The Pilot Above the Clouds

In 1929, Jimmy Doolittle climbed into a biplane at Mitchell Field, New York, pulled a canvas hood over his cockpit, and flew entirely by instruments. He could see nothing outside — no horizon, no landmarks, no sun. For the first time in aviation history, a pilot trusted gauges instead of his own eyes, and landed safely. Every student pilot since has learned the same brutal lesson: when you fly into clouds, your senses lie.…