Our hero in this fictional tale decides to borrow a Saratoga like the one pictured below and fly it into Detroit’s evening rush. What can go wrong? Everything.

by Paul Sanchez

It’s always interesting that those of us who have earned at least a Private pilot certificate, had to endure a minimum number of training hours and completed at least one practical test with an examiner think our performance should be adequate for any airspace, any airport, any rated aircraft and any avionics at any time.

Unfortunately, it just ain’t so, and GA pilots continue to find new and imaginative ways to demonstrate that we’re not always ready for the challenge of a new operating environment. While we might legally be able to fly our Traumahawk into O’Hare during the Friday evening push, we won’t endear ourselves to anyone. And,…