On the Air

In 2006, Addison Airport built a new control tower. One day when the main structure was up, but without windows and a few walls, I was taxing out to the runway and overhead this after a Lear jet landed:Tower: Turn right at Golf and taxi to park.Lear: Right at Golf. Our tower is going to look like your new one.Tower: Really, where did you come from?Lear: Daytona Beach.Tower: Are you also getting a new tower?Lear:…

Flying over central Wyoming we overheard a discussion between an American Airlines jet heading for Southern California and Denver Center.American 1234: “Denver Center, I always wanted to say this…any chance we can get a vector to Hector?”Approach: “Cessna 123BD, approach, say type and request.”Presumably having heard this poetic request before, the Denver Center controller responded […]

Overheard on a typically busy Sunday morning just north of ORD in Chicago:Cessna 123BD: Chicago Approach, Cessna 123BD.Approach: Cessna 123BD, approach, say type and request.Cessna 123BD: Wed like to land at OHare.Approach: 123BD, I have no flight plan for you, say type and position.Cessna 123BD: Were a 172 over the Chicago Heights VOR.Approach: 123BD, is this a full stop?Cessna 123BD: No, wed like to do touch-and-goes.Approach (after a long pause): 123BD, we dont do touch-and-goes…

Returning IFR from Opa-Locka (KOPF) to our home airport F45, we overheard this exchange.Cherokee 123 Alpha Bravo: Miami Center, Cherokee 123 Alpha Bravo, 20 SW 3000 feet. Request flight following, Stuart, KSUA.Center: Cherokee 123 Alpha Bravo, roger. Do you require an IFR clearance? Were showing below VFR minimums in your area.Cherokee 123 Alpha Bravo: Nah. Well be ok once we get outa these clouds. …

A Learjet was waiting for a clearance prior to engine start. The Ground Controller couldnt help but ask a question.Ground: Lear Five Five Quebec, Is that thing as fast as she looks?Lear 55Q (male voice): She sure is.(Pause.)Lear 55Q (female pilots voice): And the plane is pretty nice, too. Charles P. GendrichLansing, MI…

Reminiscing on my time at IFR had me looking over old OTAs. I cant share all the good ones, but here are a few from 2009 and earlier.

The ride over Pennsylvania was smooth and generally clear on a recent flight up to New York, but there were intermittent clouds and bumps at 7000:Piper 28D: Allentown Approach, Piper Two Eight Delta, request.Allentown Approach: Go ahead.Piper 28D: We are about to enter a cloud layer at 7000. Is 5000 available? Ive got my 90-year-old dad with me and Id like him to have a smooth ride.Approach: Both of you can go down to 5000. …

Coming back from Oshkosh, we air-filed an IFR flight plan to easily get across Canada en route to the Northeastern U.S. It was a simple direct and we expected to get a bunch of airways when we picked up the actual clearance over Michigan. We were pleasantly surprised to get, Cleared as filed. But it didnt last more than five minutes:Saginaw Approach: Seven Two Zero Echo Charlie, I have a routing amendment for you when…

Kennedy Ground (Local) is always entertaining to me, with New Yorker attitude and accent from the controllers crossed with the culture and accent of the foreign carriers. Eastern European and Asian carriers are often the most entertaining-make that schadenfreude-including this one:Ground: Malev Sixty-Seven, whats your gate tonight?Malev 67: (Ten seconds of barely intelligible faking of a response.)Ground (after a pause): Malev Sixty-Seven, my earlier transmission was a queeeesssstion … …

I now fly a 1947 35 Bonanza that my father owned for many years. My mother didnt like to fly in small planes so when they traveled, my father flew the Bonanza and my mother would fly commercially. They arrived at this expensive but satisfactory arrangement after many years of disagreeing about how they should travel while on vacation. …