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Doug Ranly

Top 4 Passive Aviation Headsets for Student Pilots

When looking at student pilot headsets, the first thing to consider is your budget. The saying, “You get what you pay for” is pretty accurate when it comes to aviation headsets. Many student pilots are on a tight budget. This has them looking towards less expensive passive headsets. Most pilots will start out with one of these headsets, then graduate to an active noise canceling headset once they get their license. Their original passive headset then becomes a passenger headset.

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Posted in PIREPs and Headsets

Three Pilot Hacks for Flying at Night

Flying at night is one of the many privileges we have as private pilots, and what good is a privilege if you don’t exercise it? But night flight isn’t without some challenges.  Here are my top 3 hacks to make your night flights more enjoyable.

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Posted in PIREPs

Lightspeed Aviation Headset Comparison - Sierra vs. Zulu 3

Based near Portland, Oregon, Lightspeed Aviation is a company deeply rooted in the aviation industry. They are well known for providing great pilot headsets at a good value, backed by a friendly support team. The premium Zulu 3 and budget-friendly Sierra have become top choices for pilots of all ratings.

You might ask yourself, “Besides $200, what’s the difference between the two?”

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Posted in PIREPs and Headsets

David Clark passive headsets - how to choose the right one

The famous green domes of David Clark headsets have been around longer than most of us have been flying, with a legendary reputation for durability. A little known fact is that David Clark started in aerospace by making high altitude spacesuits for the military. Communication became part of the suits, so speakers and microphones were developed. David Clark made their first pilot headset in 1975 and quickly became a mainstay in cockpits around the world.

 

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Posted in PIREPs and Headsets

My first encounter with Bose military headsets

Performance + Durability = Game Changer

We first arrived in the Iraqi desert early in 2004. The invasion dubbed “shock and awe” happened in 2003, so our battalion was part of the rebuilding phase. This was well before all the fancy armored vehicles appeared in theater. The “armor” on our trucks and humvees consisted of sheet metal we cut via torch and welded together. This armor “worked” for bullets, but not so much for IEDs. We would later learn the hard way that the IEDs were a much larger threat.

 

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Posted in PIREPs and Headsets

Avoid "gearcreep" and stay organized in the cockpit

Gearcreep: When stuff is left laying around and starts getting in the way of important tasks.

For anyone who has kids, gearcreep is a daily adventure. Books, bags, lunchboxes, one blue sock, and clarinet reeds somehow can’t cross the forcefield that is found approximately 10 feet inside my front door. Eventually, the forcefield can’t hold back the massive piles of junk and the gear starts creeping across the floor, only to be found at 2 am while stumbling down the hall to the bathroom.

 

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Posted in PIREPs