Aviation Blog

This blog is written by retired Designated Pilot Examiner and long time CFI Alan Malone.  Alan has written over 300 essays and many are available on LaAviator.com.  If you haven't read them all, this would be a good time to go to the archives, pick some titles that look interesting to you and read them.  Our old website had access to all of them but when I had to build a new site I only listed links to those published back through 2017. The rest will be coming and are still out there in cyberland.  If there is one that isn’t there yet that you want to read, just shoot me an email and I will send you the link to read it.

If you would like to contact Alan Malone to thank him and comment on his essays he can be reached at alanm1@cox.net.them and will learn something beneficial as well.  

Alan's Novel

Alan has also graciously agreed to share his novel… The Quotidian Time Traveler….. with us.  I’m sharing a new chapter every week until it is completed.  

To read Chapter 1 just click HERE.  

To read Chapter 2 just click HERE

To read Chapter 3 just click HERE

To read Chapter 4 just click HERE

To read Chapter 5 just click HERE

To read Chapter 6 just click HERE

I hope you enjoy it.

So you want to learn to fly quickly so you can go places in a fast airplane.  Is it a good idea to just buy that fast airplane and learn to fly in it? Alan writes about that in this week’s essay…. On Using a Complex Aircraft For Primary Training (Essay #346)

To read the essay click HERE.

Alan reviews some of the history of his life as a skydiver and jump pilot in Logging Jumps (Essay #345).

To read the essay click HERE

Guest Essay

John Peterson has written another essay for our reading pleasure.  I think the title of this one is completely self explanatory.  It’s called Learning to Fly (Essay #3).  To read the essay click HERE.

I hope you enjoy it.

Before the widespread availability of all of the glass panel moving maps and iPads, did you always know exactly where you were.  Really????  Is it absolutely necessary?  Alan gives you his take on that in Successive Approximation (Essay #344).

In this week's essay Alan writes about retired Louisiana airshow pilot Frank V. Ryder (Essay #343).

To read the essay click HERE.

Thanks to John Peterson for writing another guest essay for us to enjoy.  This one is about some of his Dad’s flights while being a navigator on WWII Ferry Flights.  It’s called Flying Stories (Essay #2).  To read the essay click HERE.

If you didn’t have to worry about anything except killing yourself, how easy would it be to learn to fly a light airplane?  Alan discusses that subject in this week’s essay, If All You Had to Do Was Not to Kill Yourself…. (Essay #342).  To read the essay click HERE.

Some folks that can drive a car are not able to drive one with a stick (manual transmission).  Likewise, some folks that can fly a plane are not able to fly one with the nose wheel on the tail (taildragger).  Alan talks about all of that in this week’s essay….  Learning Sticks and Tailwheels (Essay #341)

To read the essay click HERE.

Would you like to get a detailed explanation about the physics involved in turning an airplane?  If you would like that, then I have a great opportunity for you.  I have two of them in today’s blog and one even comes from a professor of physics.  Today’s essay is called Turns Out (Essay #340).

To read the essay click….HERE

If you remember a while back, our weekly aviation blog writer Alan Malone suggested that some readers might want to write an essay about aviation like he has been doing for several years.  Someone has done just as he suggested.  Thanks to John Peterson for sharing his essay...  My First Flight.  To read it click HERE.

I hope you enjoy it.

I like “old sayings”.  Usually they’ve stayed around for so many years because they have a lot of truth in them.  Alan gives his take on one in this week’s essay….. Beauty is In the Mind of the Beholder (Essay #339)

To read the essay click HERE.

You never forget how to fly…. It’s just like riding a bike.  Read Alan’s take on that statement in The Law of Extinction (Essay #338).

To read the essay click…. HERE

I’m sure you’ve been sitting chatting with some aviation folks and someone says, “You see that airplane over there…. Now that’s a Pilot’s Airplane!”  I have.  Have you ever thought about what that really means?  I have.  Alan talks about in this week’s essay….. A Pilot’s Airplane (#337)

To read the essay click….HERE

Alan wasn’t just a flight instructor in his early aviation career but also did some charter flights as well.  Some of his passengers were more talkative than others.  This week’s essay is A Night Flight With a Quiet Passenger (Essay #336).

To read the essay click HERE.

Most of us have had to stay out of the cockpit for a while for one reason or another and had to get current again.  Alan talks about his experience in doing just that in this week’s essay… On Regaining Currency (Essay #335)

To read the essay click HERE

Alan writes about taking aircraft automation to the next level in this week’s blog…..  Open the Pod Bay Door, Hal (Essay #334)

To read the essay click…. HERE

So you want a very fast airplane with a roomy cabin to carry your piano that sips fuel.  Alan explains why you aren’t going to be able to find it in this week’s essay….

Design Consists of a Series of Compromises (Essay #333)

To read the essay click HERE.

Have you ever owned or flown a plane so much that you felt like it was an extension of your being?  Alan talks about it in Wearing the Plane (Essay # 332).

To read the essay click HERE.

Are you following the orders to stay home?  Are you getting bored yet?  Alan has an idea on how you might be able to spend some of your time.  This week’s essay is called Something To Do While You’re Shut In (Essay #331).

To read the essay click….HERE

We’re dealing with something that none of us have ever experienced before.  Alan gives us his take on the situation in this week’s essay….. An Abundance of Caution (Essay #330)

To read the essay click….HERE

I’m sure you’ve noticed that folks with common interests seem to hang out together.  It is very true with aviation peeps.  Alan shares his experience with aviation groups and how it can be beneficial in this week’s blog…. Members of the Tribe (Essay #328).  To read it click….HERE

Risk Management…… Personal Minimums…… Get-There-Itis…..

Alan has all that stuff in this week’s essay called Cinco De Mayo Revisited (Essay #327)

To read the essay click….  HERE

Our lives are a series of transitions that lead us to where we are today…. and Alan reminds of his in Fortunate Transitions (Essay #326).

To read the essay click….HERE

Alan continues with his series on how he taught his students to fly cross-countries.  This time he discusses the Instrument Cross-countries in The Cross-Country Package - Volume III (Essay #325).

To read the essay click….HERE

Alan takes us through the training scenario that he used to teach his students on how to fly a cross country. The essay is called The Cross-Country Package Volume II (Essay #325)

To read the essay click….HERE

Alan reflects on his early days of flight instruction at Lakefront Airport in this week’s essay…. The Cross-Country Package Volume I (Essay #324)

To read the essay click….  HERE

At this stage of our lives, most of us have experienced at least one time when we suddenly realized something really bad was about to happen.  We knew that the result was going to be at least painful or even much worse.  Since we’re still around to read this, obviously what happened wasn’t too tragic. Alan writes about some of those events in his life in this week’s essay……  The Last Few Seconds (Essay #323)

To read the essay click….HERE

The written tests….. If you want to fly you have to pass them.  There are many ways to prepare and Alan writes about his experience in this week’s essay….

Ground School (Essay #322).

To read the essay click…. HERE

Alan is back home and writes about some of his commercial flights in this week’s essay….. On Travel in the Modern Age (Essay #321)

To read the essay click HERE.

Customers have questions, you have answers. Display the most frequently asked questions, so everybody benefits.

So you now have that brand new pilot certificate or rating in your pocket….. How do you feel about your actual capabilities?  Since all folks are different, some of you feel like you can do anything and some of you feel like you need more experience before you’re really ready.  Alan gives us his valuable guidance in this week’s essay - License to What? (Essay #320)

To read the essay click….HERE

When I read the title of Alan’s essay for the week, I thought I knew what it was about.  Maybe you think you know as well.  Now you need to read it to find out if you’re right.  It’s called…..Push Me Pull You (Essay #319).

To read the essay click HERE.

Isn’t it neat how different folks can look at the same object and see something completely different.  They can even own the same airplane and use it for totally different purposes.  Alan writes about that in this week’s essay….. Different Strokes (Essay #318)

To read the essay click….HERE

Alan writes about a few of his most memorable students in this week’s essay…..

The Early 70’s (Essay #317)

To read the essay click….HERE

As a professional educator Alan spent a lot of time on learning how students learn and therefore how teachers need to teach.  Today he talks to about the Levels of Learning in Learning By Rote (Essay #316).

To read the essay click….HERE

Do you feel like you are taking a risk when you fly?  Actually the only way to totally eliminate risk in an airplane is to never get in one. But we want to fly… so How Safe Do You Need to Be? (Essay #315)

To read the essay click….HERE

This one brings back a lot of memories from my flight training…. And even after you feel like you have it mastered a landing comes along to make sure you will never get overconfident in your abilities.  The week’s essay is called The Flare (Essay # 314)

To read the essay click…. HERE

Instructors need to find out how their students learn.  Alan talks about his experience on this subject in The Master/Slave Relationship (Essay #313)

To read the essay click HERE

Alan writes about some of his memories from Air Shows that he has attended over the years.  I’ve seen many of the same acts that he mentions and I never get tired of seeing them  You can reminisce along with him by reading Air Shows (Essay #312)

To read the essay click….HERE

Alan reviews his life history in The Roaring 20s (Essay #311).

To read the essay click HERE

Have you opened a new location, redesigned your shop, or added a new product or service? Don't keep it to yourself, let folks know.

Customers have questions, you have answers. Display the most frequently asked questions, so everybody benefits.

How were taught to fly a landing approach?  Alan tells us about the different ways and his preferred approach in Don’t Think It to Death, But Do Keep It Within Gliding Distance of the Runway (Essay #310)  

To read the essay click….HERE

There is no need to add any further explanation about this week’s essay….. Where Were You on 9/11? (Essay #309)

To read the essay click….HERE

There are all kinds of close calls and we’ve all had them.  You will have to read this week’s essay to find out what kind Alan recently had.  Its title is A Close Call (Essay #308).

To read the essay click…. HERE

LaAviator.com exists to serve the Louisiana Aviation Community….  or you might even wish to call it a family.  I’ve always felt that aviation folks are very close.  That makes it especially tough when the family loses some of its members.  Alan reflects on losing some of his friends in this week’s essay On the Deaths of Fellow Airmen ( Essay #307)

To read the essay click….HERE

We all know we have to apply right rudder on take off and have been told why…. but I bet you don’t know all the reasons why.  Alan puts a lot of thought into all of the reasons in this week’s essay…. A Swing to the Left (Essay #306)

To read the essay click….HERE

Alan writes about how weather briefings have evolved over the years in The Weather Machines (Essay #305).  To read the essay click HERE.

How do you feel about flying over water?  Obviously folks do it all the time….. all of the way back to some very famous aviators.  Some of them are successful and some tragically not.  Alan gives us is thoughts on all of them in…. Out of Sight of Land (Essay #304).

To read the essay click….

HERE

Why do you do what you do?  It’s an interesting question.  I spend a lot of time and effort to do the Facebook page, news emails and webpage for LaAviator.com. Why?  It’s easy for me to answer that question…. Aviation has given me a great deal of pleasure my entire life and I want it to thrive and continue so others can enjoy it as well.  

Folks ask me all the time why I don’t charge for advertising and turn it into a good business.  I always tell them that I’m retired and I don’t want another job.  I really enjoy doing this and there is no pressure.  If I get up and decide not to do the newsletter I don’t have to.

Alan tells us why he’s done what he’s done and continues to do in this week’s essay…. Career Paths (Essay #304)

To read the essay click….HERE

Alan give us his advice on how to pack for trips in all types of aircraft.  This week’s essay is called On Packing (Essay #303)

To read the essay click….HERE

Alan tells us more about his nine years of skydiving in this week’s essay….

Jumpers and Wuffos (Essay #302)

To read the essay click…. HERE.

What if the student knows more than the instructor?  It could happen.  Alan talks about some occasions where he has experienced that in Back to Basics Again (Essay #301)

To read the essay click….HERE.

Essay 300….. 

Wow, Alan has written three hundred essays!  That is quite and accomplishment and I’ve read them all.  When he started writing them I never thought that several years later they would still be coming every week.  I know I couldn’t do it.

Alan thanks me repeatedly for accepting and publishing his Blog.  Who wouldn’t accept a free gift to the Louisiana aviation community that was both entertaining and educational?

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Alan.  Hopefully both of us will be around for many more years of writing and publishing.

To read his 300th essay, Opus 300, click…. HERE

In this essay, Alan lists the titles of all of the essays he has written.  Our old website had access to all of them but when I had to build a new site I only listed links to those published back through 2017.  The rest will be coming and are still out there in cyberland.  If there is one that isn’t there yet that you want to read, just shoot me an email and I will send you the link to read it.

I hope that many of you will contact Alan Malone to thank him for this wonderful gift that he has given to all of us.  He can be reached at alanm1@cox.net.

Alan wrote some suggestions in last week’s essay about buying an airplane.  This week he gives you some thoughts around sharing the cost of ownership in…..  Partnerships I Have Had (Essay #299).

To read the essay click…. HERE.

Do you want to buy an aircraft?  You know what they say…. The two best days in your life is the day you buy it and the day you sell it.  Anyway, Alan has owned several and has written some great advice on how to go about it.

To read his essay called On Buying An Airplane (Essay #298) click HERE.

Normally I write a little summary about Alan’s essay for the week.  This week I’m going to just see if the title will get you interested enough to read it…..

Oh, Please Hold Me My Darling! (Essay #297)

To read the essay click HERE.

AWhen you get more pilot ratings, you can do more things…. And learn more things.  Alan discusses How Many Ratings Are Enough? (Essay #295)

To read the essay click HERE

Someone can be a totally different person after a make-over.  It’s the same thing with an airplane after a paint job.  Alan has had some experience with that as well and writes about it in Paint Jobs (Essay #294)

To read the essay click….HERE.

It’s a sad day when an airplane makes its last flight.  Alan writes about one he is very familiar with in this week’s Essay….The Death of an Airplane (Essay #293)

To read the essay click….HERE

Why do we like aviation?  Alan gives us his take on that this week in What is it About Flying? (Essay #292)

To read the essay click HERE.

And now for something completely different.  Alan talks about a modern art exhibit and gives us…...An Aviator’s Perspective (Essay #291)

To read the essay click…. HERE

Many of us built and flew model aircraft as we were growing up and some still do.  It’s a wonderful hobby.  Alan writes about his experiences with model aircraft along with some future plans in Modeling Reality (Essay #290).

To read the essay click…. HERE

Alan recently spent some time introducing a pilot to a high performance airplane.  He tells us all about it in this week’s essay…. The High-Performance Checkout (Essay #288).

To read the essay click HERE.

Have you ever had a significant amount of ice form on your light aircraft, during a flight?  If you have, just the fact that I just mentioned it probably caused the hair to stand up on the back of your neck.  Well Alan has had a happen more than once, and he writes about in this week’s essay….Ice is a Major No-No (Essay #287)  To read the essay click….  HERE

Most of you that read Alan’s Essays must know that he was a long time FAA DPE.  And as one, you must know that he had to have frequently asked students a lot of the same questions over his long career….and they are usually called  FAQ’s.  So what is a FMQ?  To find out you’ll have to read this week’s essay….FMQ (Essay #285).

To read the essay click….HERE

The disease of “Get-there-itis” is something that all pilots are aware of….and it seems like it would be no problem to eradicate.  Unfortunately most of us have had at least a mild case of it.  A bad case can be fatal.  Alan confesses that he has actually had a case of the illness in this week’s essay…. On Risking Life and Limb to See a Basketball Game (Essay #284)

To read the essay click HERE.

I always thought the Beech 18 was a beautiful classic aircraft.  Alan tells about his experience flying them in this week’s essay… The Twin Beech (Essay #283).  To read the essay click….

HERE

Have you ever been sitting on the end of the runway looking at some high trees on the other end and wondering if you are going to clear them?  Or circling an airstrip looking down at the runway and wondering if I can get down and stopped before I hit that building on the end of the runway?  Most of us have at some time or another.  It’s a good idea to have a fairly firm answer to that question before you give it a try.  Alan talks about just that in this week’s essay…. How Much Room Do You Need? (Essay #282)

To read the essay click….HERE

A newly married couple with a Piper Clipper.  What do you do?  Right, take off in it for your honeymoon.  This week’s essay is A Clipper Honeymoon (Essay #281)

To read the essay click HERE

What was your attitude when you started flying lessons? Alan writes about several of his students in Student Attitudes (Essay #280).

To read the essay click HERE.

They’re a whole lot of numbers to deal with in aviation…. and some of them are there to help us from running out of fuel.  Alan discusses that in this week’s essay…. By The Numbers (Essay #278).

To read the essay click HERE.

I never thought of anyone having a Multi-Engine rating and not having a Single-Engine one…… but Alan has and has met some of those folks.  See what he has to say in The Single-Engine Class (Essay #277)

To read the essay click HERE

How do you answer the question…. “What do you do for a living?”  Alan tells you his answer to that question in this week’s essay….. A Little of This and A Little of That (Essay #276)

To read the essay click….HERE

To be a good teacher you need to know how people learn….and that applies to teaching folks how to fly as well.  Alan explains that in this week’s essay called

Levels of Learning (Essay #275).

To read the essay click HERE

Alan gives us a fun Christmas reflection in this week’s essay called The Santa Bust (Essay #274).  To read it click HERE,

If you are a regular reader then you know that Alan had to transition from private aircraft travel to airline travel this year.  He reflects on a year of trips in this week’s essay….. An Impressive System (Essay #273).

To read the essay click HERE

Alan recalls the many technological improvements that he has lived through in aviation during his long flying career.  He calls this week’s essay Pilots and Robots (Essay #272).  To read what they were click HERE.

Alan discussed in a recent essay about the old parachutes and how they were difficult to steer.  Now he discusses the newer rectangular parachutes that were easy to steer but you would either land very softly or very, very hard.  Guess which way Alan landed?  And how could that possibly relate to the title of this week’s essay, Rehabilitation in Seaplanes (Essay #271)

You will have to read it to find out by clicking HERE

Alan is starting to wrap up things for the end of the year in End of Year Hodgepodge (Essay #271).

To read the essay click….HERE

You watch skydivers now with their modern parachutes and they seem to be able to steer them to a spot landing almost anywhere they please.  Well, it wasn’t always that way. Alan tells about one of his jumps in the “good old days” in A Walk in the Weeds (Essay #270).

To read the essay click….HERE

In this week’s essay, Alan has written about several scenarios that show how hazardous attitudes can lead to a possible accident.  It’s easy to read them and identify the other folks we know that have that attitude, but sometimes it’s difficult to see our own issues.  Well, we’re in there somewhere if we get honest with ourselves. The title of the essay is Hazardous Attitudes That Affect Aeronautical Decision-Making (Essay #269) and to read it click HERE.

Is stress a good thing?  Well maybe it is sometime.  Alan gives his thoughts in this week's essay On Stress (Essay #268). 

To read the essay click HERE.

Did you know that motorcycle riders make better pilots?  Alan explains why in this week’s essay More About Multitasking (Essay #267).

To read the essay click HERE

Most pilots look for reasons to go flying.  Alan talks about his and other reasons in this week’s essay called Excuses For Going Flying (Essay #266).   You can read it by clicking HERE

As a new pilot, were you ever worried about getting lost?  That might seem a little weird to new pilots when you can navigate easier with your phone than anything we had in the instrument panels in the early days.  In today’s essay Alan talks about how he navigated in his early pilot days in Where the Heck Are We?  (Essay #265)

To read it click HERE

Alan writes about a very serious safety issue this week that has claimed many lives in Multiple Approaches Are a Bad Idea (Essay #263).  To read the essay click…. HERE

Are the requirements for a Private Pilot Certificate adequate?  Alan gives his take on that in this week’s essay - How Far Should We Go In Private Training (Essay #262).  To read the essay click HERE.

If you’re a pilot I’m pretty sure you remember a lot of details about your first solo.  Alan tells you why in this week’s essay…. The Initial Solo (Essay #261). To read it click HERE

Alan writes about another experience with airline travel versus general aviation aircraft travel.  He calls this one Good News/Bad News (Essay #260). To read it click HERE