Author: John Cox, Special to USA TODAY

Before pushback from the gate, I often hear what sounds like a drilling sound. Is it the cargo doors being secured or something else?

Planes making a sideways landing in a strong crosswind make for remarkable videos. How does the airplane handle the added stress of such landings?

Now that rearview cameras are standard equipment on economy cars, it seems like pilots should be able to see behind the plane and power back.

To keep takeoff and landing speeds as low as possible, engineers include highly efficient flaps (and slats) on the wing.

Since the import of fruits, vegetables and meats is restricted, what do airlines do with the garbage on international flights?

While they look confusing to the layperson the pilots know exactly what each one does and how it is to be used.

With modern airplanes and well-trained pilots and ground staff, we fly safely in challenging conditions every winter.

Airlines flew nearly 4.5 billion passengers on nearly 45 million flights worldwide, both records. But there were 15 accidents worldwide.

Pilots fly many different airplanes of the same model within a fleet. While there are some differences, they fly pretty much the same.

A diversion to land at an alternate airport is often misreported as an emergency landing. There is no emergency, but there is a change in plans.