The common thread between Ag flying and aerobatics is working the aircraft at or near the edge of the envelope. Ag pilots don’t pull anywhere near the G’s that aerobatic performers do and rarely go negative (maybe 1/2 G for a couple of seconds to go up and over an obstacle). It’s a little disconcert...

It’s been a tough year so far for Ag pilots in Canada. 3 fatalities that I’m aware of.

I get serious white coat syndrome and my blood pressure goes through the roof - to the point where my doctor was going to fail my medical a few years back. I’ve had rather high blood pressure since I was 18 (and 125 lbs) and was on a light medication. Somewhat poor diet and smoking doesn’t help. I d...

OK. Where does this finally end? State funeral. (paid for by my tax dollars) Airport. Province perhaps? Hell, why not rename the country. Honest, hard-working Canadians die of cancer every day (my wife's been fighting it now for 9 years). She's had a real job all of her adult life (except for the ti...

Rumour has it they're courting a couple of guys up around Three Hills AB (Pawnees again). Enough is enough.

Rumour has it they're courting a couple of guys up around Three Hills AB (Pawnees again). Enough is enough.

@ArcticKat - boy you've really got a hardon for aerial applicators. Yes I read your other post. Again I will say - unfortunate. Reality is - The TV show is not the reality of our industry. The show would be dead in 10 seconds if they filmed 99.9% of the rest of us and I resent being compared in any ...

This situation is unfortunate and there are valid arguments from both sides. Regulations are in place that limit the distance from built-up areas that aerial applicators can work. I've turned down 2 fields this season due to their proximity to developments and the ensuing problems it will cause. Our...

http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/civilaviation/r ... htm#400_03

Try this area of CARS. I find the regs generally confusing, but this may help.

Coolest thing I 'felt' last night: I was on a Delta flight (A319) from Vcvr to Minneapolis; First officer absolutely greased it on. Best airline touchdown I've ever experienced - could not tell when the weight was on the ground. 757 Captain did a pretty nice one into Orlando, too.

Forgot one of my favorites - Glasair II RG. Nice little hotrod. I'd own one if I had any money!! Let me rephrase that; if I had lots of money.

Had a student once that would do weird things at weird times, like slowing down and pulling flaps for no apparent reason. When questioned about it, he would say that one of the other instructors told him to do it that way. Then he'd do something weird when he was with one of them, and say that I had...

Cessna 120, 140, 150, 152, 170, 172, 175, 180, 188, 185, 207A, AgWagon, AgTruck Piper J-3, J-4, PA-11, 12, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24-260, 28 (140, 151, 180, 235, 200R, Turbo Lance), Pawnee 150, 160, 180 (STC'd), 235 Mooney M20A, C, F Bonanza 180, 225 Jurca Tempete Zenair EAA Biplane (the one that used to h...

Any specific type of flying job you're after? After instructing briefly in my teens, 30+ years ago, I decided to go the Ag pilot route. Worked for the new family business, then worked for a crook, quit , bought the family business and took all the crook's customers with me, sold out to my main compe...

Wow. I rarely even fly that high. I have no problem with heights, but that's just nuts. I guess the upside is that the wife still gets to spend the paycheque and it had better be massive. I only watched the first few seconds - I don't have a defibrulater in the house - much more and I would have nee...

My last stint at instructing was an off-season gig (not much aerial app in the prairies in the winter!!) back in the 80's. That's an interesting approach (no pun intended) .; probably could have used it way back then. I'm just up the road from you in Qualicum (unfortunately off-season only and still...

Haven't heard about the grease pencil idea before. Most of the types I've flown were self-checkouts. One thing that kept these transitions from being too exciting was to make small corrections and avoid big and complex attitude changes, i.e.: high-bank turns onto short final with too much speed, etc...

I'm still waiting to be arrested for not renewing my gun registry, according to the letter I got from the huge white elephant department. It was the first I had heard about the need to send more money. I would have thought that registering once would be enough. One way to avoid having to renew, agai...

I'm sure some of you must have meant 'grammar'...??

Sorry, I have never flown a Found, and therefore can't offer an opinion. It sounds like there are some conflicting ones, though. Now I'll have to go look one up. Cheers.

Nicely put BPF. I started that way too, lucky enough to work for an incredible CFI. Learned patience, integrity, diplomacy, and other good stuff. Credibility was sometimes an initial issue (I was 19), but we always presented ourselves professionally and earned our students' respect. We never, ever, ...

As Hedley says, some builders take years to put their airplane together and fly very little, if at all, in the meantime. Their dream is probably much less forgiving than the 172 they previously flew. I think it's possible that with this combination, a lot of builders don't recognize soon enough when...

I'm thinking it's probably not fair to expect the old girls to be as sharp and crisp as the new 'Red Bull' style airplanes. One thing they do possess, though, is character and history. Their numbers are dwindling as they retire from service, and at some point, flying examples will be extinct. I get ...

Anyone notice how much less it takes these days for everyone to get all poopy-pants?

Very easy to fly. A little snug for big people. Make sure the little landing gear gearbox has been properly inspected if you're going with electric gear. If those gears wear out, it's a pricey belly landing. Pricing on older M20C's with manual gear is pretty good right now and the gear's easy to ope...

Ah, but you can put a GPS with autosteer in your John Deere that's as accurate as a Satloc guidance system for your Air Tractor. Soldiers gotta have potatoes...