System

lectric-powered airplanes may still be far from mainstream, but interest in this technology continues to grow. In late April, Airbus engineers successfully flew the E-Fan, a tandem two-seater with a pair of electric-powered ducted fans on the tail. The batteries, carried in the wings, provide 30 minutes of flight.

In aviation as in life, there are often multiple ways to accomplish a single task. I learned that lesson early in my training as a radar approach controller.

Were preparing for our flight from Santa Fe, N.M. and theres been news of an unusually cold late spring storm moving through Colorado. On May 11, of all things, winter storm warnings are already up for Wyoming and much of Colorado. Our bumbling friend Dave called ahead and unfortunately most of the resorts like Aspen and Telluride had already closed for the season (What a waste, he complained.) but we found that Arapahoe Basin is still open. So our quest is to get to Denver.

The Terminal Arrival Area has been dissected and rehashed a lot. For those of us who became instrument rated when, say, Loran was cutting-edge technology, the TAA is a bit of a paradigm shift for approach planning. If you were raised /G, its just another navigation parameter.