ON THE AIR June 2023

Monday, May 22, 2023 at 10:02 AM ET

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Key Takeaways:

The article showcases various humorous and witty exchanges between pilots and air traffic controllers during routine and unusual situations.
It highlights a critical instance where quick-thinking air traffic control guided a VFR pilot experiencing deteriorating weather in an emergency to a safe airport landing.
Aviation features creative and sometimes amusing naming conventions for navigational fixes and VORs, often drawing from cultural references or leading to humorous pilot queries.

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A number of years ago we were talking with Edmonton Center. We heard Cessna 123 check in with Center requesting flight following to Calgary International. Edmonton responded, “Maintain VFR and contact approach on…”

We knew the weather was not that great. We switched our number two radio to monitor the situation and we heard: “Calgary Approach, Cessna 123 requesting flight following to Calgary.”