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I was flying into Iceand and noticed some frost or ice forming on the wing of the A321. Is this common or a sign of a problem with the anti-ice system?

It's not a problem with the anti-ice system, which doesn't heat the entire wing, only the leading edge (which is where ice naturally occurs when flying in icing conditions).

I think what you have here is humid air freezing on contract with a cold-soaked wing. This is very common on the MD-88 and we often see a very thin layer of frost or ice on the underside of the wing on the walk-around inspection in humid environments such as Florida. (This is shortly after the plane has flown in. Given enough time it melts away, of course.)

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06-23-2018 , 07:58 PM

#8153

W0X0F

sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight

Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 5,829

Quote:

Originally Posted by W0X0F

I think what you have here is humid air freezing on contract with a cold-soaked wing.

I should have mentioned that the reason the wing is cold soaked is because of the fuel. After prolonged high altitude flight the fuel temperature will be close to atmospheric temperature (<-40°). With super cold fuel in the wing, the humidity in the atmosphere freezes on contact with the wing. You don't see this effect with other surfaces, such as the fuselage.

(Also, "contact" in the quoted part should be "contact." Autocorrect strikes again.)

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06-24-2018 , 06:59 AM

#8154

eric_ca

newbie

Join Date: Jun 2017 Posts: 32

That makes sense, thank you! It’s a good thing I didn’t make a fool of myself by raising the issue with the crew. Hope you’re doing well W0X0F.

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06-24-2018 , 07:51 AM

#8155

W0X0F

sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight

Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 5,829

Quote:

Originally Posted by eric_ca

That makes sense, thank you! It’s a good thing I didn’t make a fool of myself by raising the issue with the crew. Hope you’re doing well W0X0F.

Enjoying being back in the air. Just getting ready to head to the airport in Spokane. My first time ever here. Nice place.

Off to SLC then EWR today. Tomorrow night we finish in Oakland, CA and layover in San Jose, then the red eye back to JFK on Tuesday night.

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06-24-2018 , 11:51 AM

#8156

pig4bill

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 33,766

Layover at SJC! The new Bay 101 and M8trix are within walking distance from the airport.

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06-24-2018 , 10:15 PM

#8157

W0X0F

sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight

Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 5,829

Quote:

Originally Posted by pig4bill

Layover at SJC! The new Bay 101 and M8trix are within walking distance from the airport.

Fascinating! I have a 22 hour layover so I might have to spend some time there. We stay at the San Jose Hilton, but I can catch a hotel van back to the airport.

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06-26-2018 , 04:45 PM

#8158

W0X0F

sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight

Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 5,829

Quote:

Originally Posted by pig4bill

Layover at SJC! The new Bay 101 and M8trix are within walking distance from the airport.

Played at Bay 101. Hit their 1/2/3 game (a structure I've never seen) for $675. Red eye back tonight...

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06-26-2018 , 08:36 PM

#8159

Chrisman886

veteran

Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 2,707

Quote:

Originally Posted by W0X0F

Played at Bay 101. Hit their 1/2/3 game (a structure I've never seen) for $675. Red eye back tonight...

Nice score! Have a great flight!

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06-27-2018 , 04:18 AM

#8160

pig4bill

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Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 33,766

Quote:

Originally Posted by W0X0F

Played at Bay 101. Hit their 1/2/3 game (a structure I've never seen) for $675. Red eye back tonight...

Nice. I used to live about three miles from there.

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06-27-2018 , 06:53 AM

#8161

amead

veteran

Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 2,472

Friendly reminder that to preserve valuable space in the overhead bins, backpacks filled with cash should be placed fully under the seat in front of you. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight!

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07-05-2018 , 10:43 AM

#8162

baronworm

enthusiast

Join Date: Jun 2010 Posts: 63

Quote:

Originally Posted by W0X0F

I have been flying since 1977 and have accumulated a little over 15,000 hours of flying time.

It has been approximately 76,000 hours since you wrote the above passage.

What does your logbook now say for your accumulated flying time?

My wild guess is... 16,543

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07-05-2018 , 11:18 AM

#8163

W0X0F

sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight

Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 5,829

Quote:

Originally Posted by baronworm

It has been approximately 76,000 hours since you wrote the above passage.

What does your logbook now say for your accumulated flying time?

My wild guess is... 16,543

Since I began this thread, I've flown 3,970 hours, which puts me at just a little over 19,000 total hours of flight time. In my current aircraft type (B-737), I've logged 205 hours.

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07-05-2018 , 09:00 PM

#8164

golddog

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Join Date: Feb 2013 Posts: 6,682

Ever flown on July 4 evening in USA #1? Are fireworks displays noticeable from the air? If so, anything special?

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07-06-2018 , 10:22 AM

#8165

Toolmaker96

stranger

Join Date: Oct 2011 Posts: 3

W0X0F, thank you very much for taking the time to answer everyone's questions & keep this thread going so long. I have found it very interesting & informative.

I do have one question: Do you accrue loggable flight hrs. on every leg you are in the cockpit? Or in other words do you accrue hrs. when you are the pilot monitoring?

thanks again.

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07-06-2018 , 03:47 PM

#8166

baronworm

enthusiast

Join Date: Jun 2010 Posts: 63

Quote:

Originally Posted by baronworm

Each of the links below takes you to a single looong PDF document that collects EVERY post on this thread from W0X0F. (and ONLY those posts) These documents were produced by way of this forum's "printable version" capability. The upside of this is the lack of ads or visual clutter, but the downside is that embedded photos are not shown. :-(

Once again, thank you W0X0F for so diligently quoting the questions you're answering - otherwise this task would've been ugly enough I don't think I would've bothered....

Here is a fresh PDF collection, up to date as of today July 6th:

PDF - 2p2 thread - 3924(!?) pages

And as an added bonus, here is the equivalent PDF summary of the thread with W0X0F from flyertalk.com (this thread died back in July 2013, so this doc hasn't changed since then):

PDF - FlyerTalk thread - 278 pages

NOTE: The p2p document also includes the posts from our resident helicopter pilot ("d10"), who has tagged along on this thread since the very beginning, asking excellent questions while also providing his own share of interesting responses from the rotary-wing perspective.

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07-06-2018 , 07:45 PM

#8167

W0X0F

sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight

Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 5,829

Quote:

Originally Posted by golddog

Ever flown on July 4 evening in USA #1? Are fireworks displays noticeable from the air? If so, anything special?

Yes, I've had this experience a few times over the years and it's not all that impressive from the air unless you happen to be low at the time (for example, on approach into DCA right as they're exploding over the mall). I was once circumnavigating a very active electrical storm on the 4th and it was far more impressive than the fireworks going off.

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07-06-2018 , 07:48 PM

#8168

W0X0F

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Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 5,829

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toolmaker96

Yes. As the Captain, I'm actually logging PIC (Pilot in command) time for the entire flight, even when the FO is the flying pilot.

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07-07-2018 , 09:18 AM

#8169

Toolmaker96

stranger

Join Date: Oct 2011 Posts: 3

Quote:

Originally Posted by W0X0F

Yes. As the Captain, I'm actually logging PIC (Pilot in command) time for the entire flight, even when the FO is the flying pilot.

Thank you!

So would the same be true for the 1st officer whether he/she is flying or not?

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07-07-2018 , 11:44 AM

#8170

W0X0F

sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight

Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 5,829

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toolmaker96

Thank you!

So would the same be true for the 1st officer whether he/she is flying or not?

The First Officer logs Second-in-command time when acting as PM, and is allowed to log PIC time when acting as PF. In the latter case, we are both logging PIC which I know is a little weird, but that's what the regs allow.

The captain of an augmented crew logs the entire flight as PIC, even though some portion of that flight is spent sleeping in a crew rest area.

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07-10-2018 , 04:24 AM

#8171

Videopro

Making TV

Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 19,240

This video popped up on my feed. Is this about the most turbulent (non-emergency) landing ever caught on video?

Would USA pilots attempt this or would they divert?

Last edited by Videopro; 07-10-2018 at 03:14 PM.

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07-10-2018 , 12:55 PM

#8172

pig4bill

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 33,766

Who was taking the video?

Friend of mine landed in similar winds in his private plane. It was strange, about 20 feet AGL the sidewinds paused, and we touched down with ease. Parts of me were puckered.

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07-10-2018 , 02:19 PM

#8173

Videopro

Making TV

Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 19,240

Quote:

Originally Posted by pig4bill

Who was taking the video?

Quote:

Aviation enthusiast Paulo Faria captured this video of a dramatic and turbulent landing at Madeira Airport. Strong wind, reported by local media as reaching speeds of 65km, caused havoc to a number of landings at the time of filming in mid-June 2018.

The skilled pilot of this airplane managed to steer the craft to safety on the runway. It nonetheless appeared to be a bumpy ride for passengers.

https://licensed.storyful.com/videos/204968