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Examining over 100 years of flight automation and the history of the autopilot

Aerotime

The automatic pilot (autopilot) has to be one of aviations finest technological inventions. Largely gone are the days when pilots had to manually control their aircraft from engine start-up to shut down by keeping their hands rigidly fixed on the controls at all times.

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Tailless Aircraft: How Airplanes Fly Without a Tail

Pilot Institute

Have you ever seen an airplane with no tail and no vertical fin, but with just a sleek wing? They prove that with the right aerodynamic tricks, you dont need a tail to fly. A tailless aircraft may still have a fuselage and a vertical tail (fin and rudder). How does the tail do this? Ever wondered how it stays balanced?

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We Fly: Epic E1000 AX

Flying Magazine

Over the years we’ve flown a lot of aircraft with “aft-tending” centers of gravity—if you filled the seats, you were outside the aft CG limit, and the rear seats in six-place airplanes were unusable. The Epic E1000 AX is so nice to hand-fly that it stands to reason that a lot of pilots won’t make full use of the automation.

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Approachable Excellence

Plane and Pilot

Fearsome metal airplanes helped win a global conflict, yet pilots came home to variations on prewar designs of tube-and-fabric construction and modest performance. For pilots who routinely flew with two or three passengers, the Cherokee 180s extra margins meant all the difference. Oregon pilot Randy Widell agrees.

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Everything You Need To Know About Ailerons

Pilot Institute

Have you ever wondered how pilots keep control at high speeds, during stalls, or even when systems fail? The pilot is able to control the aircrafts roll by turning the control yoke or sidestick in the cockpit. The hydraulic system works similarly to a cars power steering and greatly reduces the effort needed by the pilots.

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The Role of Newton’s Third Law in Aviation

Pilot Institute

Newton’s Third Law helps pilots and engineers improve flight safety and aircraft performance. If the pilot increases the wings angle of attack too much, the airflow can separate from the wings surface, causing a stall – an abrupt loss of lift. What does Newtons Third law tell pilots about thrust?

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Phugoid Motion in Aviation: What It Is and Why It Matters

Pilot Institute

Pilots can let the aircrafts natural damping resolve the issue or make small, well-timed inputs. This could be a wind gust or a pilot making a control input. The motions are gentle enough that pilots sometimes correct them by making small control or power adjustments without even realizing its happening. Why is that important?