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SMAC041 – Flying Resolutions, Tailwheel Adventures, and the 787

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Glad to have you back for Episode #41! Carl has some exciting news to share about learning to fly the Airbus A320 at a new airline including some stories about jumping out of the airplane in his water ditching class. Also, we’ve had a temporary co-host restructuring – Victoria has been extremely busy as the US Team Leader in charge of organizing and assisting with Women Fly It Forward events throughout the United States that she needed more time to dedicate to those pursuits. While we surely do miss her spunky, ginger perspective on all things flying, please welcome our friend and listener Sean Moody as the interim co-host!

Listen in to learn more about Sean, how he got started flying, his background, and even his new volunteer position with Stuck Mic AvCast! We’re very excited to have him on board not only as an interim co-host but to help out behind in the scenes in an effort to assist us in delivering more quality content for your enjoyment. Don’t forget to Follow Sean on Twitter.

Pre-Flight

A BIG CONGRATULATIONS to the entire crew of Plane Crazy Down Under for approaching their 100th Episode! As fellow mates and podcasters we know what a crowning achievement this is and wish Grant, Steve, and the everyone at PCDU a prosperous future. In addition, co-host Len Costa will be visiting the Aussie guys in March for what is likely to be a memorable vacation in the land of kangaroos, Vegemite, and Coopers Vintage Ale.

In the spirit of Oz accomplishments, we recommend you check out the Australian Airshow from February 26th through March 3rd, 2013 located in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. This event is a 2 part show consisting of the Trade Exhibition followed by the Public Airshow. If you happen to find yourself down under you should check out this event!

Cruise Flight

2013 Aviation Resolutions

  • Sean – Work on his CFI Certificate
  • Rick – Work on his Instrument Rating
  • Carl – Pursue a type rating in the B-25
  • Len – More GA flying including tailwheel time

Additional Show Notes

After Landing Checklist

~ Picks of The Week ~

SMAC038 – 12 Flights of Christmas, FAA MedXpress, iFlyBlog

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In this edition of the Stuck Mic AvCast we deliver quite a lineup of announcements before jumping in to a detailed discussion of the new changes in obtaining an FAA Medical specifically with regards to the paperwork process which has recently gone all digital! Join us for this educational chat about working with the new MedXPress system including tips and tricks from an actual AME followed as always by the co-hosts aviation Picks of the Week.

Pre-Flight

American Heroes Airshow – This event is the nations premier helicopter airshow sporting a display of law enforcement, fire and government helicopters. Events are hosted all over the United States and the next show will be in Fort Myers, FL on Saturday January 19th, 2013 at the JetBlue Stadium park in Fort Myers. That’s right, helicopters IN a stadium! We’re sure you won’t want to miss this.

SocialFlight 2.0 [app update] – In a previous episode co-host Len Costa mentioned the SocialFlight app as his pick of the week and they’ve just recently released version 2.0. Here’s a brief breakdown of the features taken from the SocialFlight website: “SocialFlight 2.0 makes a good thing even better by adding your very own “Hangar Page” where you can search for other SocialFlight members, join together in “Flight Clubs”, chat, share photos and see who’s going to upcoming aviation events in your area.  You can also click on the “Fans” button on any event to see people who have made that event one of their “Favorites” (and may be attending).”

12 Flights of Christmas – Parents and family members, looking for that perfect gift for your youngster this holiday season? Well look no further! This year the folks at Sun N Fun in Lakeland, FL are taking nominations for children between the ages of 8 and 18 for the opportunity to win a FREE airplane ride. All you have to do is submit your child, grandchild, or neighbors information on the website. Entries will be accepted through December 20th, 2012 and there are 12 slots available, so don’t delay, enter today! Winners will also receive free admission to the STEMtastic camp on Saturday January 12th, 2013.

Brighter Future Through Aviation – Sun N Fun is working hard to promote aviation to our younger generations to help foster the growth of our favorite hobby and industry. Check out the video explaining their mission to: “preserve and enhance the future of flight through world-class events, inspiring and educating people of all ages. This is what we do and when you watch our new video you’ll learn why we do it.”

***DON’T FORGET to stick around until the end of the show for a special holiday song that we’ve included for your listening pleasure***

Cruise Flight

After Landing Checklist

~ Picks of The Week ~

Victoria – Astronaut Col Pam Melroy

Rick – Scheyden Sunglasses

Len – Brent Owens iFlyBlog.com

Carl – Commemorative Air Force

Listen to Episode 38 Below

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Video Review: FREE AvCaddy EFB iPad App

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***Watch in HIGH DEFINITION***

The Pilot Report Ratings (scale of 1 to 5, 5 being the highest rating):

  • User Interface: 3
  • Chart Caching/Downloading: 2
  • Mapping: 3
  • Flight Planning: 3
  • Weather: 2
  • Average Rating: 3

From Carl Valeri – In the past few years we have seen numerous aviation applications arrive on the scene each touting their uniqueness. AvCaddy Electronic Flight Bag is positioning itself as a less costly alternative to other EFB’s.

For the low cost of $3.99 a month, AvCaddy makes available all VFR and IFR charts. This is cheaper than only one chart and you get the whole United States for this low price.

Since there are other companies offering the same type of service you must not only compare price but compare functionality and usefulness of the AvCaddy EFB compared to other EFB’s.

Positives

Cost: AvCaddy is one of the least expensive products which includes all the NACA charts.

Flight Plan Management: The flight plan filing and updating functionality is one of this product’s unique features that is not included in other EFB’s. Others allow the user to file a flight plan but not update or cancel the flight plan.

Negatives

Chart Navigation: I have come to expect a seamless transition when moving from one chart to the next. Most other, although more expensive, EFB’s offer this option and I am willing to pay extra for these options.

It would be nice to open the application and press a button and have the chart center on my current position. Since this is how most of us start our flight planning there should be an easy way to select this option. The application currently requires too many buttons to push to display the current position.

Limited Functionality and Information: With a lower cost the limited functionality compared to more expensive products on the market is to be expected. The only problem is I found myself looking for extra airport information such as fuel, car rental, and restaurants while viewing the airport information.

Conclusion

AvCaddy is an inexpensive way to obtain all of the IFR and VFR charts. Although there is a great deal of competition in the EFB market I found that I would be willing to pay more for additional functionality and information.

For those looking for a basic low cost EFB, AvCaddy is a winner. If you are like me you are hoping that in future versions they will have additional functionality and a more user friendly interface. I would be willing to pay for the additional features and information as I do with my other aviation products. For now I will have to give this 3 out of 5 stars with the main benefit being price and flight plan management.

Download AvCaddy iPad App Now!

PS – Please press the LIKE button if you enjoyed this video or found it helpful

This video was prepared by Len Costa of ThePilotReport.com and the accompanying blog post was written by Carl Valeri of ExpertAviator.com which may account for any varying opinions and ratings of this software.

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UPDATED: v1.1.4 was sent off to Apple which addresses the crashing issue with TFRs. This issue appears only when a user has their device set to a 24 hour clock. v1.2 will include complete briefings and the ability to also request a briefing without having to file a flight plan.

NEWS: iPad Gets Class 1 EFB Certification from FAA

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This excites me very much!

Now if only my airline would hurry the heck up and get the iPad approved in our FAR Part 121 operations here so we could finally ditch these flight cases.

Read the full article here: http://avstop.com/feb_2011/executive_jet_receives_faa_authorization_to_use_je…

Clear Skies & Calm Winds,

Len @ ThePilotReport.com