All pages copyright © 2002-2008 Dave English. All rights reserved.

This website is not a come-on for seminars or coaching or flight instruction or personal appearances. I have no interest. Flying an Airbus A-320 for a great airline pays my bills at the gliderport. This is for love. No subscriptions, no member pages, no pop-ups, no ads, no cookies, no tricks or games. I designed and wrote it all myself using FrontPage (now Expressions Web), Photoshop, iStockphoto.com, a little digital camera and some dumb luck.

Many thanks are owed to W. Earl Allen for making the text more readable with his considerable proofreading skills. His own passion for flight can be clearly seen in aerobatic competition. Of course, all language errors here remain my own as I continue to add and tweak.

Since not all browsers and computers will correctly show the macron over long vowels in many Japanese words, I have used a completely anglicized presentation for this website. So Bushidō is written using just roman letters as Bushido.

Another point of confusion can be Japanese names, as the family name is written first. I would be English Dave. Then titles or Zen names are added or can replace given names. For example, Tzu can be translated as master. I use Japanese convention for Japanese names and the most common Zen names for masters, with Western convention for Western names.

Due to liability concerns the flight school owner asked me to not use the airport's actual name. I agreed. Some identifying details have been changed for the same reason.

This quick little drawing is by Richard Bach, something he put under his signature on the inside page of a copy of 'Jonathan Livingston Seagull,' from my personal book collection. 

The enso (circle) is one of the deepest symbols in Japanese Zen. This one was drawn by Bankei Keitaku (1622-1693), who entered a Zen temple at 17, traveled widely throughout Japan, and later taught his Fusho Zen.

The simple circle seems so easy to draw, just as straight and level flight seems so easy to fly. But the book Zen Drawing says, "in fact it is one of the most difficult of Zenga; it is not a product of chance, but expresses fully the enlightenment and profundity achieved by the artist. No deception is possible in painting an enso, for the character of the painter is fully exposed in its nakedness.  The enso is the revelation of a world of the spirit without beginning and end, and can be said to transcend anything that qualifies as art in the ordinary meaning." (Yasuichi Awakawa, 1970)

A perfect circle would be drawn by a compass, or generated by a computer.  Just as an autopilot holds course and altitude better than any human pilot. But there is much more to flying, so I have a circle drawn by human hand and seen by this human eye to be closer to perfection.

Shin Un'zan (True Mountain Covered with Cloud), by Hakuin Ekaku (1685-1768).

Tomikichiro Tokuriki woodcut illustration of the Ninth of the Ten Bulls, a sequence written by Kakuan around 1200 AD.

Bird Flying over Abyss, by Liang K'ai (from the late 12th-early 13th c.).

Leonardo da Vinci's Codex on the Flight of Birds (1490-1505).

The author (that's me, still Dave) has made every effort in the preparation of this web site to ensure accuracy of the information. However, the information is provided without warranty, either expressed or implied. The author (yep, Dave) will not be liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly, indirectly, incidentally or consequentially by the information on this web site. It's all for entertainment purposes only. While every effort is made to ensure timeliness and accuracy, the information presented within is subject to revision and in no way relieves the pilot-in-command of his/her duties as outlined in government aviation regulations and general good airmanship.

I will never sell, share, trade or re-distribute any logged information from server files. In the case of conflict between this site and your airplane manuals, your company procedures, government rules and recommendations, or any other authoritive documentation, comply with the documented procedures. PilotPsy.com is not responsible for the content of external Internet sites. Opinions expressed are considered to be those of the speaker. Quotations are as accurate as possible, but not more so. Contributions welcome, but editorial rights reserved. This site has been registered with ISCA for safe surfing.

The old FAA's Flight Standards Service official web site contains this disclaimer: "The content of these pages is unofficial and not authority for action. Views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of Transportation or the Federal Aviation Administration." Following the FAA's brave lead I think I can hearby proclaim that PilotPsy.com pages are unofficial and not authority for action, and that my views and opinions expressed here may not reflect my views and expressions!  If you want definitive guidance on flight operations I can only suggest you have your legal team contact the FAA's chief counsel . . .

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Electronic commerce linked from this site handled by Amazon.com who are completely responsible for order fulfillment. You are encouraged to print and download portions of material from the different areas of the site solely for your own non-commercial use provided that you agree not to change or delete any copyright or proprietary notices from the materials. You may also transmit copies of such portions of materials by email, for your personal, non-commercial use only, provided that you agree not to change or delete any copyright or proprietary notices from the materials. The Copyright and Trademark Owner— still me, Dave—does not allow the reposting of any of its content on other sites on the World Wide Web, except in the case of a specific licensing agreement for that purpose. You may not modify, copy, change, alter, reproduce, republish, upload, post, in any manner, the material on this site. You may not use or distribute the materials on this site except as stated above.

Hikoudo is a registered trademark and may not be used without the written permission of Sam Hamilton or Dave English. Sam told me once the worst attitude in an airplane also has a Japanese phrase: shikata ga nai nxhubn—it can't be helped. Going with the flow should never be confused with shikata ga nai.

If you have questions or comments please e-mail me.