The writers and staff at Twin & Turbine wish all of our readers and advertisers a happy new year and a prosperous 2024. As we resolve to be better and continuously improve, whether in regard to aviation or otherwise, there is a great opportunity to evaluate what went right, and maybe not so right, in the previous year. With that in mind, I would like to start 2024 with some ways in which we can improve, learn, and remember some of those who came before us, breaking new ground in aviation and paving the way for the flying environment we experience today.
I always enjoy the time available during the holidays for considering the past year and planning ahead without the myriad distractions occurring during regular months. Once, when working with a European company, I got a lot of laughs when explaining to my colleagues that I was going to take an afternoon off so that I could get some work done. To me, it made sense: turn everything off so that I could focus. To them, work was work, and off-time was off-time. I began an appreciation for that European mindset; it’s a healthier one, probably, but we Yanks do things a little differently. Either way, the time to collect and not be distracted is invaluable.
January is dead winter for lots of our readers in the North. For me in Texas, though, it’s just starting to get a little chilly, and it’s time to start thinking about things like ice and general cold-weather operations. T &T writer Pete Ruskay, an international aviation professional, gives us the low-down on safety during these frosty months.
Being a safer pilot is always in style. The Citation Jet Pilots Association (CJP) is the perfect organization to give us the latest and greatest techniques and best practices for your operations, whether you run a flight department or a single-pilot personal aircraft. Tigre Pickett details Safe to Land and Flight Data Monitoring programs promoted by CJP, benefitting all of us.
Through the Editor’s Pics column, I get to show unique aircraft through the lenses of unique cameras. This month doesn’t disappoint – I will take you to the Frontiers of Flight Museum with my medium format Pentax 67.
December 2023 saw the passing of an aviation great, David Hinson. In honor of Mr. Hinson, we review a past article about Flightcraft of Portland, Oregon. Hinson owned Flightcraft for a time before he went on to run an airline and later the Federal Aviation Administration. One of my other duties besides Twin & Turbine is managing the Pinnacle Air Network, of which Flightcraft is one of the founding member companies.
We are so lucky to have such a robust and experienced group of writers at Twin & Turbine. Thomas Turner, through his Mastery of Flight series, shows how to build complexity into our autopilot routine in order to thoroughly understand the processes and techniques to keep the blue side up.
Finally, David Miller quotes his readers’ reactions to his months-long quest of selling his aircraft and then contemplating his next carpet ride.
Thank you for continuing to support Twin & Turbine magazine and our goal of providing operators of these remarkable aircraft with entertaining and valuable information. Have a wonderful new year.
