Thank a Pilot - They Go Through Hell

[Fly at Night]

Originally Posted by Aviator

Thank you. I'm glad to hear he is headed back to the line. I'm scheduled for my six month physical tomorrow. Thinking calm thoughts and lowering my blood pressure/pulse. Hopefully I will have a chance to meet up with him on a layover sometime. Especially now that his company and mine are "Joint Venture" partners.

My friend is a professional in the air, but strange on the ground. Hyper-intelligent but complicated. (Thought I better warn you about that).

Anyway, maybe you will meet up one day. He's been flying into what he calls the aircraft carrier of airports - LaGuardia, a lot lately.

Hope that physical went okay.

[Landshark]

I thank the pilots and cabin crew after flights, especially after a flight in India on an India flag airline:

Plane was landing and unfortunately touched down with one side of landing gear only, so bounced from side to side on down the runway. I was petrified, watching out the window, seeing the wing tilt down, down, then back up, and again down, down, but finally it leveled out and we taxied on to the terminal.

I take nothing for granted after that, and I fly only on US flag airlines. Pilots are wonderful and amazing creatures!

Vivian

[Fly at Night]

Hi Vivian. As they say, "Any landing is a good landing!"

[Shiny16]

Originally Posted by azflycaster

In 2017 at the RVIA in Louisville, Captain "Sully" Sullenberger was the keynote speaker at the opening breakfast. His presentation was all about the years of training that prepared him for his landing on the Hudson River. Very impressive presentation and truly an American hero.

Most pilots I know given the same scenario over NYC would have executed the same option as Sully. I believe most would have had the same success. The thing about Sully is the way he handled everything after the fact. He is an excellent ambassador of the flying profession.
I know a younger guy who was a regional airline Captain. On a layover in MCI he stopped at a book signing Sully was having in a local bookshop. After a few words Sully realized he was on a layover. He had him call his first officer and Sully bought them both dinner.

[Silvr_Bullet]

Originally Posted by Skooter

Thanks to the efforts of every aviation professional we can safely ride in a thin aluminum tube seven miles high at 650 miles an hour...and human beings have the arrogance to laugh and serve drinks, never giving a thought to what's going on. I get chills just thinking about it. Kudos to all who make that happen.

The whole concept of serving drinks and food is to distract passengers from where they are. Also pilots are paid much too little for the responsibility and absence of job security, the knowledge and experience and commitment to aviation that they need to acquire is beyond belief to the casual passenger.

[garry]

In my younger life after sitting at the end of runways in a crash truck for six years I have seen some amazing landings weather related being the most common and scary watching the gyrations just before touchdown or right after trying to get the aircraft under control also engine failures, blown tires or once foaming the runway down due to landing gear failure.

In these incidents the credit goes to pilot skill and a little luck.
Most all aircraft accidents will be credited to pilot error even with catastrophic equipment failure the pilot will be found with some fault.



And there some some that didn't make it I will never forget needless to say I don't taking flying for granted.

[featherbedder]

A friend enlisted in AF as pvt.1 right after grad high school did stint at pentagon during his career. Retired from AF as lt. Colonel w/22 yrs. serv flying as Capt. huge cargo planes w/runs to Baghdad, then when Obama went to India took autos. After retirement had to take commercial pilot lic. [same as one I took] Adam obtained job small airline at $25,00 per yr. for 1 year, now w/major US airline much better pay. I also have commercial pilot lic. but only flew private as to old for commercial work plus not many jobs available as slump and many pilots from Korean conflict. I sold last plane that I owned 50 yrs. ago but flew rented after, no longer active as pilot. I have many friends that are pilots w/airlines, IMO they don't get enough credit for job they do.

[skyguyscott]

Originally Posted by rmkrum

Climb problem was caused by the ground crew overfilling our tanks to where we spent 30 minutes burning off fuel to get outta the area--which is surrounded by mountains...we were overloaded by about 35 pounds of fuel, and that was enough to keep us from climbing at that altitude.

Fascinating that a "mere" 35 lbs. was weighing you down.

To steer it back to AS, is it only pilots and aviation folk who understand the importance of weight and balance? I read here often of folks who want to referb a vintage trailer and add heavy countertops, heavy solid wood cabinetry, move the bathroom and tanks here and there. As if. Especially if they are redoing a 70s trailer with the light frame!

Granted an AS TT is not an airplane, but neither is it a house. Weight and balance have real word consequences in towing, and more to the point, stopping under control.

[Landshark]

Originally Posted by Fly at Night

Hi Vivian. As they say, "Any landing is a good landing!"

Ain't that the truth!

Vivian

[rmkrum]

35 pounds is a guess. Was possibly a lot more than that. Either way was too much fuel on board. ‘Fascinating’ was not the word that I used at the time. Maybe in the ‘Spockian Sense’ nowadays...

Either way, couldn’t get the bird to climb out of the valley till we burned off enough fuel with all four of us aboard. Lack of heat to defrost the windshield didn’t help. Frost on the wings was no help either. Small planes at high altitudes can get marginal in a hurry.

From then on, I quietly double check preflighted the plane on any trip I was on with my buddy. Didn’t want to insult him, but I didn’t want to participate in a ‘snap landing’ either. Or have a front seat to an Avgas fireball, either.

There have been many times in my past that make me wonder how I managed to get to my current old geezer status...

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Hi, as I exit an airplane, I always thank all of the pilots / crew.

[rmkrum]

Originally Posted by ROBERTSUNRUS

Hi, as I exit an airplane, I always thank all of the pilots / crew.

Amen to that.

[Woosch]

I was a controller for over 35 years. The one that I still think about was a B737 ingesting a Great Blue Heron at Vr. Big adrenaline rush at 0630! All worked out okay. Got a nice compliment from the airline which was really appreciated.
BTW. The way we know that it was a Heron was that the only FOD was about a 12 inch section of its wing.

[AKmtnpilot]

One night years ago,I was just west of Washington, DC, had just decended to 5 thousand feet on a severe clear night and smooth as glass. There was sudden BANG. I had a friend with me (single pilot aircraft) We looked at each other, checked engine instruments, controls, all seemed good. When we landed just north of NY City I walked around the aircraft and found a large dent in the leading edge of the left wing with blood, guts, and goose feathers trailing back over the wing. Amazing what damage a 20 pound goose hit at 200 kts will do. I think of that night when I nearly hit a bird while towing our Airstream or when hail is around.

[Boxite]

Sounds like the extra six gallons of fuel was not as much problem as someone’s carelessness. Not much room for that sort of thing. Makes us all look bad.

[skyguyscott]

[markdoane]

I'm retired. I have an airstream.

I hope to never get on another commercial airliner.

[Jim Flower]

Originally Posted by markdoane

I'm retired. I have an airstream.

I hope to never get on another commercial airliner.

Same. My list includes hotels. Jim

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by markdoane

I'm retired. I have an airstream.
I hope to never get on another commercial airliner.

Amen! I still have 2 million Delta miles. Enough is enough!
I was walking with a pilot for US Air (back when) and he observed, "It's a great job but a lousy career!"
We got to security and he had to toss his water bottle. Afterwords, he said, "I don't understand, I can't carry water past TSA because it's dangerous, but I could crash the plane if I wanted to."

Pilots love flying, Sailors love sailing, Railroad Engineers love riding the trains.
I don't think Bus drivers love taking Greyhound. I don't think proctologists love.......never mind.

[featherbedder]

Originally Posted by Mollysdad

Amen! I still have 2 million Delta miles. Enough is enough!
I was walking with a pilot for US Air (back when) and he observed, "It's a great job but a lousy career!"
We got to security and he had to toss his water bottle. Afterwords, he said, "I don't understand, I can't carry water past TSA because it's dangerous, but I could crash the plane if I wanted to."

Pilots love flying, Sailors love sailing, Railroad Engineers love riding the trains.
I don't think Bus drivers love taking Greyhound. I don't think proctologists love.......never mind.

Conductor 40 yrs. don't have any thoughts about getting on another train, 40 yrs. enough.........................