Aviation Stories and Adventures (100-02)
Misc.
1. Note: For those that don't know, "The Sled" is the SR-71 Blackbird spy
plane from the 1960's and still the fastest airplane. In his book, "Sled
Driver" SR-71 Blackbird pilot Brian Shul writes: "I'll always remember a
certain radio exchange that occurred one day as Walt (my back-seater)
and I were screaming across Southern California 13 miles high. We were
monitoring various radio transmissions from other aircraft as we entered
Los Angeles airspace. Though they didn't really control us, they did
monitor our movement across their scope.
I heard a Cessna ask for a readout of its ground speed."90 knots" Center
replied. Moments later, a Twin Beech required the same. "120 knots,"
Center answered. We weren't the only ones proud of our ground speed that
day as almost instantly an F-18 smugly transmitted, "Ah, Center, Dusty
52 requests ground speed readout." There was a slight pause, then the
response, "525 knots on the ground, Dusty." Another silent pause.
As I was thinking to myself how ripe a situation this was, I heard a
familiar click of a radio transmission coming from my back-seater.
"Center, Aspen 20, you got a ground speed readout for us?" There was a
longer than normal pause.... "Aspen, I show 1,742 knots" (That's about
2004.658 mph.) No further inquiries were heard on that frequency.
2. In another famous SR-71 story, Los Angeles Center reported receiving
a request for clearance to FL 600 (60,000 ft). The incredulous
controller, with some disdain in his voice, asked, "How do you plan to
get up to 60,000 feet? The pilot (obviously a sled driver), responded,
"We don't plan to go up to it; we plan to go down to it." He was
cleared.
Here is a picture of Galveston beach and the seawall (2002). Looking N.E. allong Seawall blvd., towards Stewart Beach and the jetties.
I spent a lot of time on this beach and seawall as a teenager. Just departed Galveston following a DC-3
(yes, a DC-3) from the Lone Star Flight Museum located at Scholes Field and Moody Gardens.
3. The pilot was sitting in his seat and pulled out a .38 revolver. He
placed it on top of the instrument panel, and then asked the navigator,
"Do you know what I use this for?" The navigator replied timidly, "No,
what's it for?" The pilot responded, "I use this on navigators who get
me lost!" The navigator proceeded to pull out a .45 and place it on his
chart table. The pilot asked, "What's that for?" "To be honest sir," the
navigator replied, "I'll know we're lost before you will."
God waters His earth (summer 2004). I love this picture. It was taken while retuning from Victoria. I had to make a course deviation of about five miles to get around this cell and remain VFR.
In the process I saw a single bolt of lightning split into three distinct bolts before hitting the ground. I immediately increased my distance from this living cloud and then took this picture.
Altitude is about 2500 feet.
4. When Hillary Clinton visited Iraq last month the Army Blackhawk
helicopter used to transport the Senator was given the call sign
"broomstick one." And they say the Army has no sense of humor!
Experimental GlassAir (October 2005). Altitude is about 1700 feet.
5. One day the pilot of a Cherokee 180 was told by the tower to hold
short of the runway while a MD80 landed. The MD80 landed, rolled out,
turned around, and taxied back past the Cherokee. Some quick-witted
comedian in the MD80 crew got on the radio and said, "What a cute little
plane. Did you make it all by yourself?" Our hero, the Cherokee pilot,
not about to let the insult go by, retorted: "I made it out of MD80
parts. Another landing like that and I'll have enough parts for another
one."
6. There's a story about the military pilot calling for a priority
landing because his single-engine jet fighter was running "a bit
peaked." Air Traffic Control told the fighter jock that he was number
two behind a B-52 that had one engine shut down. "Ah," the pilot
remarked, "the dreaded seven-engine approach."
7. A student became lost during a solo cross-country flight. While
attempting to locate the aircraft on radar, ATC asked, "What was your
last known position?" Student: "When I was number one for takeoff."
8. Taxiing down the tarmac, the 757 abruptly stopped, turned around and
returned to the gate. After an hour-long wait, it finally took off. A
concerned passenger asked the flight attendant, "What was the problem?"
"The pilot was bothered by a noise he heard in the engine," explained
the flight attendant," and it took us a while to find a new pilot."
9. "Flight 2341, for noise abatement turn right 45 degrees." "But
Center, we are at 35,000 feet. How much noise can we make up here?"
"Sir, have you ever heard the noise a 747 makes when it hits a 727?
"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." -- George Orwell
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