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What Everybody Gets Wrong About Commercial Aviation

Few things mix more poorly than commercial flying and the mainstream media.Seldom is an aviation article free from some measure of distortion, exaggeration, or at times outright nonsense.If you caught...

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Airports In The US Are Bad And Getting Worse

Forgive me for repeating myself. In earlier posts, as well as in my book, I’ve emphasized the myriad ways in which US airports pale in comparison to those overseas.I hate driving a topic into the...

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The media is completely wrong — copilots are just as good at flying as captains

I can't take it anymore. How many times can the media, whether it’s a print reporter or a celebrity newscaster, make the same mistake?And why aren’t the supposed experts, often right there on camera...

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All this talk about pilotless planes is 'utter and shameless rubbish'

Not to detract from the raw horror and tragic-ness of the Germanwings disaster, but the crash has spawned a sideshow of ill-informed and just plain aggravating conversations, across the whole spectrum...

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Flying business class on the four best airlines in the world

It's tricky business, grading airlines.Experiences can vary tremendously flight to flight, depending on the temperament of the crew, aircraft type and configuration, and so on. An accurate appraisal...

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A pilot answers your questions about seats, squealing doors, and takeoffs

An old-timey question-and-answers session.Way, way back in 2002, a column called Ask the Pilot, hosted by yours truly, started running in the online magazine Salon, in which I fielded reader-submitted...

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The most significant flight of all time took place 45 years ago

They’ve got a list going over at The Atlantic: What Was the Most Significant Airplane Flight in History?Flight of the Enola Gay, that’s a heavy one. And from my friend Christine Negroni: “In 1914,...

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We may never know what happened to MH370 — but we've forgotten all about MH17

I was in Amsterdam recently, and the headlines of the Dutch paper de Volkskrant were screaming about last year’s Malaysia Airlines disaster. This was no big surprise, given that the first pieces from...

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It's a tragic fact that terrorists have long targeted commercial airliners

UPDATE: November 3, 2015US and British officials are now saying, at least tentatively, that an explosive device may have downed the Kogalymavia Airbus over the Sinai peninsula last weekend.The thinking...

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Pilot explains what it really means when there's turbulence during a flight

Turbulence is far and away the top concern of nervous flyers.If you’re among those seeking reassurance, please refer to my earlier essay on the topic, a version of which also appears in chapter two of...

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American air travelers are safe — yet scared

Americans, we keep hearing, are more anxious than ever over threats of terrorism.A string of recent incidents — the apparent bombing of a Russian jetliner over Egypt; the attacks in Paris and the mass...

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This is what it's like to have dinner in an old jet that's been converted to...

I'm the farthest thing from a foodie.The very word foodie irritates me. It goes back to my childhood, maybe.I was raised in what was perhaps the must gastronomically unadventurous family in America. A...

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A pilot has 7 ways to solve the TSA crisis and improve airport security

Airport security lines are out the door, and the effects are an enormous drag on our sanity and our economy: angry travelers, missed flights, millions of hours of wasted time, and millions of wasted...

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The truth about pilots and alcohol

As you probably heard, two United Airlines pilots were recently arrested in Glasgow, Scotland, on suspicion of intoxication.This is a tough one for me — maybe the most difficult of any subject to...

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Airline pilot explains the root cause of the disturbing United airlines video...

If you've into tuned in to the media at all today, you’ve probably seen or heard the story about the passenger being forcibly removed from an overbooked United Express regional jet. The accompanying...

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An airline pilot reviewed the best business class in the world and he wasn't...

Editor's note: Patrick Smith is a commercial airline pilot who currently flies Boeing 757 and 767 aircraft. Smith is also a travel blogger and author of the book "Cockpit Confidential."Qatar Airways...

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An airline pilot explains why planes can't fly when it's extremely hot outside

Editor's note: Patrick Smith is a commercial airline pilot who currently flies Boeing 757 and 767 aircraft. Smith is also a travel blogger and author of the book "Cockpit Confidential."As maybe you’ve...

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The pilot shortage is real and airlines must change before it becomes a...

Editor's note: Patrick Smith is a commercial airline pilot who currently flies Boeing 757 and 767 aircraft. Smith is also a travel blogger and author of the book "Cockpit Confidential.THE PILOT...

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A pilot explains how an Air Canada jet nearly caused a major aviation...

Air Canada Flight 759 attempted to land on a taxiway at SFO.The incident could have been a major aviation disaster. Smith explains how the Air Canada pilots could have made such a mistake.Editor's...

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A pilot explains what it really means when there's turbulence during a flight

Turbulence is generally harmless.It also feels much worse than it actually is. Pilots try to avoid turbulence to give passengers a smoother ride.But turbulence can be unpredictable.Turbulence seems to...

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