Richard Collins
Editor-at-Large
Richard Collins has been writing about airplanes, how to fly them and the environment in which they fly for over 50 years. Richard earned his private certificate 55 years ago and acquired his commercial, ATP and flight instructor certificates over the years. He has logged over 20,000 hours in general aviation airplanes.
Genetics apparently played a part in Richard's aviation writing ability; his father was Leighton Collins, founder, owner and editor of Air Facts. Richard etched out an unprecedented aviation writing career that took him to FLYING in 1968, where he became Editor-in-Chief in 1977, and to AOPA Pilot as Publisher and Editor in 1987. Richard returned to FLYING in 1993 and as Editor-at-Large contributes his monthly On Top as well as other feature articles.
Richard has studied the weather from the best vantage point-the left seat-and is one of the nation's foremost experts on aviation meteorology. He is featured in a Sporty's Pilot Shop video series on weather, has appeared in 28 videos in Sporty's Air Facts how-to video series and has written 11 books on aviation.
Richard flies a Cessna P210.
, a division of Lagardère SCA