Before the winds, Charlie returns from annual.

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Catching a late afternoon opportunity to get some clear skies and lower winds, before they are going to ramp up for a few days again, Charlie came home from her annual inspection.

A new beacon on the tail, she had little else to address this year thankfully (for her and me!)

A quick half-hour flight back, it was a little bumpy and both of us were happy to be back on the ground and Charlie back in her hangar.

Now it’s spring flying season, and I plan to travel to as many places as possible that make sense with Charlie over the next few months. If you happen to have a checkride coming up, don’t be surprised if I arrive with Charlie.

Get Sector Briefed Like the Center Controllers Do

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Want to get a quick big picture briefing for an area for a day? You can do this like the controllers to if you check out the Pre-Duty Wx Briefing that Center controllers get when the come on station each day.

A generally 2-3 minutes synopsis of the general conditions that will take place in a broad sector area, controllers get this briefing before they go on station and start working with pilots flying in their sectors each day.

This tool doesn’t have to be just limited to use by controllers, pilots can use the same tool to get a general picture of what is happening in a broad area in which they may be flying.

You can check out the Pre-Duty Wx Briefing for controllers by clicking here or the image to the right above.

If you happen to be in West Michigan and or fly in the Chicago Sector area, here is the briefing I have started to check out many mornings:

Annual Time for Charlie Again

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‘Tis the time for Charlie to get her yearly checkup again. Taking advantage of some of the nice spring weather on April Fool’s day, Charlie got warmed up and we headed out to drop her off for the annual inspection efforts.

While I must admit, I didn’t take her flying as much as I should have this past year, we did have a good year together!

I couldn’t help but take the opportunity along the way for the short flight to drop in for a quick landing at another local grass strip. I mean, it was on the way, right?

An upgraded beacon will be installed this year, but other than that, I (and hopefully Charlie) are hoping or an uneventful annual inspection this year and a return to flying soon for the spring flying season.

The flight up was ahead of some weather coming in, but managed to beat it and get Charlie settled into the hangar before it started to rain.

A special thanks to Jeff Ostrander who caught a pretty cool couple of pictures of Charlie as I came in to land (with a bit of a wind I might add on her nose) on the grass runway at Lowell.

The good news is he made my landing look better than it probably was.

Back to pick you up soon Charlie!

Updated ACS/PTS Documents Available – Effective May 31, 2024

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The FAA published on April 1st, 2024 much-awaited updated Airman Certification Standards and Practical Test Standards for numerous certification tests.

Applicants, CFIs, and DPEs are encouraged to become familiar with the updated and new documents for upcoming testing activities.

The documents are available for review now but do not become immediately effective. These testing g standards will become effective as of May 31, 2024. All tests after that day will be conducted in accordance with the new standards.

Click here to see the updated ACS/PTS documents that
become effective for testing on May 31, 2024.