Will update the site tomorrow....
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
4 day trip done
Landed at 9:15AM. Home at 9:50AM. Repacked my suitcase and back at the airport by 10:50AM for an 11:30AM flight. First class. A couple of cocktails and a nice lunch later...arrived. Long drive to my in laws. Used my Nexus One for GPS and a hotspot for my laptop. Life is good.
Will update the site tomorrow....
Will update the site tomorrow....
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Didn't see this one coming
I arrived in the crewroom at 5:45AM...early. The computers were down in the entire terminal. I was going to head to the sleep room when I decided to just call crew scheduling and check in. Glad I did.
Scheduling :"Good Morning First Officer, my you're early."
Me: "Yeah, just wanted to call and be the first to let you know the computers are down."
Scheduling: "We now, you're second, did you get my email about your trip at 7:20AM?"
Me: "No, the computers are down."
Scheduling: "Oh yeah, well I have you on a 4 day trip covering all your reserve days."
Me: "Is that legal per contract?"
See I'm a "line holder" in that I have standby all month. They can't take me off standby unless:
1) There is no one else available
2) The trip is prebuilt and has legs that are out of base
I fell into #2. No First Officers available until 10AM. None available for the entire trip. Days 2 and 3 are thru another domicile. I was the only pilot available.
I haven't had a 4 day trip in a long time. My overnight bag for airport standby is packed for 2 days...sometimes 3. Quick to the geek car!
Thankfully I live close. On the way home I called my wife...who wasn't happy as she was still sleeping. I needed her to drive me back to the airport. I made it home, tossed some additional clothes in my bag, swapped computers (I had initially taken my Netbook, wanted my Macbook Pro for a 4 day) and headed back to the airport.
My wife dropped me off at 6:35AM. With only 4 passengers for the first leg we blocked out 10 minutes early. My leg.
During climb out we got a Rudder Limit Fault status message. The rudder was still working fine, but something was wrong. Nothing major as the out station had contract mechanics.
Halfway to the outstation the weather dropped below mins fast. Not forecasted. We slowed down and stayed high. Eighty miles out still at FL290 we realized we couldn't land. If we diverted to an alternate we would be stuck as the alternates we had don't have contract mechanics. The Rudder Limit Fault is a no dispatch item. We had plenty of fuel to simply return to base. That's what we did.
After getting back, the mechanics cleared the fault and out we went again.....3 hours late. My leg again. I managed a surprisingly smooth landing (light weight plus gusty wind no less!).
The outstation only had one gate...which was occupied. Thirty minutes after landing we pulled into the gate. My flight to the overnight was supposed to leave at 11:35AM. We blocked into the out station at 11:42AM.
We arrived back in base at 1:17PM and were now scheduled to dead head to the overnight at 2PM. I hate deadheading. At least on my own airline I can board with the crew and get settled...which is what I did.
Instead of a scheduled 15 hours I have 12. Not horrible.
Tomorrow starts with a 5:40AM van. Here's the rest of my 4 day trip
Monday:
Flight :
Depart City A at 620AM arrive City B 640 AM (different time zone)
Depart City B at 720AM arrive City C 840AM
Depart City C at 910AM arrive City B at 1025AM
Depart City B at 1110AM arrive City D at 225PM
Tuesday
Depart City D 0600AM arrive City B 725AM
Depart City B at 840AM arrive City E 1105AM
Depart City E 1135AM arrive City B 1215PM
Depart City B 105PM arrive City F 2:45PM
Wednesday
Depart City F 800AM arrive in MY domicile 9:15AM
At least this trip has decently long overnights. Monday night I have 14 1/2 hours while Tuesday night I have 16 hours.
Originally this trip had 19 hours of flying, due to the deadhead it's down to just over 16. As of right now I have 1135 hours at my airline and 1690 hours total time. Not a lot...especially considering I started flying almost 4 years ago. My anniversary is May 5....I started ATP May 5 2006.
Now for sleep.
Scheduling :"Good Morning First Officer, my you're early."
Me: "Yeah, just wanted to call and be the first to let you know the computers are down."
Scheduling: "We now, you're second, did you get my email about your trip at 7:20AM?"
Me: "No, the computers are down."
Scheduling: "Oh yeah, well I have you on a 4 day trip covering all your reserve days."
Me: "Is that legal per contract?"
See I'm a "line holder" in that I have standby all month. They can't take me off standby unless:
1) There is no one else available
2) The trip is prebuilt and has legs that are out of base
I fell into #2. No First Officers available until 10AM. None available for the entire trip. Days 2 and 3 are thru another domicile. I was the only pilot available.
I haven't had a 4 day trip in a long time. My overnight bag for airport standby is packed for 2 days...sometimes 3. Quick to the geek car!
Thankfully I live close. On the way home I called my wife...who wasn't happy as she was still sleeping. I needed her to drive me back to the airport. I made it home, tossed some additional clothes in my bag, swapped computers (I had initially taken my Netbook, wanted my Macbook Pro for a 4 day) and headed back to the airport.
My wife dropped me off at 6:35AM. With only 4 passengers for the first leg we blocked out 10 minutes early. My leg.
During climb out we got a Rudder Limit Fault status message. The rudder was still working fine, but something was wrong. Nothing major as the out station had contract mechanics.
Halfway to the outstation the weather dropped below mins fast. Not forecasted. We slowed down and stayed high. Eighty miles out still at FL290 we realized we couldn't land. If we diverted to an alternate we would be stuck as the alternates we had don't have contract mechanics. The Rudder Limit Fault is a no dispatch item. We had plenty of fuel to simply return to base. That's what we did.
After getting back, the mechanics cleared the fault and out we went again.....3 hours late. My leg again. I managed a surprisingly smooth landing (light weight plus gusty wind no less!).
The outstation only had one gate...which was occupied. Thirty minutes after landing we pulled into the gate. My flight to the overnight was supposed to leave at 11:35AM. We blocked into the out station at 11:42AM.
We arrived back in base at 1:17PM and were now scheduled to dead head to the overnight at 2PM. I hate deadheading. At least on my own airline I can board with the crew and get settled...which is what I did.
Instead of a scheduled 15 hours I have 12. Not horrible.
Tomorrow starts with a 5:40AM van. Here's the rest of my 4 day trip
Monday:
Flight :
Depart City A at 620AM arrive City B 640 AM (different time zone)
Depart City B at 720AM arrive City C 840AM
Depart City C at 910AM arrive City B at 1025AM
Depart City B at 1110AM arrive City D at 225PM
Tuesday
Depart City D 0600AM arrive City B 725AM
Depart City B at 840AM arrive City E 1105AM
Depart City E 1135AM arrive City B 1215PM
Depart City B 105PM arrive City F 2:45PM
Wednesday
Depart City F 800AM arrive in MY domicile 9:15AM
At least this trip has decently long overnights. Monday night I have 14 1/2 hours while Tuesday night I have 16 hours.
Originally this trip had 19 hours of flying, due to the deadhead it's down to just over 16. As of right now I have 1135 hours at my airline and 1690 hours total time. Not a lot...especially considering I started flying almost 4 years ago. My anniversary is May 5....I started ATP May 5 2006.
Now for sleep.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
The Interview
I still remember the day I interviewed. Nervous doesn't even describe it.
Left my house super early. The drive was only 15 miles...but I wanted to play it safe.
Before I took my Private Pilot check ride I bought a McDonalds Bacon, Egg and Cheese McGriddle. I passed that check ride the first time. Since then I engorged myself with the same breakfast before each and every check ride. Superstitious? Yes. But I passed each check ride the first time.
The days leading up to my interview were spent reviewing Jepp charts, checking my logbook and reading through "Everything Explained for the Professional Pilot" (worth the $60!). I had previously purchased a nice suit and requisite (though I have no idea why) red tie.
Jepp charts are slightly different than FAA charts. Getting your hands on Jepp charts can be a little tricky if you don't know an airline or corporate pilot. AllATPs gave every career pilot Jepps. This is a nice advantage as I was already used to them.
Because I am a geek and love tech, I transferred all my flight time to Logbook Pro prior to my interview. It didn't take too long, and I found some mathematical mistakes in the process. Once transferred, I pony'd up the money for a very nice leather bound binder and program specific paper to print out my logbook pages. When I went to the interview I brought both my original logbook (which had all my endorsements) and the logbook pro logbook.
The morning of my interview I had the same fatty McDonalds breakfast. I sat in the parking lot 20 minutes early. My nerves were so high I didn't want to eat, but not wanting to screw up a good track record of success I finished off the salty/sweet McGriddle.
I walked in and met with security. After getting a badge I made my way to the waiting room which was filled with 15 or so other pilots. The age range was vast. I was 30 at the time. There were pilots as young as 22 and as old as 54.
Not a whole lot of talking at first. Right on time a representative came out and led us to another room....the holding room.
We all loosened up a bit. There were a few other pilots who went to ATP in my group. One was very cocky. He was talking bad about ATP and how they screwed him over (I later looked up his records....he had a lengthy notes section with "bad attitude" and "lack of motivation" scattered about). He continued to say how he was more than qualified for the job (he had 1/2 the time I did!) .
The pilot next to me was in his low 50's. He had been a CFI in Arizona for a few years...flying a King Air on the side. He had just over 5000 hours...almost 10X my time. A bit intimidating.
Shortly after arriving in the room, pilots were being called out for interviews. They had already collected our logbooks and other documents. I sat for about 35 minutes before I was called.
I was lead to a small room with just 3 chairs, a desk and bookcase. Behind the desk was an older gentleman. When I sat down he greeted me and tried to make me feel at ease. Eh. He then opened up a Jepp book to a random airport and asked me to brief the departure procedure. Seemed simple enough.
My adrenaline shot up. I rattled out the procedure at full speed (I can talk VERY fast). When I was done he gave me a blank stare. "I have no idea what you just said," he replied. "Brief the departure as though WE are getting ready to fly it."
My first attempt at briefing the departure was like me telling a student. I was in CFI mode. I took a deep breath and then stated, "OK, this is the Mozie3 departure. ATIS states we will be taking off from runway 23. Our first fix is the OBK VOR. After takeoff we have to climb to 1200 FT before making the initial turn to heading 300 and expect RADAR vectors from there. There is a mountain range to the left of the runway center line that curves around that we need to be mindful of in case we have any problems. The initial altitude is 8000 feet so we should expect that. " He looked down at the chart and said I could have done better and that I talk way too fast. I left that room not feeling so good. "Did I just blow it?" I thought to myself.
Back to the holding room. When I arrived I learned a few pilots had already been sent home. Ugh. There was one pilot about 23 who was already at his second airline.
His first gig was on a Saab 340. He was realized the time to upgrade was too long and jumped ship to a charter company that flew 727's. When he hired on there the time to upgrade was just 2 years. Initially he sat sideways as a Flight Engineer. Upgrades stopped. He wanted out....which is why he was there interviewing.
My next interview was personality. I have loads of personality. This interview went much better. I did have one perplexing question, "Name something about yourself that you could improve on." Hmmm what flaw should I expose? I can be hard headed....no that's not a good thing to expose. I went with, "Well I do have the tendency to talk fast." He gave me an odd look and wrapped up the interview.
Once again in the holding room. More pilots gone, including the previously mentioned cocky pilot from ATP. Not surprised. I was happy to still be there.
An airline rep came in with a sheet up paper. She began calling out names. When she was finished, mine wasn't one of them. Was I done? Those who were called were led out of the room. Another rep came in. "You all have a break for lunch. Come back in an hour." I was still in!
I ate lunch with a few pilots around my age. One lady had about 2500 hours. She flew cargo out in Florida. The stories she told made me to never want to fly cargo. Sketchy planes. Demanding schedule. Lots of bad weather. It was kind of odd hearing these stories from this 5 foot 5, slender, redhead lady. I picture cargo pilots as gruffy men who smoke and have tattoos.
After lunch we were handed back our logbooks and sent to a simulator evaluation.
We were all given the same approach chart and told the brief it. The instructor gave us hints about what many pilots screw up on. I made notes on the approach chart. When it was my turn I put the approach chart on the yoke clip. He took it off. "What do you need this for? You already briefed it right?".
The sim evaluation went fine. My years of playing Microsoft Flight Simulator plus the ATP Regional Jet Course made it easy. We were all sent home and told to expect a phone call or letter.
In the mail came "the letter"...I was hired.
Left my house super early. The drive was only 15 miles...but I wanted to play it safe.
Before I took my Private Pilot check ride I bought a McDonalds Bacon, Egg and Cheese McGriddle. I passed that check ride the first time. Since then I engorged myself with the same breakfast before each and every check ride. Superstitious? Yes. But I passed each check ride the first time.
The days leading up to my interview were spent reviewing Jepp charts, checking my logbook and reading through "Everything Explained for the Professional Pilot" (worth the $60!). I had previously purchased a nice suit and requisite (though I have no idea why) red tie.
Jepp charts are slightly different than FAA charts. Getting your hands on Jepp charts can be a little tricky if you don't know an airline or corporate pilot. AllATPs gave every career pilot Jepps. This is a nice advantage as I was already used to them.
Because I am a geek and love tech, I transferred all my flight time to Logbook Pro prior to my interview. It didn't take too long, and I found some mathematical mistakes in the process. Once transferred, I pony'd up the money for a very nice leather bound binder and program specific paper to print out my logbook pages. When I went to the interview I brought both my original logbook (which had all my endorsements) and the logbook pro logbook.
The morning of my interview I had the same fatty McDonalds breakfast. I sat in the parking lot 20 minutes early. My nerves were so high I didn't want to eat, but not wanting to screw up a good track record of success I finished off the salty/sweet McGriddle.
I walked in and met with security. After getting a badge I made my way to the waiting room which was filled with 15 or so other pilots. The age range was vast. I was 30 at the time. There were pilots as young as 22 and as old as 54.
Not a whole lot of talking at first. Right on time a representative came out and led us to another room....the holding room.
We all loosened up a bit. There were a few other pilots who went to ATP in my group. One was very cocky. He was talking bad about ATP and how they screwed him over (I later looked up his records....he had a lengthy notes section with "bad attitude" and "lack of motivation" scattered about). He continued to say how he was more than qualified for the job (he had 1/2 the time I did!) .
The pilot next to me was in his low 50's. He had been a CFI in Arizona for a few years...flying a King Air on the side. He had just over 5000 hours...almost 10X my time. A bit intimidating.
Shortly after arriving in the room, pilots were being called out for interviews. They had already collected our logbooks and other documents. I sat for about 35 minutes before I was called.
I was lead to a small room with just 3 chairs, a desk and bookcase. Behind the desk was an older gentleman. When I sat down he greeted me and tried to make me feel at ease. Eh. He then opened up a Jepp book to a random airport and asked me to brief the departure procedure. Seemed simple enough.
My adrenaline shot up. I rattled out the procedure at full speed (I can talk VERY fast). When I was done he gave me a blank stare. "I have no idea what you just said," he replied. "Brief the departure as though WE are getting ready to fly it."
My first attempt at briefing the departure was like me telling a student. I was in CFI mode. I took a deep breath and then stated, "OK, this is the Mozie3 departure. ATIS states we will be taking off from runway 23. Our first fix is the OBK VOR. After takeoff we have to climb to 1200 FT before making the initial turn to heading 300 and expect RADAR vectors from there. There is a mountain range to the left of the runway center line that curves around that we need to be mindful of in case we have any problems. The initial altitude is 8000 feet so we should expect that. " He looked down at the chart and said I could have done better and that I talk way too fast. I left that room not feeling so good. "Did I just blow it?" I thought to myself.
Back to the holding room. When I arrived I learned a few pilots had already been sent home. Ugh. There was one pilot about 23 who was already at his second airline.
His first gig was on a Saab 340. He was realized the time to upgrade was too long and jumped ship to a charter company that flew 727's. When he hired on there the time to upgrade was just 2 years. Initially he sat sideways as a Flight Engineer. Upgrades stopped. He wanted out....which is why he was there interviewing.
My next interview was personality. I have loads of personality. This interview went much better. I did have one perplexing question, "Name something about yourself that you could improve on." Hmmm what flaw should I expose? I can be hard headed....no that's not a good thing to expose. I went with, "Well I do have the tendency to talk fast." He gave me an odd look and wrapped up the interview.
Once again in the holding room. More pilots gone, including the previously mentioned cocky pilot from ATP. Not surprised. I was happy to still be there.
An airline rep came in with a sheet up paper. She began calling out names. When she was finished, mine wasn't one of them. Was I done? Those who were called were led out of the room. Another rep came in. "You all have a break for lunch. Come back in an hour." I was still in!
I ate lunch with a few pilots around my age. One lady had about 2500 hours. She flew cargo out in Florida. The stories she told made me to never want to fly cargo. Sketchy planes. Demanding schedule. Lots of bad weather. It was kind of odd hearing these stories from this 5 foot 5, slender, redhead lady. I picture cargo pilots as gruffy men who smoke and have tattoos.
After lunch we were handed back our logbooks and sent to a simulator evaluation.
We were all given the same approach chart and told the brief it. The instructor gave us hints about what many pilots screw up on. I made notes on the approach chart. When it was my turn I put the approach chart on the yoke clip. He took it off. "What do you need this for? You already briefed it right?".
The sim evaluation went fine. My years of playing Microsoft Flight Simulator plus the ATP Regional Jet Course made it easy. We were all sent home and told to expect a phone call or letter.
In the mail came "the letter"...I was hired.
Monday, April 12, 2010
This morning stuff...eh
I have flown more by the 12th of this month than I did all of March. I flew 16 hours on reserve last month. When I go to bed tonight I will have flown 18 hours. The difference? Morning standby and planes needing maintenance.
Getting up at 5AM got old on day one. The morning rush of airport employees is much greater than the afternoon. Fighting for seat space on the bus with the rampers, gate agents and everyone else sucks. The buses that are used for employee buses have room for about 4 employee bags. The rental car buses have more room for bags! The rest of the bags are stacked on chairs or in the aisle. Nice eh?
Had an interesting flight yesterday. Flew a plane that I Ferry'd out of maintenance last week. When we picked it up we had a problem with a main cabin door indication. It showed closed, but when we fired up the engines we got a main cabin door master warning. After the mechanics cycled the door a few times it was fine. Never gave us another problem.
Sunday morning a buddy of mine flew it in and mentioned the same issue with the same plane. It was written up and checked out fine. Hmm.
When we departed everything was fine. Mid-flight at FL380 we got a PAX DOOR HANDLE caution. After running the checklist, no action required beyond monitoring cabin pressure. The main cabin door is a plug type door meaning as the plane pressurizes, it helps seal up the door. A few minutes later the caution went out.
At the outstation we loaded up passengers, closed the door, started the engines....and were assaulted by master warning lights and the word "door! door!" booming over the flight deck speakers. After a inspection by a mechanic...we were on our way. A sensor on the outer handle was just slightly out of alignment. Problem solved.
Sitting ready this morning I was hoping to not go anywhere....I still have to do our taxes. No luck. Deadheading out to a maintenance base, ferrying a plane back, sitting around and then ferrying another plane back to the maintenance base for an overnight. At the but crack of dawn (5:50AM departure....5:00AM van) I deadhead back. Hopefully I will be done when I get back.
The reason for all the maintenance? Many airlines do major maintenance/upgrades in April/May to get ready for the summer travel season.
Bidding for May opens soon....sure would like my afternoon standby line back.
Getting up at 5AM got old on day one. The morning rush of airport employees is much greater than the afternoon. Fighting for seat space on the bus with the rampers, gate agents and everyone else sucks. The buses that are used for employee buses have room for about 4 employee bags. The rental car buses have more room for bags! The rest of the bags are stacked on chairs or in the aisle. Nice eh?
Had an interesting flight yesterday. Flew a plane that I Ferry'd out of maintenance last week. When we picked it up we had a problem with a main cabin door indication. It showed closed, but when we fired up the engines we got a main cabin door master warning. After the mechanics cycled the door a few times it was fine. Never gave us another problem.
Sunday morning a buddy of mine flew it in and mentioned the same issue with the same plane. It was written up and checked out fine. Hmm.
When we departed everything was fine. Mid-flight at FL380 we got a PAX DOOR HANDLE caution. After running the checklist, no action required beyond monitoring cabin pressure. The main cabin door is a plug type door meaning as the plane pressurizes, it helps seal up the door. A few minutes later the caution went out.
At the outstation we loaded up passengers, closed the door, started the engines....and were assaulted by master warning lights and the word "door! door!" booming over the flight deck speakers. After a inspection by a mechanic...we were on our way. A sensor on the outer handle was just slightly out of alignment. Problem solved.
Sitting ready this morning I was hoping to not go anywhere....I still have to do our taxes. No luck. Deadheading out to a maintenance base, ferrying a plane back, sitting around and then ferrying another plane back to the maintenance base for an overnight. At the but crack of dawn (5:50AM departure....5:00AM van) I deadhead back. Hopefully I will be done when I get back.
The reason for all the maintenance? Many airlines do major maintenance/upgrades in April/May to get ready for the summer travel season.
Bidding for May opens soon....sure would like my afternoon standby line back.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Her look was priceless
Yesterday was a long day.
Up at 4:55AM. Out the door at 5:15AM. On the bus at 5:35AM. Sign in at 5:55AM. Morning airport standby.
Thought it would be a boring day. Nah. Called at 9:30AM for a 9:40AM deadhead to a maintenance base to ferry a plane back. Told the scheduler I would be there as quickly as a I can. I'm through rushing for scheduling. No thanks. They should have planned better. Improper planning on their part does not constitute an emergency on my part. Made it fine along with the standby Captain.
After walking from the terminal to the hangar we were not surprised to learn the plane wasn't quite ready. Short delay we were ready to leave. With just us on board we had to close the main cabin door ourselves. Something we don't normally do. The door markers indicated closed as did our cockpit door monitoring system. After starting up the second engine we got red flashing warning lights accompanied by "Door! Door!" being announced over the speakers.
I hopped up and made sure all the door closed marks were lined up. They were. I tried cycling the door a few times. No joy. Not fixed. After a visit by the lead mechanic it seemed it was an anomaly. Couldn't reproduce it. Away we went.
I took the leg back to base. There was 10,000 pounds of fuel on board. Takeoff weight was a scant 56,000 pounds.
A 2009 Chevrolet Z06 does o-100 in about 11 seconds. I didn't time it, but we went 0-130 (150 MPH) knots in under 3000 feet..had to be less than 12 seconds. Being so light I had to be careful not to over rotate. The second segment climb at 200 knots equated to 4500 feet per minute sustained. Our clearance was to 5000 feet. Prior to takeoff I requested higher and was given 12000 feet. This was better than a roller coaster as I was in control. Awesome.
Of course the landing was little tricky. Even on speed it floated. Not bad.
Once back in base we were assigned to sit for 2 hours then ferry another plane back to the maintenance base and dead head back.
This time there was only 7000 pounds on fuel on board. Captains leg. We both had goofy smiles on our faces.
The departure had a 6000 foot minimum crossing altitude restriction. Normally we cross the fix at 7000-8000 feet. On this trip we were at 13000 feet. Awesome.
After parking the plane we at 3:05PM we sat around until 5:30PM for a deadhead home. Long day. I ended my duty day at 7PM. Thirteen hour work day. On the employee bus I saw a flight attendant I've worked with a few times. She was happy as she finally got a hard line. When I told her about my day and that I had to be back at 6AM she looked at her watch and said, "wait, really?" Priceless.
Home by 7:30PM. Tired. Bed at 10PM. Up at 4:55AM. Back again today at 6AM. Glad I don't commute. Could be very expensive as morning airport reserve crews don't normally get overnights.
Up at 4:55AM. Out the door at 5:15AM. On the bus at 5:35AM. Sign in at 5:55AM. Morning airport standby.
Thought it would be a boring day. Nah. Called at 9:30AM for a 9:40AM deadhead to a maintenance base to ferry a plane back. Told the scheduler I would be there as quickly as a I can. I'm through rushing for scheduling. No thanks. They should have planned better. Improper planning on their part does not constitute an emergency on my part. Made it fine along with the standby Captain.
After walking from the terminal to the hangar we were not surprised to learn the plane wasn't quite ready. Short delay we were ready to leave. With just us on board we had to close the main cabin door ourselves. Something we don't normally do. The door markers indicated closed as did our cockpit door monitoring system. After starting up the second engine we got red flashing warning lights accompanied by "Door! Door!" being announced over the speakers.
I hopped up and made sure all the door closed marks were lined up. They were. I tried cycling the door a few times. No joy. Not fixed. After a visit by the lead mechanic it seemed it was an anomaly. Couldn't reproduce it. Away we went.
I took the leg back to base. There was 10,000 pounds of fuel on board. Takeoff weight was a scant 56,000 pounds.
A 2009 Chevrolet Z06 does o-100 in about 11 seconds. I didn't time it, but we went 0-130 (150 MPH) knots in under 3000 feet..had to be less than 12 seconds. Being so light I had to be careful not to over rotate. The second segment climb at 200 knots equated to 4500 feet per minute sustained. Our clearance was to 5000 feet. Prior to takeoff I requested higher and was given 12000 feet. This was better than a roller coaster as I was in control. Awesome.
Of course the landing was little tricky. Even on speed it floated. Not bad.
Once back in base we were assigned to sit for 2 hours then ferry another plane back to the maintenance base and dead head back.
This time there was only 7000 pounds on fuel on board. Captains leg. We both had goofy smiles on our faces.
The departure had a 6000 foot minimum crossing altitude restriction. Normally we cross the fix at 7000-8000 feet. On this trip we were at 13000 feet. Awesome.
After parking the plane we at 3:05PM we sat around until 5:30PM for a deadhead home. Long day. I ended my duty day at 7PM. Thirteen hour work day. On the employee bus I saw a flight attendant I've worked with a few times. She was happy as she finally got a hard line. When I told her about my day and that I had to be back at 6AM she looked at her watch and said, "wait, really?" Priceless.
Home by 7:30PM. Tired. Bed at 10PM. Up at 4:55AM. Back again today at 6AM. Glad I don't commute. Could be very expensive as morning airport reserve crews don't normally get overnights.
Monday, April 5, 2010
QC2 + UFlyMike.....4 months later
I've been flying with my UFlyMike and Bose QC2 combo for a few months now. Overall I am very happy. They aren't much quieter than my previous Telex ANR 500. The biggest difference is weight. The Telex was heavier. Also the Telex used the odd ball 9 volt battery while the Bose QC2 uses a more common AA.
[singlepic id=426 w=640 h=480 float=center]
Battery life has been very good. It helps that I fly a fairly quiet plane. I get about 50 hours of use with name brand batteries.
I've gotten used to having the FAA TSO required headphones under the Bose QC2. The Captain's I fly with all give me a double take thinking I have a MP3 player and my headset. Once I explain it they either get it or think it's too much trouble.
Once I'm up at cruise I take off the headphones and use just the QC2s. My company manual only requires headphones and booms mikes below FL180.
Another perk is being able to change out the microphone for the stock cable during deadheads and enjoying regular music.
Would I buy it again? Yes. The Telex 500 ANR can be had for about $450-$510. A Bose + UflyMike setup cost a little over $600. Being able to use AA batteries is a huge plus in my book.
Bose doesn't sell QC2's anymore. The QC15's I also own sounded a little off when I first used them. Could have been my headset, not sure. UFlyMike has great support and mentioned no issues when using the QC15s. For those who require a TSO'd headset, to my knowledge the QC15 isn't TSO'd yet.
[singlepic id=426 w=640 h=480 float=center]
Battery life has been very good. It helps that I fly a fairly quiet plane. I get about 50 hours of use with name brand batteries.
I've gotten used to having the FAA TSO required headphones under the Bose QC2. The Captain's I fly with all give me a double take thinking I have a MP3 player and my headset. Once I explain it they either get it or think it's too much trouble.
Once I'm up at cruise I take off the headphones and use just the QC2s. My company manual only requires headphones and booms mikes below FL180.
Another perk is being able to change out the microphone for the stock cable during deadheads and enjoying regular music.
Would I buy it again? Yes. The Telex 500 ANR can be had for about $450-$510. A Bose + UflyMike setup cost a little over $600. Being able to use AA batteries is a huge plus in my book.
Bose doesn't sell QC2's anymore. The QC15's I also own sounded a little off when I first used them. Could have been my headset, not sure. UFlyMike has great support and mentioned no issues when using the QC15s. For those who require a TSO'd headset, to my knowledge the QC15 isn't TSO'd yet.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Free coffee
The alarm went off at 4:45AM...for the first time in a long time. Time to start my month.
I repacked my overnight bag last night. It's packed for 4 days of being on the road. Not that I think I will use it.
Out the door at 5:15AM. I could have been earlier, but I couldn't find my glasses for the life of me. Had them last night. Gone this morning. Contacts it is .
I parked my car in the employee lot at 5:31AM. Quiet...no departures or arrivals yet. Lot filled with literally hundreds of airport workers. The employee buses are doing the equivalent of quick turns. They stop, quickly load up and go. The buses aren't designed for flight crews. Very little luggage space which is annoying. Sometimes I will flip up a seat for more luggage room.
After walking down the dimly lit hallway I reached the crew room, signed in, grabbed my Zune HD (way better than an Ipod!) and headed to the quiet room to try and sleep.
After finishing my daily dose of Mac OS Ken, I gave up. Can't sleep. Back into the crew room.
Buddy of mine came in from an overnight. We discussed current going on's. The latest rumors. Good times.
His current girlfriend used to be a student of mine when I was at ATP. She is currently at Lynx Aviation (regional for Frontier) but is getting let go along with all the other Lynx pilots. Her dad was with Southwest for, if my memory serves, more than 25+ years. If she can get the turbine PIC she is almost a shoe in (she is a very good pilot). She has inverviews at a few regionals, one with a quick upgrade. The problem is the base is across the country.....long commute. She could simply stay put and get on with our airline, but the upgrade won't come for a while. Tough situation. Tough problem.
While we were sitting there an email came out. Looks like the powers that be decided to not close my small base. Nice. If I decide to stay put I will be the most junior for a long time. I could take the choice to commute to a base and easily hold a line. Choices.
I last had morning airport reserve as a line in February 2009. I am getting back into my routine. A bagel shop has free refills on coffee in another terminal. I used to go there in the morning and tap away on the computer while sucking down coffee. Glad to see it's still here. Gonna be a long month.
I repacked my overnight bag last night. It's packed for 4 days of being on the road. Not that I think I will use it.
Out the door at 5:15AM. I could have been earlier, but I couldn't find my glasses for the life of me. Had them last night. Gone this morning. Contacts it is .
I parked my car in the employee lot at 5:31AM. Quiet...no departures or arrivals yet. Lot filled with literally hundreds of airport workers. The employee buses are doing the equivalent of quick turns. They stop, quickly load up and go. The buses aren't designed for flight crews. Very little luggage space which is annoying. Sometimes I will flip up a seat for more luggage room.
After walking down the dimly lit hallway I reached the crew room, signed in, grabbed my Zune HD (way better than an Ipod!) and headed to the quiet room to try and sleep.
After finishing my daily dose of Mac OS Ken, I gave up. Can't sleep. Back into the crew room.
Buddy of mine came in from an overnight. We discussed current going on's. The latest rumors. Good times.
His current girlfriend used to be a student of mine when I was at ATP. She is currently at Lynx Aviation (regional for Frontier) but is getting let go along with all the other Lynx pilots. Her dad was with Southwest for, if my memory serves, more than 25+ years. If she can get the turbine PIC she is almost a shoe in (she is a very good pilot). She has inverviews at a few regionals, one with a quick upgrade. The problem is the base is across the country.....long commute. She could simply stay put and get on with our airline, but the upgrade won't come for a while. Tough situation. Tough problem.
While we were sitting there an email came out. Looks like the powers that be decided to not close my small base. Nice. If I decide to stay put I will be the most junior for a long time. I could take the choice to commute to a base and easily hold a line. Choices.
I last had morning airport reserve as a line in February 2009. I am getting back into my routine. A bagel shop has free refills on coffee in another terminal. I used to go there in the morning and tap away on the computer while sucking down coffee. Glad to see it's still here. Gonna be a long month.
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