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Ready For Takeoff - Turn Your Aviation Passion Into A Career

The Ready For Takeoff podcast will help you transform your aviation passion into an aviation career. Every week we bring you instruction and interviews with top aviators in their field who reveal their flight path to an exciting career in the skies.
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Ready For Takeoff - Turn Your Aviation Passion Into A Career
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Now displaying: March, 2018
Mar 30, 2018

Even if you are type rated the in the airplane, there is a lot more to upgrading than learning how to fly the airplane from a different seat. You'll find that most of the real-life challenges you face as Captain have nothing to do with engine failure on takeoff!

At many airlines, when it took more than 10 years to make Captain, copilots would have a lot of exposure to good and bad Captains, and would have the opportunity to see countless airborne decisions and evaluate their results. With rapid advancement now days, it's possible copilots will not have the extensive mentoring that existed previously.

At most airlines there is some form of New Captain training to give the prospective aircraft commander training and instruction on a variety of operational topics, such as Leadership, Crewmember Mentoring, Crew Resource Management (CRM), Inflight Medical Issues, Decision-Making, Management, Fatigue-Risk Management, Stress, Aviation Law, Company Procedures and Performance.

Mar 26, 2018

Robert "Cujo" Teschner served as the U.S. Air Force's debrief expert during his time as an F-15C instructor pilot at the U.S. Air Force Weapons School at Nellis AFB, NV.  He personally designed and taught the first-ever core debrief fundamentals course to all Weapons School students across all disciplines.  He authored the paper "The Vocabulary of the Debrief," which was published in the Weapons School Review, and served as the subject author and senior adviser on a paper presenting the fundamentals of debrief methodology.  Cujo has spent countless hours teaching debrief fundamentals to both military and business professionals. After retiring from the Air Force, Cujo founded VMax Group.

Mar 23, 2018

Upgrading from airline First Officer (copilot) to Captain involves more than simply moving from the right seat to the left. If a new type rating is required, there will be ground school and simulator training, and the ubiquitous check ride.

Simulator training may consist of traditional Appendix H Training to ATP Practical Test Standards and the newer Advanced Qualification Program, and will be conducted in a Level C or Level D simulator.

After training is complete, the new Captain must complete Operating Experience (OE) - formerly called Initial Operating Experience (IOE) in accordance with FAR 121.434, which consists of 25 hours of supervised inflight training on regular revenue flights with a Line Check Airman in the right seat. At the completion of OE, if it the pilot's initial Captain certification, an FAA Aviation Safety Inspector will ride along on one leg of the OE to observe the PIC's performance during the latter stages of OE.

 

Mar 19, 2018

From the Afterburner website:

As an F-15 pilot, Thor escorted the U.S. President through the sky and flew missions to ensure the safety of the country after the attacks of 9/11. He was the tactical leader of 300 of the most senior combat pilots in the Air Force and he oversaw the execution of a $150M/year flight program. Thor was named the Top Instructor Pilot at the Air Force Flight Training Headquarters and he’s flown thousands of missions teaching pilots from 25 countries around the world. He received his Bachelor’s Degree at the United States Air Force Academy and is a summa cum laude graduate of the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas.

For most of 2015, Thor led a team of Afterburner consultants that was embedded in Silicon Valley with one of the top-five largest software companies in the world. While there, Thor supported the successful completion of more than 50 projects or “Missions” created from the CEO’s key strategic objectives.

Thor is humbled to have had the incredible experiences that executive leadership within the military and Afterburner have afforded him, but he’s most proud of the following accomplishments. In 2010, Thor was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer and given about a 15% chance to live. Instead of giving up, Thor decided to give back. He started a youth outreach program in San Antonio that has grown to help more than 15,000 at-risk kids. Their efforts have been featured on every news channel for 100 miles and one national media outlet. In 2012, he was selected out of 62,000 people to receive the AETC National Public Service Award.

Thor completed the New Zealand Ironman Triathlon in March of 2015 to commemorate the five-year anniversary of his Stage IV cancer diagnosis and to raise awareness for the rare and deadly cancer that he battles.

Thor sits on the board of several national organizations and is the co-founder of a military support corporation. As Afterburner’s President, Thor leads our team of more than 70 elite military professionals. He has helped achieve strategic objectives and foster elite teams for Fortune 100 companies within the tech industry, pharmaceuticals, finance, medical devices, retail apparel and several NFL teams.

Thor hosts the Thorcast podcast.

Mar 15, 2018

In aviation terminology, a rejected takeoff (RTO) or aborted takeoff is the situation in which it is decided to abort the takeoff of an airplane. There can be many reasons for deciding to perform a rejected takeoff, but they are usually due to suspected or actual technical failures, like an engine failure such as a compressor stall occurring during the takeoff run.

A rejected takeoff is normally performed only if the aircraft's speed is below the critical engine failure  speed (sometimes called decision speed) known as V1 , which for larger multi-engine airplanes is calculated before each flight.The Federal Aviation Administration defines V1 as: "the maximum speed in the takeoff at which the pilot must take the first action (e.g., apply brakes, reduce thrust, deploy speed brakes) to stop the airplane within the accelerate-stop distance. V1 also means the minimum speed in the takeoff, following a failure of the critical engine at VEF, at which the pilot can continue the takeoff and achieve the required height above the takeoff surface within the takeoff distance." Below the decision speed, the airplane should be able to stop safely before the end of the runway. Above the decision speed, the airplane may overshoot the runway if the takeoff is aborted, and, therefore, a rejected takeoff is normally not performed above this speed, unless there is reason to doubt the airplane's ability to fly. If a serious failure occurs or is suspected above V1 but the airplane's ability to fly is not in doubt, the takeoff is continued despite the (suspected) failure and the airplane will attempt to land again as soon as possible.

Single-engine aircraft will normally reject any takeoff after an engine failure, regardless of speed, as there is no power available to continue the takeoff. Even if the airplane is already airborne, if sufficient runway remains, an attempt to land straight ahead on the runway may be made. This may also apply to some light twin engine airplanes.

Before the takeoff roll is started, the autobrake system of the aircraft, if available, is set to the RTO mode. The autobrake system will automatically apply maximum brakes if throttle is reduced to idle or reverse thrust during the takeoff roll.

An RTO is usually seen as one of the hardest tests an airplane has to undergo for its certification trials. The RTO test is performed under the worst possible conditions; i.e. with fully worn out brakes, the plane loaded to maximum takeoff weight and no use of thrust reverst. During an RTO test most of the kinetic energy of the airplane is converted to heat by the brakes, which may cause the fusible plugs of the tires to melt, causing them to deflate. Small brake fires are acceptable as long as they do not spread to the airplane body within five minutes (the maximum likely time for arrival of the airport fire fighters).
 
Most modern flight manuals specify 80 (Boeing) or 100 (Airbus) knots as the beginning of the "high speed" regime of the takeoff run, and recommend only rejecting the takeoff only in the case of
  • Engine fire
  • Engine failure
  • predictive windshear
  • aircraft unsafe to fly
A significant high-speed rejected takeoff accident highlights the importance of performing a high-speed RTO in the case of an uncontained engine failure that resulted in a fuselage fire. In this accident, the crew initially thought that they had experienced a tire failure and elected to RTO at 126 knots (V1 was 146). The engine fire indication did not occur for 9 more seconds. If they had continued the takeoff, it is likely that all occupants would have perished instead of the 55 of the 131 passengers.
 
For discussion reference, a B777 at maximum takeoff weigh of 520,000 pounds on a standard day at sea level has a balanced field length of 6950 feet (Reference). On a typical runway length of 12,000 feet, such as runway 18L or 18R at Orlando International Airport, that leaves almost a mile of additional runway available for stopping.
Mar 12, 2018

From The Anchor of Hope website:

Col Ravella is a 1983 graduate of Texas A&M and served over 26 years in the USAF as an F-15E pilot with over 3700 hours and command at the Squadron and Group levels.  Jim is a father of seven children, a writer and a speaker.  Jim married Andrea Fuller in 1983; they had two wonderful sons, Nic and Anthony. They lost Andrea in 2007 after a four-year battle with breast cancer. During their fight with cancer, Jim documented their journey in a blog, Journey to Healing, that touched many lives around the world. Jim and Andrea spoke to cancer groups and churches, offering hope to those facing life's challenges.  Their faith, grace and courage was an inspiration to all who knew them and, through Jim's writing, continues to change the lives of those who read their story. Jim has appeared in numerous print venues and radio interviews.

Ginger Gilbert Ravella is a military wife and widow, mother of five, stepmother of two, writer and international speaker.  At 36 years old, she faced the sudden tragic loss of her college-sweetheart husband in Operation Iraqi Freedom and the horrors that quickly followed.

Her late husband, Major Troy Gilbert, an Air Force F-16 pilot, gave his life while saving over twenty Special Operation soldiers, defining a true American war hero.   His remains were tragically stolen by the enemy but led to a captivating story of recovery unprecedented in U.S. military history. He left behind five beautiful children, all under the age of 9 years. Ginger’s openly genuine testimony of wrestling with God in the midst of despair and depression resonates with those who question their faith in the face of tragedy.  Her private pain became front-page news time and time again over an amazing ten-year journey.  Ginger has shared her heart-wrenching story of loss, perseverance and hope in venues such as “The O’Reilly Factor”, “Fox and Friends News”, TIME Magazine, “CNN’s The Lead with Jake Tapper”, The Golf Channel, USA Today, Air Force Times, Gary Sinise documentary “Lt. Dan Band - For the Common Good”, Stars and Stripes, NRA TV documentary with Lee Brice “This is My Cause”, CMT News, PGA Magazine and numerous national radio interviews.

Ginger is the Director of the Speakers Bureau for Folds of Honor, a non-profit charity whose mission is to raise educational funds for fallen and wounded soldiers’ families.  She is an international speaker and author devoted to her God, her family and her country.

 

Mar 9, 2018

From Wikepedia:

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT), is the formation of a blood clot in a deep vein, most commonly the legs. Symptoms may include pain, swelling, redness, or warmth of the affected area. About half of cases have no symptoms. Complications may include pulmonary embolism, as a result of detachment of a clot which travels to the lungs, and post-thrombotic syndrome.

Risk factors include recent surgery, cancer, trauma, lack of movement, obesity, smoking, hormonal birth control, pregnancy and the period following birth, antiphospholipid syndrome, and certain genetic conditions. Genetic factors include deficiencies of antithrombin, protein C, and protein S, and factor V Leiden mutation. The underlying mechanism typically involves some combination of decreased blood flow rate, increased tendency to clot, and injury to the blood vessel wall.

Individuals suspected of having DVT may be assessed using a clinical prediction rule such as the Wells score. A D-dimer test may also be used to assist with excluding the diagnosis or to signal a need for further testing. Diagnosis is most commonly confirmed by ultrasound of the suspected veins. Together, DVT and pulmonary embolism are known as venous thromboembolism (VTE).

Anticoagulation (blood thinners) is the standard treatment. Typical medications include low-molecular-weight heparin, warfarin, or a direct oral anticoagulant. Wearing graduated compression stockings may reduce the risk of post-thrombotic syndrome. Prevention may include early and frequent walking, calf exercises, aspirin, anticoagulants, graduated compression stockings, or intermittent pneumatic compression. The rate of DVTs increases from childhood to old age; in adulthood, about one in 1000 adults are affected per year. About 5% of people are affected by a VTE at some point in time.

 

Mar 5, 2018

From Lance's website:

Lance is a full time pilot for Southwest Airlines.  With aviation as his profession and inspiration he wanted a name that captured flight.  Lance and his wife Jamie coincidently named their children Lucas Wylde and Judah Byrd.  He combined their names to create Wyldebyrd.

Prior to the establishment of Wyldebyrd Art, Lance grew up in Northern Ontario Canada, in Sioux Lookout.  His Father Howard was a pilot and his mother Sandra a school teacher.  His parents s started their own air service back in 1989.  Lance was asked to be the designer and builder of the remote buildings of the new business Lockhart Air Services.

Combing years of summer jobs and his love of architecture in the far reaches of the remote wilderness Lance carved out the landscape and built several structures that are still standing and being used to date.

After completing college Lance joined the company as a bush pilot.  He often flew hundreds of miles further north into remote native villages.  The adventure and challenge were in his blood.  As his connection to the landscape and the presence of history and culture of the native people.  It resonated with Lance.

Today Lance often connects the emotional history in people's live to the pieces he creates.  Not only is the art inspired, it often speaks to people on a deeper level.  That element helps transform the creations into generational keepsakes.

Lance Lockhart is the artist at Wyldebyrd Art. He is also a Captain for Southwest Airlines, one of the most beloved and trusted airlines in the world. He was hired in 2006 and upgraded to Captain in 2016. With thousands of flying hours over decades in aviation the position of Captain gives him great insight and access to unique aviation items to create into art. As an aviation artist, Lance is the only full time airline pilot and aviation artist. The view from the Captains seat not only help provide inspiration to create more art, it also allows a behind the scenes look and connection into the airline industry as well as years of flying experience in many plane types along the way. Art from the Captains hand and world leader in aviation art. No other storefront or company has as many products, provides as much value and connects with their customers as both the subject matter expert, with the creative ability to make desirable products.

 

Mar 1, 2018

Lithium-ion batteries are common in home electronics. They are one of the most popular types of rechargeable batteries for portable electronics, with a high energy density, tiny memory effect and low self-discharge. LIBs are also growing in popularity for military, battery electric vehicle and aerospace applications.

Lithium-ion batteries can pose unique safety hazards since they contain a flammable electrolyte and may be kept pressurized. An expert notes "If a battery cell is charged too quickly, it can cause a short circuit, leading to explosions and fires". Because of these risks, testing standards are more stringent than those for acid-electrolyte batteries, requiring both a broader range of test conditions and additional battery-specific tests. There have been battery-related recalls by some companies, including the 2016 Samsung Galaxy Note 7 recall for battery fires.

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