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ISSUE 3, FEBRUARY 2010
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The
Dunning-Kruger Effect in Aviation
By
Dan Grunloh, Editor, Light
Plane World |
| In
1999, two Cornell University
scientists published a paper
titled "Unskilled and Unaware
of It: How Difficulties in
Recognizing One's Own Incompetence
Lead to Inflated
Self-Assessments," which
concluded what we already know:
"You don't know what you
don't know." Their research
also went a bit further and
supported another belief long held
by teachers and philosophers:
"the less you know, the more
you think you know."
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results were so conclusive and
widely accepted that the effect
was soon named after the authors.
Its implications are now
recognized in areas such as
business management, finance,
medicine, and antique furniture
appraisal. It may be caused by the
way our brains work; no one was or
is immune, not even Einstein,
Mozart, or a space shuttle pilot. Read
more
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Top
6 Reasons to Become a Light-Sport
Instructor
By Carol Carpenter
 First
let me just start with an
important fact: A good flight
instructor is by far the best
asset a student pilot can procure.
Let me also note that good
instructors aren’t necessarily
good pilots, and good pilots aren’t
necessarily good instructors. But
if you think you’ve got what it
takes to be a flight instructor,
consider becoming part of the
solution to the light-sport
instructor shortage. Even though
flight instruction doesn’t
promise the most lucrative of
careers, keep in mind that by
becoming a sport pilot instructor,
you will be answering a calling
and sharing the dream of flight. Read
more
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Sport
Pilot Rule Revisions Could Make
Training Unnecessarily Burdensome
The training exemption for E-LSA
used for flight instruction
expired on January 31, 2010,
causing many instructors to close
their businesses and leave the
sport they love. The FAA failed to
develop guidance for the issuance
of letters of deviation authority
(LODAs) under §91.319(h), which
would have allowed these
experienced and knowledgeable
instructors to continue to use
their aircraft for training. Read
more |
Legal
Eagle XL Ultralight Introduced
 Leonard
Milholland has announced the
availability of plans for a new
enlarged version of his Better
Half VW-powered Legal Eagle XL
ultralight, especially designed
for larger pilots. The Legal Eagle
XL isn't merely an enlarged
cockpit version of the original.
It's an entirely new airframe. The
original Legal Eagle was limited
to a pilot weight of 225 pounds,
but the new Legal Eagle XL is
rated at 575 pounds gross weight
and designed to accommodate a
275-pound pilot. The empty weight
of the Legal Eagle XL is 246
pounds. Read
more |
Upcoming
Ultralight and Light Plane Seminars
 Annual
ultralight and light-sport safety
seminars have been announced for
Illinois on February 27 and
Indiana on March 13. The tradition
of these events was started nearly
three decades ago by Charlie
Wells, an aerobatic pilot and
ultralight enthusiast who helped
Illinois bring safety information
to the growing ultralight
community. The seminars quickly
grew to include light planes and
have become a fun and educational
way to meet friends and fellow
pilots in your state. Read
more |
Multi-Continent
Trike Flight for Charity Ends in
Tragedy
 What
was supposed to be the beginning
of a six-week adventure flying a
microlight from London, England,
to Sidney, Australia, ended in
tragedy January 18, with the loss
of the pilot over the English
Channel on the first leg of the
trip. British adventurer Martin
Bromage planned the 11,733 mile
flight spanning 18 countries to
raise funds for wounded veterans.
His aircraft was a 100 hp
weight-shift trike, the P&M
QuikR, which had a 38-gallon fuel
tank and a range of 500 miles. As
he approached the coastline of
France his progress was stopped by
low clouds and mist. Unable to
find an alternate landing spot due
to the weather, he apparently
decided to return to England. Read
more |
Shell
Aviation Launches New Two-Cycle
Oil
Shell Aviation announced the
availability of AeroShell Oil
Sport Plus 2 for two-cycle
engines, such as the Rotax
air-cooled and water-cooled
engines, at the U.S. Sport
Aviation Expo in Sebring, Florida.
It's a major development for
ultralight operators who
previously used Pennzoil for
air-cooled two-cycle engines. Read
more |
Belite
Offers New Trike and Superlite
Models
Belite Aircraft has unveiled its
new Trike and the Superlite models
this week at the Sebring US Sport
Aviation Expo in Sebring, Florida.
Like the original Belite 254 FAR
Part 103 compliant ultralight
aircraft, both models incorporate
extensive use of weight-saving
carbon fiber. The Trike features a
free castering nose wheel and
composite main gear, a 5 gallon
spun aluminum fuel tank, and a
fully-covered cockpit
interior. Read
more
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Hummingbird
Sails Under New Ownership
Ron Jones of Thunderbird
Aviation LLC and Phil Miller of
North Fork Aviation have joined
forces and acquired the assets of
Hummingbird Sails, producer of
pre-sewn wing, fuselage, and tail
feather coverings for most
ultralights and experimental
aircraft using the pre-sewn
envelope method of covering. The
acquisition included complete
patterns for 35 aircraft, and
partials such as tail feathers for
another 10. Thunderbird Aviation
already manufactures the
Hiperlight, including fabric
coverings. The addition of two
more experienced employees will
make it possible to produce sails
for a wide variety of ultralights
going all the way back to the
Weedhopper and Hummer. In addition
to conventional Dacron, they can
also build sails with the
Mylar-laminated Dacron used on the
T-Bird and others. Custom orders
are welcome, and free shipping
will be standard for all orders in
2010. Operations began February 1,
2010, under the name Hummingbird
Aviation LLC at the North Fork
Airport (97WI) between Stanley and
Thorp, Wisconsin. To place an
order or get pricing information,
contact Thunderbird Aviation LLC
at 586-212-5862. You can also
e-mail TbirdRJ@aol.com
or contact Phil Miller at
715-577-9532. |
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From
the EAA Light Plane Community
The message forums at
Oshkosh365 are humming with
activity. Here are the latest
discussions!
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Engines
Q. Other than reducing noise,
what does the exhaust system do
for my two-cycle engine? Read
the answer
Powered
Parachute
Q. How do you make adjustments
to the center of gravity
(CG)? Read
the
answer
Weight
Shift Trikes
Q. What are the advantages of
a strut braced or topless
wing? Read
the answer
Fixed-Wing
Airplane
Q. How does ground effect
affect my airplane? Read
the answer
Powered
Paraglider
Q. Can I teach myself to fly
a powered paraglider? Read
the answer |
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 The
Woodhopper story is an interesting
page in the early history
of ultralights. The plans-built
ultralight designed by John Chotia
was made famous when it was
featured in Popular Mechanics
magazine in November 1981. It
arrived five years after John
Moody's first flight at the EAA
convention. Thousands of plans
sets were sold worldwide, as
ordinary people embraced the idea
of building their own ultralight. Read
more |
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| Q.
What is your source of flight
instruction?
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