As we settled into the Boeing 737’s cozy cockpit and started to build our nests, I recounted some of the more maddening episodes of my last four-day tour and told John that after this trip my wife and I were headed to Italy for 11 days of sightseeing, hanging out on Lake Como, and attending the Formula 1 race at Monza. John, for his part, revealed that this pairing would be his very last outing in the senescent, unloved 737 as henceforth, he was departing for the sunlit uplands of the Airbus A330.

John’s pronouncement induced a flood of conflicting emotions. On one hand, I hate to lose good first officers who I actually know, and John is not the only cockpit companion who has recently succumbed to the glittering charms of an international widebody fleet. But on the other hand, he’s been at the airline for six years, and in these heady days of explosive advancement, that’s considered quite a long time indeed to hang out in the right seat of a narrowbody aircraft. John’s promotion to the A330 will yield him a considerable leap in both pay and quality of life, not to mention a welcome change of scenery. I’m glad for him, and a little jealous too. I was a Boeing 757/767 FO for four years, and the fleet took me to five continents. I miss that flying. I’d like to do it again.

To pilots who haven’t done both, the differences between domestic and international airline flying must seem a bit frivolous, perhaps even ego driven: There is the prestige and romance of jetting across oceans versus the workaday squalor of flogging aging “little” airplanes up and down interstate corridors three or four times a day. To be sure, there is absolutely an element of that. Rolling down the runway in a 370,000-pound airplane, lifting off with ponderous ceremony, and embarking on a transoceanic journey of some 4,000 miles always gave me a really warm, stirring sense of contented excitement, a feeling of setting off on a grand adventure. Few domestic routes impart such a poignant sense of wonder. And to be sure, friends and strangers are always more interested to hear about your exploits in Barcelona than a 12-hour layover in Cleveland.

Aesthetics aside, though, there are real distinctions in the working environment between domestic and international fleets. “It’s like a whole different airline,” goes the common refrain. Things are far more relaxed, much more “gentlemanly” to use an archaic but apropos term. We have only one leg per duty period on which to concentrate our energies. There are three pilots to share the load (four on flights of more than 12 hours). We show up at the airport 90 minutes or more before departure and have all the time in the world to go through our preflight duties. Dispatch usually completes the release well ahead of schedule and is quite proactive in heading off potential problems. Likewise, there are multiple gate agents plus a supervisor to ably handle most passenger issues in conjunction with the purser. In domestic flying, it often seems that the captain is the default troubleshooter. With international operations, very few problems make it forward of the cockpit door.

With an augmented crew of three pilots, you spend one-third of the cruise time absent from the flight deck, resting on your designated break. Long flights are rather shortened by being broken up into thirds as pilots cycle in and out. I found that most international flights of eight or 10 hours practically flew by, in comparison to five-hour domestic transcontinental flights that seem to drag on forever. It helps that you change out cockpit companions every three hours or so, keeping conversation fresh. Even if you can’t stand the person—and I’ve found maybe two or three of these in 19 years of airline flying—you only need to stew in silence for a few hours before being relieved.

Relief pilot is not a predesignated position at my airline. Theoretically, the captain assigns duties at the beginning of the trip, but in practice they will usually fly the first leg and let the two first officers hash out the rest among themselves. The relief FO normally takes the first rest break and then relieves the pilot flying (second break) and pilot monitoring (third break) in turn. This made it an unpopular position on eastbound trans-Atlantic legs, where first break often coincides with a circadian high and an active meal service, making for difficult rest (most of our 767s lack a bunk room like the A330; we use a first-class seat with a curtain). As a lifelong flexible sleeper, I usually volunteered for relief duties on these flights, and, besides the gratitude of my fellow FOs, was often rewarded with a flying leg on the westbound return.

I took a lot of pride in being a good relief pilot, especially during high-workload periods at busy international airports, where a sharp relief crew can be worth its weight in gold. You see a ton from the jumpseat and can often help the flying pilots head off trouble before it ever begins. My crowning moment came during a takeoff from London-Heathrow (EGLL), when the captain’s oxygen mask started spontaneously free flowing, but the sound was masked by unusually loud packs. Just after rotation, I realized the source of the noise and, throwing off my harness and headset, flew across the cockpit to smack the errant mask into submission. We all glanced up at the crew oxygen gauge; it was barely above the minimum, saving us from a mandatory divert. The captain bought the layover beers that night.

You might suppose the primary draw of international flying to be the layovers, and in my case you wouldn’t be wide of the mark. I took full advantage of 24- to 48- hour Europe layovers and 36-hour South American interludes, cramming in as much adventure as was prudent. It’s instructive that I’ve written about many international layovers in these pages—flying a microlight in Germany and a classic Robin taildragger in France,

hang gliding in Rio, visiting a World War I aerodrome in Italy and a flying boat museum in Ireland—while spilling minimal ink over their domestic counterparts.

I also enjoyed the international crew dynamic. It’s not unusual for all three pilots and a majority of the flight attendants to at least meet for happy hour, if not for dinner or a night on the town. This is much rarer on the domestic side at my airline, though I’ve put good effort into rectifying that since upgrade, with better-than-average results.

• READ MORE: A Primer on Pilot Certificate Conversions

A lot of my compatriots, however, don’t necessarily care if they quaff Maibock in Munich or Miller in Milwaukee, and an equal number profess indifference to the cabin crew’s participation, or lack thereof, in layover fun. The real draw of international flying, for most, is that it’s supremely efficient. In John’s new category of Seattle A330, even junior pilots can easily cram a full month’s flying into only 12 days, leaving the rest free for family, hobbies, or second careers or businesses. The trips are also very commuter-friendly, with late report times and early releases. On international fleets, there’s very little the company can legally do to reschedule you to cover broken trips. One need not fear storms up and down the East Coast. At worst, you go home early with full pay.

All of which explains why the international fleets go insanely senior at my airline. John is just now able to hold A330 first officer status, but he could have held Seattle 737 captain more than two years ago. Likewise, I would be slightly more junior as an A330 FO than I am as a 737 captain. Despite that—and the prospect of a 20 percent pay cut—the idea of taking a downgrade looks attractive each time I see the A330’s monthly bid package.

Pretty much my entire career—and my life—has been divided up into roughly five-year chunks. Whenever I do anything for that long, I tend to become bored and knock over the house of cards to see what I can build next. I’ve been a 737 captain for three and a half years, and while I’m still reasonably engaged, I’ve started to eye my next move. The most optimistic projections show that I might be able to hold A330 captain in six years (be still my heart). I probably ought to go “learn French” on an Airbus product in the meantime, which in Seattle means A320 captain or A330 FO.

Which to choose? I won’t lie. I do enjoy flying with “my own favorite captain” every single week, and to be stripped of that fourth stripe does involve a certain subjugation of the ego. On the other hand, I’m writing this column at a table overlooking the Grand Canal in sunny, beautiful Venice, sipping an Aperol spritz and remembering a time not so long ago when this was my everyday work life. It’s tempting, very tempting, to go back to that. We’ll see, but John and I may yet fly together again somewhere across the glittering sea.

This column first appeared in the November 2023/Issue 943 of FLYING’s print edition.

The post Allure of International Flying Lies Across the Glittering Sea appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

The event, which has taken place at the Reno venue for 60 years, will feature six racing classes and runs September 13 through 17. RARA announced earlier this year that it would no longer hold the races at Reno after 2023. The group has said the races will resume at another location in 2025 but has not identified the place.

• READ MORE: Regional Growth Forces Reno Air Races To Look for New Home

“We knew that our last year in Reno would be one for the books and we have been overwhelmed with support from racers, fans, volunteers and more,” said Fred Telling, CEO of RARA. “This final racing lineup is truly amazing with beloved pilots and planes returning, as well as some surprises. It’s a lineup that will make for an exciting event and sweet sendoff to Reno as we prepare to land on our next location.”

Pilots returning this year include several repeat winners and fan favorites, such as Steve Hinton Jr. and Vicky Benzing, as well as Steve Hinton Sr., who will fly the pace aircraft.

Among the nearly 150 airplanes expected to race are well-known competitors like Atomic Pumpkin and Limitless in the Formula 1 class, American Spirit and Just Lucky in the Jet category, and Millennial Falcon and Screamin Mimi in the Sport class.

• READ MORE: The Pilots of STOL Drag

As always, the Unlimited class, made up of modified World War II fighters, is the most highly anticipated race and caps off the weeklong event on Sunday afternoon. This year’s field is steeped in history, with machines including the Bardahl Special, Dreadnought, Miss America and Plum Crazy.

“The Reno Air Races are the premier aviation event which captures the pioneering spirit,” said Steven Hinton, seven-time Reno Air Races Unlimited Gold Champion. “Every year, we convene at Stead Field, the only place in the world that allows us to push the envelope testing our skill, knowledge and experience in head-to-head racing against equally talented pilots. To be among the racers, crews and volunteers in Reno that will make this final race a success is the opportunity of a lifetime.”

• VIDEO: Go Behind the Scenes at the Reno Air Races

RARA said that while certain upgraded tickets for the event are sold out, general admission, reserved grandstand and pit passes are still available. The group encourages race fans to visit the RARA website for more information. And, look for preview coverage of key racers in the September print edition of FLYING, which subscribers will receive starting this week.

The post Reno Air Races Reveal Final List of Participating Pilots, Aircraft appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

These words appear on the web page of Cassutt Aircraft, owned by Creighton King. King, an aircraft builder and race pilot who was killed Wednesday in West Jordan, Utah, during a test flight of his Cassutt 111M race airplane, Race No. 15, Last Lap Player.

According to the West Jordan Police Department, the accident happened shortly after 12:30 p.m. PDT on Wednesday. King had just taken off from Runway 16 at South Valley Regional Airport (U42) approximately 13 miles south of Salt Lake City. The runway measures 5,862 by 100 feet.

• READ MORE: Cassutt 111M

According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), “the plane went through a fence, crossed the street, and came to rest on the northern edge of the street. An NTSB investigator was on scene within hours of the crash.”

One witness told the local media the airplane was at low altitude when it veered to the right and plunged to the ground. The images of the aircraft wreckage in the street show an aircraft that landed hard and disintegrated.

Two passersby attempted to provide CPR to King, but it was too late. 

King grew up in Salt Lake City. On his website, he describes riding his bicycle to the airport and washing airplanes in exchange for rides. He built and rebuilt several aircraft during his life and had been a pilot for more than 30 years, having earned his certificate as a teenager.

King’s friends and family describe him as an experienced and skilled pilot and aviation mechanic who knew the airplane well, as he had built, rebuilt, and tinkered with it getting it ready for the upcoming National Championship Air Races at Reno. The airplane had been flown in other Formula 1 races around the world. 

According to posts on social media, the purpose of the flight was to test the engine, which he had overhauled in preparation for the Reno Air Races. The aircraft raced in the Formula 1 category where the airplanes can reach speeds in excess of 250 mph. 

The accident airplane, according to the website, was “a traditional Cassutt 111M with a 17-foot wing and an 0-200 [engine].” King rebuilt it, resulting in what he described as “a whole new design now known as the CassuTT. My CassuTT has been a blast, and I describe flying it like a first kiss in grade school. It is a big improvement over older designs.”

In addition to the aircraft company, King also owned GripLockTies, the rubber-lined zip ties that are used by so many in the aviation industry and other places.

The post Pilot Killed During Reno Air Races Engine Test appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

MGI Engineering, founded by Gascoyne in 2003, has served the motorsport industry for decades now—and even launched its own F1 team, Caterham. Now, the firm is pivoting to a new focus: aerospace, specifically electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) cargo drones.

“I come from one of the most challenging [industries] in F1,” Gascoyne, a world-renowned F1 engineer, told FLYING. “So I think that’s what I actually like, is that having come from F1, it’s coming into something that’s equally challenging.”

The challenge of working in the nascent eVTOL industry cannot be understated. Given the ambiguous and shifting standards for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), certifying the technology is not easy. And commercialization is likely still years away.

Still, Gascoyne sees opportunity: “To be perfectly frank, the aerospace industry has kind of stagnated and spent the last 20 years designing black aluminium. And Formula 1 as an industry, because of its competitive nature, has really had to push the boundaries of weight reduction and what it can do to ensure that their cars are competitive.”

According to Gascoyne, aviation was on MGI’s radar from the very start. His philosophy has been to separate the firm’s technology from any one industry, which means designing solutions not just for motorsport and automotive, but also aviation and maritime.

“We’re essentially a high-end design consultancy,” he explained. “We’re not launching this necessarily to be an OEM. We’re not launching a product range…we’re looking to partner with people to develop this type of vehicle, but I think it’s the application of our technology and design philosophy that’s the core of what MGI is.”

In particular, Gascoyne believes he can take the concepts of aerodynamics he picked up over the decades and apply them to cargo drones.

“The aerospace world needs to reduce weight in aircraft,” he remarked. “And specifically in eVTOL, where due to power density and battery weight you’re right on the limit of being able to make aircraft that have a workable payload and range, what you absolutely have to do is design the lightest possible structure. So it became a very natural fit for us.”

MGI ramped up the development of its cargo eVTOL design in 2019 after being acquired by air taxi maker Vertical Aerospace, expanding its team to 25 full-time engineers. By November 2021, the company was once again independent. But its focus on drones never went away.

Now, the firm has officially launched its Mosquito cargo drone technology demonstrator, unveiling its solution to the world for the first time this month. MGI’s demonstration at eVTOL Insights’ London conference on April 19 featured a small, lightweight drone with a maximum payload of about 44 pounds. But Gascoyne is thinking much, much bigger.

According to him, MGI is developing two different Mosquito models. The first will look a lot like this month’s demonstrator, capable of hauling up to 44 pounds between 30 and 100 miles, depending on the design.

But that model wasn’t developed until after the demonstration, which Gascoyne felt was indicative of a viable use case for small cargo drones. The original plan, and one MGI continues to prioritize, was to design a larger drone capable of carrying up to 1,100 pounds, greater than any model currently on the market.

The key difference between the designs is the delivery mechanism—the smaller Mosquito features a detachable pod that can be dropped off autonomously, while the larger version will have an internal fuselage built to fit standard pallet sizes.

Beyond that, though, the models are quite similar. Both feature the same aerodynamic configuration drawing from F1 engineering, with the same fuselage, battery module, and other internal structures—one is simply larger.

However, Mosquito’s most intriguing design concept is its configurability. The larger and smaller models each feature eight rotors and four tilt wings, allowing them to transition from vertical takeoff to winged flight. Alternatively, they can be configured with tilt rotors on either wing.

The goal, Gascoyne explained, is to make Mosquito a plug-and-play system—one that can be used by multiple people and organizations for different applications. That, he said, will enable scale, much like it does for the automotive industry.

“When you’re looking at making five or 10,000 of a small, hybrid, lightweight composite vehicle that’s far more akin to the specialist sports car market than it is to aerospace…no one makes 5,000 aircraft in aerospace,” he said. “Whereas if you look at your Ferrari and McLaren and the specialist manufacturers, that’s exactly what they’re doing.”

Gascoyne is eyeing a few early potential applications for the Mosquito system. Medical delivery will be a particularly attractive use case, he said, because of its high price per mile. Ship-to-ship or ship-to-shore deliveries, where an eVTOL would replace a ferry or helicopter, are also on his radar.

“If you talk to people in the industry and in the Navy, they’ll tell you that a lot of helicopter flights they do with very large, expensive helicopters, 50 percent of them are delivering cargoes under 30 kilograms. Which makes absolutely no sense from a sustainability point of view,” he quipped.

Gascoyne also wants to focus on rural deliveries rather than urban ones, despite the higher value of the latter. That’s because of the inherent safety risks involved in urban deliveries, which would involve flying over people and whizzing past skyscrapers. In his view, failure in an urban setting could undermine customer confidence in the safety of eVTOLs.

“I think it’s very necessary that the introduction of this technology is done safely and gains the acceptance of people, because nothing’s going to be worse than having vehicles coming down in urban areas,” he hypothesized.

The MGI founder is also dead set on facilitating cargo deliveries before thinking about transporting human passengers. Simply put, companies that can solve the range and payload issues with cargo eVTOL will eventually move into passenger eVTOL, he said. But starting with cargo will be the best way to demonstrate Mosquito’s capabilities.

“Do you want to take 10 Lamborghinis off the road, or 10,000 delivery vans?” Gascoyne implored.

For now, MGI will focus on building up a safety record by flying thousands of hours with cargo eVTOLs. Eventually, though, the firm will turn its attention to other applications, most likely after Mosquito receives certification. That could be Gascoyne’s biggest obstacle yet.

“The certification challenge will be a very great one,” he acknowledged. “But I’m also convinced that that’s not to say you just do what you currently do—you’ve got to challenge and push ahead.”

Gascoyne is no stranger to taking on big challenges, having jumped between an array of F1 companies each with their own design philosophy. He’s summited the Himalayas. He’s sailed the Atlantic.

The eVTOL industry, though, is one humans have yet to conquer. Gascoyne will look to be the first.

The post F1 Engineering Gives Lift to Cargo eVTOL Drone Design appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

Reno has returned to flight status—and in fine shape as the shadows of the pandemic have retreated. The 2021 National Championship Air Races wrapped up Sunday with the final races in most classes at the Reno-Stead International Airport in Nevada.

The ghosts of the past have informed the racers of today. While protocols and attention to the details of racing safely make for a firm foundation, the conduct of each pilot still remains that person’s responsibility.

With a race card that went off without an incident or accident—and a high degree of professionalism—the collective cadre of pilots has proven its ability to rise to the level of airmanship that the “fastest motorsport” demands.

With seven classes now represented at Reno—STOL Drag was added this year to the six classes previously in play—the races offered up a breadth of aviation to weekend crowds that filled the grandstand after a two-year hiatus.

STOL Drag

Competitors in this newest of Reno classes completed their heats and finals during the week, with a wide range of aircraft and pilots vying for places in the bronze, silver, and gold divisions by testing themselves in a short-field takeoff and landing contest that played out directly in front of the crowd with a high degree of dust and drama.

The final round on Friday in the Gold division came down to a photo finish: The judges reviewed slo-mo footage to determine first and second place between Toby Ashley and Steve Henry. In the end, only 0.2 inches separated them.

STOL Drag Final Round:

The class illuminated the appeal of the new concept to relatively new and seasoned pilots alike—and how an airplane often considered “old and slow” such as a Piper Clipper can be used in a unique way to demonstrate adept pilot skill.

More results from STOL Drag can be found here.

Biplanes, Formula 1, T-6s

While other classes attract a broad range of types, the biplane, Formula 1, and T-6 classes pit birds of a feather against each other.

Biplanes Top Three (Gold):

More results from the Biplane class can be found here.

Formula 1 Top Three (Gold):

More results from the Formula 1 class can be found here.

T-6s Top Three (Gold):

More results from the T-6 class can be found here.

Sport Class

In airmanship and sportsmanship, the pilots competing within the Sport class at Reno set the bar. Established as a new class in the 90s, the Sport class allows for experimental and production aircraft to vie for a top speed on the Reno course within certain parameters.

The free and open nature of the class was evident in the camaraderie and competitive nature of the airplanes that scored at the top in each division.

For example, a Van’s Aircraft RV-8, Miss Ruby S, took top honors in the lowest speed class, Medallion, with Skylor Piper notching 233.921 mph on the course.

In the Bronze division, Neil Wischer’s Triple Eight led the pack in his RV-8 with a high mark of 254.302 mph.

Racing away from the rest in the Silver division was Vicky Benzing in Lucky Girl, her Lancair Legacy, with a blistering 305.199 mph.

The winner of the top speed division, Gold, was Jeff LaVelle, who notched 400.834 mph in his Glasair III—only the second pilot in the sport class to break the 400-mph barrier.

Sport Top Three:

More results from the Sport class can be found here.

Jet Class

The USAF Thunderbirds weren’t the only hot jets crossing the skies over Reno—for 2021 the Jet class featured L-29s and L-39s, with a lone L-139 flown by Dianna Stanger, and a SIAI Marchetti flown by Scott Farnsworth.

The Jet class gives Reno its top speeds overall—with winner Pete Stavrides clocking 502.362 mph in an L-29 in the Gold finals on Sunday.

Jets Top Three:

More results from the Jet class can be found here.

Unlimited Class

The unlimited class brings aviation history close at hand, with its parade of Sea Furies and P-51 Mustangs—the gallant warbirds that keep flying more than 75 years after their debut.

They were built for speed—and success in air combat—so it makes sense they would rule the roost. Though top aircraft in the Sport class now notch commensurate speeds in some cases, the Unlimited class holds onto final billing on the schedule as a position of honor these aircraft and their pilots have earned with blood, sweat, and tears.

Unlimited Top Three:

More results from the Unlimited class can be found here.

Click here to check out a photo gallery from the races in Reno.

The post Reno Air Races Return to Form appeared first on FLYING Magazine.