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Dr Daniel L. Johnson |
Dr. Daniel L. Johnson began submissions of Soaring RX, as a columnist to Soaring Magazine, in April of 2011. An early comment in his writing was that submissions would continue as long as the author or the audience felt there was value being published for the audience of pilots.
Dr. Johnson's writing style often masks his drawing from personal experience as a springboard for topics to review. His first reference to a personal flying episode and the subsequent article on visual scanning techniques was in July 2011. The collection of illustrations made the grasp of field of view at soaring distances for VFR traffic separation "visually" distinct.
January of 2013's column on 'Mindset' addresses expectations, experience and habits, drawing on his own and others misadventures to offer a personal touch to impress relevance through emotional impact. March's column, 'Attention vs. Skill', has references to Dan's training perceptions. April's 'What Shivering Means' includes a mention of heat loss through the scalp and his use of a hat for insulation. Fortunately, there is no personal experience by the author for the May 'A Thunderstorm Commotion' on loss of consciousness, and I doubt there is a personal aspect to the subsequent column of pregnancy and flying!
July 2013's review of the FAA's medical certification process stems from Dr. Johnson's status as an Aviation Medical Examiner, and we benefited from his resection of the program upgrades. August's column 'Secret Betrayal', mentions Dan's experiences both in flight and in city traffic.
In short, Dr. Johnson's articles are a service to the soaring pilot, through logically and rationally injecting humor, personality and science in a palatable form, with in-depth technical references as footnotes, to expand our understanding of flight physiology, and in advancing the understanding of personal actions and health in flight safety.
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