Flight Training - July 2013 - 10

LETTERS

Talk back
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FLYING IS FUN

PROMOTE THE EXPERIENCE

thought Adam Smith’s article (“Centerline: I Smell Opportunity,” May Flight Training) was on the money, and GA needs a
leg up. I am a scuba diver and pilot. I immediately recognized
a stark difference in the two as far as getting licensed to enjoy
diving versus flying. People that dive encourage others to participate
in the sport and generally like the agencies that administer the rules
and regulations that must be followed to dive. Most pilots do not enjoy
dealing with the FAA and are basically afraid to cross their path. I have
heard more negative comments from pilots concerning the FAA in the
last 10 years compared to the years before.
I think we need to promote basic fun
and simple flying to get more people
involved in the sport. Everyone has to
start somewhere and we as pilots need
to share the good experiences with
others, such as the first flight video on
YouTube. But before a surge in new
pilots will ever happen, the FAA needs
to realize that we are the good guys and
they need us too. It may be a pipe dream
but I hope the FAA will become more
supportive of general aviation and less
threatening in the years to come.
Charles West
Brookfield, Georgia
FLYING 'FERAL' ALASKA

Being both a wordsmith and an aero/
mechanical engineer can sometimes be
mutually exclusive, but not in this case.
I direct you to page 37, May issue Flight
Training and Kathy Dondzila’s excellent
article on Alaska flying. She describes
“the copper tube had broken where the
B-nut slides over (the small metal ring

placed over end of metal tube).” She
means to say “ferrule,” common to lots
of us aero/mechanical types. Or possibly
your proofreader was unfamiliar with
the term, and thought using “feral” was
a good substitute, given that a lot of the
subject (Alaska bush pilot flying) can
indeed be wild and untamed, or savage
as a feral cat.
Or perhaps manifold pressure might
not have been lost if stainless tubing had
been used in this application. Depending on the alloy, copper tubing, if not
supported really well, can work-harden
and develop cracks/leaks at the B-nut,
especially if over-tightened, right at the
nut and ferrule. A small thing, perhaps,
but correct spelling and application does
triumph over similar pronunciations,
every thyme (sorry).
Philip Madison
Florence, Oregon
My aviation dream is indeed an Alaska
one. During my first season as a wil-

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Flight Training - July 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Flight Training - July 2013