Keyboard and Rudder: A blog on the Art of Flying

Demystifying the process of learning to fly for everyone from the beginning student to the certificated pilot looking to improve their skills. Heavy on the basics of stick and rudder skills, with unscheduled landings on other varied topics like weather and the sheer beauty and joy of flight.

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Weather pictures speak a thousand words, Part 2: Weather hazards

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Part 1 had lots of pictures of air masses demonstrating how much the atmosphere flows like water . This time, let's see what happens whe...

Weather pictures speak a thousand words, Part 1: The air flowing like water

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During the private pilot ground school I teach at the local college, we spend two full weeks on weather. Some people's eyes glaze over ...
Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Why are some pilots more likely to declare an emergency than others?

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Not long ago, I got into a debate over at the Flying Friends Facebook group on when one should declare an emergency. This just happened t...
Wednesday, October 14, 2015

What is an emergency?

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In the previous post, I told the story of a recent emergency we had on a flight . It was easy to declare an emergency in this case because t...
Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Emergency!

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It's a beautiful day for flying. The winds are light, the sky is clear, and the temperature is perfect. It's the sort of day where y...
Wednesday, September 16, 2015

How to crush something without touching it

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What if I told you I can crush a water bottle without touching it? You probably wouldn't believe me, would you? Of course you wouldn...
Wednesday, September 9, 2015

What you can't see can hurt you: Avoiding wake turbulence

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I recently came across a very nice picture of wingtip vortices. (Unfortunately, it was passed to me without any information on who took it o...
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About Me

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Larry M. Coleman
I'm an airline pilot and a CFI, CFII (CFI - Instrument), and MEI (Multi-engine Instructor). Since I can't get enough of aviation, I also have an AGI (Advanced Ground Instructor) and IGI (Instrument Ground Instructor) certificate. I spent years as the IT guy for a hospital, but after getting tired of feeling like I was living in the movie Office Space, I decided that the only office worth sitting in all day was one a mile in the sky. Now I get paid to, as John Gillespie Magee, Jr. so elegantly put it, "dance the skies on laughter-silvered wings, climb sunward and join the tumbling mirth of sun-split clouds, and do a hundred things you have not dreamed of." I also teach the Private Pilot Ground School (AVIA 111) at Lorain County Community College, so you can earn college credit while you earn your pilot certificate!
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