Mountain, Canyon, and Backcountry Flying

by Amy L. Hoover, R.K. "Dick" Wiliams

For more than a century, pilots have been intrigued by the challenges of flight in the highest mountains and the deepest canyons on every continent. Mountain, canyon, and backcountry flying allows pilots to get off the beaten path and enjoy the outdoors. It opens up a whole new world of recreation, including airplane camping, hiking, fishing, and staying at guest lodges or bush camps in areas without roads or easy access by land or water.

Flying in these enticing environments often entails operations over relatively inaccessible terrain in a challenging and sometimes unforgiving environment. This necessitates the proper mindset, discipline, and procedures to operate efficiently and safely. Operating over mountains, navigating through canyons, taking off and landing on unimproved, high-altitude airstrips in confined areas, and maximizing airplane performance requires specialized skills. The authors and guest writers share information and tips gleaned from more than 150 years and 100,000 hours of collective experience as professional mountain and backcountry pilots and flight instructors.

Recreational pilots to mountain flying instructors will find this book useful, and college and university professors can use the text to supplement their classroom instruction. Fundamental concepts include preparing for and conducting mountain and canyon flights, airport operations, situational awareness, aircraft performance, risk management, and emergency operations. Analysis of accident scenarios, accounts from the authors’ own experiences, and contributions from seasoned backcountry pilots and instructors expand on material detailed in the text. Each chapter includes exercises to help the reader understand and apply the information to their own flying, and beautiful color illustrations will inspire pilots to seek out these awe-inspiring destinations. Foreword by Rod Machado. Full-color illustrations.

Genres: Aviation

392 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 20, 2019

Reviews

[George S · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the most comprehensive book on backcountry flying you will read. It covers all aspects in detail in easy to read format, including personal stories from the authors and others to enhance the technical material. The accident stories are riveting, and the end of the book is an amazing story of the author's survival of an off-airport landing.

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book at an Aviation Trade show. I have been flying airplanes for 40 years and I learned a lot of things from this book. The title is a little bit misleading, since there is so much information about flying in general, not just in the mountains. It is well written and packed with solid easy to understand explanations, techniques, tips, and some entertaining and informative personal stories from the authors and other pilots. This is a MUST read for any pilot, whether highly experienced or just starting out.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative and entertaining

[Martin Rice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book!!!!! I read it prior to spending 2 days of training with Dick Williams in September, 2020.