Episode 10: Jim Johnson

Episode 10: Jim Johnson

Author: AOPA Air Safety Institute April 24, 2019 Duration: 31:02
25-year GA pilot Jim Johnson shares the story of a hot Sunday afternoon in Alabama when he set out to practice approaches in his Cessna 177RG, and experienced an engine failure just after takeoff. To see photos from Jim’s incident, click here.

Imagine pulling up a chair in a virtual hangar, surrounded by pilots swapping their most gripping stories. That’s the feeling at the heart of "There I was..." An Aviation Podcast. Produced by the AOPA Air Safety Institute, each episode is a direct flight into real-world cockpit experiences, where seasoned aviators recount moments when weather, mechanics, or sheer chance threw them a curveball. You’ll hear the subtle tension in their voices as they describe navigating a sudden system failure or an unforecast storm, followed by the clear-headed decisions that led to a safe landing. This isn’t about sensationalism; it’s about the nuanced application of skill and training under pressure. The entire podcast is built on aviation’s rich tradition of “hangar flying”-that invaluable, informal passing of wisdom from one pilot to another. By listening, you gain access to a collective library of hard-won lessons, a resource that deepens your understanding of what it truly means to fly safely. Whether you’re a student pilot, a seasoned captain, or simply fascinated by the realities of flight, these narratives offer a profound and practical education, one compelling story at a time.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 95

"There I was..." An Aviation Podcast
Podcast Episodes
Episode 45: Drew Ryan and Potomac TRACON [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:10
GA pilot Drew Ryan, along with brothers Eric and David Lomascolo (both air traffic controllers from Potomac TRACON), join us to recount the story of Drew’s flight in a snowstorm while flying from Albany, NY, to Manassas,…
Episode 44: Brian Lenzmeier [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:59
Having purchased a Cirrus SR22 just a couple of days prior, pilot Brian Lenzmeier departed on a flight from Addison to Waco, TX with an instructor pilot on board. What followed was an engine and avionics failure that res…
Episode 43: Russ Jeter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:34
Living with the consequences of an aircraft accident is hard. Living with the loss of a son is excruciating. In this episode we take a sobering look at one pilot's personal tragedy, the devastation it wrought, and the le…
Episode 42: Genesah Duffy and Lynn McNorton [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:13
In this episode, we talk to pilots Lynn McNorton and Genesah Duffy, who had a chance encounter in Tampa Bay just south of Peter O. Knight Airport. After experiencing engine trouble in his Mooney M20M, McNorton was forced…
Episode 41: Dario Costa [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:55
In this special edition of “There I was…”, host Richard McSpadden and AOPA’s Cayla McLeod interview Red Bull Air Race competitor Dario Costa, who debriefs his 44-second flight inside two Turkish highway tunnels, and the…
Episode 40: Henry Coffeen [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 29:43
On a November afternoon a few days before Thanksgiving, GA pilot Henry Coffeen was practicing aerobatic maneuvers when he experienced a fire in the cockpit of his Edge 540.
Episode 39: David Bradley [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:21
David Bradley joins us to talk about ferrying a flight of UH-1 “Huey” helicopters from Jefferson City, Missouri down to Ellington Air Force Base during Operation Desert Storm.
Episode 38: Jon Humberd [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:31
While flying his experimental Zenith 701 out of his grass airstrip in Tennessee, pilot Jon Humberd has a close call with a quickly approaching storm. To see Jon’s YouTube video of the incident, click here.
Episode 37: Brian Lloyd [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:00
In the summer of 2017, aviator Brian Lloyd began a solo round-the-world flight in his Mooney to commemorate Amelia Earhart’s famous equatorial route 80 years prior. While on a flight leg from New Zealand to American Samo…
Episode 36: Thomas Marrow [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:17
While flying out of a backcountry airstrip near Johannesburg in South Africa, pilot and YouTube personality Thomas Marrow experienced a prop strike in his Safari Kitplane.