Just wondering what made your butt grab seat leather.

Great timing on this question. . .it happened yesterday evening! I was on short final for runway 35 at my home base (doing touch and go's). when I hear a foreign student announce in broken English that he is base for runway 35. (I had been calling each leg of my pattern on all of my circuits. This guy comes in from outside the area and doesn't use his radio until on base leg.) I called to the other pilot and ask him to repeat his location and he stated he was turning final for 35. At this point I crammed in the throttle, turned a steep bank and abandoned my approach.

When I confronted the other pilot on the ground he apologized and stated he was running low on fuel. He hadn't bothered to check his facility directory to see that the FBO had closed 3 hours beforehand.

To top it all off, when the guy left there were two other airplanes in pattern approaching to land. The guy didn't even bother to make a single radio call as he taxied out and departed. Unfortunately we tend to have an overabundance of foreign students inbound from Ft. Worth/Dallas that use the local field as a cross country stopover. They frequently fail to use the radio, utilize the proper traffic pattern, or look for other traffic.

Stay alert out there!

P.S. A foreign student recently died in the local area after becoming disoriented, running low on fuel, and then landing downwind on a short field. He overshot the runway, landed on an interstate hitting a passing 18 wheeler and was killed. The guy I had my experience with was also trying a downwind landing (runway 17). Had he been monitoring UNICOM he would have heard both myself and a third pilot making repeated landings on runway 35.

[This message has been edited by MooneyCadet (edited 08-27-2001).]

My most intense flight (maybe not scariest flight) was an IFR trip I made from Baltimore to Chicago (Lansing, IL) in one hop in my Turbo Arrow IV. It was late October and it was unusually cold for this time. I knew I had the range, but would be faced with 40 kt headwinds, instrument conditions and possible icing conditions along the whole route. I spent over an hour debating with myself whether or not to make the flight. I am instrument-rated and so was my trusty co-pilot. I really wanted to do this flight. Finally, after getting some PIREPs I was convinced that we could fly at 12,000 ft (love that turbo) and stay above the weather.

After a few short minutes of concern waiting for Dulles approach to clear us to 12,000 ft before entering icing conditions, the trip went very well. Occasionally, clouds poked up beyond 12,000 ft. (remember icing is most severe at the cloud tops). So, I asked ATC for a block altitude from 12,000 to 13,000 ft. They were happy to help. We only had to climb to about 12,600 a few times.

Now, the headwind was more like 60 kts and the time at 12,000 ft. and above was getting longer and longer without oxygen. I have a portable oxygen unit, but failed to bring it. That won't happen again.

Eventually, the next task was to descend through the clouds and possibly pick up ice. I knew the ceilings below were about 4000 ft, so I had to get through about 4000 ft of clouds with possible(?) ice. The ride was fairly smooth, so I expedited the descent and only picked up a little ice after insisting on getting down below 4000 ft. Almost forgot to turn on pitot heat. Pitot heat is a preventative measure not necessarily designed to remove ice already formed.

My bladder at this point (after 5 1/2 hours in the air) was ready to bust. I escaped one situation only to be faced with another. I was so focused on making the enroute flight that I totally forgot about the weather conditions at the surface; winds were reported gusting to 35 kts and to make matters worse it would be a direct crosswind. Did I also mention that my bladder was ready to bust? I was cleared for the visual approach and cancelled IFR. I entered the pattern and turned final approach (sort of). The wind was so strong that I had to look out my left window along the front of the wing in order to stay on the extended centerline. Talk about crabbing! Just for yuks, I hit full rudder just to see if I could straighten it out. Not a chance. Still had about 20 degrees to go even with full rudder.

Well the wind gods were on my side. I decided to try it and as I was getting closer to the surface the winds died down just enough for me to squeak in a maximum crosswind landing. Even my co-pilot was amazed I was able to get it down.

I could have went to another airport, but I was getting to the point where fuel was critical. Didn't want to test my fuel planning capabilities. Fortunately the Arrow has a good solid range and had enough fuel in the tanks to fly for another hour or so. A good learning experience, but I don't know if I'd flown without another capable pilot in the right seat.

It was on my 3rd solo. I was doing pattern work, and the area was very busy. I had extended downwinds on every circut. Anyway, on my third pass through the pattern, I heard the controller talking to a Gulfstream who was 5 miles out on a straight in approach. I made a mental note not to turn base until I made visual contact an was clear to do so. I extended my downwind, and saw a Gulfstream pass by. I turned Base. I was about to turn final when I heard the controller speaking with "another" Gulfstream. I seem to remember hearing something about 2 mile final. That was enough to make me look out my right window and see a very large (at least compared to my 172!) corporate jet bearing down on me! Right away, I made a left 360 to avoid turning final. At that time, the controller saw what was happening and asked me to make the left 360 I had already begun. Anyway, the jet passed on by, and I followed him in...but at a VERY safe distance!

Once I had time to reflect, I realized that there were 2 Gulfstreams. I assumed that once I saw the first one go by, I was clear. When the second one came just a minute or two behind him, I was caught by surprise.

Lessons learned:
1) If you are not sure about where other aircraft are, or if it is safe for you to turn base, ask the controller for help! Since this experience, I have asked the tower to call my base a few times. I'd rather be safe than sorry!
2) Always listen closely to the radio calls. This helps you to keep track of where other planes are in relation to you.

I was on a flight to Teterboro, NJ from Detroit area. I was working on building cross-country time and had my CFI with me. I was still learning just navigate around the system and didn't have a real comprehensive knowledge of weather. The trip started off in VMC and we picked up a IFR enroute. The WX on the other end turned out to have level 4's up to 52,000'....the back end of a severe line of BOOMERS. We were dropped done to 2K for arrival and the thunderstorms were bad but scattered, so upon advice from my CFI sitting next to me we started skirting the area. Well ATC gave me a vector for approach intercept and it headed me in the direction of an ugly looking towering-cumulonimbus, nothing was said from the left seat so I continued....well it turned out the WX was moving on us at an intercept as well and we got swallowed up on the south end of the thunderstorm. We got thrown down 1600' in seconds and thankfully the microburst thru us out and we were in the clear again and shaking.
I didn't know some about something like, how radar atenuates and the controller can't see weather behind other weather if he's even got the radar weather function on. The one thing I've taken away from that is if your in doubt and don't feel good about pointing the nose into something that doesn't look good...DON'T. Always ask for deviations...you will get them!

Several months ago I was shooting touch and goes in a C150. The third time around I decided to practice a go around. I was at about 100 feet, slow and with full flaps, when the seat latch came loose.

My CFI insisted that his students always keep thier hand on the throttle during take off.

With the seat sliding back and forth I held on for dear life with my right hand and tried to keep the nose down with my left.

After what seemed like forever I was high enough to deal with the seat. I pulled myself forward enough to get it latched I was still too far back to reach the pedals, but I was able to regain enough control to retracted the flaps. After reaching pattern altitude I reajusted the seat and made an uneventful landing.

I don't think they'll get my finger marks off the the throttle lock.

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JimP

Jim,

You've got to be a lot shorter than me, if you had trouble reaching the rudders in a 150. I run the seat all the way back, and wish it would go further! My legs bang the bottom of the panel when I go for the brakes.

I'm 6'2" and I think I'll stick with the 172.

Fly safe!

I had a run away hobbs meter one time...."Oh Please God Help MEEEEE!!!!"

A few months ago, I was practicing turns around a point. I could see my own shadow on the ground. Suddenly, I noticed not just one, but TWO other shadows of airplanes approaching my shadow on the ground from different directions. I looked everywhere, but I couldn't see the other two planes converging on my position. I cringed as I watched ALL THREE SHADOWS briefly merge into one. When I felt no impact, I assumed that I had survived. A bit shaken from the experience, I flew straight back to the airport and kissed the ground when I landed!

I was due for my three stop and go's for night currency so I headed off to TCL on a Tuesday night. I called FSS, on the field then, and was told that there was one cell on radar about 50 or 60 miles away. However skies were unobscured locally. Since I was staying in the pattern I figured no problem. As I turned crosswind I felt the wind pick-up and on downwind it became very bumpy in the C-172. On base, the rain began to come in torrents. "Final" was taking on new meanings. Anyway, I kept the airspeed up for my landing on 29. Just as I crossed the threshold, the wind stopped and I fell in about 10 feet or so, bounced and turned sharply left. When I got it straightend out I was lined up, not with 29 but with the ramp and 5 parked airplanes! Full power and flaps to 10 I went around to try again. Same scenario again. This time I flew it to the ground and rolled to stop. As I entered the FBO the phone rang, it was FSS calling to apolgize for mis-reading the cell. As a consolation he told me I could mark three landings for all the bouncing I did!

Actually, I have been pretty lucky - I have been officially flying for about 8 years and nothing has really "scared" me (other than the bill when I paid for the rental!).

However, as I crossed the threshold of an airport in Oklahoma (F31), a deer ran out in front of me, about 500 feet going from right to left! Needless to say, I did a go around. Who knows... where there is one deer there has got to be two... right?