As in “After hours Closed Traffic,” which is a group of guys who have been flying on PE Saturday mornings (US) from non-towered fields for practice, and then finishing at a towered field with the controllers once they’re online. Today we took advantage of the Western Expansion, flying a number of short mountain fields before…

X-Plane 11 sure can take them. Note the reflection of the sunrise on the underside of the wing.

Just two more photos from Wisconsin, these of the Milky Way. We had great seeing the last night, and these are 30 second exposures at f2. Note the Andromeda Galaxy at lower left in the second shot. If you click these they will load full size, and you’re welcome to use them as desktop wallpaper…

I was in Wisconsin a few nights ago and we had clear skies, no moon, and an active Aurora Borealis. I’ve never seen the Northern Lights except from the passenger window of a transcontinental flight, and I’ve never seen anything like this. I managed to take a few time lapse photographs, and am sharing them…

I still love the classic AA livery, and will be sad to see these MD-80s retire. What I love almost as much as their look is how they feel like airplanes when they fly. 

Ready to go. 

There’s a new addition to the training aircraft on the ramp at my local field: this sweet little Cessna 140 tail dragger. Note the cool stars on the wheels.

There was a beautiful and classic Commanche 250 on the ramp this morning. This is the equivalent of walking outside and finding a mint condition ’63 Vette sitting in the parking lot. Gorgeous. 

Arriving into KPHL recently we did a go-around due to conflicting traffic. It was the first time in 20 years of travel as a commercial passenger that I’ve been able to buzz Philly at 1,000 AGL in a 757. The views were fantastic.