Daily logbook
Daily logbook
Short daily posts from Dmitry Shteyn — one topic per day, roughly 300–500 words, always with a pointer into the full guide.
7 postsRSS
- Thu, Jul 2, 2026Oshkosh: Why the World's Biggest Airshow Happens in WisconsinFor one week every summer, a small Wisconsin field runs more operations than O'Hare. The story is one part geography, one part sixty years of EAA culture.
- Wed, Jul 1, 2026Get-There-Itis: The Bias That Outflies the WeatherContinuation bias is the quiet engine of general-aviation weather accidents. The counter is a diversion plan you commit to before the weather asks the question.
- Tue, Jun 30, 2026Reading a METAR in 60 SecondsA METAR looks like an alphabet-soup rebus. It is actually a fixed-order weather report you can read in under a minute once you know the sequence.
- Mon, Jun 29, 2026The 1935 B-17 Crash That Invented the ChecklistA prototype bomber crashed at Wright Field with a gust lock still engaged. The response wasn't more training. It was the pilot's checklist.
- Sun, Jun 28, 2026Why Seaplanes Have to Get 'On the Step'Water drag falls off a cliff at planing speed. The whole takeoff technique is about arriving on the step early and staying there.
- Sat, Jun 27, 2026Density Altitude: The Invisible Runway ThiefHot, high, and humid days move the airplane's true altitude thousands of feet upward — and every performance number moves with it.
- Fri, Jun 26, 2026Angle of Attack, Not Airspeed: What a Wing Actually Cares AboutThe airspeed indicator is a proxy. The wing stalls when α exceeds its critical value — at any airspeed, any attitude, any weight.