Short Final

Editorial Staff

Sunday, February 04, 2018 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

A pilot navigated extremely low IFR conditions into Stennis International, where surrounding airports also faced severe weather, leading to high tension among air traffic controllers.
During the ILS approach, the controller, lacking radar in that direction, told the pilot "I can't see you," to which the pilot humorously replied, "I can't see you either!"
This brief, lighthearted exchange eased the controller's stress, and the pilot successfully landed despite the challenging conditions and lack of visibility.

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Flying back from St. Augustine Fl (SGJ) to Stennis International (KHSA) just before Christmas, my destination was very low IFR. The whole region and surrounding airports were either very low IFR or Zero Zero. Planes were going missed at Gulfport (KGPT) and surrounding airports and tensions were high with the controllers. I was cleared for the ILS 18 into Stennis and headvised he did not have radar this way.

Tower: “…and I can’t see you”

Comanche XXXX: “I can’t see you either!”

We both laughed and it changed his stressed tone, and I did make the landing.

Charlie Horton