March 15, 2013

By The AVweb Editorial Staff

Flying IFR? ForeFlight Mobile Pro Is for You ForeFlight Mobile Pro for iPad is a must-have service for instrument-rated pilots flying in IMC. The instrument procedures organizer, the instrument procedure search, and the enhanced situational awareness provided by ForeFlight's best-in-class TrueTaxi and TruePlates geo-referenced airport diagrams and approach charts make each IFR flight a joy. Visit ForeFlight.com to learn more and upgrade. Today's Exclusive Feature: Mid-Air Facts and Figures back to top  AOPA's Flying Clubs Initiative, Where It's Going AOPA started on this project about one year ago, announced its intentions publicly at AOPA Summit last October, and is now setting out on an effort to grow the nationwide collection of 650 independent flying clubs into 1,000 networked aviation cooperatives. Like many large successful organizations that attempt to collect people -- and money -- to support a common cause, AOPA has found its critics regarding what it does and how it spends its money. But Adam Smith, who originally joined the cause as a consultant for the project and now serves as senior vice president of AOPA's Center to Advance the Pilot Community, is frank about his assessment of the association's flying clubs initiative. "If this isn't classic association work," says Smith, "I don't know what is." "We don't want to obscure our work with dollar signs," Smith said to AVweb this week. "AOPA isn't coming at this from a financial perspective." AOPA is well aware that successfully building a national network of grass-roots flight clubs wouldn't be bad for the organization and could present opportunity for growth. But done right -- by facilitating more affordable access to more aircraft for more people -- the effort could bring benefits to aviation as a whole that may be similarly undeniable. It's that mix of motivation and benefit that could make possible the idea of nearly doubling the number of flying clubs. And nearly doubling the number of flying clubs is only the short term goal. As Smith says, "There are 5,100 public-use airports in the country. Why wouldn't we want a flying club at each one?" There are, of course, some significant hurdles. Click here to read the full article. Masimo Introduces a Pulse Oximeter for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch From the leader in hospital pulse oximetry comes the world's first pulse oximeter for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch that measures during movement and low blood flow to the finger. The iSpO2 allows you to noninvasively track and trend blood oxygenation (SpO2), pulse rate, and perfusion index – for sports and aviation use.* Click here for more information. * Not intended for medical use. From the Pages of Aviation Safety Magazine back to top  Mid-Air Collisions: The Myth And The Math Few chapters in the great book of safe flying are as incomplete and misleading as guidance for avoiding mid-air collisions. In over 50 years of active flying, I have not yet seen any information accurately describing a workable method ensuring awareness and avoidance of mid-air collisions for the general aviation pilot. In fact, the FAA's well-meaning rules and guidance may be dysfunctional seeds of disaster, sown early in a pilot's flying career, later leading to a mid-air collision. It's actually a familiar story: Concepts based on intuitive assumptions — instead of empirical knowledge — so often become concrete and immutable. The pilot's ability to see and be seen is one of the most profound of all safety myths, and understanding why pilots are not always able to meet this obligation will help avoid complacency, motivating us all to compensate for deficiencies in the system. Let's get started. Click here to read the full article. Trade Up to Clarity, Quiet, Comfort, and Value There's no better time to gain peak performance with Lightspeed Aviation headsets. Trade up your old headset and receive a generous credit towards the purchase of the model that best suits your needs. Start enhancing your flying today with Lightspeed performance and innovation. Click here for details. AVweb Audio — Are You Listening? back to top  Podcast: Cirrus Aims for the Future File Size 6.9 MB / Running Time 7:33 Podcast Index | How to Listen | Subscribe Via RSS At Cirrus Aircraft this week, Pat Waddick moved up through the ranks to take on the job of president, while Dale Klapmeier will retain his title as CEO. AVweb's Mary Grady spoke with both of them about their vision for dealing with the challenges and opportunities ahead. Click here to listen. (6.9 MB, 7:33) Get Into Today's Innovative Aircraft Kitplanes is where the pieces come together and dreams take flight. Order the world's #1 homebuilt aviation magazine and save now! Names Behind the News back to top  Meet the AVwebFlash Team AVwebFlash is a twice-weekly summary of the latest news, articles, products, features, and events featured on AVweb, the world's premier independent aviation news resource. The AVwebFlash team is: Publisher Tom Bliss Editorial Director, Aviation Publications Paul Bertorelli Editor-in-Chief Russ Niles Webmaster Scott Simmons Contributing Editors Mary Grady Glenn Pew Contributors Kevin Lane-Cummings Ad Coordinator Karen Lund Avionics Editor Larry Anglisano Have a product or service to advertise on AVweb? Your advertising can reach over 225,000 loyal AVwebFlash, AVwebBiz, and AVweb home page readers every week. Over 80% of our readers are active pilots and aircraft owners. That's why our advertisers grow with us, year after year. For ad rates and scheduling, click here or contact Tom Bliss, via e-mail or via telephone [(480) 525-7481]. Click here to send a letter to the editor. (Please let us know if your letter is not intended for publication.) Comments or questions about the news should be sent here. If you're having trouble reading this newsletter in its HTML-rich format (or if you'd prefer a lighter, simpler format for your phone or handheld device), there's also a text-only version of AVwebFlash. For complete instructions on making the switch, click here. Aviate. Navigate. Communicate.