arts taught him about flying.

For generations, pilots have relied on Jeppesen ForeFlight products to learn, train, plan, and fly. Now, Sporty's is proud to serve as the distributor for Jeppesen ForeFlight education products, creating a single destination for pilots, flight schools, aviation businesses, and resellers seeking Jeppesen ForeFlight's trusted aviation resources.

The 5 Ts still work, but they were designed for an era when IFR navigation required more manual setup, timing, and cross-checking. In today’s cockpit, especially with moving maps and integrated avionics, pilots benefit from a broader situational scan rather than a fixed sequence of tasks. One useful modern alternative is the CAPERS check.

With more than 320 carefully crafted flashcards, this set distills essential private pilot knowledge into quick, high-impact review prompts that cover everything from aircraft systems and airspace to weather interpretation, regulations, and human factors. Each card is based on authoritative sources, including the Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, FAR/AIM, and the Airman Certification Standards, and reviewed by certified flight instructors and active pilots.

PilotWorkshops has released a new training resource designed to help instrument rating applicants prepare for the practical test with greater confidence and less stress. Checkride Insights: Instrument Rating is a fully annotated version of the FAA’s Instrument Rating Airman Certification Standards (ACS), enhanced with practical explanations, examiner insights, and real-world IFR scenarios.

Public benefit flying might mean transporting a cancer patient or relocating turtles, but regardless of the mission Mark Hanson says it’s rewarding, fun, and great for keeping your pilot skills sharp. He talks about managing the pressure of these flights, how to get started with a volunteer pilot organization, and why his Eclipse is the perfect airplane. In the Ready to Copy segment, Mark talks about his most memorable passenger, tips for flying into busy airports, and a new aviation weather tool he likes.

Flying in south Florida recently, I heard a Baron on an IFR flight plan call on 121.5 asking other pilots for help finding the correct ATC frequency. Apparently somewhere along the way, contact had been lost during a handoff, and the pilot wasn’t sure who he should be talking to next. It’s more common than many pilots realize and has happened to me on multiple occasions.

Sporty’s and PilotWorkshops have expanded their training partnership once again with the addition of VFR Mastery and IFR Mastery to the Sporty’s Pilot Training platform, delivering ongoing scenario-based proficiency training for pilots both online and via the dedicated Pilot Training app for iOS.  Long regarded as one of aviation’s most respected continuing education programs, the PilotWorkshops Mastery series helps pilots sharpen real-world decision-making skills through interactive monthly scenarios focused on both VFR and IFR flying.

If you’ve spent any time in a flight school lounge or a hangar on a rainy day, you know the best learning often happens when the Hobbs isn’t running. It’s the "What would you do?" conversations—the debates over a tricky weather problem, an obscure avionics failure in IMC, or a confusing ATC instruction—that truly sharpen a pilot’s judgment and make them safer. With that, we are thrilled to announce a major evolution: PIlotWorkshops Mastery is officially available in the Sporty’s Pilot Training app for iOS and online.

More new pilots, more flying hours, and fewer accidents—that’s the positive picture EAA’s Tom Charpentier sees when he looks at the latest FAA numbers. He shares how to be an optimist about aviation, why the 1970s are not a fair comparison, and what issues could disrupt the current growth cycle. Tom is deeply involved in EAA’s regulatory work, and he explains the importance of FAA orders and what to expect from MOSAIC. In the Ready to Copy segment, Tom talks about his favorite part of AirVenture, flying the Cessna 170, and wilderness canoeing.