About 6 weeks ago, just as we're coming into land, the pilot announces that it's going to be an instrument only landing, as there's thick fog at the airport. I did not find this reassuring.
And then just a couple of weeks ago, plane comes into land, then pulls up at the last minute. The pilot announces that the fog was too thick for him to land - and that the plane didn't have the equipment for an instrument only landing. He did manage to land ten minutes later. I was unphased by the whole thing, thanks to 1.5l of airport beers and about 70cl of inflight wine.
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When we were flying back from Florida mid-Feb we encountered a huge storm over the Northwest American coast. There was a bit of turbulence and then the pilot said we'd have to go round it. The view of the storm at night, from above and to the side; the clouds in a huge circle, lit from underneath with lightning going through the centre was one of the most awe-inspiring things I've ever seen.Last edited by Lockhouse; 18 November 2009, 08:08.Leave a comment:
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Saw something a bit similar. Flying Heathrow to Jo'burg, when you looked out of one window there were 2 engines, when you looked out the other side there were 3 engines. They had strapped a spare one to the wing which had to be delivered to Frankfurt so we had a short stopover there (free orange juice, weee!)Originally posted by ToolpusherNot quite sure how I'd feel if I looked out the window and saw this......
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Flying back from Rhodesia (as it used to be called) to South Africa in a Dakota and we got struck by lightning. The plane went up and down like being on a roller coaster, everyone went funny shades of white and green apart from my little sister who thought it was excellent, the best thing she had done.
Went on Pan Am flight 102 which was exactly 1 year after flight 103 (Lockerbie) and joined the plane at Frankfurt. There was extra security but I didn't actually know why. What I did know was that I seemed to be the only white person on the plane (a Jumbo which was half empty) and it wasn't until landing at Heathrow I found out why.
Remember getting an Air Nepal flight from Frankfurt to Heathrow which had flown from Nepal via Dubai. The stewardesses were not the most glamorous but still friendly but the plane did hum ding a bit as the people had been in transit for something like 24 hours. Apparently they only had 3 planes and one was not deemed air-worthy at the time. A rather hard landing saw all the overhead compartments open and the oxygen masks drop down.Leave a comment:
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Hmm lightning hit on a plane I was on landing at Heathrow. A zap and a flash on the engine cowl, that was it, oh and an annoucement from the Captain "in case anyone was wondering we just got hit by lightning, nothing to worry about" and proceeded to land normally.Originally posted by suityou01 View PostI have flown through a thunderstorm where the plane was struck. The engines were revving up and down and the plane was being tossed around. It felt like we were in real trouble. We landed sure enough, and the first one off the plane came from the flight deck, the pilot or first officer I reckon. He was mopping his brow with a handkerchief. "Nice" I thought.
My ole mate works in the airline industry, pretty high up, and said that the pilot was crapping himself that he had damaged the plane by getting it struck by lightening. It can leave a hole in the fuselage apparently.
It sounds like an ordeal. Glad you are down safely.
I used to be terribly afraid of flying, but found a self hypnosis mp3 from "Uncommon Knowledge" that really helped. Now I frankly couldn't give a toss and find flying really boring. Made it all the way T'Egypt last year.
Lightning just goes around the plane body not through.Leave a comment:
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No it doesn't. Do you know what though. The fact that these dates are perceived as fatal can instil some fear , lack of concentration , doubtfulness , dreadful imagination. All of these can impact the pilots.... It is ironic really.Originally posted by Diestl View PostLeave a comment:
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I love flying - although storms and turbulence can be a bit 'interesting'. The bit in the middle can be boring but the take-off and landing - wow!
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I have flown through a thunderstorm where the plane was struck. The engines were revving up and down and the plane was being tossed around. It felt like we were in real trouble. We landed sure enough, and the first one off the plane came from the flight deck, the pilot or first officer I reckon. He was mopping his brow with a handkerchief. "Nice" I thought.
My ole mate works in the airline industry, pretty high up, and said that the pilot was crapping himself that he had damaged the plane by getting it struck by lightening. It can leave a hole in the fuselage apparently.
It sounds like an ordeal. Glad you are down safely.
I used to be terribly afraid of flying, but found a self hypnosis mp3 from "Uncommon Knowledge" that really helped. Now I frankly couldn't give a toss and find flying really boring. Made it all the way T'Egypt last year.Leave a comment:
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I drove past the end of the runway at Manchester Airport this morning just as a turboprop plane was landing. I glanced over as he came down to the runway and the whole plane suddenly banked hard over, then righted itself. The wing tip must have been 20ft off the ground, no more. Maybe they do that all the time, but it was really quite scary to see, I must say.
There was a bloke with a camera by the fence and I really hope he caught it because it would look quite dramatic in a photo I think. It's probably why he was there actually. Nice bit of sidewind, lots of planes blowing around all over the place.Leave a comment:
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I used to work at Gatwick airport and was based just under where the pilots made up their minds whether they were going to make it or not. You would hear the engines roar in to life when doubt entered the pilot's mind. Scary watching them in these conditions, crabbing all the way in and jerking all over the place.Leave a comment:
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