Veritable Aviation Blog

While flying during daylight hours allows pilots to use both visual references from outside the windshield and instrument readings to conduct standard operations, night flying can open up more complexity. When pilots need to rely on visuals from out of the windshield during night hours, they need to use a Night Vision Imaging System (NVIS). NVISs can be highly beneficial for increasing visibility, but they can also create safety hazards if the equipment is incompatible with the aircraft, hasn't been set up properly, or if flight crews are unable to operate such systems correctly. In this blog, we will discuss some of the common factors that affect the safety of NVIS use, allowing you to enact the proper measures during such operations.

In the days before electronic flight displays and modern flight instruments, distance measuring equipment (DME) served as a critical asset for conducting flight. As a radio system that could determine the distance between an aircraft and a VOR station, DME helped many pilots navigate much easier and safer. As the electronic flight display and modern flight instruments became more common, however, the original DME system quickly became outdated and the term eventually spread to include any navigation system that could provide accurate distance measurements to stations.

While a majority of fixed-wing aircraft are designed for operations in the air and on land, there are also many that specifically cater to landing and taking off from water. Known as seaplanes, such aircraft are fitted with a variety of components that allow them to easily traverse on water and undertake more diverse operations as compared to a conventional land-based aircraft. In this blog, we will discuss the common features of the seaplane and their functionalities, allowing you to better understand how they are used to carry out various operations on and from water. 

While aircraft fuel leaks are something that no pilot ever wants to face, they are always a possibility that one should be prepared for. By knowing what to do in the event of a fuel leak or aircraft fuel spill, pilots can ensure that they efficiently resolve the situation and safely operate the aircraft for the wellbeing of all on board. Furthermore, understanding the situations that cause leaks can help you prevent fuel leakage before it occurs, allowing operators to best care for their aircraft.

A common ongoing debate within the aviation community is centered around flight instruments. Specifically, the comparison between the modern glass cockpit and the ‘old school’ six pack. A glass cockpit is an aircraft cockpit that features electronic or digital flight instrument displays, and typically large LCD screens. This differs from the classic six pack, which is composed of the traditional style analog dials and gauges, nicknamed ‘steam gauges.’ The six pack, which comprises the airspeed indicator, altimeter, vertical speed indicator, attitude indicator, heading indicator, and turn coordinator, has been in use for years, and remains a good option. However, glass cockpits represent the future of aviation. This blog will explain the main differences between these modern and classic instrumentation systems.

When boarding a plane, you’re likely not thinking about all the things that can go wrong. While you’re trying to occupy your mind with any other thought or contemplating the airy temperature in the cabin, the pilot is currently being vigilant of those very thoughts most passengers want to avoid. Aircraft skidding is one of those concerns. Though rarely heard of, aircrafts do have a risk of skidding when driving or landing on a runway. Thankfully, there are ways to mitigate this risk and methods on how to control the skid when it does happen. Read more about it in the article below. 

When travelling across the country or across the globe, there is no safer method of transportation than flying. This is due to rigorous standards that have been developed and refined over the years, ensuring safety and quality of aircraft and their procedures. In this blog, we will discuss why it is important to have such civil aviation standards in place, as well as the entities that spearhead the safety of air travel.

Flight instruments and navigation equipment are a critical part of safe flight. Parts such as the airspeed indicator, tachometer indicator, flap position indicator, temperature indicator, encoding altimeter, aircraft compass, and many more, have an important role to play. This blog will explain the main flight instruments and navigation tools, how they work, and why they are so important.

Electrical preventive maintenance (EPM) is among the most important tasks to perform in order to ensure the reliability and performance of electrical distribution systems, the longevity of machine service life, and the safety of personnel. It is particularly important in regard to overcurrent protection devices. For instance, in a circuit breaker, an unintentional time delay caused by a sticky operating mechanism can result in a dramatic and dangerous rise in energy. Despite this, electrical preventive maintenance is often done infrequently, inadequately, or overlooked completely.

After the first heavier-than-air powered flight conducted by the Wright brothers in 1903, aviation technology quickly began to develop through World War I and well beyond. Initially, aircraft technology and capabilities were very limited, and thus flight proved to be fairly dangerous. As aviation grew more commercial, industry leaders called for the government to create and maintain safety standards for the growth of the industry as a whole. With the establishment and governing of administrations such as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), airworthiness and safety of parts could be mandated through the use of standards such as the Technical Standard Order (TSO). Technical Standard Orders dictate a minimum performance standard that parts, materials, and appliances that are to be installed on civil aircraft must meet. In this blog, we will discuss Technical Standard Orders more in detail, exploring how they are approved and taken away, among other regulations and policies.