Greg Brown: Cockpit Adventures from the Flying Carpet
Ride along with renowned aviator, writer, and photographer Greg Brown in his light airplane, the "Flying Carpet," as he searches behind clouds for the real America, experiencing countless aerial adventures along the way. A former National Flight Instructor of the Year, Greg is author of five books, a former Barnes & Noble Arizona Author of the Month, and recently completed twenty years as aviation adventure columnist for AOPA Flight Training magazine. Some reviewers have compared his book, "Flying Carpet: The Soul of an Airplane," to sixties road-trip classics like "On the Road," and "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance." Says aviation author and humorist Rod Machado: “Greg thinks with the mind of a pilot, questions with the curiosity of a philosopher, and sees with the eyes of a poet.” Observes Nina Bell Allen, former “Readers Digest” Asst. Managing Editor, "You don't have to be a pilot, or even a frequent flyer, to soar with Greg Brown in [his] Flying Carpet." So buckle in and join Greg for the ride!
Episodes
One thing I love about flying is that there are so many dimensions to it. It might be as simple as going from point a to point B... For a meeting... Or a "hundred-dollar hamburger."
But sometimes piloting takes you mystically and magically to faraway places—spiritually or across time. And that's what this story is about.
So climb into my Flying Carpet, buckle up your seatbelts and prepare to takeoff on toda...
As I record this, we’re just two weeks away from the 2024 total solar eclipse that will come up through Mexico and cross much of the Midwest and eastern United States.
I suspect that many of you plan on flying to see this eclipse, but if you’re not, you probably should be.
Plenty of people have experienced a partial solar eclipse, and a few have experienced an annular solar eclipse.
But if you’ve never experience...
One thing I’ve learned over many years of piloting is that rarely can we plan a flight, take off, and then not need to worry about anything until we reach our destination.
More often than not, circumstances arise before takeoff and en route that require planning, strategy, and tactics to get us safely where we’re going . A big part of this, too, is being prepared to land at any point… To turn around. To land at an inconvenient airpo...
You may remember meeting my cowboy buddy "Baldy" way back in Flying Carpet Podcast Flight #2, “Cowboy Pilot,” in which Jean and I were first invited to the annual "Arizona Cowpuncher’s Reunion." If you don’t remember that episode, or haven’t heard it, you might want to get to know Baldy via that episode before starting this one.
Regardless, I predict you’ll get a kick joining our flying adventure to attend a uniq...
There are many dimensions to piloting adventure: some are scary, most are educational, but all are memorable!
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“Lobe Plays Sedona; Skies filled with music.”
Along with cockpit thrills and challenges, plenty of piloting adventure arises from where flying can deliver us, both physically and spiritually. That’s what today’s episode is about.
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Some Lessons a Pilot Never Forgets
"So this must be vertigo." I thought. Nausea circled my gut like the snowflakes orbiting my propeller. I peered out the windshield for landmarks, but snow obscured all but a tiny spot of ground beneath me, even at an altitude of only a thousand feet.
To make matters worse, my navigational radio had obviously failed. How could I possibly have drifted so far off course ...
Ride along on Greg's youthful adventures in airplanes and automobiles!
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I was recently awarded the FAA’s Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award, for 50 years of safe piloting.
It’s mind-boggling to consider how short the history of aviation is, that I should have personally flown for over 40% of the entire history of powered flight!
In this episode I reflect on how general aviation flying has changed since I took to the skies in 1972. What’s more, today’s story kicks off a whole series of future ...
Piloting is a sophisticated activity that requires a good deal of training, hand-eye coordination, planning, and application of judgment.
But today’s episode focuses more on spiritual aspects of flying--that is, why we do it, rather than how we do it, and it's topped off by a crazy destination. This story is one of my personal favorites, and I hope you’ll enjoy it.
Okay, everyone, hop aboard my Flying Carpet...
As you’ve likely heard, the final Learjet was recently delivered following almost 60 years of production. I was a kid when the Lear 23 was first introduced in 1964.
Although a few other corporate jets were flying by then, most companies still motored around in relatively slow, unpressurized piston airplanes, many of them repurposed WWII-era bombers and freighters.
The Lear was so sleek, sexy, and fast in compari...
Every aviator develops mutually rewarding relationships with the flight instructors delivering his or her wings.
Well, here’s the backstory of one of those relationships, that over 22 years led to the Flight Instructor Hall of Fame. It’s a story every pilot will appreciate.
Read my 1999 NAFI Mentor column referenced in the Podcast.
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Tips and tricks for introducing family and friends to general aviation flying, including some hysterical stories about how NOT to do it!
Learn how to treat family and friends to their critical first airplane rides, to ensure that they enjoy themselves and want to fly with you again.
Heads up that this is a live recording of a talk given several years ago, meaning audio quality is somewhat variable. But if you’ll stick with...
Everyone knows this is Oshkosh AirVenture Fly-in week, right? Well, grab your logbook, 'cause it's time for "Pilgrimage to Oshkosh," Greg Brown's Flying Carpet Podcast #18.
Whether you're at AirVenture now or just wish you were, I promise you cross-country time, some laughs, and a fresh perspective!
So hop in the Flying Carpet with me, and we’ll go check it out!
Ever wonder what it would be like, flying yourself into a foreign country where pilot communications are transmitted in an unknown-to-you language? Well, here's your opportunity to find out!
This episode marks fifty years of a treasured friendship, arising under unusual circumstances from a long-ago foreign adventure, and continued over the years through Flying Carpet adventures like this one!
Ever wonder what it was like to fly primitive airplanes into battle in World War I? Well, here’s your opportunity to find out!
“The engine is the heart of an airplane, but the pilot is its soul,” ⸺Sir Walter Raleigh, The War in the Air, 1922
(Music by Hannis Brown)
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When celebrating birthdays with zeros in them, flowers alone won’t do it. So when Jean marked a new decade I sought somewhere special we could fly to celebrate.
“But it seems weird celebrating a big birthday in Death Valley,” she said...
Check out the photos at GregBrownFlyingCarpet.com !
(Music by Hannis Brown)
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Experience archaeology by Flying Carpet: Earning your wings is more than piloting an airplane; it's about where flying can take you!
Don't miss this episode's photos at GregBrownFlyingCarpet.com !
(Music by Hannis Brown)
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“Look!” said my wife with horror. “There’s been a terrible crash!” Glancing downward, there was just time for me to glimpse carnage on Highway 202, the Red Mountain Freeway east of Phoenix. A few hundred feet beneath us, flames and blackened vehicles littered the roadway as we crossed low on final approach to land at Falcon Field.
See photos at episode website. (Music by Hannis Brown)
Here's an audio holiday card to you and your family, direct from the cockpit of the Flying Carpet!
It's been a mighty tough year, between pandemic, politics, and world problems, so from our family to yours, we hope this little audio card will brighten your holiday season, whatever your heritage or faith. May the coming year mark happier times for all of us!
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