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Ask the Pilot Weekly Column
Patrick Smith's column appears every week (usually on Fridays) at Salon.com, one of the Web's most respected sources for news and politics.
Patrick takes on everything from the latest urban myth to the trends and travesties of the airlines. You'll find basic facts and stats, personal stories, plus essays and opinion on everything from turbulence to terrorism to airport architecture.
PILOT PICKS
Featured columns from the Salon archives:
- Is the Israeli model of security right for America?
- What's more enjoyable than flying? A ride on a Turkish bus, of course.
- What's the matter with airports? Noise, escalators, carpets and plastic.
For a complete archive of past topics and discussions click here
Entrance to Salon is free. Watch for the "skip this ad" or "enter Salon" prompts when the gateway ad appears.
"I wish I could fold up Patrick Smith and put him in my suitcase. He seems to know everything worth knowing about flying.
"Trenchant and insightful."
"Patrick writes clearly and informatively about issues that affect the flying public, and frankly that's almost everyone on the planet. I daresay his column is... unique."
"What a pleasure it is reading Patrick Smith's surprisingly elegant explanations and commentary. The world needs somebody writing E.B. White simple and sensible about a topic EVERYONE has a question about.
"Salon.com tends to bury the work of Patrick Smith under a pile of political diatribes and pop-culture effluvia. That's too bad, because more people should see his Ask the Pilot column, in which he shares his expertise on the airline industry — with mild snark and delightfully gratuitous references to 80's alt-rock."
"Patrick has the ability to answer my questions even before they occur to me. And even those that don't occur to me. Who knew that the airlines could be so interesting?"
"As comfortable debunking myths and misconceptions as he is talking about the really important stuff: airline logos and liveries."
"I've known Patrick Smith since the 1980s. He was always a secretly very talented and funny writer, but steadfastly resisted my encouragement. Today he's the greatest columnist on the Internet, and so he owes me one."
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