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Articles by John E. McLain

Prior to his retirement as a career flight instructor, John McLain accrued over 18,000 flight hours of which more than 13,000 were dual given. He has conducted over 4000 flight tests in his twenty-five years as a designated pilot examiner. These articles first appeared in The Southern Aviator and are reprinted with John's permission.

Flaps, Power and Airspeed: Understanding, rather than rote memorization should be every pilot’s goal
John E. McLain (September 2001)

The inspiration for this article comes from you, the readers. My articles on Rudder, Yaw, Spins, Slips, and Skids elicited more reader response than anything else I had written in my “literary career.” I am …

Slips and Skids: An explanation of the terms is necessary
John E. McLain (August 2001)

My two articles concerning yaw, its effects and its control seem to have aroused considerable interest among our readers. I have received quite a few e-mail messages and telephone calls regarding them. While I have …

Memorizing answers for a test is not the same as being taught by those with practical experience
John E. McLain (July 2001)

If they can pass the tests, they get the certificate.
That seems to be the mentality of management people in the field of education today. SATs, standardized student level test, and the like seem to be …

Understanding the use of rudder: Its most important use is preventing yaw
John E. McLain (June 2001)

I have been writing for The Southern Aviator and its predecessors for close to 15 years. Coming up with a fresh subject each month is often more difficult than the writing. I have now decided …

Pilot Controller cooperation: Give the controller only the information he needs (Part 2)
John E. McLain (March 2001)

Last month, I discussed some ideas on pilots cooperating with air traffic controllers to make life and work easier for everyone operating in the ATC system. I presented some operating procedures controllers use, and how …

Pilot Controller cooperation: Learn to talk the talk and walk the walk for better service
John E. McLain (February 2001)

By the time you read this article, the Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) control tower will have held its Operation Rain Check on Feb. 3-4, 2001. Operation Rain Check, an FAA safety program held throughout the …