Funny Garmin Commercial

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Is this good advertising? Notice it doesn’t even show the product, but it does communicate the main idea: WAAS allows you to fly an instrument approach that looks like an ILS, even at airports where there is no ILS system.

Bonus: it’s funny.

Track Santa on Christmas Eve

Santa Claus is the most famous pilot in the world. The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) tracks the progress of Santa every Christmas Eve and you can follow along online if you have trouble sleeping that night.

You will see Santa’s position on a Google Map, or download Google Earth and follow him in the 3D rendition of the Earth. We tried to find a preview of what this looks like, but I guess we really do have to wait to see Santa, just like the kids.

The NORAD Santa website goes into more detail:
“Canadian NORAD fighter pilots flying the CF-18 intercept and welcome Santa to North America. In the United States, American NORAD fighter pilots in either the F-15 or the F-16 get the thrill of flying alongside Santa and his famous reindeer…”



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Dude, Where’s My Flying Car?

One of the disappointments of modern technology is the absence of a practical flying car. As the great Ralph Waldo Emerson once penned, “O how elusive ye are, thee flying car.” Ok, not really.

But seriously, dude, where IS my flying car?


Maybe it’s in England. The Parajet Skycar uses a different design philosophy than other attempted flying cars: simplicity. Basically, it resembles a dune buggy with a pusher propeller hanging below a parachute. Powered parachutes are a proven and widespread technology, so we have high hopes for the success of this idea.

The Parajet Skycar team is nearly ready for public demonstrations of their flying machine. You would think that simply flying it around England, and later hitting the aviation expos at Farnborough and Paris would be a good start. No, the Parajet Skycar team wants to attract the world’s attention with the audacious goal of taking the Skycar all the way to Timbuktu.

In 2009, the Parajet Skycar will fly over the English Channel, across France, Spain, across the Strait of Gibraltor, into Morocco, and deep into Africa. They’re also bringing a land-roving support team, motorcycles, and a cast of characters with names strait from a Speilberg movie: Duncan Milligan, Kim Vande Velde, Simon Westmore, Giles Cardozo, etc. Major funding is provided by Sir Ranulph Fiennes.

Imagine this crew plowing through the Sahara – it’s part Mad Max, part Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines. I hope that the Discovery Channel does a show about these people.

Best of luck and happy landings to the Parajet Skycar team!

Virtual Air Show 2008

The professional air show performers take a break during the winter, and that’s when virtual pilots have a chance to steal the spotlight.

The Virtual Festival of Aerobatic Teams (VFAT) is an air show much like you might see at a military base near your home town, except the airplanes only exist in cyberspace. The air show pilots are seated at their home flight simulators and fly in formation via high-speed internet connections.

At an actual air show, you watch the jets from the ground, but in this simulated world, your vantage point can suspend high in the air as a formation flies past you, or fly along side the planes. The virtual Blue Angels and virtual Thunderbirds closely mimic the maneuvers, choreography, music, and even the announcer’s spiel of their real-world counterparts.

The whole event will broadcast live on the VFAT website throughout December 12, 13 and 14, 2008.


Virtual Festival of Aerobatic Teams 2008 Promo from Nathan Truninger on Vimeo.

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SimHQ recently published an interview with “Rhino” the lead pilot of the Virtual Blue Angels. He describes the team’s rigorous practice schedule. The SimHQ interviewer “20mm” didn’t ask “Rhino” why everyone feels the need to have Top Gun nicknames….sorry callsigns, whatever.


Virtual Blue Angels Rollin' Skyhawks from Bob Tyler on Vimeo.

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A noteworthy point is the international aspect of the show. 28 teams from Europe, North America, Russia/Eastern Europe, South America and Asia will participate in the 2008 event. The teams vary in their skill levels and quality of performance. These are video clips from the 2007 event. The website seems to currently work better with the Mozilla Firefox browser. Internet Explorer users will need to scroll around to find the links.

Parts of the show may seem a bit laborious compared to TV sporting events, but keep in mind much of the commercial entertainment we enjoy today has been perfected for decades. Who knows how virtual aviation entertainment will mature in the future. The VFAT forum reports there were 4000 spectators watching the online air show last year, and they expect 10,000 spectators this year. If the virtual pilots can capture the attention of that volume of people, I think there’s some real potential and momentum there.

BONUS: No Bette Midler songs during the show (sorry Oshkosh)


Thanks to Aaron Florkowski for his contributions to this article.

Shoot Some Stuff

Use your mouse to fly a way-cool jet. Dodge enemy missiles and mines. Left-click to shoot. Beat my score of 800.
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Vforce - Flash Game
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San Fran Zeppelin

We’ve often thought our Cessna 172 is the perfect machine for scenic flights, but how about a zeppelin?

Airship Ventures is now offering the first zeppelin flights in North America since 1937. This is a genuine zeppelin from the German Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik company, an offshoot of the original 20th century zeppelin manufacturers. Specifically, the modern version is a Zeppelin NT for New Technology, and it’s filled with helium, not that scary hydrogen stuff.

A one-hour flight around the San Francisco Bay area is $495 per person, or $5750 if you want to rent all 12 seats in the gondola.

Airship Ventures’ website is packed with info and a history of how this unique service evolved…and don’t miss the videos.

It’s hard to imagine the original Zeppelins sailing across the skies in the 1930’s. They were larger than any flying machine that anyone alive has ever witnessed. This website shows the comparative lengths of a modern Boeing 747 (231 feet) and the Hindenburg (804 feet). The Hindenburg was over three times longer than a Boeing 747! Airship Ventures’ Zeppelin NT is 246 feet long.

At the time of the Hindenburg disaster, zeppelins had a far better safety record than airplanes. Indeed, zeppelins far surpassed airplanes of the 1930’s in terms of lifting power, range, endurance and speed. But the newsreel images of the Hindenburg engulfed in flames spelled the end of the zeppelin dynasty. It is one of the most recognized film clips in history. One can wonder if the zeppelins would have endured if the Hindenburg accident hadn’t been caught on film.

Here’s an account of the first media flight with Airship Ventures.

Plaza Flights – Fun Scenic Flights for Everyone

Over 200 people have enjoyed scenic flights over the glittering lights of the KC Country Club Plaza and are pictured in the online Plaza Flights Hall of Fame. Plaza Flights are a wonderful Christmas tradition – you almost expect to see Rudolph and Santa flying across the evening sky. Intrepid aviators-to-be board a Cessna 172 at the KC Downtown Airport and are soon soaring over the lights of the city spanning from horizon to horizon.

Once airborne, the search lights from Power and Light District and the Sprint Center come into view as well as various downtown buildings lit up with cheery holiday lights. You can spot the rotating restaurant, Skies – it’s the thing that looks like a flying saucer on top of the Hyatt Hotel. From there, look just to the South for Crown Center and the Mayor’s Christmas Tree.

Soon you will be over the Country Club Plaza. Each building is outlined in sparkling Christmas lights. You can see the individual restaurants, shops and cars all illuminated by millions of little lights. You can also spot available parking spaces that are normally so elusive when you’re in your car. Don’t forget to view the Nelson Art Gallery, the new Bloch buildings are brilliantly lit from the inside out.
At this time, the airplane is going 100 miles per hour, but seems to orbit the Plaza at a leisurely pace. If a fellow is planning to pop the question to his sweet-heart, this is the time to do it. It’s happened three times so far on previous flights.

2008 Plaza Flights Hall of Fame
2007 Plaza Flights Hall of Fame
2006 Plaza Flights Hall of Fame
2005 Plaza Flights Hall of Fame
2004 Plaza Flights Hall of Fame

Out of the 200+ people pictured in the online Plaza Flights Hall of Fame, over 95% have never been in a small private plane before. This is indeed a discovery flight, where Plaza Flyers see that airplanes are a lot different than cars. Pilots steer with their feet on the rudder pedals while on the ground, and there is no gas pedal, only a throttle knob. Small airplanes are indeed small, or rather, cozy. They’re narrow so there’s less wind resistance.

After the flight, passengers receive a commemorative Plaza Flight pin or button, a completion certificate, and if they desire, their picture is proudly added to the Hall of Fame.

Plaza Flights are provided by Roger Dodger Aviation and KCplazaflights.com.