AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 37

important to avoid dying" red hash marks.
I rose slowly, contemplated a soaring hawk,
then casually strolled to my airplane. I pulled
out the checklist and returned everything to
its end-of-preflight setting.
Surprisingly, hearing-rather than
reading-Chuck's counsel made me realize something. Flying easily animates sight,
but it also requires listening. Early aviators
flew as much by sound as sight-slipstream
singing in wing-brace wires revealed airspeed, engine tone indicated power setting,
that sort of thing. What about today? Was I
missing something? I started paying attention and began hearing things from three
sources.
First, the airplane itself talked to me.
During preflight, I listened while turning
on the master switch for the quiet, but solid
thunk of the master contactor followed by
electric gyros spooling up. Clicking, on
the other hand, indicated a weak battery.
Electric boost pumps hummed when
switched on and, in some airplanes, sped
up when I pushed the throttle full forward.
Moving the control yoke completely left
and right, then in and out usually produced
quiet, silky, sliding. Anything else meant
problems. Same thing for the trim controls.
A laboring Debonair flap motor forecast its
eminent demise.
At the wing tips, I pushed up and down
listening for fuel sloshing in the tanks,
as well as airframe creaks, groans, and
skin sections popping like old-fashioned
oil cans. Along the wing's leading edge,
pushing the tab or drawing breath from
the stall warning device yielded a tone from
the cockpit. On Cessnas, thumping wing
struts with the fleshy side of my closed fist
produced a single, solid thud. Extra noise
indicated something loose.
Moving all flight control surfaces
through their full range exposed interesting
issues. Squeaking from inside the wing while
simulating a left bank exposed a dry bearing.
Another time, a dragging, scraping sound
turned out to be a cable sawing through a
frozen pulley. Once, while pre-flighting for

a checkride, an indistinct sound when pushing the elevator full down revealed a broken
down-stop bolt. That could've made stall
recovery a more exciting maneuver.
When I came to the prop-after confirming mags Off and key laying visible
atop the glareshield-I turned a blade parallel to the ground. Then grasping the tip,
I pushed in along the blade's axis towards
the hub and pulled out again repeatedly
until the entire airplane danced. I listened for landing gear groaning or wheel
bearings clicking. Next, I pulled the prop
blades backward through several rotations.
Besides providing a quick check for a weak
cylinder, I listened for air escaping from a
leaky valve. Then I stood directly in front
of the spinner grabbing two prop blades at
the hub. I tugged with my arms, trying to
jerk it out of the engine. The correct, solid
clank rewarded my efforts.

A rickety idle revealed a fouled plug.
A wheezing takeoff roar exposed a
loose induction leak on a turbocharged
Continental. And the thrum-thrum-thrum
of two unsynced engines yanked me away
from wrestling a scheduling problem and
offered a clue to my passengers' clenched
fists and closed eyes. Changes in slipstream
rush followed airspeed changes. Open
Cessna air vent howls accurately disclosed
angle of attack excursions during slow flight.
Second, if previously mute airplanes
now spoke to me, what could I glean from
better radio listening? Monitoring-even
if not speaking on-comm channels began
creating three-dimensional, virtual pictures
expanding my sight beyond eyeball range.
Unicom or tower frequencies morphed
into a complex ballet yielding clues
how I could fit into the buzzing swarm.
Approach Control's talk highlighted hot

Thumping wing struts with the fleshy side of my
closed fist produced a single, solid thud. Extra noise
indicated something loose.
At the main gear tire, I removed the
chocks, put both hands on the tread and
rolled it forward and aft. Squeaking meant
dry bearings. Scraping told me dirt was
lodged between brake pad and rotor.
On smaller engines, manual primers
squealed with one tone when fuel entered
the pump, then produced a different tone
when forcing gas into the engine. Silence
suggested the airplane sat idle for a while
or perhaps the fuel selector was in the Off
position. When starting the engine, the
starter contactor's rapid clicking in lieu of
a turning propeller gave me another indication of a weak battery. Once I learned to
distinguish the unique cranking sounds of
Continental, Lycoming, and Rotax engines,
a difference told me the starter motor
remained engaged.
The running engine(s), of course,
rendered its (their) own repertoire(s).

spots at multiple airports within their
wider perspective. The more orderly
conversations with Center disclosed the
popular, or more often granted, traffic
routing while also uncloaking pieces of the
weather puzzle.
Third, as I listened to who said what,
I discerned subtle patterns. Things such
as who knew their location and who
only guessed. Or, who stuck to correct
phraseology and who did brain dumps with
their PTT button. Or, who kept pushing
multiple approaches against weather below
minimums and who believed the numbers,
diverting instead to alternates. Those pros-
paid or not-reinforced the kind of wisdom
I acquired listening to Chuck.
JAMES RUSH MANLEY is a former Amazon

jungle pilot. He now works as a freelance
writer in Meridian, Idaho.

www.aopa.org/pilot AOPA PILOT | 37


http://www.aopa.org/pilot

AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019

Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - Intro
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - Cover1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 4
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 6
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 9
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 10
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 11
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 12
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 13
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 14
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 15
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 16
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 17
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 18
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 19
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 20
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 21
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 22
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 23
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 24
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 25
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 26
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 27
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 28
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 29
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 30
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 31
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 32
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 33
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 34
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 35
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 36
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 37
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 38
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 39
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 40
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 41
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 42
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 43
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 44
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 45
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 46
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 47
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 48
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 49
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 50
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 51
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 52
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 53
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 54
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 56
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 57
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 58
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 59
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 60
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 61
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 62
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 63
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 64
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 65
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 66
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 67
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 68
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 69
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 70
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 71
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 72
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 73
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 74
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 75
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 76
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 77
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 78
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 79
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 80
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 81
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 83
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 91
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 93
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 94
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 96
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 97
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 98
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 99
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 100
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - 112
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2019 - Cover4
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