VERY BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF AVIATION BOOKS By Grover Summers

Theory And Analysis: "An airplane is an airborne mechanical device. As such, it must obey the laws of both physics and aerodynamics. If you know and understand those laws, you know what a plane must do under any and all flight conditions. Also you will know what must be done to make the plane do what you desire." This book starts with basic aerodynamics and physics as applicable to flying and proceeds through aerobatic flying! It will teach a student what is needed to know to be able to properly control an airplane in any VFR flight maneuvers.

Attitude Instrument Flying: There are only three things that one may control when flying an airplane: (1) Pitch Attitude, (2) Bank Attitude, and (3) Power. An airplane flies the same way whether in day or night, VFR or IFR Flight conditions, or over land or sea. The only thing that changes is where and how one obtains the information necessary to determine the aircraft pitch attitude, bank attitude, and power needs. One does not "fly the instruments" when under IFR flight conditions. He uses the instruments to determine the pitch and bank attitudes of the plane and it's power needs! This book starts with primary training as to how to use the instruments to determine those needs and ends with doing loops, Immelman Turns and Barrel Rolls under the hood on partial panel! It does not get into the use of radio and navigation aids under IFR conditions.

How To Fight Back, And Win: If you do much flying, or maintenance work, you are very likely so find yourself sooner or later "bumping heads" with either the FAA, an aircraft owner, the police, or the court system. If you think an attorney can defend you in such conditions, or if you think an attorney can provide proper defense in such conditions, or really cares whether you win or lose, you are very likely in for a shock of great magnitude, should such ever happen to you! This book contains over 50 stories relating to improper FAA Certificate Actions, improper accident investigations, non-supportable charges, law suites involving sums of up to $9.5 Million dollars against maintenance people, etc. Your only defense is what you know, and can prove to be factual in a court! By the way, have you ever seen an attorney sworn in before a trial to "tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth"? It does not happen. I got one disbarred by proving that the charges he made when he instituted a suit were based on information he obtained from FAA records and that he knowingly and intentionally lied when he filed the suit and the false allegations contained therein!

59, And Counting: (Now, 64 years, in aviation) All kinds of stories about what I have seen and done in those years: Have you ever gone under high lines when on a simulated forced landing, and landed in a grass field while on a check ride; Did your instructor ever turn the fuel off on you in pre-solo training or and make you land with a dead engine; Did your Instructor ever refuse to let you use power to correct a low approach, but made you bounce over a fence in order to complete a landing? Did your instructor ever takeoff in an aerobatic biplane, come back and perform a 360 degree rolling turn around the hanger below the roof line? And that was all pre-solo! Did you ever run into instrument conditions where you could not remain within 5,000 feet either above or below an assigned altitude? This book covers things that have happened in 64 years, and more than 21,000 hours in single and multi engine land and sea planes, gliders, helicopters, single engine of 1,200 hp and multi engine of 4,000 hp, plus multi engine jets! Bunches of tales - all true, interesting and some very exciting!

Mastering The Tail Dragger: I have read all kinds of baloney about flying a tail dragger, especially about how to test hop a home built tail dragger. A 'tail dragger' flies exactly as a 'nose roller' with the following exceptions. At any time the plane is in contact with the ground, whether it is being taxied, is in its takeoff roll and lifting off, or is touching down, or on the after landing rollout, different control use is required and for very justifiable reasons. If you read and understand the information in this short book, you will likely have a far better understanding of what is taking place than the pilot who is giving you a check out to fly a tail dragger! Like my other books, this one explains "how" and "why" the controls must be used as they are.

Check Rides: I have worked on both sides of this fence. If you think all check rides are graded fairly, you have a second guess coming. This book covers many check tides that I have either taken, given, or argued over, and had reappraised. Again, it's what you know and can prove. When I applied for my FAA Flight Instructor ticket, I had well over 3,000 hours. I had graduated from the USAF Flight Instructor school at Craig AFB in Selma, Alabama and had over 1,000 hours as a Contract Civilian Primary Flight Instructor instructing USAF students in the North American T-6. Though next to the youngest instructor on the base, I was the Senior Instructor and Standardization Officer in my flight.

I had known the FAA Inspector with whom I took that check ride for years before taking that ride with him. He always bluntly stated if you did not want any license badly enough to take the check ride at least twice, you did not deserve it! I told that FAA check pilot that a maneuver could not be flown as he told me it should be taught, and made him admit that I was right and he was wrong! Before briefing another particular maneuver, I made him specify the prior training of the pilot who was being taught. Then while briefing that maneuver, he interrupted by stating that I should have given that pilot certain information. Again he was forced to admit that a pilot qualified as previously discussed would have know already what I had not mentioned before he interrupted me in the briefing. He so consistently acted like the north end of a south bound horse, that I became very angry and told him that if he would shut his mouth until I finished my briefing, he would have all the information he needed! That story is much too long to long to repeat here, but I got the license! A most interesting check ride! I once sent a student for a military final check ride. Even though the student passed the ride, I got highly angered at his check ride grade report and I went and made the military check pilot admit that he was wrong on everything about which he had criticized my student. There are ways to get a check ride properly evaluated.

Crop Duster: I began my flying career at a grass field airport SW of San Antonio, Tex. in the early '40s. I obtaining my private pilot certificate shortly after and then moved over to Stinson Field where I flew until I went to work for the USAF at Hondo, Tex. in the early 1950s. Prior to going to work for the USAF, I flew one season in air show aerobatics, followed by three seasons in crop dusting and spraying. I have previously mentioned that I flew 10 years as a Civilian USAF Contract Flight Instructor. I moved to Fla. in 1958 when the USAF closed the base in Hondo, and continued instructing for the USAF at Bartow, Fla. I continued flying Primary training of AF Students until they closed all Civilian Contract bases in the early 1960s. After the Air Force resumed the primary flight training program of their students, I went back to agricultural flying, mosquito control work, etc. for the next 30+ years, while operating my own aviation FBO at Gilbert Field in Winter Haven. Fla.

About the time I left Stinson Field, a pilot named Duke Bledsoe moved to San Antonio and began flying there. He knew all the people at Stinson Field that I had known. Duke was also an agricultural pilot. We never met until possibly 30 years later while I was operating my FBO at Gilbert Field. In the intervening years, Duke had also moved to Fla. I had done my agricultural flying in Texas, La., Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado. Duke did most of his agricultural flying "south of the border" and in the eastern part of the U. S. After we finally met, we got to "shootin' the breeze" about the people we both knew in San Antonio and about things that happened in our crop dusting operations and decided to write a book on the funny stuff that we had experienced and or had seen in that type of flying - including the time I "killed" myself in a crash (at least that is what the doctor said would be the result from that crash) many years ago! Lots of funny stories!

I am currently writing two or three more: How to obtain Supplemental Type Certificates: (I have developed and own five STCs) How to build a plane that is no longer manufactured and have it certificated under the original Type Certificate! (I currently own the production rights to two antique bi-planes) How to assemble a plane from parts and get it Certificated by the FAA. There is all kinds of information out there if one knows where to find it, and how to use it!

Grover Summers