When I was flying the J32 I could not only tell you frequencies of most VORs in the northeast, I knew the inbound and outbound radials that defined the airways.

Most of the frequencies I still know by heart are in the northeast part of the U.S. because that's kind of my aviation "backyard." It's all a question of repeated use, of course.

In my immediate area (D.C. and Virginia), there's quite a few VOR frequencies that I'll probably never forget. Here's a quick few:

AML 113.5 Armel (at Dulles)
BRV 114.5 Brooke (near Fredericksburg)
CSN 116.3 Casanova (near Culpeper)
DCA 111.0 Washington
RIC 114.1 Richmond
ORF 116.7 Norfolk
MOL 115.0 Montebello (west of Charlottesville)

You definitely want to get the instrument rating at some point. It will make you a safer pilot and can come in real useful on a day like we're having today* in Northern Virginia. VFR only pilots are grounded today. Pretty bad when you can't get home and have to sit waiting for the weather to break.

*Here's the current METAR (weather observation) for IAD:

KIAD 131852Z 35012KT 1 3/4SM RO1R/5500VP600FT +RA BR BKN007 BKN012 OVC018 12/10 A2988 A02 SLP119 BKN007 V SCT P0014 T01170100

which translates as:

Dulles weather at 1852 Zulu on the 13th: wind 350 degrees at 12 knots, visibility 1 and 3/4 miles in heavy rain and mist, ceiling 700 feet broken, 1200 feet broken, 1800 feet overcast, temperature 12, dew point 10, altimeter 29.88". Runway 01R RVR (runway visual range) variable between 5500 and 6000 feet

One time and it was due to VFR traffic. We climbed as directed and then told the controller we had gotten an RA (resolution advisory), which exonerates the pilot for leaving his cleared altitude. After the traffic was clear, we descended back to our assigned altitude. Never saw the traffic.

No, nothing this bad. But there was one female controller at Dulles back in the 90s who was horrible at managing the Ground control frequency. When you heard her voice you knew it was just a matter of time before we had gridlock on the ground.

Also, I had a controller once clear me for takeoff when he apparently meant to clear me in to position and hold. We read back the takeoff clearance and then took off of runway 30. Climbing through about 1000', where the tower would normally tell you to contact departure control, the tower said "Blue Ridge 401, you are cleared for takeoff, Runway 30". The FO and I looked at each other, both thinking, "Did we just f*** up?", but we were both sure of the previous clearance, so we just told the controller that he had already cleared us and we were passing 1000'. He must have realized it was his mistake, because he didn't make a big deal out of it and we never heard a word about it.

NASA ASRS reports were filed by both of us immediately after landing.

Not really, though I've occasionally been the recipient of something like the following: "Delta 123, turn left immediately to heading 270!", or the one you absolutely hate to hear: "Delta 123, say your altitude"

Do you know any pilot's who knew first hand any of the pilot's that perished on 911? If so did they have any intersting thoughts or stories about them that you may have heard?

I haven't spent a lot of time with them, but there are some amazingly accurate software simulators out there. I used to have an F-16 simulator for my Mac (Falcon something-or-other) that was fantastic.

The techniques and instrumentation are very true to life.

I know it has been said a lot before, but I just want to add that this thread is a great read, most definitely in the top 5 on 2p2.

I hope I can contribute a decent question soon, but it is taking me long enough just to read all the others!

Many thanks W0X0F, keep up the good work.

Of course we are, but Goomba's original question was:

Does the earths rotation have any affect on travel time?

I figured he was asking if the earth turns beneath us as we fly above it. Sure, the rotation affects wind patterns which certainly affect us.

I don't think there's any regulations on this, but we recognize that it's not eco-friendly and, if done at all, we do it as high as possible and also out over the ocean (if out of JFK) or over sparsely populated areas.

At a few thousand feet in the air the dumped fuel atomizes and no one on the ground would even be aware that fuel dumping had taken place 5000' above them (though EPA monitors could probably detect an increase in hydrocarbons if they were looking for it). We also would not continue dumping right to landing.

Regarding Sully, I'm not even sure that the Airbus 320 has dump capability, but fuel dumping is something we usually would only consider if we can do it in a controlled manner while preparing to come back for a landing. I would be very surprised to hear that Sully dumped any fuel.

Is that the Admiral's Club? Doesn't matter, the answer is no.

I know at least one pilot who pays for membership to the Admiral's Club (that's right, we don't get free access), to use when he commutes in just because it's much more comfortable than our crew lounge.

I don't want dance on the graves of these pilots. The cause was the icing on the airframe and it sounds like neither pilot had much experience with in-flight icing. But I don't have any firsthand knowledge, so I'll just say you can read the NTSB findings.

Failures during training can lead to termination, but first they usually go down the road of more training and getting re-checked. The real flaw in the system is that, after a pilot is terminated, he can go seek another job and it is very difficult for the next potential employer to ever become aware of the candidate's failures or other job history. The pilot's records from the previous company can only be released with his permission.

I guess the worst part is knowing that you're always only 6 months away from potentially losing your job. I'm referring more to the physical exam part rather than the recurrent training (I'm pretty sure that by now I know how to fly the plane). Other than that, it's really good. I feel like I've been on a vacation for the last 20 years.

It didn't make me think about quitting, but one of my best friends from high school, John Gore, died in the 1985 crash of a U.S. Navy C-131H. John and I were very close friends and when he was in Navy ROTC at UNC, I was just 9 miles down the road at Duke. We hung around a lot together (mostly at Chapel Hill...a far superior college town to Durham).

He flew E-2s in the fleet and then flew the C-131H with the reserves out of Andrews AFB. He went to pick up a plane from overhaul by a civilian outfit down in Alabama. The plane looked fine, but on climbout right after takeoff, it nosed over and went straight in. The crash and fire burned everything completely. They recovered his wedding ring and returned that to his widow. The accident investigators found remnants of tools that had been left in the wing root by the mechanics.

It never even crossed my mind to quit flying.

I'm not sure, but I don't think either of them has been in a small airplane since our return home.


Well, the Grand Canyon would have to be high on anyone's list. One I used to greatly enjoy was flying over Niagara Falls. If I was on a Buffalo overnight and taking the early morning flight out, I would ask the tower for the "Niagara One Departure". There is no such thing, but the local controllers there know what you want and they will give you the clearance to fly directly to the falls at 3000' after takeoff and then circle it. It's actually 7 miles or so to the NW of the Buffalo airport so it's the wrong way for a flight to Dulles and I would only ask for the departure if we were on time, never if we were running late.

But what a great view. The controller didn't care how many times we circled the falls, but I would never do more than one circuit and then continue south. Passengers loved it.

Another impressive sight is the Alps (the Matterhorn and Mt. Blanc), especially this time of year as it becomes snow covered. Here's a picture I took out the cockpit window. It doesn't do the view justice, but you may get the idea.

I'm a little confused because it sounds like there's three planes here: your plane and the red and green one above. But it sounds like your plane had to go around because the preceding plane had not cleared the runway (one plane at a time on the runway is a pretty firm rule). And then getting vectored back for landing took 10 minutes.

If I've got this right, it could be the fault of any of three people: your pilot, the controller or the pilot of the landing plane. If your pilot was told to follow the preceding traffic and was cleared for the visual approach, it's his responsibility to make the spacing work. I've been with guys when they get too aggressive and we end up having to go around. Bonehead move.

Sometimes the controllers get overly-optimistic in their spacing and finally realize that their plan isn't working, so they send the landing plane around (note: no 5 mile separation is needed if plane #1 isn't a heavy).

Sometimes it's just that the pilot of plane on the ground doesn't clear the runway when everyone expects him to, and goes right past the expected turnoff and now has to taxi another 2000' to the next turnoff.

Good related story: A Delta MD-88 is on the approach to Runway 22 at LGA and is following a Midwest Express jet (ME). The spacing is tight so our hero slows to final approach speed and even starts doing some s-turns down final (just what it sounds like: banking the plane left and right of centerline to increase the spacing from the preceding traffic).

ME lands and then slowly goes right by the last turnoff and now has to go all the way to the end of the runway to clear. Our hero is pissed and doesn't want to go around. The controller is also waiting to the last possible moment to issue the go around and our hero is down to 100' before the runway is clear and he can be cleared to land.

Now he lands and makes the first turnoff and the FO says to him, "Hey, you can turn off here and get in front of Midwest" (ME was taxiing back on the taxiway towards where our hero had turned off the runway.)

"Damn right!", says the Captain, "that f***er knew exaclty what he was doing" and he pulled onto the taxiway well ahead of ME to proceed to the gate.

About this time the Captain realized he had a stuck mike and he sheephishly told the tower, "Uh, sorry tower, I didn't realize my mike was hot."

"Don't worry about it", the controller said, "you were just saying what all of us were thinking up here."

I have a buddy that I went to highschool and college with, who's father is a captain at Delta. I remember a couple years back, probably 2003 or 2004, definitely post-9/11, that he got to fly right seat in a 767 I believe.

The situation was, the plane needed to be flown somewhere on the west coast, Seattle IIRC, from Atlanta, to be painted, or routine maintenance. Regardless, he got to sit right seat the whole trip up, obv there were not any passengers or anything. How common is this, it seems like it would be really cool to do.

A little background, we were both in the aviation program at Auburn. My friend ended up graduating from the aviation program. I switched to finance as the airline industry post-9/11 wasn't quite as appealing as pre. So it wasn't like it was some kid up there, he was 21 or 22 and had just finished his instrument rating.

PS you work for Delta correct? If so I'll PM you my friends father's name, he's been with them for close to 30 years I believe (Naval pilot before Delta)

I've already told that story itt. It was November 11, 1995.

There's no place we fly that has a consistently bad ride, though flights across the equator (through the ITCZ, Inter Tropical Convergence Zone) usually encounter convective activity. Some pilots avoid the South America routes for this reason.

The closest I can come to checking this box would be the times when Kahoutek and Hale-Bopp were visible. I got some great views of these comets in the clear sky above the haze level. During night flights, if we turn down all the cockpit lights so that we have only the faintest glow on the instruments, we can clearly see the milky way.

No, although I am type rated on several different models, I am only current and qualified on the Boeing 757/767 at this moment. To remain current, I have to have 3 takeoffs and landings within the preceding 90 days. If for whatever reason I get close to being non-current, I'll get sent to Atlanta for 3 quick hops in the simulator, which satisfies the requirement since it's a Level D Simulator (full motion and visuals). The 757 and 767 are considered one type for these purposes. Up in the front office, they're nearly identical.

The Captain is the ultimate authority and has ultimate responsibility (Sully made a last pass through the cabin to ensure everyone was off), but it's the FAs who are trained for the actual process of getting people out. The flight crew will assist, of course, and we pay particular attention to the safety of the people once off the plane, i.e. we'll try to corral everyone towards a safe area so they don't impede fire and rescue and remain together. For on-board fires, the flight crew will assist in the fire fighting.

I have friends all over the place (at almost every U.S. carrier you can name) and I have no animosity towards another company. I may not like their management, but that feeling is often shared by the pilots who work there. Not all pilots share my feelings, particular those who were raised and suckled on the Delta teat and know no one outside their little Delta world. Most of those pilots live in Atlanta and I think even there it's a minority (at least I hope so).

At ACA we definitely had pilots involved in the corporate safety jobs and some of them didn't fly much because the safety stuff kept them so busy. Delta is similar; we have ALPA guys on the safety committee and it seems to work pretty well. We just got our ASAP program back (similar to NASA's ASRS program) and the working relationship between the company and the union seems to be good from what I can tell.

Not sure about your question about a stoppage or how that would occur. It sounds like you're talking about a job action, like a strike, but I can't relate this to safety.

It should be noted that on a flight from ORD to London Heathrow, each crew member would have a required rest break. It's not like this guy was napping in the cockpit (and I know that's not what you meant; just wanted to clarify for others).

Yes, in any large group you'll find some...well, I'll just call them "bad apples" too. When I was Chief Pilot at ACA, I spent a lot of my time working PR for the pilot group and convincing the rest of the company (dispatch, scheduling, maintenance) that not all pilots are like the small percentage that keeps coming up on their radar.

(Probably didn't know your guy, but I play golf with a guy who was #1 at United briefly and flew the -400 out of ORD. He retired 4 years ago).

QFT.

No.

Very uncommon. But occasionally, the guys in the training department and/or management can kind of bend the rules. Since your friend was a rated pilot, it probably did not violate any FAR and since it wasn't a revenue flight, you could rationalize that it didn't violate the company Op Specs either...but it would be a stretch. I'm sure that neither the union or the FAA was aware. Sometimes it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission.

An Aeroflot plane crashed when a Captain had his son at the controls. Good idea? Nyet!

When I used to do simulator training at ACA, I would sometimes have free sim time available and I'd invite my younger brothers out to see if they could fly the thing, but I would have never dreamed of doing anything like that in the actual plane.

If he's Atlanta based, I probably don't know him, but you never know. (We have over 6,000 Delta pilots and with the NW pilots, we're over 10,000.)

Awesome thread, just finished the whole thing up to this point.

My uncle has flown 747s for Northwest/Delta to Asia for probably 20 years iirc. He now has major knee problems which were exacerbated by all his flying and lately have kept him from flying as much as he used to. What long-term physical problems (besides crashing ldo) come about from spending so much time in the cockpit?

Also last summer I spent 2 weeks flying around the world and had to take Aeroflot from Moscow to Shanghai. My boss, knowing Aeroflot's reputation, asked me if I had a will before I boarded. I also had a Russian co-worker who refused to ever fly Aeroflot. Very comforting perceptions, but the flight was fine. Do you know much about Aeroflot and how its standards have changed the past 10-15 years? Is it still as bad as my coworkers believe it was?

Also agree with the Alps - I took this picture from my seat last July from Germany to Venice.

Have you heard rumors about flight 93 (crashed in PA) on September 11?

Without coming off as a conspiracy nut or side tracking the thread, a good friend of the family (commercial pilot) was in the air nearby and heard some radio chatter that makes all the current information about the crash look like a coverup

I think this is what Airframe was leveraged off of. Have you read it?

It's also like this at LAX and Andrews AFB.

I actually got to fly US Air's 737 sim in Charlotte probably, 15 years ago (I was 10 or 11), really, really cool. My father worked in the aviation industry for ~30 years. He worked for Kovarus, 3M, and BF Goodrich (the latter 2 selling stormscopes, which I'm sure you're familiar with), so I got to do some interesting things growing up (Oskosh etc.).

Bah can't believe I missed this right before my post. Still - any thoughts on Aeroflot today?