About Doctor Aviation

Who is Doctor Aviation?

Doctor Aviation is a command pilot, aviation author, and former professor at the United States Air Force Academy and current university professor.

What is DoctorAviation.com?

Doctor Aviation is an educational website dedicated to instructing life-long learners interested in aviation.  It houses an exhilarating video course series

What the series will do for you. You will…

  1. discover the careers available in the aviation world
  2. be shown a pathway to pursue that aviation career
  3. gain knowledge of the physics behind flight
  4. come to know the important players in aviation history
  5. earn a science elective*
  6. earn a literature elective*
  7. be assisted as a Boy Scout or American Heritage Girl in pursuing aviation badges and enabled as Civil Air Patrol members to grow in your aviation knowledge.

Doctor Aviation will provide aspiring aviators with the basic knowledge and tools to begin their life in the sky.

More about Doctor Aviation

Doctor Aviation, AKA Daryl Smith, is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy where he learned to fly both gliders and fixed wing aircraft.  He was blessed to be instructed in aircraft and in the classroom by veteran Air Force pilots, some of whom gained fame as military pilots in combat.  Robbie Risner, Chuck Debellevue, and Robin Olds were among those he was fortunate to interact with.

Over his 24 years in the Air Force, Doctor Aviation traversed the sky in nearly a dozen aircraft as a Command Pilot with over 2,000 flying hours.

Many of those flight hours were accumulated as an instructor pilot and as a research pilot during testing of the Strategic Defense Initiative (AKA The Star Wars Program).

On the ground, Doctor Aviation served as a professor at the United States Air Force Academy teaching aviation and other courses.  Additionally, has authored a book on aircraft mishaps, published by McGraw Hill.

As a current college professor, Doctor Aviation asked, why not make world of aviation available to life-long learners across the globe? Learn right where you live and work. The aviation world is fascinating with lessons that apply to all walks of life. Whether you wonder about flight itself, aircraft maintenance, air traffic control or how to run an airport, Doctor Aviation will give you insight into these worlds. Each lesson covers a technical aspect of aviation, a notable figure in aviation and an important event in aviation. It is fun, interesting, and exciting!  So if you are considering aviation as a career, or just want to learn more, Doctor Aviation is for you!

Ready to go? Sign up today!

Need more details?  Keep reading!

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DoctorAviation.com List of Topics

Session 1: Course Overview: The Aviation System, The Wright Brothers, Kitty Hawk

I. The Aircraft

Session 2: The Major Components of an Airplane, Chuck Yeager, The P-51

Session 3: Axes and Forces, Chuck Yeager II, Breaking the Sound Barrier

Session 4: The Secret of Airfoils and Lift, Amelia Earhart, Earhart’s Last Flight

Session 5: Rotating an Aircraft: The Flight Controls, Daniel Bernoulli, UAL 232

II. Air Traffic Control

Session 6: The Secrets of Radar, Kelly Johnson, F-117

Session 7: How Air Traffic Control Works, Neil Armstrong, Apollo 11

III. Maintenance

Session 8: Aircraft Maintenance – Propeller Engines, Nate Saint, Cessna 172

Session 9: Aircraft Maintenance – Jet Engines, Build your own Plane, F-14

IV. Airfield Operations

Session 10: Running a Large Airport, Dutch Kindelberger, Boeing 747

Session 11: The Small Airport & Running an FBO, Lindbergh, First Transatlantic Flight

V. The Aircraft II

Session 12: VMC and IMC, How to Become a Pilot, JFK Jr. Crash

Session 13: Instruments – Attitude Indicator, Tex Johnston, Eastern 401 Crash

Session 14: Instruments – Airspeed Indicator, Edgar Schmued, UAL 173  Crash

Session 15 Gliders, Helicopters, Airships, High Flight, Hindenburg Crash

*Details on homeschoolers earning elective credit can be found on the Homeschool page

Ready to Take Off?

Whether you’re an adult learner, homeschool parent, student, or hobbyist, Doctor Aviation can give you the basic knowledge and tools to be a great aviator. Sign up today!