Short Final

Seeing is believing… Overheard while in the pattern at FNT: Tower: N12345 traffic at your one o’clock. N12345: Looking for traffic. Tower: N12345 traffic now … your traffic at three o’clock. N12345: Still looking. I only see birds over there. Tower: Well, look close. One of them has a transponder in it. Find all of […]

Flying high… Delta: Center, Delta 123 request higher. Center: Delta 123, climb and maintain Flight Level 500. (long pause) Center: Delta 123, how much higher did you want? Delta: Center, Flight Level 390 would be fine. (pause) Thanks for asking.

With age comes wisdom…Overheard while flying the Philly Class B: PHL Tower: US Air 123 cleared to land Runway 27R. US Air 123: Cleared to land runway 26R. PHL Tower: I wish we had a 26R. But you are cleared to land runway 27R. US Air 123: Apologies, sir. Realized the mistake as it left […]

No, that’s not what I said. “I was about to lift off with my instructor from a class D airport in a Robinson R-44. The route of flight would take us very near neighboring Class C airspace. The controller questioned us after we gave our initial heading…” Controller: Staying clear of all airspaces? My instructor: […]

Another day at customs… I was returning to the US with my niece. The week before, a friend had flown the plane into a local grass strip and there was still mud and residue on the fuselage. As customs agents inspected the plane, one officer asked about the dirt and commented, “I gotta say, that’s […]

From a neighbor to the north… “Last fall my wife and I headed to Oregon so that I could get some flight training that wasn’t offered here in Canada. We approached the stern looking US Customs agent and got ready for the typical serious and pointed questions. He asked me my purpose of travel and […]

Sound familiar? PA-44: Page Traffic, Seminole Echo-Romeo entering the left down wind, we will be simulated single engine… C-172S: Seminole Echo-Romeo, Cessna is following you into the Downwind on the left 45. … We’re single engine, as well.

There’s a club for that, too… An exchange overheard between an Australian charter company and ATC. The company was in mid-April flying a DC-3 carrying a wedding party at 2000 feet over Sydney harbour while the nuptials took place. The flight’s pilot made sure ATC was aware and ready to coordinate a return to the […]

The following exchange occurred between my student, the tower, and me at KLVK on 05/08/06… Cessna N1234 (Student): Livermore tower Cessna 1234 at Sierra ready to taxi 25R with India. Tower: Roger N1234 taxi to India. [Student gives me the “Huh? You read it back,” look.] Cessna N1234 (Instructor): Tower N1234 confirm you want us […]

While working as a controller at Ellsworth Approach Control in the 80’s, I heard this exchange. ATC: Western 474, Ellsworth Approach Control is utilizing a certain phase of the radar called circular polarization, which allows us to depict only the most severe areas of weather on the radar display. [Long Pause…] Western 474: Approach, say […]