Short Final: We Have Oscar

Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • The author and his wife transported an Afghan war refugee and her service dog, Oscar, on a Patient Airlift Services (PALS) flight.
  • While approaching Columbus, Ohio, the author informed air traffic control of Oscar's presence on the flight.
  • The refugee was curious why the author had to inform air traffic control about the dog.
  • The anecdote highlights a humorous misunderstanding between aviation terminology and everyday language.
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My wife and I were on a PALS flight (PALS = Patient Airlift Services) and we had an Afghanistan war refugee and her helper-dog, Oscar, whom we took to Columbus, Ohio.

Approaching Columbus information Oscar was current on ATIS. I told the controller, “We have Oscar.”

After we landed, the lady whom Oscar was helping asked me, “Why did you need to tell him you had Oscar?”

Brian Gately
Brooklyn, New York

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