The 7 Best Books for Pilots (2024 Reviews)
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Stick and Rudder: An Explanation of the Art of Flying
Weather Flying, Fifth Edition
The Next Hour: The most important hour in your logbook
The Killing Zone, Second Edition: How & Why Pilots Die
Your flight training should leave you well prepared, but there is still much learning that will take place. This book focuses on the time frame from 50 hours – 350 hours, or the “killing zone”. This is when pilots are now flying without instructors and their decision making skills are truly tested.
The author, an award winning flight instructor, draws from statistics and scientific studies on pilot behavior to identify the common dangers and pitfalls during this timeframe. He alerts you to the 12 mistakes likely to kill you, and offers preventative strategies to stay safe. He provides guidelines for avoiding, evading, diverting, correcting, and managing dangers.
The Thinking Pilot’s Flight Manual: Or, How to Survive Flying Little Airplanes and Have a Ball Doing It
Say Again, Please: Guide to Radio Communications 6th Edition
Learning to fly is overwhelming enough. Then students realize they have to learn a new language. This guide teaches readers what to say, what to expect to hear, and how to interpret and react to clearances and instructions. Simultaneously, it details the airspace system and explains how the ATC system works. Readers follow along with the author on “simulated” flights, complete with a fold-out color sectional. They will learn how to communicate effectively in VFR, IFR, and emergency conditions.
Calculations, Weather Decoder, Aviation Acronyms, Charts and Checklists, Pilot Memory Aids
Aviation is full of acronyms, abbreviations, charts, and formulas. You can’t remember them all. Carry this for easy, quick reference to what you need in the moment. Pilots appreciate the simplicity and sheer amount of information contained in this handbook.
To conclude, we know the required FAA reading your instructor will prescribe is already a lot. These aviation books are worth the extra effort. You’ll impress your instructor, spend less time on ground school, and most importantly, be safer and more confident in the air.
