{"podcast":{"title":"Aviation News Talk – Pilot Stories, Safety Tips & General Aviation News","slug":"aviation-news-talk-pilot-stories-safety-tips-general-aviation-news-582015","podcast_index_feed_id":582015,"rss_url":"https://aviationnewstalk.libsyn.com/rss","website_url":"http://aviationnewstalk.com","image_url":"https://static.libsyn.com/p/assets/b/3/c/3/b3c3e1ce0be5cb4e/News_Talk_Album_Headset_art-4_1400.png","author":"Glass Cockpit Publishing","episode_count":423,"summary":"General Aviation news, pilot tips for beginners & experts, interviews, listener questions answered, technical details on G1000 & Perspective glass cockpits & flying GPS approaches. 40 yrs experience flying general aviation aircraft. As an active flight instructor, I bring my daily experiences in the air to this show to help teach pilots and future pilots to fly safely. I'm a Platinum Cirrus CSIP instructor and work with people who are thinking about buying a new or used SR20 or SR22. Go to AviationNewsTalk.com for my contact information, or to click on Listener Questions, which lets you speak into your phone to leave a question you'd like answered on the show.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-05T00:17:21.334538+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/aviation-news-talk-pilot-stories-safety-tips-general-aviation-news-582015"},"episode":{"title":"398 9/11 from the Air: NYPD Chief Pilot Ken Solosky Remembers + GA News","slug":"398-9-11-from-the-air-nypd-chief-pilot-ken-solosky-remembers-ga-news","published_at":"2025-08-25T16:32:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/aviation-news-talk-pilot-stories-safety-tips-general-aviation-news-582015/398-9-11-from-the-air-nypd-chief-pilot-ken-solosky-remembers-ga-news","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/aviation-news-talk-pilot-stories-safety-tips-general-aviation-news-582015","url":"https://aviationnewstalk.libsyn.com/398-911-from-the-air-nypd-chief-pilot-ken-solosky-remembers-ga-news","audio_url":"https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/aviationnewstalk/Episode_398.mp3?dest-id=499762","summary":"Max Trescott talks with Ken Solosky, the NYPD's Chief Pilot on 9/11, about his experiences managing helicopter operations on one of the most catastrophic days in American history. Though Ken wasn't flying at the moment of the attacks, he was on the ground coordinating the NYPD's aviation response. He recounts how what began as a seemingly routine aircraft accident quickly escalated into a full-blown national emergency. The aviation unit scrambled a standard rescue package—Bell 412s with divers and crew chiefs, and patrol helicopters—only to face total communication breakdowns. Cell service and landlines failed, radio channels were overloaded, and misinformation, including reports of enemy fighter jets, created unprecedented confusion. Ken recalls the surreal moment of watching the second plane hit the South Tower live on TV and initially being unable to process the reality. He explains why rooftop rescues weren't feasible—smoke obscured visibility, doors were locked or inaccessible, and the risk of engine flameout in the intense heat made the mission too dangerous. Still, he and his team documented the scene extensively and continued daily aerial photography for nearly a year afterward. Ken describes how foreign and domestic aviation units offered immediate support, with helicopters arriving from other cities—even LAPD offering to send their fleet. Yet due to lack of coordination, many of these aircraft were unknown to NYPD at the time and went unused in the response. He speaks candidly about the emotional toll, having lost 10 close friends among the 23 NYPD officers killed, and how that pain continues with the rise in 9/11-related cancer deaths among first responders. Post-9/11, Ken was instrumental in implementing a \"96-hour standalone\" plan for the NYPD, designed to…","meta_description":"Max Trescott talks with Ken Solosky, the NYPD's Chief Pilot on 9/11, about his experiences managing helicopter operations on one of the most catastrophic…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":4434,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/aviation-news-talk-pilot-stories-safety-tips-general-aviation-news-582015/episodes/398-9-11-from-the-air-nypd-chief-pilot-ken-solosky-remembers-ga-news/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/aviation-news-talk-pilot-stories-safety-tips-general-aviation-news-582015/398-9-11-from-the-air-nypd-chief-pilot-ken-solosky-remembers-ga-news.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}