Aging Aircraft

Posted on November 22, 2011 by perryb

Here is an old airplane still flying. The DC-3 first flew in 1935! The Douglas company manufactered 16,079 DC-3s ceasing production in 1942. They were made in Santa Monica, California. Santa Monica is now one of the most anti-airplane airports in the country. For some reason the Hollywood types failed to notice they had just bought a house next to the airport and they cannot tolerate airplane noise. Go figure. Anyway, the DC-3 (also known as The Gooney Bird) was used by the military for cargo and by the airlines as a passenger plane. This is the venerable aircraft that flew “the Hump” in World War II.  Wonder how many hours are on this bird and it looks as good as it did the day it was built.

DC3

Just the other day on a flight to Atlantic City, New Jersey, I also ran across this classic aircraft. Definitely something one does not see every day.

Boeing 707

This is a beautiful Boeing 707 (just like the caption says!). Now if you want an old airplane with a million flight hours on it..this is it! By the time the airlines went to jets they flew the fool out of them. Unlike the corporate/charter airplane they were always parked outside, flew through all kinds of weather (there wasn’t much for radar detection in those days) and when you look real close the engine compressors made you swear they flew through hammers!!

Here is another multi-million-miler, now restored and still doing duty! What a classy bird. Watching it fly, hearing the thunderous noise, and seeing it pour more smoke than the space shuttle…well, that’s just plane fun.

It really doesn’t matter what an airplane’s age is; far more important to know the maintenance currently being performed. Today’s modern charter aircraft are some of the most pampered aircraft out there and that should inspire a lot of confidence.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

View from Here

Posted on October 6, 2011 by perryb

Usually when passengers are boarding the aircraft, I tell them they may sit wherever they want to… except for seat 1A. That one’s mine. 1A is the First Class seat up front on the airlines. And it’s a First Class seat on my plane too! Can’t think of a better “corner office” view than the Captain’s chair in any airplane. This one has a pretty good view of the engine and prop, but it’s also a panoramic view.

Over the years you see some cool things through an aircraft windscreen. Meteors, stars, sun and moon risings and settings, weather phenomena, and occasionally other aircraft, just hopefully not too close!

Most of the time it is not that exciting. Lots of clouds, blue sky, and the occasional passing airplane. Still you can’t beat it.

And no matter what, the view on landing is always great. I usually tell passengers what time we will arrive and point out that I will get there about two seconds before they do.  All pilots enjoy the view on landing and none want to think about the last time they ever get to line up an aircraft on final approach. It is the reward for having successfully moved through time and space to another location.

Here is a view that will help one concentrate. Too low just isn’t going to cut it! Sometimes it’s good that the folks in back don’t see what we see. It is also interesting to see where airports end up. Most people don’t want to live near one, so out near a quarry works out pretty well. Talk about hitting the wall! Could be too literal on this approach.

 

Now this picture I used to have as a screen saver. Got it from Airliners.net. This is where I want my final landing to occur. I will park the plane and walk to my beach house and then I will be done. Well, maybe not. Wouldn’t mind ending up here, but I think I will be flying until I forget how to get to the airport! Can’t even imagine not flying at this point in life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you enjoyed the view! Hopefully, there is a lot more to come.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Skid Row

Posted on July 18, 2011 by perryb

Early morning takeoff from Atlanta Hartsfield… funny how some things you just don’t notice until later. Lined up on Runway 8Left, beautiful sunrise… Hey, who left those skid marks?

Would’ve liked to have seen that landing. Looks like a 45 degree crab to the runway at touchdown followed by a quick trip toward the weeds before getting it straightened back out.

Gotta be fun explaining that one to the passengers! Oh well, we all learn from each other’s mistakes. Mental reminder to always make sure to line up on the centerline and ride it like a rail to touchdown. One of those lessons you learn: fly the plane, don’t let the plane fly itself. You are not done until the engines are shut down and the chocks are on the wheels.  And please, don’t ever let me leave a set of skid marks like those!

Pilots get judged by the quality of their landings. It doesn’t matter how many thunderstorms you avoided enroute, or how much time you saved by choosing the right altitude. If you botch the landing it’s a Down grade. On the other hand, if you do make some less than stellar decision on the flight but turn in a greaser of a landing… Well, you are one master manipulator of machinery!

So, even though we often say “any landing you can walk away from is a good one” we still try as hard as we can to make a silky smooth touchdown. It’s as close as pilots usually get to a command performance. Which is why the applause is always nice!

Posted in Aviation, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Nicest Customer Rep

Posted on July 7, 2011 by perryb

There are so many advantages to flying privately. First of all, you miss out on the cattle car experience the airlines offer.  And parking is easy. Then best of all there is no TSA! Your luggage is never lost and the plane never leaves you. You don’t have to run to catch the plane or even stand in a line. Plus there are a lot of great people working in the general aviation industry. And every now and then you get a nice surprise.

Like the other day I flew to Abingdon, Virginia and walked into the FBO (that’s the terminal for private aircraft) and expected to be greeted by the usual friendly guy or gal working the counter. But this Customer Representative was a Dog! And I am not trying to be mean as the picture clearly shows. It was pretty funny being greeted by the local airport dog actually standing at the counter.

And no, I am not going to make any jokes about the job going to the dogs. Or the fact that dogs make better airport pets than cats, even if they do. And besides, any Customer Rep who licks your hand can’t be all bad!

So, book a flight on AirStat, Inc and fly with us. You never know what you’ll see.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Though I fly through the Valley…

Posted on June 27, 2011 by perryb

Summertime flying in the South. Leave in the morning and then sit around and watch the Thunderbumpers build all day. Hope they don’t form a solid line you can’t get around. They are beautiful to look at. All those tiny drops of water being boiled up sometimes as high as 70,000 feet. Water lighter than air! Like great big cotton balls all fluffy and inviting…until you fly through them. Then you get knocked around like a pea in a can! Nobody enjoys the turbulence, but it’s down the list of things pilots worry about. Slow the plane to Maneuvering Speed, pick a spot that the radar says won’t hurt you, snug up the belts, and keep wings level.

Billions of tiny water droplets.  Now that is something pilots do care about. Especially since the temps up high can be as low as -40C!  Water droplets can turn to hail and nobody likes flying through ball peen hammers. Most of the time you just pick up a little ice (see the white line on the black part on the front of the wing) and if you build up enough of it, you just flip the deice switch.. inflate the rubber boots on the leading edge and the ice pops off! Pretty neat.

Nothing like looking back through the Valley of the Shadow at a line of storms you safely navigated through. Especially at night. A great big light show as lightning causes the storms to flash light huge strobes. I love storms, just prefer them at a distance.

Bob and weave trying to stay away from the storms which show up as red spots on radar. A good weather briefing and some experience will keep you on the safe side. Sometimes the answer is a long deviation out of the way, or maybe a landing at a nearby airport while things calm down. Sometimes, it better to not takeoff at all, go get dinner and be glad you are not up there in the Valley of the Shadow wishing you were down here having an early unplanned dinner.

That unplanned dinner lets you know you have a safe pilot. Make the decision that keeps you from having to display your superior skills getting out of an uncomfortable situation. They say there are old pilots, and bold pilots, but not many old and bold ones.

Posted in Aviation, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Large Times in Small Towns

Posted on May 27, 2011 by perryb

Flying takes you to many places. Big cities, small towns, the middle of nowhere. It’s fun to roam around and investigate the nooks and crannies of the country.

When you have time to kill a bookstore/coffee shop combination can’t be beat. I’ve also noticed that hair salons and coffeeshops have the most creative names in the business world. So, if you are in Fairhope, Alabama with time to kill you will eventually find the Latte Da which is connected to the Page and Palette bookstore.

Sunset on Mobile Bay

Doug in the bookstore was very personable and helpful with the search for the right book. Plus he likes photography which is cool. Check him out on http://www.douglasandersonphotography.com .  Jamie and Jessica managed to get me hooked on the Dark Chocolate Latte (with very little resistance on my part). Pastor Chris Aho and I had a great conversation as well.

Fairhope is situated on the hill on the eastern side of the Mobile Bay. With the preponderance of restaurants and art stores, it is obvious that a lot of people have avoided the Florida/Arizona retirement scene and transplanted themselves to Fairhope.

But other than being a quaint town, the oyster houses and gumbo shops and genuine southern hospitality make it a great place to be. The people exude the relaxed atmosphere that one would expect being so close to Mobile, where contrary to popular opinion, the whole Mardi Gras experience began. I have met more people in the few days I spent here than anywhere I can remember.

How many places can you go and have a store owner step outside to tell you that you are in danger of getting a ticket for less than legally correct parking in front of her store? Or bump into a first class author while checking into your hotel. Get your hair cut from a filmaker. Eat gumbo, oysters, and the best authentic Mexican food at La Cocina.

And it was great meeting Kenneth Cain, who is learning to fly now that he has retired. I admire people who just won’t stop.

So, if you get a chance visit Fairhope and enjoying sailing on the bay, fishing, and relaxing Southern style. Besides, any town that doesn’t have parking meters is a great town.

Posted in Travel, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Crowded Skies

Posted on May 3, 2011 by perryb

So here’s one of those flying myths that needs to be dealt with. The myth is that it is crowded out there in the skies. Well it depends on which skies. It certainly seems crowded in New York, Chicago, Atlanta, and other large airports, especially during rush hour (The Push in aviation lingo). When everybody wants to be in the same place at the same time a long line of aircraft piles up. But most of the time it really isn’t very crowded. Flying across the US you will see a few planes but in some places (the midwest) and at some times (backside of the clock) it can be rather lonely.

Often you will hear a pilot broadcast in the blind to see if the controller is still there because it’s been so long since anyone said anything. Pilots will say “Is anyone there?” and the controller will answer that indeed someone is minding the store.

It is amazing how many planes are flying every day in the US. Aviation is a great industry that has done huge things for the growth of this country. Often corporate aviation gets attacked as if it is merely some plaything for fat cats. Some of that occurs but mostly it’s a business tool.

So there is room for a lot more flying. And there is no better way than to fly with a private company. So… check out using AirStat for your business or pleasure trip.

The skies are fine! Come on in!

Posted in Aviation | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Funding Fathers

Posted on April 20, 2011 by perryb

Flew to Williamsburg, Virginia area recently and toured the historic sites of Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown.
Overall, my impressions are:

1. It’s a good thing the Rockefellers weren’t paying a lot of taxes back in the 1930s, because they ended up donating $68 million to rebuild Colonial Williamsburg from the ground up.  It is impressive what the private sector can do when it wants to. Almost nothing was there until the Bruton Parish pastor passed his dream on to John Rockefeller (the son), who financed this huge project.

2. My history teachers did a very poor job. Granted they didn’t have much to work with, but still, I didn’t learn much about history until I started reading after getting out of school.
I have never been able to figure out why the Colonists started the Revolution over some taxes. Well, they didn’t. After being pushed around by the king attempting to force his will on them without a say in the matter, they finally had enough. Although the Stamp Tax was repealed after a year and it was a while before we actually started shooting each other, the years of being told what to do with no representation finally pushed them over the edge, helped along by Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” pamphlet.

Kind of the way things happen today.

3. People must have really wanted to get out of England to ride for four months in the damp dark closed holds of the little ships that sailed to the New World. Standing on the decks of the replicas and trying to imagine being tossed around in the stormy Atlantic, only to come to Jamestown and have two thirds of the population die within the first year is some serious determination.

4. We have the same problems now that we did then. The royal governor was living in the palace while 95% of the population were farmers living in dirt floor homes.

We have an elite few making the rules (which don’t apply to them) while the rest of us often feel we have little say in how we are governed. They make the rules; we provide the funds. Like the joke says, taxation with representation isn’t that great either. Maybe it’s time for a little more Revolution. But I’m not dumping any tea! I like my tea the British way and the Southern American way too!

Posted in Travel | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Wright Stuff

Posted on April 11, 2011 by perryb

For aviators it’s on the bucket list. Landing at First Flight Airport at Kill Devil Hills, NC. Site of the first powered flight. Using a friend’s small airplane, I took the family on a trip to FFA so we could see where it all began.

Everyone knows about the Wright Brothers of course, but I never realized the extent of their accomplishment. It wasn’t a “we’re good at making stuff and bored with bicycles .. Let’s try planes!” kind of thing. Their interest began when their father gave them a flying toy and 25 years later the dream he planted became a reality.

Orville and Wilbur had to take everything to Kill Devil Hills. They built a wind tunnel to test airfoil designs! They used a pedal powered sewing machine to make the cloth wings. After many trials and errors and frustrations, the first flight! 120 feet in 12 seconds. Three more after that to establish the fact that they had actually done it.

From 120 feet to the moon in 50 years! Like most stories we have heard the details are the amazing part. You have to see it to understand the immense amount of work that made it happen. So, if you get close to the Outer Banks, you must visit the place. 

Also, while you are there, visit Manteo and the site of the Lost Colony where Sir Walter Raleigh landed. Lot’s of interesting history.

Posted in Aviation | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Bahama Bound

Posted on March 29, 2011 by perryb

I have to admit I really like the Bahamas. The Caribbean so close by is hard to resist. Going to the Bahamas is really easy. Travelling on AirStat will get you to Freeport in just under two hours. In less time than it takes to drive to Atlanta and park your car you can be on the beach!

Nassau seems to be the place most think about when they plan on going to the Bahamas. There are many places that are accessible with AirStat that are too difficult to get to if you travel on the airlines. I will mention some of those places in future posts.

First I do recommend Freeport because it has a little of everything. There is no Atlantis Hotel, but there is a large Sheraton Our Lucaya Hotel which is first class and has the casino. It’s right across from the straw market in Port Lucaya where a good variety of restaurants can be found.

There are places to experience shark diving, swimming with dolphins, kayaking in a mango swamp, snorkeling, golfing, sailing, bonefishing, eating barbeque ribs on the beach, and all the other activities the islands are know for.

So here is the obligatory swaying palm which needs someone to come sit under it.

There are some really neat things to do if you get off the beaten path and there are lots of unbeaten paths in the islands. So if you need some bone fishing, conch fritter eating, toes in the sand time, let me know. I can arrange as little or as much as you like.

Make sure you have a passport and you will be ready to go!

Posted in Bahamas | Tagged , , | 7 Comments