Welcome to the AviationReviews Blog ...

This young lady (Jessica Cox) has no arms, yet she uses her feet to not only fly her plane, but to preflight, log and do everything else pilots do when flying. She is truly an inspiration.

A friend of mine (Jake McKee) notified me of this great website for those who travel. The AirPower Wiki site provides detailed information and locations for power plugs in airports around the world. Since it is a Wiki anyone can update the page (after creating an account). Another feature of the site I like is that there are photos of these locations so you can add photos to their Flickr group to share with others.

The site also provides other also useful tips such as Wi-Fi information and other services related to connecting your laptop or PDA when at the airport.

Wondering if it is going to rain? Get a quick answer with this new website GoingToRain.com! The site quickly translates your IP address into a zip code/city location then gives you a simple Yes or No answer about whether it is going to rain.

You can change you zip code by clicking on the Yes/No label or change the temperature scale from Fahrenheit to Celsius. The program also gives you a quick forecast and high temperature of the day.

The electronic boarding pass enables passengers to download their boarding pass on their cell phones or personal digital assistants (PDAs) then have it scanned at a TSA checkpoint. This innovative approach streamlines the customer experience while improving ability to detect fraudulent boarding passes. Each paperless boarding pass is displayed as an encrypted two-dimensional bar code along with passenger and flight information. TSA security officers use hand-held scanners to validate the authenticity of the boarding pass at the checkpoint.

Eleven airports are piloting this technology:
Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) - Continental
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) - Continental
Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) - Continental
Logan International Airport (BOS) - Continental
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) - Continental
San Antonio International Airport (SAT) - Continental
Indianapolis International Airport (IND) - Northwest
LaGuardia Airport (LGA) - Continental and Delta
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) - Alaska Airlines
Cleveland Hopkins Airport (CLE) - Continental
Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) - American

Once the hand-held scanners are deployed nationwide, TSA will also use this technology to track wait times using standardized automated data collected at checkpoints. This development is expected to happen within about a year.

“Garmin and ForeFlight take top honors for bringing weather and flight planning to the palm of your hand, but no single service hits all the high notes. Collecting, assimilating, and safely deciding what to do about weather is one of the hardest things we pilots do. But it seems like every computer platform to do this has a drawback.”

Overall the article does a good job of looking at Garmin Pilot My-Cast, ForeFlight and Jeppesen Mobile, but fails to look at other solutions such as eFAD and NavMonster.

Purchase the complete review for $12.95 or by subscribing to the Aviation Consumer Magazine.