The Learning Never Stops!

Aviation is complicated business, and it can be deadly if not undertaken with the right mindset. Our goal here at Code 7700 is to prepare you to avoid the day you will need to Squawk 7700, but if that day ever comes, to prepare you to deal with it competently.

Our Latest Update

A captain returning from a six year absence was only too happy to cede his authority to a first officer who was happy to take it. Another crew willing to takeoff below minimums because tower called the mins lower than they were. A tower controller who decided he didn't need to warn the airplane on takeoff roll that there was another airplane lost on a runway. In the words on an NTSB investigator: "There are really just no heroes in this."
Case Study: Northwest 1482 and 299

Raised Image
Raised Image

Our Previous Update:

When you graduated from small airplanes to large, you also graduated from low inertia to high. What? Larger mass means once things start going in a certain direction and speed, it is harder to change that. In small aircraft you could easily overcome a bit of wind gust with a lot of throttle. In larger airplanes, you need to add to your approach speed because the relative impact of throttle becomes smaller as the aircraft becomes larger. (Plus we also have spool up time, etc.) We are often told that on approach we are flying at 1.3 times the stall speed, so the margins are "huge." Not really.
Approach Speed Additives

An Index of Previous Updates

If you remember seeing something on "Homeplate" in the last two years, you will find it here, in a list of recent lead stories. Lead Stories . . .

Raised Image
image

My latest books . . .

The non-fiction books get into the science and technique of flying, the fiction books all have aviation lessons of their own.

Whiskey Air

An upstart airline with a pilot culture turned rogue led by a management team that forgets the "bottom line" is not the bottom line.

Aviate: A Professional Aviator's Notebook

A collection of articles about the primary task of all pilots: Aviating.

Navigate: A Professional Aviator's Notebook

A collection of articles about the next task for all pilots: Navigating.

Communicate: A Professional Aviator's Notebook

A collection of articles about the next task for all pilots: Communicating.

Equity Airlines

An airline decides hiring by diversity is more important than qualifications and experience. Fact or fiction?

Fly by Wired

A business jet more computer than airplane, impossible to hack, gets hacked.

The Brothers Bellum

Three brothers and the last air campaign of the Vietnam War.

Code 7700 Store!

Mugs, notebooks, tee shirts, and more!

responsive mockup
Just click on the mug

Exclusive access through Patreon!

Patreon members get early access to new postings as well as exclusive contact to our writing team.

responsive mockup
Just click on the Patreon symbol