Short Final

Editorial Staff

Monday, July 04, 2016 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

An A-36 Bonanza pilot flew through SFO Class Bravo airspace, with ATC managing separation between the Bonanza and commercial airline traffic.
A Southwest airline pilot humorously identified the Bonanza as "the doctor," a common stereotype for the aircraft's typical owner.
The author noted that nowadays, the "doctor" flying a personal aircraft like that would likely be in a Cirrus.

See a mistake? Contact us.

I was flying an A-36 Bonanza through the SFO Class Bravo a few years ago and there was quite a bit of airline traffic departing at the time. ATC advised me of a Southwest 737 climbing out at my 1 o’clock and I let them know I had it in sight.

Controller: “Southwest 9999 traffic 3 o’clock 2 miles, a Bonanza level 4 thousand.”

Southwest: “Southwest 9999, we’re looking” A few seconds later, “Southwest 9999, Tally-ho, we’ve got the doctor in sight.”

I guess nowadays the “doctor” would be in a Cirrus.

Colin Smith