(Part 2) Best aviation books according to redditors
We found 575 Reddit comments discussing the best aviation books. We ranked the 257 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
This entire post is massively incorrect and totally at odds with actual history. Why did you even post this?
>Yes, or better, it was considered a practical speed limit, in the sense that it was strongly suspected that large objects travelling faster than sound in air were bound to explode.
>There was absolutely no way to guess in advance a possible design for a supersonic aircraft.
>There also was a brief period of confusion around WWII because measurements of airspeed with the known methods become inaccurate around the speed of sound, since they are based on linear aerodynamics.
>t was known perfectly well that meteors were supersonic - that's why they explode. It was also known that most muzzle velocities of weapons since the 1800s were supersonic - bullets don't explode because they aren't supersonic for long, and they're also solid metal
I have to delete your post. This is way too egregiously wrong on a pretty important topic. Hell it's downright offensive to anyone that's actually studied aerodynamics. I haven't been this annoyed by a wrong /r/askscience answer since someone said "scientists don't actually know what creates lift", and at least that person wasn't a panelist.
Anyone interested in reading about factual history of aerodynamics and the sound barrier should check out Anderson's History of Aerodynamics as a starting point.
Actually that article is the tldr of this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Long-Way-Home-Ed-Dover/dp/061521472X
The short version is: plane in Australia, WWII starts, Pacific Ocean dangerous because Japanese, crew takes plane West to New York with adventures on the way.
It’s really worth the read when you get time.
Remember 7-11 twists per inch, I think that's IAW AC-43 or this handy book that should be in your toolbox. http://www.amazon.com/Aviation-Mechanic-Handbook-The-Standard/dp/1560278986
Also your middle bolt is "neutral" and is NOT being assisted by the lock/safety wire.
It should look like this: http://image.customclassictrucks.com/f/28178941/1003cct_13_o+how_to_safety_wire+screwheads_double_twist_method.jpg So you have an "S" shape at each bolt. This is so it's always being pulled tight incase a fastener is loosened.
Other people are also right, in that you should be doing the twists counter clockwise at each interval such as: http://firetrucksandequipment.tpub.com/TM-9-254/img/TM-9-254_202_1.jpg The second picture from the top. This pushes the wire into the work so that it doesn't come up over the top of the head of the fastener.
I was also taught not to twist the wire by hand at a 180 degree angle as it might nick it causing stress raiser but as usual YMMV.
Oh yeah, before I forget, bend your tails so you don't cut the next person sticking their hand in doesn't get cut (run your finger over just to make sure). I saw it the other day, on a Cessna Conquest in the engine compartment, it wasn't nice, the guy got cut pretty bad.
Happy to help. This is my 4" block I did at trade school. https://i.imgur.com/GvV19aV.jpg All done by hand...
practice, practice, practice :)
http://www.amazon.com/Weather-Flying-Fifth-Robert-Buck/dp/0071799729/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1451753477&sr=8-1&keywords=weather+flying
I'm about halfway through it, and it answers a lot of your questions and does it in terms of aviation. Worth a read, IMO. A bit dry, but a lot of useful stuff. I don't have my IR yet, but I imagine I'll probably read it again once I'm done.
I bought this book. It was great. It was EXTREMELY detailed and explained everything very well. The difficult was on par with the actual test.
I also bought this book which was not good. It was far too easy and I didn't use it at all.
Also bought a couple of practiced tests off of https://afoqtguide.com/. I also used the Peterson's practice test. Both were great resources. Peterson's was the most similar to the actual AFOQT, but AFOQT Guide was right there with it.
The most important thing is to practice with time constraints. The timing is what kills most people.
I'm just an average guy but I scored pretty well on my test. All 90's and high 80's. I have those resources to thank. Good luck.
​
You're essentially asking the difference between a infinite wing and finite wing.
In order to study the flow around a section, i.e. 2D flow; it is customary for the model to completely
span the test section (Infinite wing), be it from wall to wall or ceiling to ceiling. Although this is most commonly applied to aerofoil sections, the same theory goes for other models such as cylinders. The reason being; that any three dimensional flow components are eliminated in the spanwise axis.
If you choose to model 3d flow, i.e. a finite wing, it has been recommended that the span of any model for three dimensional flow visualisation purposes does not exceed 80% of the wind tunnel section in order to negate any wall effects. This is IMPORTANT!! I'd probably recommend somewhere closer to 70% just to make sure.
Advantages of 3d over 2d are that you can see the effects of having a finite wing, which are most notably wing tip vortices. For certain applications this is unnecessary, and even counter productive, for example boundary layer studies.
If you have any more questions, I'd be happy to answer them. I completed a 105 page dissertation on flow visualisation last year, implementing surface oil, smoke injection, surface tufts and tuft grid methods with really exciting results.
If you are looking to do some wind tunnel studies, there are a lot of factors you need to take into consideration. I found this book extremely helpful:
Low-speed wind tunnel testing (Third edition) by J. Barlow et al (Book, 1999)
I'm firmly in line with what Sandberg wrote in "Safe is not an option".
It cheap and well worth the read.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00L3PI102
Absolutely! One of the pilots wrote a book on this trip. Well worth the read!
https://www.amazon.com/Long-Way-Home-Ed-Dover/dp/061521472X/ref=oosr
Every pilot needs to own the Pilots Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge and The Airplane Flying Handbook.
This may be beyond the scope what you're looking for, but the best aviation book I have ever seen is Everything Explained for the Professional Pilot. I highly recommend it.
I've been studying to get a remote pilot license myself. I grabbed the FAR AIM 2017 book from Amazon, and I've been going over the relevant sections.
The FAA has several resources on its website as well:
Study Guide
Test instructions
Sample questions
Certification standards
Part 107 Advisory Circular
Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge
There is even a training course available.
I attended a conference recently, and this presentation was quite helpful, as well. You'll need either a LinkedIn account or you'll have to sign up with the slideshare website in order to download the slideshow. You can still view it at the link provided, however.
I haven't found any YouTube study guides yet, though I must admit, I haven't been looking for any. I'm sure there's bound to be some out there. There are several pay sites that offer training and test prep, but I believe the FAA has provided plenty of free resources to aid in passing the exam.
Best of luck to you!
Some people say its fiction
e: More fun reading
Go to your engineering library and get this book: http://www.amazon.com/Low-Speed-Tunnel-Testing-Jewel-Barlow/dp/0471557749
As a supplement, this website is good: http://www-htgl.stanford.edu/bradshaw/tunnel/
I first encounter this claim, that diesel engines were unaffected when gasoline engine were, in this book https://www.amazon.com/Unconventional-Flying-Objects-Scientific-Analysis/dp/1571740279.
Its worth noting that modern diesel engines are computer controlled now, so newer diesel engines may well be affected by an electrical disturbance.
So here you go, whateveryournameis. Dancing_Lock_Guy was kind enough to provide the very name of the book I was referring to, as he actually recognized the description I gave and named the author as well.
The name of the book is Unconventional Flying Objects: A Scientific Analysis. Here is an Amazon link for the book. The book is a little old, but is still in print and selling.
Additionally, here is a Wikipedia link on the author, Paul R. Hill. Here you can read up a little bit about his extensive career as an Aerodynamicist, as well as his work to this effect with NASA and the military.
Additionally - and now that Dancing_Lock_Guy was kind enough to provide the name - I went ahead and did a bit further research and, if you're simply too poor to actually afford purchasing the book from Amazon, I actually found the book itself online for you so that you can read through it yourself for free.
So there you go. :)
Oh...Wait a minute. What? What was that you said? You don't have time to read it? It's much better to just assume you know what you're talking about and troll people with a sense of self-important haughtiness?
You'd rather not have anything as silly as scientific books take away from your precious time trolling on Reddit and fapping to hentai anime porn and furries? Okay, okay. Very well then, whateveryournameis. I understand. But just please remember this the next time someone says something that sounds foreign to you or that you may have never heard of before.
Yes. Some people (especially here on Reddit) make things up just to support fanciful arguments that mean nothing. Not everyone does this, however - even those like me that may not remember specific sources for you or where exactly they got their initial information. Okay?
Okay. Thanks, buddy.
Now get going! :) I'm sure you just have a ton of cartoons to fap to and I don't want to keep you.
The best or most interesting books I've read on the subject are:
I think it's always important to be highly skeptical of even the "best" sighting. For example, the Belgian UFO wave is always highlighted as a slam dunk of something flying about in the skies that goes beyond technology we currently have. However, on closer inspection it's not so clear cut at all. That's the great thing about "Bad UFOs" - it makes you question the evidence, seek alternative explanations and keeps you on your skeptical toes. The last thing you want to do is fool yourself.
I agree with the others but these are also a MUST in your collection! Don’t let the titles fool you, tons of good info in both. These are the first books you’ll buy if you study aeronautical engineering (source: I’m an aeronautical engineer)
Low-Speed Wind Tunnel Testing
Aerodynamics for Naval Aviators
I enjoyed reading this https://www.amazon.ca/Notes-Seaplane-Instructor-Instructional-Flying/dp/1560275588/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1492097199&sr=8-1&keywords=notes+of+a+seaplane From what I saw on the internets, it was a popular choice, and I can see why.
I'm only part way through the training. It was a good introduction. However, nothing compared to some good lessons with a former bush pilot.
do you need groundschool?
I would highly recommend the Airplane Flying Handbook. It changed the way I flight simmed!
I’d actually recommend “history of aerodynamic” also by John D. Anderson if you are reading for inspiration. It’s a fun read as he methodically step you step by step how aerodynamics as a science came to be. This is the same author that everyone is recommending, fundamentals of aerodynamics. I think history is better since it’s more of a story and have some maths in there to give you a taste without the undergrad level of calculus and differential equations that looks daunting and would be completely unfamiliar to you without the mathematical foundation you need.
Added link for ref: https://www.amazon.com/History-Aerodynamics-Machines-Cambridge-Aerospace/dp/0521669553
Hey there, heres some links with more info including a study guide which covers which topics are covered, as well as the structure of the test.
https://www.astm.org/CERTIFICATION/filtrexx40.cgi?-P+PROG+10+cert_detail.frm -- general info
https://www.astm.org/CERTIFICATION/DOCS/419.AET_Study_Guide_v5_12.pdf -- study guide
https://www.amazon.com/NCATT-AET-Test-Study-Guide/dp/1484094433 -- book some people said was helpful
Good luck! Taking mine soon as well
Find an instructor that has instructed more than 4-5 primary students. The instructor should be planning on staying with the FBO for at least the next year so you can finish the certificate with them. I would also suggest an instructor that is around your own age. This will keep you both on the same page and help build trust. Your instructor has to trust you enough to let you learn and you have to trust your instructor not to do anything reckless.
That said you should study on your own, The airplane flying handbook is your bible of practical knowledge. Also buy a copy of the Pilot's Information Manual for your aircraft (Make sure it is for your exact model of aircraft).
The Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge is another good resource produced by the FAA.
Private Pilot and Recreational Pilot FAA Knowledge Test 2010 gives you all the questions and answers for the ground school test. You can practice on the Sporty's Web Site for free which helps a lot.
The easiest way to save money is to study on your own, the more you study the less time your instructor has to spend with you on the ground. I wouldn't bother with flight simulators on your home computer, they are nice for learning how to scan instruments but at the beginning of your flight training they will only mess you up. That said if you decide to get an instrument rating flight sim is invaluable.
Click Here and Here for a whole bunch of useful stuff from FAA.
Worthy of specific note-
Airplane Flying Handbook (AFH) and Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (PHAK, pronounced P-Hack). The PHAK and AFH will give you pretty much all the basics of how airplanes work, how airspace works, where you're allowed to fly, etc etc etc.
Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM) basically tells you how you can legally fly an airplane, but without much of the shall-be-not-less-than style legalese. Officially the FAR (Federal Aviation Regulations) is the real legal base which it stands on, but the AIM says the same thing and can be read by a human much more easily. In the AIM you will VERY often see references to "14 CFR xx.xxx", Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (aka US national law) covers the FAA. This can be just as easily written (and frequently is) as FAR xx.xxx. The first part is the 'part', which covers a particular type of regulation- for example FAR Part 61 covers the certification of pilots and instructors, Part 91 covers general operating and flight rules (part 61 helps you get your license, part 91 helps you lose it). Often a particular business will be referred to by the FAR Part which governs it, for example most airlines are FAR 121 Scheduled Air Carriers. Some flight schools are Part 61 flight schools (anyone with a CFI (certified flight instructor) certification can provide flight instruction under Part 61), while some flight schools are Part 141 which covers more structured training programs with an FAA-approved curriculum, regular FAA audits, etc.
Note that if you don't mind a GIANT dead tree book, the complete AIM and several relevant parts of the FAR are available as one book for only $10
However if you just want to learn how shit works, download or buy the PHAK and AFH. They are free of legalese, are fun to read, and have lots of color illustrations so you understand what's going on. Go here and scroll down to 'frequently bought together' to get the PHAK, AFH and FAR/AIM all together for just under $40.
I just came across a very nicely written book about the Moon Project, with a lot of interesting facts and also nice pictures. http://www.amazon.com/NASA-Apollo-11-Insight-Hardware/dp/1844256839
It is written almost in a magazine style, easy to read and a perfect introduction into a lot of aspects from rocket, to guidance, the lunar module and the space suits.
NASA landed 6 times on the Moon and collect hundred of pounds of rocks, more than 400000 people took part in various parts of the projects, with a lot of private companies participating.
It is going on the gift-idea list for everybody from 10 years old til grandpa.
Lol.. the true geek. Fetching that book made me realize that I have the geekiest book collection ever. I only own a couple of dozen books, and the ones that aren't programming textbooks are the Hitchhiker's guide, The Batman Handbook, Pocket Ref, a haynes manual for an apollo rocket, and a small pile of essential guides to star wars. I might not own as many geeky books as some, but of those that I do own, 100% of them are geeky ass books, ugh...
Yeah every examiner is different, but the majority of my questions were variations of questions from these books. Some were multiple choice questions asked as an open-ended question, and some were the exact wording of the oral questions in the back. The books do a great job of covering all the bases.
Other than these, the other questions were just general knowledge or things that you just KNOW. The practical is pretty easy, they changed up the standards for it I guess. You get randomly assigned projects sent from the FAA, so its a lottery almost. One of mine was to drill out rivets in a round inspection panel/patch plate. Re-fabricate based on the old dimensions and rivet it back in, using the existing holes. That was my longest project, and it was too easy. I'm not they best riveter, but in the end he asked me to identify my deficiencies and he said that was good enough.
I had one where I had to remove and service a wheel bearing in a landing gear. Grab the manual, follow instructions, and you cant screw up! Another project was writing a maintenance entry for a log book with the proper level of detail. Another project was looking up all the ADs on an aircraft specified by the examiner (literally copy/pasted FAA.gov search results to a new word doc, formatted it, and presented it to the examiner. They could go one step further and make you confirm that all ADs are complied with based on maintenance logs they give you.
I hope this helps. I was sweating for about the first 10 minutes of the oral portion, but my confidence grew with every correct answer. I think I missed 4 of around 50ish verbal questions I was asked. As long as they keep asking them, you're still in the game! If they cut it short you know you messed up, haha.'
PS: this is a nice reference too. You can even buy it used for a discount. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1560278986/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
There are some pretty good resources on the web for free for college level Intro to Meteorology courses that I used. I don't have any specific links. Search 'Intro to Meteorology'. None of these courses are burdened by the traditional aviation products. You can see what the professor chose for a textbook.
It may help your motivation if you can make weather less abstract. Here is the definitive text that relates weather to flying. https://www.amazon.com/Weather-Flying-Fifth-Robert-Buck/dp/0071799729
Bit of trivia... Robert O. Buck (son of Robert N. Buck) teaches Aviation Weather at Vermont Technical College.
I used the FAA study guide and bought this book on Amazon which was great.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1619545594?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf
Scored 95%
My favorite weather book is Weather Flying by the Buck's: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071799729/
Paid site, but I've been a fan of Scott's stuff since he setup shop: https://avwxworkshops.com (If I recollect, you can get a free trial by getting the WeatherSpork app, signing up for a trial within it (not on the website), and then using those credentials on the AxWx site. Could be wrong, its been a while.)
if it doens't say B just assume A. It should literally say what it is on the bottom side of the board (top is the antenna and points up, circuits are on bottom side). This is what my B looks like
https://imgur.com/a/byd7K
this is how you open it up to put in a GPS shield. You can use regular cardboard for it, or not even bother. But it shows how to expose the GPS chip and flip it over to take a gander should you want to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60A_a25IU3w
edit more crap
here is the book to get your commercial drone pilots license (sUAS). I passed it with 3 days of meh studying. It's pretty easy. cost $120 to test at an airport my company uses
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1619545594/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
this is the "gps shield" which idk if it makes a difference or not. I made my own out of cardboard. Seems to work okay
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071FHF3F9/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I've been taking two sportys practice tests a day, one in the morning, and one at night.
Also using this.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/152028795X/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
If you get that book in printed form you can get it on Kindle for free. That book is pretty damn legit.
I'm still a student but I just took my test a month ago and used this as my guide and passed no problem. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1619545594/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/NCATT-AET-Test-Study-Guide/dp/1484094433
I used this. was a breeze
The avotek book here is kind of our default text book, but I really don't like it. It doesn't do a good job at explaining things, and there's excess stuff.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1933189282/ref=mp_s_a_1_26?ie=UTF8&qid=1485311225&sr=8-26&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=avotek
This book is pretty good, but has a LOT of minor errors that can be distracting.
https://www.amazon.com/NCATT-AET-Test-Study-Guide/dp/1484094433
This book is AWESOME! Even though it's not an aviation book, it explains 90% of what's on the AET and it does a really good job at explaining it. You could definitely buy an older addition to save some cash. If you buy this book you will have to use other material for things like FOE, fund. of flight, corrosion, etc.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1111128537/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1485311149&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=introduction+to+electronics&dpPl=1&dpID=51taV6yqLTL&ref=plSrch
Finally, watch these videos on YouTube: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SpqwAasxY7U
The guy is a professor at a community college and again, even though it's not aviation related, he explains 90% of what's on the AET incredibly well.
Hope that helps!
I used the Apex book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1628455314/ref=sspa_dk_detail_0?psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFUUkswTVc4UzdPMjUmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA2OTg2OTdDSkQ4SUdJTTVNNE0mZW5jcnlwdGVkQWRJZD1BMDcxNDQ1MTJUSFBKVk1CNVQ2RVMmd2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWwmYWN0aW9uPWNsaWNrUmVkaXJlY3QmZG9Ob3RMb2dDbGljaz10cnVl
Excellent book. Covered everything it needed to cover and gave practice questions so that I could time myself. I got a 95 on the pilot section which is what I wanted to mainly study for.
I showed up for my AFOQT late the first go around so I had another month to prepare. Decided to go to the bookstore and see what they had. Found a book for all services and just went over the flight portion for each. Also a good book to study as well. https://www.amazon.com/Barrons-Military-Flight-Aptitude-Tests/dp/1438011040/ref=pd_sbs_14_8?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1438011040&pd_rd_r=3f8d5c00-bb3f-42df-995b-812a54f9b9ff&pd_rd_w=qEg81&pd_rd_wg=hRnUg&pf_rd_p=1c11b7ff-9ffb-4ba6-8036-be1b0afa79bb&pf_rd_r=BZCVESZEZ2WYHFN18VJZ&psc=1&refRID=BZCVESZEZ2WYHFN18VJZ
>One is Rocket Propulsion Elements, which I hear is great if you actually want to build your own engine. The other is Fundamentals of Astrodynamics
Those two books are specifically listed on page 108 (hardcover) of the Ashlee Vance biography on Elon Musk, as books that Elon read to learn about rocket science. The third book listed on that page is
Aerothermodynamics of Gas Turbine and Rocket Propulsion.
A considerable number of books on rockets and space travel were published in the 1950's and 1960's, and can sometimes be found used (if they were published in the U.S., be prepared for traditional (non-Metric) units, but at least the basic principles and the equations are the same).
Elon has an amazingly good memory and an ability to build a coherent whole out of many pieces of information. An employee remarked that Elon talks with everybody working on a project and with theoretical knowledge, asks a lot of questions, and at the end he knows 90 percent of what you do. So by now, it's likely that the majority of what Elon knows about rocket science was by working with the people he brought in to SpaceX and by talking with other experts, and also things that were learned because SpaceX did them (for example "supersonic retropropulsion is possible, and here's how you can use it along with subsonic retropopulsion to land a booster from an orbital launch" - nobody knew precisely how to do that until SpaceX demonstrated that it was possible). Which presumably makes Elon the person with the best overall knowledge of SpaceX technology, since his knowledge includes many specialties, and puts him in a unique role to coordinate the work of the people working in the different specialties.
Keep in mind all the information you need to pass is available for free from the FAA. But I like having the books and in the grand scheme of things they're really cheap. The FARs are the regulations you need to know, mostly parts 61 and 91. The AIM has a ton of good information in it as well. All stuff that could show up on your written exam. The PHAK is going to be where a lot of your written material comes from. If you know the information in there forwards and backwards you'll do great.
The ACS is the practical standards to which you'll be judged on the check ride. How close do you need to hold altitude? How close do you need to hold that 45 degree bank angle? All found in the ACS.
The Oral Exam Guide's usefulness will vary based on who gives you your checkride. My DPE literally flipped through his copy of one and picked a few questions out of each section to ask me. If I messed up he stayed in that section longer. If I answered a handful near perfectly that section was done.
The Long Way Home was pretty good.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Long-Way-Home-Dover/dp/061521472X
Chapter one of a different Anderson book, Introduction to Flight has a good overview of the history. He also wrote a book just on history of aerodynamics that might be more useful to you.
The FAR/AIM
There's a book about it
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00L3PI102/
TC Seaplane Instructors Guide is good for learning the basics required for the rating.
Notes of a Seaplane Instructor is a great resource. This was my go to resource.
Seaplane Operations is great if you want to get technical.
Source- Taught float ratings in BC for 5 years
Buy this book immediately: http://www.amazon.com/Pilots-Handbook-Aeronautical-Knowledge-FAA-H-8083-25A/dp/1619540207/ref=pd_sim_b_7. It pretty much has everything you want to know about all aspects of flight. Great continuous, repeated read.
After you're flying for a bit, right around when you're at solo status (either pre or post XC), you'll want to get this book: http://www.amazon.com/Visualized-Flight-Maneuvers-Handbook-Handbooks/dp/1560275219/ref=pd_sim_b_48. For your PPL license you'll need to demonstrate a number of maneuvers with proficency, and this is a great reference for all of them.
When you're studying for your PPL written, grab this book:http://www.amazon.com/Private-Pilot-Test-Prep-2014/dp/1560279788/ref=pd_sim_b_23. Helped me a ton.
When you're getting ready for your checkride, get this book: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1560279494/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1.
Also, get an iPad and Foreflight. While you'll hear a ton from pilots about getting started too early with electronics during your training, the main thing to steer clear of is using it for in-flight navigation and relying on it for GPS. You have to learn dead reckoning, pilotage and old(er) school navigation like VORs. It's great for flight planning and the digital charts are incredible but I still plan out my flights using a paper flight plan. Also, it has a documents section that's just fantastic for downloading good FAA reads like the FAR/AIM, your aircraft's POH and a ton of other downloadable documents.
Love to hear some other suggestions.
I read this book before starting, Notes of a seaplane instructor, to brush up on some topics I may have forgot or didn't quite understand. It's an easy read.
Also because when they were building the LEM they needed to reduce mass as much as possible. They took out everything they didn't need: no chairs for example; smaller windows (as glass was heavier than the normal material for the ship). Having a thin layer of insulation was less massive than a thicker plating.
Source: Apollo 11 'Manual' a book on the history of the Apollo missions.
As mentioned, I would start by reading some FAA publications (assuming it's an FAA certificate you're going for):
PHAK - Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge - http://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/handbooks_manuals/aviation/pilot_handbook/
Aeronautical Information Manual - http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/media/AIM_Basic_4-03-14.pdf
You should also read through 14CFR sections 61 and 91:
http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/retrieveECFR?gp&SID=257acc4699ee7253af775fc7e9492e51&r=PART&n=14y2.0.1.1.2
http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/retrieveECFR?gp=&SID=257acc4699ee7253af775fc7e9492e51&r=PART&n=14y2.0.1.3.10
All of this information is free, and covers around 95% of what will be on the FAA private pilot written exam.
If you're getting close to test time, I also highly recommend a test prep book (I used: http://www.amazon.com/Private-Pilot-Test-Prep-2014/dp/1560279788 ) as these contain almost all of the questions you could find on the exam, as well as explanations for the correct and incorrect answers.
Good luck!
Found this to be a pretty good resource as well for $9. The book is small, but packed with quick references.
Private Pilot Checkride Prep
The article says California Clipper, but it was the Pacific Clipper. You can read about it in Ed Dover's book, Long Way Home. It was temporarily named the California Clipper while the original California Clipper was being moved.
> line is a bear for me. I can't sit in one place for awhile, so even at home, reading on a laptop that gets hot is killer. I'll spend the money for the print.
ASA publishes the print versions, here's the lazy-link: PHAK, AFH, and the FAR/AIM but it looks like the Gleim kit already has that one.
Aerodynamics for Naval Aviators
http://www.amazon.com/Aerodynamics-Naval-Aviators-00-80T-80-Handbooks/dp/1619540177/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426028269&sr=8-1&keywords=aerodynamics+for+naval+aviators
Glad someone found this subreddit!
Sure thing amigo, here you go:
Aviation Mechanic Hanbook - Sixth Edition
A&P Technician GENERAL TEXTBOOK
Aircraft Inspection, Repair & Alterations
A&P Technician POWERPLANT TEXTBOOK
A&P Technician Airframe Textbook
Aviation Maintenance Technician Handbook - Powerplant
There are 2 more books, they are the study guides for the A&P books. Not required, but optional books.
Good luck! happy reads!
Not paper airplanes, but metal wing models. The wing models are now owned by the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. Some are currently on display at the Smithsonian in DC.
Two FANTASTIC books that touch on this are:
Peter Jakab's Visions of a Flying Machine and
John Anderson's History of Aerodynamics
An interesting fact: Dayton was plumbed with natural gas for the street lamps. The Wrights designed and built a natural gas engine to run off this to drive the machinery in the bicycle shop; it was this engine that provided the power for the wind tunnel.
This book is an awesome collection of what you need to know for your checkride. You honestly could probably just use this book and be completely fine. I’ve recommended it to everyone in my club who is nearing their checkride and they all love it.
Private Pilot Checkride Preparation and Study Guide https://www.amazon.com/dp/152028795X/
Yeah definitely... I mainly used the AFOQT book listed below and once I learned what my weaknesses were or what my strengths needed to be (pilot had to be strong), I focused primarily on those with any online practice tests I could find. The book I linked will have information on the test sections.. X questions in Y minutes. Practice doing those with a bubble answer sheet so you get the full experience. GRE Vocab was a big help as well for the word knowledge section.
After studying a bit, you should know your weaknesses. But, IF you're not trying to be a pilot, don't worry too much about the aviation section even if you are weak.
Thanks and good luck!
​
AFOQT BOOK: https://www.amazon.com/AFOQT-Study-Guide-2018-2019-Questions/dp/1628455314/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=afoqt&qid=1556280745&s=gateway&sr=8-4
All 3 in one picture
Low Speed Wind Tunnel Testing
Aerodynamics is a math heavy subject. You're not going to escape it.
There are books geared toward the pilot/hobbyist audience you might find interesting as well like Aerodynamics for Naval Aviators.
Annoyingly, that link doesn't work for me because I'm currently in the Bahamas. Assuming that link points to Weather Flying by the Bucks (https://www.amazon.com/Weather-Flying-Fifth-Robert-Buck/dp/0071799729) then yes! Incidentally, the Bucks have had fascinating flying careers. If you yearn for the glory days of general aviation and/or like the history of aviation their other books make for fun reading.
yeah you might be able to rattle off enough knowledge for some to believe but when you throw that term around most people are skeptical. But hell might be worth a trial period. This is a good pure propulsion book, used in actual Aerospace curriculum.
http://www.amazon.com/Aerothermodynamics-Turbine-Rocket-Propulsion-Poesia/dp/1563472414
>Rocket development does not occur in straight lines of progression, it occurs in crooked lines. Taking just the Starship development, we are already more than a month beyond the first hop of Starhopper as announced by Elon.
No one is claiming that it does. Overall development has moved to the left compared to the version based on carbon fiber, and SpaceX has many excellent, highly-motivated engineers who work quite hard - Musk thinks they've solved the vibration issue; they tested again last night, looking for extremes in operating conditions, and found no surprises.
>The Raptor has proven more challenging than thought to perfect. There is a reason why developing the most powerful rocket engine is hard and SpaceX is figuring it out.
Most powerful based on what criterion? Thrust? BE-4 beats them there. Specific impulse? The RS-25 is well beyond Raptor. Raptor is ahead of the RD-180 in engine pressure, but that hardly makes it 'the most powerful rocket engine.'
>And, Starship is chocked full of innovative firsts. It reminds me much of the Space Shuttle in its firsts. And, many of those firsts will take much longer to perfect for human rated space flight. For example, like the Space Shuttle, there is no launch abort system and a unique, never done before, reentry system. To haul people, Starship will have to be tested to close to airliner levels of safety, or each passenger will be a test subject just like the Space Shuttle.
I'm not reminded of the Shuttle at all - one, Starship doesn't have the silly design choice of having the upper stage on the side of the main booster as compared to on top. Two, it doesn't have to satisfy political stakeholders, and thus use solid rockets that cannot be turned off (not exactly the best case for a crew, eh?). Three, it doesn't have the numerous conflicting design choices that guaranteed it would be expensive to operate, no matter what NASA thought beforehand. And I disagree entirely that Starship will have to have airline levels of safety. Dictate that from the outset, and you're almost guaranteed to kill commercial manned spaceflight in general (not just Starship but for Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin, and so on). Read up on the history of aircraft and compare where manned spaceflight is now, and you'll find that at this point people were taking many more risks (and learning substantially more) than we are today, for the most part. Safety uber alles guarantees spaceflight will be much more expensive than it has to, will be delayed even more, and in the end be less safe (because you're learning less from flown hardware) - witness the debacle that is the SLS.
You may find the book Safe Is Not An Option good reading for a discussion on safety.