Flight Nerd Weekly Briefing
The latest updates to help you prep for FAA exams and enjoy the world of aviation!
Part 67 Series — Special Issuance, Deferrals & Staying Legal: Navigating the FAA Medical System
For many private pilots, the most stressful part of the FAA medical process isn’t the exam itself.
It’s the what if.
What if the AME defers my application?What if I’ve had a past diagnosis?What if I develop a new condition after my medical is issued?What happens if the FAA wants more information?...
Jul 12, 2026
Flight Nerd Weekly Briefing — July 7, 2026
🎙️ 01 — COCKPIT VOICE RECORDER
This week, aviation didn't make headlines with an accident or a flashy new aircraft. It made headlines with paperwork: a milestone, a grant program, and a decommissioning notice.
None of that sounds exciting until you realize what each one actually touches. One chan...
Jul 08, 2026
Part 67 Series — Substance Use, Diabetes & “Established Medical History”: What the FAA Is Really Looking For
When most private pilots think about FAA medical certification, they picture dramatic conditions:
Heart attacks.Seizures.Major psychiatric diagnoses.
But in reality, many medical deferrals don’t start with dramatic events.
They start with everyday health issues:
High blood pressure
Type 2 dia...
Jul 05, 2026
Flight Nerd Weekly Briefing — June 30, 2026
🎙️ 01 — COCKPIT VOICE RECORDER
Congress held aviation hearings this week. A JetBlue Airbus got clipped by a drone at 3,000 feet on approach to JFK. The FAA opened a runway incursion investigation in Miami. And somewhere in all of it, a Senate subcommittee asked witnesses why we mandated ADS-B Out...
Jul 01, 2026
Part 67 Series — Your Heart, Brain & Mental Health: The FAA’s Medical Standards Explained
If the eye chart feels straightforward, this is where things get serious.
When you sit down with an Aviation Medical Examiner (AME), the vision test is usually quick. The deeper questions come next:
Have you ever had chest pain?
Any history of seizures?
Ever been treated for depression or a...
Jun 28, 2026
Part 67 Series — Vision & Hearing Standards: Can You See (and Hear) Your Way to a Medical?
When most private pilots think about the FAA medical exam, one image comes to mind:
“Read the smallest line you can.”
Vision is one of the most objective — and most anxiety-producing — parts of the medical certification process. Add in the color vision test and the whispered voice hearing check, ...
Jun 21, 2026
The Flight Nerd Weekly Briefing — June 16, 2026
01 — COCKPIT VOICE RECORDER
This week's theme is "old meets new" in general aviation. Continental Aerospace, the engine maker behind a huge chunk of the trainers you've flown, just changed hands in a $535 million deal that brings it back to U.S. ownership after 15 years overseas. Meanwhile, the ...
Jun 16, 2026
Part 67 Series — How FAA Medical Certification Really Works (For Private Pilots)
For most private pilots, the FAA medical exam feels like a formality.
You fill out MedXPress.You visit an Aviation Medical Examiner (AME).You read a line on the eye chart.You answer a few health questions.You walk out with a certificate.
Simple… right?
Not exactly.
Behind that short office visit ...
Jun 14, 2026
The Flight Nerd Weekly Briefing — June 9, 2026
01 — COCKPIT VOICE RECORDER
Big things are in the air this week. The FAA's MOSAIC rule, the most significant update to light-sport aviation since the category was invented in 2004, is rolling toward its second major milestone on July 24, and it affects more pilots than most people realize. Meanwh...
Jun 09, 2026
Part 91 Series — Maintenance, Inspections & Airworthiness: Keeping the Airplane Legal
You can plan perfectly.You can brief passengers flawlessly.You can fly a textbook instrument approach.
But none of it matters if the airplane itself isn’t legally airworthy.
Under FAR Part 91, maintenance and inspection requirements aren’t just for mechanics and aircraft owners — they directly af...
Jun 07, 2026
The Flight Nerd Weekly Briefing — June 3, 2026
01 — Cockpit Voice Recorder
It's been one of those weeks that makes even the most seasoned simulator-rat look up from the gauges and say wow. A startup out of Atlanta just became the first private company in U.S. history to break the sound barrier. The FAA unveiled a plan to finally address the ...
Jun 03, 2026
Part 91 Series — Article 7IFR Operations Under Part 91: Flying in the System
Flying VFR is about seeing and avoiding.
Flying IFR is about trusting the system.
When you enter the clouds in a small aircraft — whether it’s a well-equipped Cessna 172 with a GPS navigator or a Piper Arrow on an instrument cross-country — you’re no longer relying primarily on visual separation....
May 31, 2026
Flight Nerd Weekly Briefing
