On The Air: April 2014

After retiring from a long career of trucking between New York and Florida, my thoughts of hitting the road on a new motorcycle instantly vanished when my wife said, I would sooner see you buy another airplane. After a 30-year absence from flying, we bought a nicely equipped Cherokee 180. It wasnt long before I wanted to fly to Florida, and we were on our way. South of Savannah, Ga., flight following told us that two…

Editorial Staff

Wednesday, July 30, 2014 at 12:00 AM ET

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Key Takeaways:

The collection of anecdotes highlights the often humorous and ironic situations pilots encounter, from a former trucker navigating I-95 by air to unexpected radio chatter about a groom not jumping.
Several stories showcase clever or themed naming conventions for aviation waypoints, VORs, and procedures, often reflecting local culture, landmarks, or inside jokes (e.g., SPAMM, "dog" themed waypoints, Nashville music references).
Pilots recount memorable and sometimes amusing interactions with air traffic control, demonstrating both helpful guidance during challenging situations and lighthearted exchanges.

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After retiring from a long career of trucking between New York and Florida, my thoughts of hitting the road on a new motorcycle instantly vanished when my wife said, “I would sooner see you buy another airplane.”

After a 30-year absence from flying, we bought a nicely equipped Cherokee 180. It wasn’t long before I wanted to fly to Florida, and we were on our way. South of Savannah, Ga., flight following told us that two restricted areas ahead of us were hot and we would have to deviate. I asked for vectors and was told to follow I-95 to Brunswick turn right and resume my course. I replied, “There are a lot of highways down there.”