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Short, practical guides with real FAA citations, each paired with a free SkyReady tool or live airport page so you can apply it immediately.
Crosswind components, explained
The formula, the clock face trick that gets you within a knot in your head, why gusts are the number to plan against, and the difference between what the airplane has demonstrated and what you have.
Drawing the traffic pattern for 22,000 airports
The FAA publishes the pattern as columns in a database, not a picture. How those columns become a diagram for every US airport, and the edge cases that made it hard.
Pairs with the airport pattern diagrams →How to read a NOTAM
The anatomy of a domestic notice, what FDC means, and the timing traps that make a pilot read a future closure as a current one.
Pairs with the airport NOTAM pages →Radio calls at a nontowered airport
The four part call that works every time, which frequency to use, the six calls in a normal arrival, and the phrases to stop using.
Pairs with the airport frequencies pages →Every charted right traffic pattern in the US, mapped
We parsed the FAA NASR database: 3,185 runway ends at 2,563 airports turn right instead of left. Interactive map, state rankings, downloadable dataset.
Pairs with the pattern entry guide →How to read a METAR without decoding it in your head
The seven part order that never changes, a worked example, and the five traps that catch pilots in real weather.
Pairs with the METAR/TAF decoder →Setting personal minimums that you'll actually keep
How to pick the numbers, a starting set for a newer VFR pilot, and the commitment rules that hold up under pressure.
Pairs with the personal minimums check →How to enter the traffic pattern at a nontowered airport
The 45° entry, the midfield crossing alternative, and the heading math for any runway.
Pairs with the airport pattern diagrams →Density altitude, explained
The formula, the 120 ft per °C rule of thumb, and what a hot day does to takeoff roll and climb.
Pairs with the DA calculator →Data study: the windiest GA airports in America
Coming next. Pairs with months of hourly observations, landing this fall.
Night, legally: the three FAA definitions of night
Coming next. Pairs with the sunrise/sunset tool.
Nothing here yet. New guides ship every month.