Patrick Smith is an airline pilot. His column is archived here.

Patrick Smith's Salon stories

Thursday, Dec 10, 2009 14:10 EST

The inside story of Northwest 188

Plus, Congress gets it right, for once: Tough new hiring rules for airlines and pilots
Thursday, Dec 3, 2009 14:03 EST

Whatever you do, don't dis Brazil

A columnist who criticized the handling of a crash inquiry is being sued for defaming the country's honor. Huh?
Thursday, Nov 19, 2009 13:20 EST

Who's flying this thing?

It's time to put to rest the idea that planes fly themselves. And who wants a pilotless jetliner anyway?
Thursday, Nov 12, 2009 13:13 EST

Is your pilot drunk?

Do I have to worry about my pilot showing up under the influence? Plus: A safety milestone goes quietly unnoticed
Thursday, Nov 5, 2009 14:05 EST

The real distractions for pilots

The scolds in Congress pushing for legislation banning nonessential gadgets from the cockpit are on the wrong track
Thursday, Oct 29, 2009 17:30 EDT

Boredom and fatigue at 35,000 feet

Do two distracted Northwest pilots portend a frightening breakdown in air safety? No. Plus: A personal note
Friday, Oct 16, 2009 00:07 EDT

Watch the pilot!

View the landing of a Boeing 767, from the cockpit. Behold the glory of approach lights at dawn. Plus: A tutorial
Friday, Oct 9, 2009 00:07 EDT

Ask the pilot

What is proper etiquette during an emergency evacuation? Plus: Confused pilots and angry readers
Friday, Oct 2, 2009 00:06 EDT

All your questions about in-flight horrors

Plus: What happened to "The Simpsons"? And REM? The weird phenomenon of pop-culture tailspin
Friday, Sep 25, 2009 00:08 EDT

Airplanes, oxygen and the media

Why do people keep insisting that pilots manipulate the air supply in planes? It ain't true, folks
Friday, Sep 18, 2009 03:18 EDT

The somber beauty of air crash memorials

Is it morbid to want to see them all? Plus: Pirates, the TV blues, and a plug for airport food
Friday, Sep 11, 2009 03:17 EDT

Are we safer than we were eight years ago?

We're still looking for pointy objects when we should be looking for bombs. Time for a leaner, meaner operation
Friday, Aug 28, 2009 03:11 EDT

How we're blowing airline security

The TSA wastes a lot of time and money on an inefficient fight against the wrong enemy
Friday, Aug 28, 2009 03:10 EDT

Timeline: The golden age of air crimes

A look back at some of the worst airline-related terrorism of the '70s, '80s and '90s
Friday, Aug 21, 2009 03:18 EDT

How new legislation will affect air safety

A look at pilot fatigue, hiring standards and the strange practice of "commuting"
Friday, Aug 14, 2009 03:15 EDT

Airtime

Severe turbulence, a midair collision and the latest stuck-on-a-plane horror story
Friday, Jul 31, 2009 03:30 EDT

Information: The good, the bad and the ugly

Airworthy planes, "dangerous" airports, and baby talk from the cockpit
Friday, Jul 24, 2009 03:23 EDT

Crash

Already in 2009, 11 major accidents involving commercial jets. We're in trouble, right?
Friday, Jul 17, 2009 03:18 EDT

Why are airline passengers such slobs?

Plus, a crash in Iran spotlights the safety of Russian-built planes, and the latest misinformation from the press
Friday, Jul 10, 2009 03:10 EDT

Is the Airbus a lemon?

Two Airbus crashes in two months: Should we worry? Plus: Welcome to the Six Continent Club!
Friday, Jun 26, 2009 03:24 EDT

Some stories just won't fly

I'd love to move on from the Air France crash, but the media insist on getting things wrong again
Thursday, Jun 18, 2009 03:18 EDT

When a pilot dies mid-flight

Are passengers at risk? Plus: Plenty of flotsam and jetsam, but no real answers in Air France crash
Monday, Jun 8, 2009 11:30 EDT

Flight 447's perfect storm

The media loves the "wrong speed" theory, but a lightning strike and electrical failure are more likely culprits.
Tuesday, Jun 2, 2009 08:03 EDT

Why the Air France plane crashed

Flight 447 shouldn't have gone down, but it did. Were normally non-dangerous phenomena the culprits?
Friday, May 22, 2009 03:34 EDT

Ask the pilot

Do pilots have a "romper room"? Do they fly the same routes over and over? Those questions and more

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