Best of Aviation

Airplane engines have two redundant ignition systems and two spark plugs per cylinder so if one fails, the other takes over seemlessly. We use "massive electrode" plugs like these, good for about 300-400 hours of operation. They cost about $25 each.

One of the strangest takeoffs I've ever seen is that of an airship. Once free of the moorings, they point the nose up quite a bit and pull away s-l-o-w-l-y. This is the Fuji airship on takeoff from Plymouth, MA.

On final, runway 06 at Plymouth, MA, coming off the RNAV/GPS approach.

We routinely pass Pocono raceway when flying up to Wilkes-Barre, PA. If you look closely, you can see the infield track which is made available to the public for high performance driving events.

As long as the weather is calm and predictable, flying on rainy days is actually a pleasurable experience. Traffic is lighter because the VFR guys are grounded, and best of all, I don't have to wash the bugs off the leading edge of the wing after I land.

While flying to Cape Cod one day we encountered conditions that quickly deteriorated. We went from good clear air to moderate rain and IFR conditions in about 30 miles. Looking off the coast, you can see the leading edge of some convective activity (thunderstorms).

Enroute to Perkiomen Valley airport to have some avionics work done. We're at 4000 feet in and out of the tops of the clouds. Instrument students learn to set up the cockpit well in advance of the current mode of flight, and part of that involves getting out the approach chart to study it.

Departing from Hagerstown, MD into some deteriorating weather. Notice the darkening skies to the north (where we're headed!). It was a rainy but calm flight home.

Radial engines are largely a thing of the past, but they can be overhauled and made to function like new just like this example from a newly restored Boeing Stearman biplane. The orange stripes are part of a color code that denotes the type of cylinder barrel type -- in this case chrome.