How to be a thinking pilot, with Rick Durden

Learning to fly seaplanes is a ton of fun, but Steve McCaughey from the Seaplane Pilots Association says it also improves your stick and rudder skills dramatically. He explains what you learn as a seaplane pilot, why amphibs have changed the industry, and his personal rules for s ...  Show more

The key to working collaboratively with ATC is to remember that humans are on both sides of the mic, says longtime pilot and air traffic controller John Krug. He offers tips for when to cancel IFR at non-towered airports, how to get that shortcut you want, and what his biggest pe ...  Show more

A student pilot learns whose job it is to preflight the airplane. (By William Satterburg) For questions or comments about this podcast, email jill.tallman@aopa.org Send us your Never Again and we may publish it in an issue of AOPA Pilot and share it on this podcast. Email pilo ...  Show more

Joe Gonzalez is an aviation instructor at Tarrant County College. In this conversation, we’ll examine the current state of aviation education. What new challenges do advancements in technology, such as ForeFlight, present to fledgling aviators? Joe will tell us about the landscap ...  Show more

This episode of “Push to Talk” examines a pilot’s relationship with Air Traffic Control. What common mistakes do we make when communicating with the tower? I spoke with Steve Phillips, an Air Traffic Controller of over forty years, to help demystify the voice in our headset. 

Episode 244 Show Notes

Topic of the show: A student pilot sounds confused and disoriented on a cross country flight so we discuss ways an instructor and student can better prepare for flights to unfamiliar places.  Cross countr ...