Escaping the Patch

FAA: "Please correct our silly regulations".

2007-12-11T15:55:00.000-08:00

The FAA is asking pilots to submit complaints about regulations they feel the agency should "amend, remove, or simplify".

The FAA inviting pilots to complain. I hope they have a stable incoming email system.....

iPhone makes everyone a genius.

2007-11-19T14:05:00.000-08:00

Patrick Smith, airline pilot and writer, has a great regular column over at Salon.com. Here is an excerpt from his most recent, that I found amusing....

On one of the frequent-flier blogs, an airline pilot writes that only
moments after informing his passengers of a weather-related ground hold
affecting their flight to Memphis, Tenn., he and his captain received a call
from one of the flight attendants. Seems an iPhone-wielding customer in the back
had a challenge. "Some guy with an iPhone says the weather is good," the flight
attendant says, "and wants to know what the real reason is for the delay. Is
something wrong with the plane?"
I like that, "real reason." The
implication, as always, is that the carrier is lying or otherwise withholding
some critical information. There must be some dangerous malfunction they're not
telling us about. After all, "the weather is good," so obviously there's no
reason we can't depart immediately.
Reportedly, the captain responded with a
public address announcement that was sharp enough to elicit audible laughter
from the cabin.
"If the passenger with the iPhone would be kind enough," he
began, "to use it to check the weather at our alternate airport, then calculate
our revised fuel burn due to being rerouted, then call our dispatcher to arrange
our amended release, then make a call to the nearest traffic control center to
arrange a new slot time (among all the other aircraft carrying passengers with
iPhones), we'll then be more than happy to depart. Please ring your call button
to advise the flight attendant and your fellow passengers when you deem it ready
and responsible for this multimillion-dollar aircraft and its 84 passengers to
safely leave."

Equally funny, but for very differnet reasons: When I googled "Iphone pilot", I found this entry in a technology blog, written by a programmer....

At 22:40 EDT I saw the commercial for iPhone that involves a pilot of a plane whose flight was delayed due to weather, using iPhone to check the weather and communicate to control that weather had cleared. (on NBC 4 New York, at 22:40 EDT on 3 Nov 2007)It upsets me that pilots get to use their iPhone to connect to the Internet when a flight is delayed, while the rest of the passengers sit in the cabin not being able to use any electronic devices! I did not purchase iPhone to become a netizen with a first class communicator device with third class communication.I directed this feedback to Apple and the airlines that I have flown recently. This commercial feels like rubbing salt on a wound.

Doh!

The Best of the Av blogs.

2007-11-19T11:30:00.000-08:00

The aviation blogosphere has grown by leaps and bounds in the time that I have been a participant. There are tons of aviation blogs covering everything from students learning to fly, to senior Captains pushing the heavy iron. These are my personal favorites.....

Aviation Mentor (http://aviationmentor.blogspot.com/)

I started reading John's writing's back when he was a bay area freight dog. Tales from the line, hauling cargo in a Cessna Caravan always provided John with the opportunity to share a lesson or two for his reader. The Freight Dog blog was put to bed when John left his former employer, and switched gears to full time flight instruction. Now, Aviation Mentor is this CFI's space to share his knowledge, and his stories, sometimes going into a very high level of detail concerning instrument procedures, and adapting to the latest, greatest technology available to GA pilots.

Cockpit Conversation (http://airplanepilot.blogspot.com/)

Aviatrix has been keeping a diary of her flying career for about 3 years now, and manages to keep it fresh and interesting every time she writes. This blog is updated very frequently, and always provides me with some great lunch time reading. Recently, she has crossed the border from her native Canada to come work in American airspace. Keeping track of the subtle differences in verbiage and procedure between the two countries has been amusing and interesting reading as of late. I've read about her highs and lows in the industry, and as a pilot, and I'm glad she's still flying, and telling us all about it.

Aviatrix Logbook (http://www.aeronautrix.com/blog/)

A former computer research scientist turns CFI to build flight hours. Interesting accounts of various students, their progression in training, and the occasional story of somebody destroying a Duchess engine with a bicycle. I must share a sense of humor with the author, because this blog consistently makes me laugh. It's also obvious that she is always rooting for the student, and takes her performance as an instructor very seriously. Good to know! Keeps lots of interesting pictures linked to the blog, too.

Flight Level 390 (http://flightlevel390.blogspot.com/)

Going on 3.5 years now, FL390 is, to me, the master of all aviation blogs. Dave is a senior Captain and line pilot for one of the major's here in the U.S, and clearly loves his job. To boot, he is an exceptional writer. Accounts from the cockpit of the Airbus he lovingly calls "Fi-Fi", and of life on the line are always interesting, and written in such a manner that puts you right in the action, as if you were in the jump seat, along for the ride. After many years on the line, it seems the author has avoided becoming jaded by his job, and is still as impressed and excited by the amazing ability of these machines as those of us that have never been lucky enough to experience it from the left seat, and with the title of Captain.
It's rare that Dave makes an entry without someone commenting on his great writing, or suggesting he should write a book some day. I do hope he takes the suggestions seriously. This guy could write a hell of a good book.
Naturally, Lot's of Dave's curious readers have questions for him. He takes time to answer those questions in his comments area.
When I first found FL390, I found myself going back to the very first post and reading the entire year worth of post's I had missed out on. It's just that good.

Captain Dave, write the book, buddy!

METAR by Google

2007-11-19T11:20:00.000-08:00

Text "METAR ICAO" (as in METAR KLAS for example) to "Google" (466453) and get a text message reply of the current METAR in text message form, on your cell phone. Give it a try!

Update

2007-11-07T09:21:00.000-08:00

So, flying out here on the left coast got off to a much slower start than expected.

I'll be flying out of Boulder City Municipal, in a rental Piper Warrior II. This is good, because Iw as interested in stepping up to a larger plane than the Tommy, with more seating and a touch more airspeed. She also ha a full deck of Narco radios and a nice GPS, so that will be nothing short of luxury for me.

I managed to get back to Delaware a few weeks ago, and got some flying time in the Tommy. No great tales to tale, other than to say it was great to be back in the left seat and crusing out of N57. I can't begin to explain how much I missed it.

I return to Delaware over the Thanksgiving holiday, and I'm sure I'll get some more seat time then. For now, I'm spending a few hours every night reading the Warrior II POH. I have my instructor lined up to show me the ropes of desert flying, then it will be time to resume normal operations in escaping the patch, and making good use of this hard earned PPL.....

Volume

2007-06-07T12:01:00.000-07:00

Some intersting stats on major airport ops....

Top five U.S. airports, percent on-time arrival performance (2007)

1. Oakland (OAK) 79.9 percent
2. Houston (IAH) 78.1 percent
3. Baltimore (BWI) 77.9 percent
4. San Diego (SAN) 77.5 percent
5. Atlanta (ATL) 76.7 percent

Bottom five U.S. airports, percent on-time arrival performance (2007)

1. Newark (EWR) 55.0 percent
2. New York (LGA) 58.0 percent
3. Chicago (ORD) 58.5 percent
4. New York (JFK) 60.0 percent
5. Philadelphia (PHL) 64.9 percent

World's 10 busiest airports, annual takeoffs and landings

1. Chicago (ORD) 970,000
2. Atlanta (ATL) 958,000
3. Dallas (DFW) 711,000
4. Los Angeles (LAX) 650,000
5. Las Vegas (LAS) 605,000
6. Houston Intercontinental (IAH) 562,000
7. Denver (DEN) 559,000
8. Phoenix (PHX) 555,000
9. Philadelphia (PHL) 535,000
10. Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) 532,000

Alive and sweating.

2007-06-07T12:00:00.001-07:00

Hello? Is this thing on?

So, I didn’t post for a few months. I swear, I have a good reason.

It’s fitting that my last post was about Las Vegas. One unintended consequence of that trip to Vegas is that I now live there.
Yup, while visiting here in January, I met with a friend who made a job offer I wasn’t able to turn down. 3 weeks later, I was driving cross country to my new home in the desert.

It’s been fun so far. Vegas is an airplane watchers dream. From my 12th floor office I watch the landing and departing traffic from KLAS all day, and I can also see the operations at Nellis AFB about 15 miles north. Everything from F-15’s to B-2’s show up here, even when the legendary Red Flag isn’t in play.

As for my own flying, with the exception of a tourist chopper ride down the strip recently, I haven’t been near any GA aircraft. I have some hours booked with an instructor at North Las Vegas Airport, so it’s a matter of time before I have something to write about again. I’ll be getting checked out in a 172, and learning the local Class B and a little about mountain flying in this turbulent desert air. Stay tuned!

Vegas.

2007-01-15T07:31:00.000-08:00

Took my first domestic commercial flight in quite some time this past week. Flew with US Airways to Las Vegas and back for a brief vacation with my older Brother.
While the flight out was jam packed, and I spent it in the middle seat, cursing under my breath at the 20 minute credit card advertisements on the in-flight TV's, the fold down lunch trays, $5 sandwiches and headphones, and the head wind that tacked on another 40 minutes to our flight, the flight home was an empty one, allowing us to sit alone in a cabin, in the emergency row, stretching our legs. The tailwind didn't hurt, either. Got back to the right coast with time to burn...

I kept my eyes out for Dave at KLAS, since it's a frequent stop for him, but no such luck....

NASA's vision lost on Web generation

2006-12-28T11:54:00.000-08:00

From CNN.com

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (AP) -- Young Americans have high levels of apathy about NASA's new vision of sending astronauts back to the moon by 2017 and eventually on to Mars, recent surveys show.
Concerned about this lack of interest, NASA's image-makers are taking a hard look at how to win over the young generation -- media-saturated teens and 20-somethings growing up on YouTube and Google and largely indifferent to manned space flight.
"If you're going to do a space exploration program that lasts 40 years, if you just do the math, those are the guys that are going to carry the tax burden," said Mary Lynne Dittmar, president of a Houston company that surveyed young people about the space program.
The 2004 and 2006 surveys by Dittmar Associates Inc. revealed high levels of indifference among 18- to 25-year-olds toward manned trips to the moon and Mars.

I'm gonna have to agree, as one of these "20-somethings".

The night Discovery launched and I saw it pass through the sky, I ended up at a bonfire hosted by a friend, with 25-30 people around my age. since I thought seeing the Shuttle was the coolest thing I'd seen in a while, I naturally told everyone about it. The vast majority of them looked at me as if I was crazy. I had never noticed it before, but by and large, it's true. Most people in my age bracket really could care less.
Damn kids.....tsk!

I must, however, disagree with George Whitesides, executive director of the National Space Society, a space advocacy group, who feels Hollywood could be the answer.

"The American public engages with issues through people, personalities, celebrities, whatever. When you don't have that kind of personality, or face, or faces associated with your issue, it's a little bit harder for the public to connect."

Less Hollywood in everything would be better in my book. The last thing I want to see is Paris Hilton telling me "We're, like, totally going back to the moon."

Merry Christmas

2006-12-22T08:14:00.000-08:00

I plan to not go near a PC until Tuesday at earliest. So, everyone have a good holiday. Here's hoping Santa doesn't bust the ADIZ on his way up the East coast this year....

Cheers!

-Neil

Twas the night before Christmas,
and out on the ramp,
Not an airplane was stirring,
not even a Champ.
The aircraft were fastened
to tiedowns with care,
In hopes that come morning,
they all would be there.
The fuel trucks were nestled,
all snug in their spots,
With gusts from two-forty
at 39 knots.
I slumped at the fuel desk,
now finally caught up,
And settled down comfortably,
resting my butt.
When the radio lit up with noise and with chatter,
I turned up the scanner to see what was the matter.
A voice clearly heard over static and snow,
Called for clearance to land at the airport below.
He barked his transmission so lively and quick,
I'd have sworn that the call sign he used was "St. Nick".
I ran to the panel to turn up the lights,
The better to welcome this magical flight.
He called his position, no room for denial,
"St. Nicholas One, turnin' left onto final."
And what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a Rutan-built sleigh, with eight Rotax Reindeer!
With vectors to final, down the glideslope he came,
As he passed all fixes, he called them by name:"
Now Ringo! Now Tolga! Now Trini and Bacun!On Comet! On Cupid!"
What pills was he takin'?
While controllers were sittin', and scratchin' their head,
They phoned to my office, and I heard it with dread,
The message they left was both urgent and dour:
"When Santa pulls in, have him please call the tower.
"He landed like silk, with the sled runners sparking,
Then I heard "Left at Charlie," and "Taxi to parking."
He slowed to a taxi, turned off of three-oh
And stopped on the ramp with a "Ho, ho-ho-ho..."
He stepped out of the sleigh, but before he could talk,
I ran out to meet him with my best set of chocks.
His red helmet and goggles were covered with frost
And his beard was all blackened from Reindeer exhaust.
His breath smelled like peppermint, gone slightly stale,
And he puffed on a pipe, but he didn't inhale.
His cheeks were all rosy and jiggled like jelly,
His boots were as black as a cropduster's belly.
He was chubby and plump, in his suit of bright red,
And he asked me to "fill it, with hundred low-lead."
He came dashing in from the snow-covered pump,
I knew he was anxious for drainin' the sump.
I spoke not a word, but went straight to my work,
And I filled up the sleigh, but I spilled like a jerk.
He came out of the restroom, and sighed in relief,
Then he picked up a phone for a Flight Service brief.
And I thought as he silently scribed in his log,
These reindeer could land in an eighth-mile fog.
He completed his pre-flight, from the front to the rear,
Then he put on his headset, and I heard him yell, "Clear!"
And laying a finger on his push-to-talk,
He called up the tower for clearance and squawk.
"Take taxiway Charlie, the southbound direction,
Turn right three-two-zero at pilot's discretion"
He sped down the runway, the best of the best,
"Your traffic's a Grumman, inbound from the west."
Then I heard him proclaim, as he climbed through the night,

"Merry Christmas to all! I have traffic in sight!"

Coming Home.

2006-12-21T18:49:00.000-08:00

From NASA:

About 3:35 p.m. EST Thursday, flight controllers at the Mission Control Center in Houston told Commander Mark Polansky that the Mission Management Team had cleared Space Shuttle Discovery for re-entry. The decision came after analysis of data collected during Wednesday’s inspection of Discovery’s heat shield. Discovery’s first landing opportunity is scheduled at 3:56 p.m. EST Friday at Kennedy Space Center, Fla. If weather does not cooperate, six more opportunities at three landing sites are available. The Friday weather forecast currently calls for a chance of rain and low clouds at Kennedy, potential strong crosswinds at Edwards Air Force Base in California and acceptable landing conditions at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico. The last opportunity at Kennedy is at 5:32 p.m. Three exist at Edwards – 5:27 p.m., 7 p.m. and 8:36 p.m. Two are available at White Sands – 5:27 p.m. and 7:02 p.m. All three sites will be activated. Landing opportunities also are available Saturday at all three sites.

I've been watching NASA TV and following along with this mission since the day of the launch. I forgot to mention here, but a friend and I were lucky enough to catch sight of Discovery on the night it launched. (From Delaware!)
There in the Eastern sky, at exactly the time and position NASA said she would be, we saw the orange glow streaking across the sky. By the time I made the 10 minute drive home from our viewing point and checked on the shuttles location on NASA TV, she was over Africa. Incredible!

I vow to go see a launch before the current Shuttle is mothballed for good.

Having watched so much NASA TV, I've come to be able to recognize the various crew members voices, as well as whoever happens to be running the CAPCOM at the current time. It's been such a pleasure to watch, and I learned more about the mission and the space program in the past 2 weeks than I have any time before it.

Here's to happy landings and blue skies, Discovery!

Lazy Sunday & Broken Birds

2006-12-19T06:35:00.000-08:00

My only flying of the weekend took place on Sunday morning. My Dad had suggested to a few friends that we get together and fly out for breakfast since the weather would be unusually good for the time of year. We easily fit 4 folks in the SR-22, and our friend flew another in his beautiful Cessna 170. Destination: KGED, Sussex County airport.
the only note to an uneventful flight down state was the occasional flocks of Snow Geese we could see from the air. They swirl around and move together as one above the fields in lower DE, and the whole thing looks alien when viewed from an airplane. Quite a sight.

KGED seemed a little quiet given the good weather, but the breakfast buffet was in full swing, and the few folks that had made the trip were enjoying pancakes, sausages and bacon. I'll definetly be going back for breakfast. A nice, clean restaurant with pleasant staff, good food, and fair prices, and that ever impotant view of the runway.

As we made our way back north towards home, we passed over Dover Air Force Base. You may recall that this summer, DAFB made national headlines when one of it's monster C-5's came up short of a runway and broke into 3 seperate pieces. Well, that C-5 is still sitting there at the end of the runway, looking alot like it does in this picture. I assume it was left during the investigation, but even after, moving such a behemoth aircraft will be a chore.

An animation was released showing cockpit intrumentation and animation of the C-5 before it found the dirt.

**- As The IFR Pilot pointed out, the YouTube link was yanked. So, ignore that one and see the C-5 animation, here.

Busting TFR's.

2006-12-12T11:10:00.000-08:00

Avweb reports....

According to data obtained from the FAA by AOPA, there have been 6,658 Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) violations between Sept. 11, 2001, and the end of last month. Broken down even further, 1,632 of these infringements are presidential TFR busts and another 3,254 are due to "Washington, D.C. security-related" breaches, AOPA said. Some 2,672 of the Washington violations are related to pilots straying into the Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) surrounding the nation's capital. The good news is that Washington ADIZ busts are trending downward, an AOPA spokesman told AVweb. Late last year, the FAA introduced a D.C. ADIZ training course, which might account for the decline in these violations.

Thats a staggering figure. I'm glad it's on the decline...

As one wise pilot told me, "I'm glad I'm not one of them".

Beating the Proverbial Dead Horse...

2006-12-12T11:00:00.000-08:00

**Update**
It seems the aircraft was a Cessna 182-RG, with a landing gear problem. Pilot landed and walked away. The folks in the AOPA forum told me so. My point still stands.

I know that discussing the disgraceful and uneducated way in which the media covers and portrays aviation is akin to preaching to the choir when it comes to those who read this blog, but sometimes it annoys me so much, I have to pipe up.

A good example from today.

I'm at work, and I click on CNN.com before I go off on my lunch break. There is a headline, top of the main page, that reads:

"Aircraft Making Emergency Landing".

There was no attached article, only a link to a live video feed. Being that I am unable to access the streaming video at work, I went off to lunch knowing nothing of who, what, where, etc.

Returning from lunch, I go back to CNN.com for an update. Only to find,....nothing.
No article, no video, no mention that it ever happened. This means that (assuming it was a commercial airline) a large number of people did not die in flaming wreckage. Just that some Captain safely landed his ship, *perhaps* saving the lives of his passengers. No news there, according to CNN.

Of course, I'm sure it was a fairly mundane "emergency" that was no big deal for the crew, who are probably sitting around filling out paperwork without having broken into any description of a sweat. I'm glad they didn't make the news, because it means they are ok.

Off my soap box, rant over. Have a nice day.

Discovery!

2006-12-06T12:21:00.000-08:00

I love a shuttle launch.

STS-116 is scheduled to launch tomorrow night, but as of right now the weather doesnt appear to be cooperating. I believe NASA has a 6 day window in which to launch, so I hope they can get the boosters fired in that time frame.

This launch is especially exciting to me, because with a bit of luck, those of us on the east coast will get a look at Discovery as it makes its way towards the ISS. I think I'd have to be very lucky to see anything, but I'll be on my roof with a Thermos and a pair of Binoculars anyway.

From Space.com

People in the eastern United States will get a great opportunity, weather permitting, to see the Space Shuttle Discovery launched into orbit Thursday evening.
The shuttle flight (STS-116) will be the 20th to rendezvous and dock with the International Space Station (ISS) and the glow of its engines will be visible along much of the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. To reach the ISS, Discovery must be launched when Earth's rotation carries the launch pad into the plane of the ISS's orbit. For mission STS-116, on Dec. 7 that will happen at 9:35:47 p.m. EST, resulting in NASA's first planned night launch since Nov. 23, 2002. This launch will bring the Shuttle's path nearly parallel to the U.S. East Coast.

Should the Dec. 7 launch be postponed, it could be rescheduled to one of the following dates and times:
Dec. 8, 9:13 p.m. EST
Dec. 10, 8:25 p.m. EST
Dec. 11, 7:59 p.m. EST
Dec. 13, 7:11 p.m. EST
Dec. 15, 6:23 p.m. EST
Dec. 17, 5:35 p.m. EST

If Thursday's launch is and moved to any of these times, this viewing guide remains, though you'll need to adjust for the differing times.

Hat tip to my friend at Hanger View for the heads up...

U.S. pilots held in Rio de Janeiro allowed to go home...

2006-12-06T12:14:00.000-08:00

Good to hear.

Since I posted about this situation before, I though it proper to post now that they have been allowed to return home. The article below is from Avweb.
(Mid air collisions make the front page of CNN, but this story appears to be of less importance..)

The two U.S. pilots who have been held in Rio de Janeiro since a fatal midair collision in September will be allowed to go home, a Brazilian court said on Tuesday. The pilots -- Joseph Lepore and Jan Paladino, both of New York -- will have their passports returned to them and can leave the country in 72 hours, after being further debriefed by police, the court said. The two must agree to return to Brazil for any further inquiry and judicial action. "Restricting the freedom of movement for foreigners is not backed by the domestic legal system," the court's statement said, according to Reuters. Brazil is still investigating the crash, which was the worst in the country's history. The pilots were flying an Embraer Legacy jet above the Amazon on Sept. 29 when it collided with a Gol Airlines Boeing 737-800. All 154 people on board the 737 were killed. The Legacy made a safe emergency landing with all seven people aboard unharmed. Public opinion in Brazil seems to be shifting away from blaming the pilots to focus on concerns with air traffic control, Reuters said.

Solo.

2006-12-05T12:52:00.000-08:00

Flying has been light recently. I was sick as a dog over the Thanksgiving break, and didnt feel well enough to get out to the airport at all. With the exception of a quick 15 mile hop over to Chester County for lunch last Sunday, not much to report.

Instead, I stole something from a previous blog I had. This is my 2nd attempt at keeping a flying journal, the 1st crahsed and burned. I did, however, write up an account of my first solo about a year or so ago, on the previous blog, and thought i'd like to have it here too. I was inspired on Sunday when I watched from a distance as my instructor hopped out of his students Tomahawk, and sent him off on his solo. It was cool to watch someone else take the big step, one we all remember so well from our own flying experience. The student made 3 good landings. Congrats to him!

...And here's my story.

October 18th, 2002. I headed to the airfield not knowing what to expect. My instructor had made it clear that I was ready to solo soon, but I had missed my last 3 scheduled dates with him due to poor weather. Maybe, I thought, today will be more practice. Make sure I still have it all together before he sends me off....
After pre-flight, we strapped in and took off on runway 24. My instructor suggested closed pattern to shoot some landings. All of them went smoothly, as we had calm winds that evening, and I had made countless landings over the course of the Summer to the point where I felt like I could fly them with my eyes closed. (note to students. not recomended.) .
The sun was still a good hour from dropping behind the Western horizon. On my 4th landing, my instructor looked at his watch, then at me, and said "Ok, your going to drop me off on the ramp. You ready?"
Even though I had been expecting it, it was still kind of a shock. Ready? Ready for what!? Where do you think your going?!? But I was ready. I felt confident. I wasn't the least bit afraid. I had done this with my instructor over, and over again. Ready? yeah. Im ready.
As we pulled up and came to a stop near the fuel pumps, my CFI took his seat belts off."The plane is going to jump off the ground a bit more than usual on take off. I dont weigh much, but it makes a difference without me in here. Other than that, do what you have been doing. Most of all, have fun!!"
I watched as he closed the door and walked away without looking back.

"Shit. im alone in here."

I began to taxi back to 24. With no other traffic in the pattern, I positioned myself at the end of the runway and stopped. Looking over towards the FBO, my instructor was nowhere to be seen. I half expected him to be waiting close by keeping a stern eye on me. He was, of course, but he was inside the FBO, within ear shot of the radio, in case I needed anything.
Throwing in full power, I started down the runway. Then an odd thing happened. I started....singing to myself. Yup. I Dont recall what it was I was singing. I just remember singing. All the way through rotation and lift off. Singing. I was checking the panel, keeping an eye on airspeed, all the things id been taught to do, except I wasnt usually singing while doing them. Go figure.
Three landings later, my instructor came on the radio while I was downwind for 24. "Having fun?" he asked. I replied that I was having a ball, and could do this all day. having completed the mandatory 3 landings, I had officaly completed my 1st solo. "Well, you better make this landing your last for today. We're losing the light...".."Roger, full stop this time..."
I made my last landing and headed to the tie-down. I was suprised out how calm I was. I had thought many times about this day, and always pictured myself emerging from the cockpit like Maverick after that final battle scene in Top Gun. Instead, I was calm and cool, but sitting firmly on cloud nine. By now, the sun was setting on a perfect October day. I headed into the FBO and was suprised to find not only my instructor, but our friend Joe, who was a partner in a Cherokee 235 with my Father. They congratulated me, shook my hand and told me my landings had looked great. My instructor nodded towards the picnic table nearby. I turned to look, and saw 3 cans of beer stacked up on top of each other. The three of us opened our cans and took a drink, the first of many rewards for taking my flying lessons this far. Joe and Ron (my CFI) toasted my solo, and I couldnt have been more proud of myself. After half a can of beer, my CFI reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a pair of scissors. "You know what happens now!" they proceeded in the ritual of cutting the back out of my T-shirt. A tradition among student and CFI's after a first solo flight. Some say this tradition is rooted in the old days of flight instruction, before radios, and before a CFI and student would sit side by side. It is said that to get the students attention is the "in-line" configuration, a CFI would tug on the shirt tails of his student seated directly in front of him. Once you solo, you no longer need the shirt tug. Hence: the removal of your shirt tails.
I remeber Ron tossing the back of my shirt behind the counter in the office. I didnt think anything of it at the time. My mind was still at pattern altitude, where I had just flown an aircraft, all by myself. In the months and years to come, I would wonder what happened to my shirt. Other peoples shirts were hanging in the office decorated with hand drawn pictures of airplanes, and CFI signatures. I didnt know what had happened to mine.
3 years later, long after I had completed my check-ride and become a Private Pilot, I was celebrating my birthday with my parents. My Father came into the kitchen, where I was standing with my Mother, holding a nicely wrapped present for me. A big square shaped package decorated with bright blue paper. I had no idea what it was. My CFI, sneak that he is, had given my Dad the shirt long ago. My Dad had taken it to his friend, a framer, who had it framed on a black background behind glass, and secured it in a beautiful hard wood trim. There was the back of my shirt, curling up at the edges, frozen in time for me to keep forever. Underneath my CFI's drawing of our airplane and its tail number read:

"Neil: First Solo: 10/18/02"

It hangs in my living room today, my prize possesion. Like a moment frozen in time for me to remember again and again, it will hang on a wall in whatever corner of the world I find myself in. You never forget your first solo.

Found in Ebay's Attic....Some Delaware Aviation History

2006-11-21T09:53:00.000-08:00

It's amazing what you can find on Ebay. Anybody who has purchased a de-commisioned Kilo class Russain submarine or a Mig-17, or a peice of Britney Spears' chewing gum can tell you that. But it's the little stuff I enjoy...

I found these little peices of history recently while searching the words "Delaware" and "Aviation".

They are envelopes addressed to Elbert Nortrand Carvel, Delaware's 65th Govorner. Of course, what grabbed my interest were the transit stamps on the letters. They are dated in the year 1947, and as you can see they managed to get to New Castle airport via TWA and All American Aviation Air Mail. The latter, hailed as "Delawares only scheduled air service", was purchased and operated by the Dupont family, and was certified for regular passenger, mail and express service flying the DC-3 and the Convair 580. In 1949 they were renamed "All American Airways", until they became "Allegheny Airlines" in 1952. Ultimatly, this company became today's US Airways.

Another claims the town I live in as the "World's Chemical Capital". With the heavy presence of Dupont around here to this day, it's not hard to imagine why, although it seems that Delaware's PR folks may have since decided that isn't the best avenue of promotion for the state...

Thanksgiving.

2006-11-21T06:43:00.000-08:00

Thought I'd use the milestone of Thursday's holiday to kind of recap what has happened in the last 2 months since I started this little flying journal...

Flying hours, (including tailwheel instruction) = 21.5

Not bad. It's short of goal, but not bad at all. I've flown several hours in the Tommy, done some XC, had some $100 hamburgers, had my Bi-annual Flight Review, received a clean medical, received tail wheel instruction, flown a Citabria, made my first take-off and landings from grass, experienced spins and aerobatics in a Cub, flown from the right seat in an SR-22, and had a great time doing all of it. Looking forward to the next 20 hours, and more challenges and experiences.

As for this scratchpad of mine, it has some pretty impressive stats of it's own:

I have had 926 unique visitors, averaging 32 per day. They represent 10 different countries, although 87% of traffic was from here in the U.S.

Childs play compared with some online journal's, but not bad for being active only 2 months, and having not planned on having much more than a place to keep a mini log book. Tip o' the hat to John from Aviation Mentor, as it seems the vast majority of my hits came from his fine web sites. Pay him a visit. Learn something...

Was hoping to take advantage of the day off this week and go flying, but as of today the weather looks to not be cooperating. Wind, rain & cold all expected to make an appearance. Guess it will be football and beer instead. There are worse ways to spend a Thursday....

Hope everyone has a safe and fun Thanksgiving.

Hostages?

2006-11-17T07:33:00.000-08:00

I've wondered recently why I hadn't heard more about the 2 American pilots that are being held in Brazil following the Septemeber mid-air collision between a business jet and a B737 passenger jet, 37,000 feet above the Amazon. All aboard the 737 were killed, prompting the Brazilian officials to detain the surviving American pilots of the biz jet until the "investigation" was completed. They did not see fit, however, to detain any other professional involved in the incident, including the Air Traffic Controllers.

With so many questions left unanswerd, and 2 American pilots becoming all but hostages in Brazil, it was with great interest that I read a blog written by a man named Joe Sharkey, who happened to be on board the U.S biz jet involved in the incident. Here is a telling passage from the blog....

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

WHAT LIKELY HAPPENED
A preliminary report on the Sept. 29 mid-air collision that's due to be issued tomorrow in Brazil will be sketchy and imprecise, according to outside investigators who have seen it. It will also be cleverly crafted to not directly assign blame to Air Traffic Control in Brazil, which is run by the Air Force -- which in turn is conducting the investigation.So take the Air Force report for what it's worth. But remember, these are the guys, led by the Brazilian defense minister, the Wonderful Waldir Pires, who have regularly accused me of covering up for the private jet pilots who purportedly did "daredevil" stunts in the skies -- which purportedly caused the mid-air collision at 37,ooo feet that killed 154 over over the Amazon.OOPS! Tomorrow's preliminary report, you will see, will address none of that. Turns out, you will see, that was just not true. Instead, the report -- having simply ignored the loony loop-d-loops charge, supports Wonderful Walidr's contention that, as far as he could see, everybody but his Air Force and its splendid first-world air traffic control system was to blame.Independent U.S. and other world investigators have accees to the black boxes, radar data and other hard technolocal information in the crash. They are legally constrained from talking till the Brazilians get around to issuing final reports (months off, I am told). But many of them believe the Brazilian Air Force is dragging its heels for political reasons. Some ask: How could a purportedly first-world Brazil behave like such an evidently third-world Brazil in an air crash investigation? How are they getting away with this?Here is what I understand happened in this crash:

1. Neither the Legacy 600 private jet NOR the Gol Airlilnes 737 with which it collided at 37,000 feet over the Amazon between Brasilia and Manaus were following their flight plans. The 737's flight plan called for it to ascend to 38,000 feet just before spot where the collision occurred, while the Legacy's called for a descent to 36,000 feel. But both planes were told to maintain 37,000 feet by air traffic control -- in two different locations that were not in contact with one another. Under all international protocols, ATC instructions take precedence over a filed flight plan. The collision was mostly caused by a major breakdown in communications between ATC centers in Brazil.

2. A malfunctioning transponder in the Legacy might have -- but this has not yet been proven -- contributed to the fact that air traffic controllers failed to notice that the Legacy and Gol 737 were on a collision course.

3. As I know as well as anyone, since I was on the Legacy, the charge that the two American Legacy pilots were doing aerial stunts or trick maneuvers in the sky is absurd, and will be discounted as such in the preliminary report. The cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder prove that the Legacy was in straight and level flight when it collided with the Gol 737.

4. Cockpit voice recorder tapes -- which the Brazilian Air Force is resisting releasing -- will prove that the Legacy made repeated attempts to reach air traffic control before and after the collision that went unanswered.

5. As international pilots have been telling me for over a month (and even telling newspapers in Brazil), there continue to be gaps and dead zones in Brazilian radar and radio coverage, expecially over the Amazon, despite a recent $1.4 billion project under contract with an American defense contractor to fix the system. The Air Force insists this is not so. The Air Force is incorrect.

6. Pilots readily speak of having to communicate on Brazilian ATC radio through idle chatter by air traffic controllers speaking to each other in Portuguese. The official language of aviation the world over is English. Cockpit voice recorder tapes will show that Brazilian controllers -- many of whom are not fluent in English -- were speaking Portuguese to Brazilian aircraft and, in casual conversations, to each other.

7. The Brazilian Government is in violation of international treaties in detaining and holding as hostages two American pilots, without having charged them or even come up with evidence of a charge.

8. Given the linguistic, organizational and workforce mess in Air Traffic Control in Brazil, it is being argued in the aviation community that American passengers flying to Brazil may be at risk unless the pilots of U.S. airliners flying in Brazil speak Portuguese -- or Brazil cleans up its act in ATC. To the extent that the aviation community publicizes this, it is a direct threat to Brazil's $5 billion a year tourism economy. Already, I am told, travelers are asking travel agents and bookers whether it's safe to fly in Brazil.

You can see the entire blog here.

Familiar Flyers

2006-11-15T11:09:00.000-08:00

I just picked up the most recent copy of Plane & Pilot Magazine. I'm not a regular reader of this publication, but after thumbing through it and seeing a familiar airplane, I felt obligated to buy it...

Matt Chapman is another airshow pilot who hangars his plane, a CAP 321EX, at my local airport. I've had the pleasure of seeing his performance at several airshows, and he always puts on a breath taking display. Seeing his plane and his name in P&P was pretty cool, but given his bio from his website, http://www.MattChapman.com/, hardly suprising....

Matt started flying in 1979, and now has over 14,000 hours of flying time and a career flying for American Airlines.
He began aerobatics in 1984 and quickly worked his way up to the highest level of competition aerobatics – Unlimited. Recognized for his skills, he won one of only five slots on the U.S. Unlimited Men’s Aerobatic Team in 1996 and 1998.
At the Slovakian WAC in 1998, Matt was the highest ranking American pilot, finishing 3rd in the world with a bronze medal, and led the U.S. Men’s Team to a silver medal. Along with this impressive finish comes the coveted Hillard Trophy, awarded to the highest finishing U.S. pilot at the WAC.
Matt also won the prestigious IAC Championships in 1994 and the Fond du Lac Cup in 1995.
With over 20 years of air show experience, Matt knows how to thrill the crowd and work the media. He has appeared on ESPN, ESPN2, Fox Sports Network, Real TV, TLC’s Amazing America and SpeedVision. He was also one of six elite pilots in the Championship Air Show Pilots Association (CASPA).
This year, Matt joins ACAP, the Association of Competition Air Show Pilots (ACAP) and American, and can be seen competing for the top spot at ACAP venues all over the country.
Matt’s hobbies include building and flying radio-controlled model airplanes and helicopters.

The article was actually focused on Micheal Mancuso, another airshow pilot from New York. Matt was included as the two often perform together, as seen here. ->

Good to see another local flyer in the glossy pages of a National aviation mag. Way to go, Matt!

Pre-flight

2006-11-15T06:32:00.000-08:00

Not much to add recently. Had a nice, albeit short flight on Sunday, as Dad joined me in the Tommy for a hop and a skip to Chester County and a bite to eat. Here's a picture Dad snapped while I was busy with pre-flight...

Building a Vagabond: Part 1

2006-11-09T05:43:00.000-08:00

"The Piper PA-15 Vagabond was the first post-World War II Piper aircraft design, utilising the same production tooling that created the famous Piper Cub and Super Cub, as well as structural components, but used to make a new wing (generally similar to that on the Piper Cub, except shorter) and a new fuselage (with side-by-side seating for two instead of tandem seating for two). This allowed the aircraft to be built with minimal design and development costs, and is credited with saving the company from bankruptcy after the war. The Vagabond was later superseded by the Pacer, Tri-Pacer and Colt, which are all in fact variations of the Vagabond design." -Wikipedia

A project being built by Roger and Jim at my local airport. It's fun to see the progress made on every visit, and I look forward to seeing it fly when it's all said and done.

Control surfaces, doped and patched, hanging to dry.

A wing, cable assembly completed, awaits it's skin.

Fuselage

More to come as the project continues.....

Spins & Such, and 3 Planes in One Day.

2006-11-09T05:41:00.000-08:00

"Widely regarded as one of the finest Piper Cub pilots in the air today, Roger Lehnert's first was a 1930's vintage Taylor J-2 Cub which he restored. He soloed at age 16 and, like many, his love of flying has its roots in childhood plane-watching. Roger flys a J-3 Cub in his airshow routine, as well as a Pitts Special in International Aerobatic Club competitions. His aerobatic comedy and amazing use of a platform atop a pickup truck as a "Teenie Weenie Airport" are performances worth seeing again and again." (source)

Roger keeps the Cub and the "Teenie Weenie Airport" at my home field. This past Sunday I was lucky enough to go up with him in his cub for a spin. Being that I am currently working on my tail wheel rating, Roger had me fly from the back seat, and put me through a workout of stalls, slow flight, coordinated turns, and the like. I had mentioned to him that I wanted to do some spins, since I had never done one at all. What better guy to do spins with than an airshow pilot in his airshow machine?

We took off and immedietly formed up with a fellow pilot in a Taylorcraft Cub, and flew formation out to the practice area. After our wing man broke off and cleared the area, we got to work. I learned alot from Roger, as we yelled to each other in the cockpit without the usual benefit of headsets and intercom's I've grown used to. The cub really flys like a dream! If your not in a hurry to get to altitude, of course...

While he flew us through the spins, I sat there with a dumb smile on my face watching the ground spin in the windshield, while Roger counted them off as we completed the revolutions..."One!...Two!....Three!" Truly a great experience I wont soon forget...

I got to land the Cub, and it all went pretty well, but I flared to early and we touched down alot harder than I (and I'm sure Roger..) would have liked. I hope I get another shot at that sometime...

Some pictures of Roger's Cub, "Helayne"

After standing on Terra Firma for a few hours to get rid of the spin induced dizziness, I took a Tomahawk up, for just a half hour. We were down to one aircraft in the fleet on Sunday, and while I had a couple of hours booked, I conceded the aircraft to an Instructor who wanted to take his student up for his last flight before being signed off for a check-ride. A worthy cause.

Finally, I flew in the Citabria with my Dad in the late afternoon. We shot some good video together, and had a good time flying low and admiring the fall foliage. Dad greased 3 of the prettiest landings I've ever seen him do in the Citabria, and I managed to get them all on film. You know, for proof. ; )

Flying time for the day, (and towards goal): 1.5

Fedex loses patience with Airbus

2006-11-07T11:43:00.000-08:00

Surprise!

PARIS - FedEx Corp. Canceled its order for 10 Airbus A380 jets on Tuesday, the first customer to retract an order for the new jumbo double-decker plane that has been dogged by numerous delays.
The world's largest express transportation company cited Airbus production delays and said in a statement that its FedEx Express unit has ordered 15 Boeing Co. 777 freighters with a list price of $3.5 billion and taken options on an additional 15.

Emirates, which has ordered 45 of the A380s and is the programs largest customer, said last month it would send a team of technicians to France to assess the accuracy of promised delivery dates for the A380 superjumbo.
Virgin Atlantic Airways also said last month it would defer the delivery of the first of its six Airbus A380 superjumbo jets until 2013. (source)

I'm no economist or engineer, but In my humble opinion, the A380 was a financial disaster waiting to happen, and not just the aircraft. Talk of having to reinforce runways and ramps to hold her weight, and a 5-7 (!!) mile wake turbulance clearance requirement delaying any traffic following the A380 made it just seem like too much trouble, and not enough demand to justify it. Besides, the 747 is a beautiful, majestic aircraft, and the A380 looks like a clumsy tube sock stuffed with newspaper.

Apparently, Airbus' A350 project is also under scrutiny as whether it makes financial sense to continue building it, given the amount of capital invested in the A380. US Airways were to launch the A350, but perhaps are looking elsewhere.

While my initial thought was that it was a good thing to keep all of this money at home with a U.S builder, the obvious problem with one manufacturer building the world's fleet is that the prices will go up, orders for heavy iron will go down, and jobs in the industry will go down with it...

Time will tell.