Features

Dear Santa:I am roasting my ample tummy sitting by a Marriott swimming pool in Fort Lauderdale, the victim of a re-route from my usual trip that normally has a 15-hour Detroit layover. Most re-routes, as you know from hundreds of Christmas trips, are bad news. This re-route seems to be working out nicely: an extra […]

As I approached untowered Booneville (AR) Municipal Airport, I announced on CTAF. This was the exchange: Me: Skylane 123 entering left downwind, runway 27 Booneville. Unicom: Roger, Skylane 123, Wind is calm. Sklane 123, your rotating beacon is not working. Wait … yes it is. No it’s not. Yes it is…. Me: Roger, thanks.

Flight Service Stations Your question this week about the FSS and quality of services prompt me to send this letter with additional comments (QOTW, Dec. 1).I’ve had a long association with Flight Service Stations as a user. I started in aviation when I was 17 and we had a FSS on the field. Every morning […]

Tower: How was the ride down the ILS? Airliner 123: Pretty good actually….. Tower: When did you break out? Airliner 123: (pause) 1996 Airliner 123: (even longer pause) OH!! You mean out of the clouds?? Airliner 123: …About 1000 feet.

I once had a supervisor accuse me of “just looking for trouble.” I want you to pause and let that sink in for just a second. I know I did. An air traffic controller — a safety rep no less — looking for trouble. “Uh, yeah, I guess you’re right about that, boss. I am […]

TCAS Advisories I have known Don Brown for about 20 years, and I can safely say that he is one of the best and most conscientious controllers that I have ever met. Sometimes I wish I were more like him, and sometimes not. Sometimes the FAA phraseology does not “cut to the chase.” Personally, I […]

Because of the nature of my job, I receive a lot of emails and phone calls from pilots wondering how best to prepare themselves for advanced training. This applies to any advanced training (beyond the instrument rating) from checkouts in high-performance aircraft to turbojet type-ratings. Now, there’s one disclaimer I need to make here and […]

Submitted to our “shouldn’t you have better things to do” file… Tower: L39 N###, Did you guys get that contract with the post office? L39: Say again Ellington Tower. Tower: L39, We heard that the mail was going to be in the Czech. (pause) L39: … Slow day, huh. Tower: (laughing) Sorry.