The Legend of D. B. Cooper
Death by Natural Causes
by Pat and Ron Forman
Glossary of Flight Terms

The book contains terms that are regularly used by pilots but may not be familiar to all. Some are explained in the text while others are not. Please use our blog to request additions to this glossary.

bi-plane

An aircraft with two wings, one above the other.

Cessna 140

A small two seat aircraft produced by the Cessna corporation between 1946 and 1950. It was known for its spring landing gear. As an advertising stunt, the plane was dropped from the roof of a hangar to demonstrate its ability to withstand a hard landing. However, it was not mentioned at the time that these springs also made it tricky to land. The aircraft sold new for $3459.

FAA

The Federal Aviation Administration defines and administers rules for flying safety.

Fly-in

A group of pilots get together to display their aircraft and talk with others with similar interests. The fly-ins are organized by type of aircraft, such as antiques or experimentals. They are sometimes organized for a particular make of aircraft, such as the '140 fly-in' mentioned in the book.

Ground loop

Term used to describe a crash on landing.

Hangar flying

When the weather is not good enough for flying or after an exciting day of flying pilots often gather at the airport to discuss their latest adventures, critique landings, or get opinions on their latest projects. This is referred to as hangar flying.

Pattern

All airports have a defined and published pattern for aircraft preparing to land. The standard landing patterns are referred to as either right or left, based on the side of the runway the aircraft needto enter from.

Porpoising

Term used to describe the affect where an aircraft begins bouncing first toward the tail and then toward the nose on landing. It is similar in appearance to the gyrations of a porpoise moving through the water.These bounces tend to increase in height with each bounce. The only safe way to recover is to add power and do a go-around.

Tail dragger

Today's conventional aircraft are referred to as tricycle aircraft. They have a wheel at the nose that makes for better visibility and ground handling characteristics. The tail draggers were their predecessors. They have a tail wheel at the rear, making visibility and ground handling difficult. Originally they had a skid where the tail wheel is today. This configuration was used to keep the aircraft straight and slow the speed on landing by digging into the ground. Today the tail wheel aircraft are still preferred for landing on unpaved runways because there is more ground clearance to protect the propeller should the plane taxi into a hole or rut.

Uncontrolled Airfield

An airport without a control tower. Pilots use visual sitings and aircraft radios to avoid other aircraft in the landing pattern.

VFR

Visual Flight Rules specify the weather and visibility necessary to allow for flying without instruments. Sometimes referred to as "seat of the pants" flying. VFR flights are conducted by using charts and visually identifying check points and obstacles.

Traffic or Landing Pattern

The standard traffic pattern at an uncontrolled airfield.

The following steps provide the procedure for entering the standard pattern for arriving aircraft:

Enter pattern in level flight abeam the midpoint of the runway at pattern altitude (1,000 feet above airport elevation unless established otherwise). Entry should be made at a 45 degree angle to the downwind leg. In the downwind leg you will be flying with the wind and parrallel to the runway.
Maintain pattern altitude until turning onto the base leg. Note that some instructors teach that the descent should begin on the downwind leg after passing abeam the landing threshold.
Complete the turn onto the final approach at least one quarter mile from the runway.

bi-plane	An aircraft with two wings, one above the other.
Cessna 140	A small two seat aircraft produced by the Cessna corporation between 1946 and 1950. It was known for its spring landing gear. As an advertising stunt, the plane was dropped from the roof of a hangar to demonstrate its ability to withstand a hard landing. However, it was not mentioned at the time that these springs also made it tricky to land. The aircraft sold new for $3459.
FAA	The Federal Aviation Administration defines and administers rules for flying safety.
Fly-in	A group of pilots get together to display their aircraft and talk with others with similar interests. The fly-ins are organized by type of aircraft, such as antiques or experimentals. They are sometimes organized for a particular make of aircraft, such as the '140 fly-in' mentioned in the book.
Ground loop	Term used to describe a crash on landing.
Hangar flying	When the weather is not good enough for flying or after an exciting day of flying pilots often gather at the airport to discuss their latest adventures, critique landings, or get opinions on their latest projects. This is referred to as hangar flying.
Pattern	All airports have a defined and published pattern for aircraft preparing to land. The standard landing patterns are referred to as either right or left, based on the side of the runway the aircraft needto enter from.
Porpoising	Term used to describe the affect where an aircraft begins bouncing first toward the tail and then toward the nose on landing. It is similar in appearance to the gyrations of a porpoise moving through the water.These bounces tend to increase in height with each bounce. The only safe way to recover is to add power and do a go-around.
Tail dragger	Today's conventional aircraft are referred to as tricycle aircraft. They have a wheel at the nose that makes for better visibility and ground handling characteristics. The tail draggers were their predecessors. They have a tail wheel at the rear, making visibility and ground handling difficult. Originally they had a skid where the tail wheel is today. This configuration was used to keep the aircraft straight and slow the speed on landing by digging into the ground. Today the tail wheel aircraft are still preferred for landing on unpaved runways because there is more ground clearance to protect the propeller should the plane taxi into a hole or rut.
Uncontrolled Airfield	An airport without a control tower. Pilots use visual sitings and aircraft radios to avoid other aircraft in the landing pattern.
VFR	Visual Flight Rules specify the weather and visibility necessary to allow for flying without instruments. Sometimes referred to as "seat of the pants" flying. VFR flights are conducted by using charts and visually identifying check points and obstacles.