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Do you" HATE" flying?

ksandrew

ksandrew

Well-known member
Supporting Member
Nr. Albany, GA
Aircraft Year
1974
Aircraft Type
112 Hot Shot
Reg Number
N1182J
Serial Number
155
I must have crossed the Atlantic Ocean at least one hundred times. The only bad flight I ever had was after my Father died and I was going home for the funeral.

Every Atlantic crossing has been fantastic, and I mean fantastic. I wish that I had kept some kind of record of each flight, what airline I was on.

Many years ago I would be in the back of the plane, in the smoking section so I could sit back and enjoy smoking my pipe. Times have changed.

I can not even remember all the airlines that I have traveled with, from Freddie Laker, to Virgin Atlantic. I have paid from nothing on a freighter to $1000.00 last year.

I once spent a whole week in Europe during bad weather trying to get back to the USA, I kept missing flights on purpose trying to be put on Concorde, did not work.

last year Delta made a big mistake, I requested seat A3 and was assigned to it. I have not figured out what happened but I was in first class. A flight of a lifetime in first class.
I even wore a jacket and tie. the only person in first class so dressed.

I have always considered that airline food is very good, under the circumstances. everyone complains about it, I think that it is very god.

Now lets talk about Commanders. If I really hated flying I would have a faster plane. I am small enough to cram myself into a Mooney. I have opened many a can or sardines so know how it works,

But I enjoy flying so why would I want to arrive at the destination so quickly. I travel a lot from central Florida to Georgia, so many flights I look at my GPS, I will be home in 45 mins. It is such a beautiful night that I slow down to enjoy the view.

So if you really hate flying, you need a faster plane. So you can spend less time flying.

Those of us who knew Sven can remember what he used to say about speed.

Life is a barrel of fun.

Ken
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying.

Re: Do you" HATE" flying.

A contrarian opinion!

I love flying, but I also love going fast. I love all aspects of performance. Must admit that I miss the tactical jet world of afterburner climbs, pointing your nose at the ground, seeing VSI movements of 40 to 50 thousand feet per minute in both directions. Pulling G's till your body hurts and coming back a sweaty mess.

I also enjoy the fantastic range and comfort of the G550. Non stop flights from Southern California to Zurich without having to worry about fuel. Cabin altitude of less than 5k while cruising at FL450. Full galley and a flight attendant to round out the experience.

But certainly there is a very special place in my heart for the Commander. Flying and aesthetics go hand and hand and no other single engine four place piston aircraft can compare aesthetically to the Commanders. I greatly appreciate the interior room, baggage capacity (a necessity with my wife) and useful load. The speed, while not really fast will still beat the airlines for travel time on most flights. Strong tailwinds will always put a smile on my face. I was going from FHB to FRG a few years ago with Kim. Forecast was for good winds all the way. Told Kim we could make it non stop. She asked how long?told her about 4:30. She said we'll stop!! Even without the tailwinds there is always something to make each flight pleasurable.

When people talk about speed I'm reminded of a old check airman I had back when I was flying a Falcon 20. He said I don't care how fast you go...two hours of flight time is two hours of flight time! Unless you're in a King Air ..then it's two hours and 15 minutes!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying.

Re: Do you" HATE" flying.

Haven't crossed even once, but I enjoyed your post.
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying.

Re: Do you" HATE" flying.

Ken and Douglas eloquently put lore of flying from the heart writeups.
Yes flying any type of flying is a gift.
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

I must really HATE flying.
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

I love flying
 
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Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

You guys should've been with me today.

Over 7 hours from eastern TN to Dallas, and that was VFR direct.

I topped off 90 gallons before leaving, bought 38 more gallons in Memphis, and had to reduce throttle to avoid a second fuel stop before getting home. 38 knot headwind from Chattanooga to Memphis, 43 knot headwind from Memphis to the Red River, and 52 knot headwind in the descent. The bulk of the time from Memphis to DFW was at 98 knots ground speed.

DFW approach: "35 miles to McKinney call airport in sight"

(15 minutes passes)

DFW approach: "hey 5 tango charlie you still going to McKinney?"

Me: "yeah but you got a 52 knot headwind at 4 thousand so it's gonna be a minute"

And then of course the tach on my 930 dies, lol....

Somewhat tricky to turn and land in a 52 knot wind with no tach.
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

Good grief, a 52 knot wind with a tach would be be hard enough!
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

It has happened the past 6 months that I have had a ton of trips out west, in the winter months, so very hard to do with the Commander. So a ton of commercial flying for me. The brain damage the airline puts you through ... the idiotic things they do that actually COST them money ... are beyond any level of comprehension. I could tell some stories from just the past few months that would curl your hair, but then, you probably have your own.

So I love everything about flying the Commander, yes. And at least a couple of times a year I will fly all the way back from Florida at 500 - 1,000 AGL, or from Texas or Louisiana flying the Mississippi as low and slow as possible. I love aerobatics and i love taking kids or even adults up for their first flights. And both the patients I fly for Wings of Mercy and the dogs for Pilots n Paws bring me great joy.

But commercial flying? The flying itself is fine. Had one a couple of weeks ago from Edmonton to Phoenix, over mountains the entire trip and it was stunning. But all the crap you go through until you are seated in the cabin ... from purchasing tickets to getting seats to boarding ... is not something to love. It often makes me angry, and I am not the "get angry" type ... so I get angry over the fact that they made me angry!!!
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

Ken,
Mentioned the 'smoking section'. Never picked up the habit so I would 'opt' for the non-smoking section when checking in for an o'seas flight.

The nice lady at the counter would assign me Aisle Row 79 and off I'd go.:)
'Just' after takeoff the chime would ding and the no-smoking light would extinguish only for rows 80 to 120 to light up. A cloud would engulf you :eek:. . those were the days. I felt for the poor attendants who had to endure that flight after flight.
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

N4843W said:
It has happened the past 6 months that I have had a ton of trips out west, in the winter months, so very hard to do with the Commander. So a ton of commercial flying for me. The brain damage the airline puts you through ... the idiotic things they do that actually COST them money ... are beyond any level of comprehension. I could tell some stories from just the past few months that would curl your hair, but then, you probably have your own.

So I love everything about flying the Commander, yes. And at least a couple of times a year I will fly all the way back from Florida at 500 - 1,000 AGL, or from Texas or Louisiana flying the Mississippi as low and slow as possible. I love aerobatics and i love taking kids or even adults up for their first flights. And both the patients I fly for Wings of Mercy and the dogs for Pilots n Paws bring me great joy.

But commercial flying? The flying itself is fine. Had one a couple of weeks ago from Edmonton to Phoenix, over mountains the entire trip and it was stunning. But all the crap you go through until you are seated in the cabin ... from purchasing tickets to getting seats to boarding ... is not something to love. It often makes me angry, and I am not the "get angry" type ... so I get angry over the fact that they made me angry!!!
Click to expand...

It's the commercial flights that remind you how much like cattle most of your fellow humans really are.

I was flying commercial home to DFW when the tornado hit here the day after last christmas. First I was the jerk at the counter in NOLA pointing out to those nearby that we weren't leaving, that the computer jockey working the ticket desk was lying. You can't get a clearance to take off if your dest is an airport that's closed due to a tornado warning. I got eye rolls. Sure enough all of the same people are sitting on that airplane an hour later waiting for it to move from the gate.

We got put in a hold en route after finally getting a clearance, and then the game was up when we hit minimum fuel so they brought us to Houston instead of Dallas. The pilot tells everyone to go to the ticket desk at the next gate to "find out what they can do about getting you another flight."

So again, I'm the only one pointing out the obvious. I'm one of the last people off of the airplane and I see the giant line waiting for one guy to pretend to type things that make any difference. As I walk past the line, at least 8 SWA line guys walk past with a coke and a hamburger headed for the exits. So again I point out to the cattle that there will be no flights tonight, because those are the last of the line guys going home. There's no one to move the bags and no one running the fuel truck outside. Again, I get blank stares and eye rolls from the cattle. All they know is that they've been told to stand in line, so they stand in line.

Oh well, screw em. I got the last available SUV from Hertz and made DFW by 3 am while they were sleeping on a plastic bench after their few hours standing in line...

The reason that zombie movies never lose their popularity is that everyone can relate to being surrounded by lumbering idiots.
 
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Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

Another O'seas flight from Frankfurt to Atlanta, I was crammed into the rear center row (Couch) only to find a German Gent, at least 6'4" @ 325# contorted in the seat next to me. On push back the poor guy hit the attendant call and very politely said in broken English, "I need a larger seat" The plane was full and attendant informed him that was his assigned seat. I think he stood for the most of the flight.
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

I was on the flight from SBN to ORD some years ago on a Fokker 28. And a passenger could not get through the aircraft door. The flight attendant tried to get him back to the gate. We were boarding outside and he took off his coat and wiggled through the door and then had trouble getting through the bulkhead. In the seat he flowed over the arm rest on the poor guy next to them. It took 2 seat belt extensions and a big effort to buckle him in.
When we got to Chicago, the plane emptied fast so nobody was cought behind him.
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

Hey Pat, did you see where SBN to ORD is the most delayed flight into Chicago? Can't quite figure that one out.
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

I was told at the counter. If I wanted to get to Chicago on time, take the bus
If they have flight problems anywhere, they will cancel or delay the SBN flights and put you on a bus
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

Hell, from Detroit it is virtually always faster to Chicago to drive than go by air ... cannot imagine why anyone would ever fly from SBN to MDW or ORD!!!
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

Scott
It is a thing they call "Connecting Flight"
I was flying to Europe and the air fare is almost the same flying from SBN as ORD. The parking at ORD for 2 weeks is very expensive compared to SBN.
 
Re: Do you" HATE" flying?

That is truly a bizarre thing. This happens all the time with Flint & Detroit. Flint is a bit closer from my office. Detroit from my home, so I check both. It is not unusual at all for a Flint/DTW/LAX flight, for example, to cost HALF what a DTW/LAX non-stop costs ... and Delta has to pay the commuter to take me from FNT to DTW, which is kind of a takeoff -- climb ti 5,000' -- land in 15 minutes. And ... you get an extra 500 MQM's for each leg!
x
The major airlines make no sense whatsoever and continually do things to hurt their own profit.
 
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