When traffic was diminished initially in the pandemic, it sure seemed different flying into New York airspace, with far fewer airplanes and fewer grumpy controllers. In fact, some were actually courteous with terms like “thank you” and such finding their way into transmissions. And then there was this exchange between New York Approach and another pilot:
GA123: “New York Approach, GA123 request.”
New York Approach: “GA 123 say request.”
GA123: “Can I request an approach to Runway 02 at XYZ with a circle to land on 15?”
New York Approach: “GA123 you can request anything you like but if you want an approach to Runway 02 at XYZ with a circle to land on Runway 15, that is approved.”
Gabe Buntzman
Bowling Green, Kentucky
