Aeronautical Pet Peeves

[pilotmiketx]

Next big peeve. Instructors who don't get it. They are doing the biggest dis-service to this industry. To teach someone is a bond, not a stepping stone. Okay, you're getting hours for the 'next thing', but while you're here, be good at your job. You have more influence over the future of aviation than you think. Your influence will last a career.

Yep. Sad thing is, there are way more mediocre and just plain bad instructors than good ones who give a rat's a$$. They, unfortunately are a product of their "i-don't-care-i'm-just-building-time" instructors who were taught by more of the same.

Since I've been re-familiarizing myself with the finer points of tailwheel flying lately in my C-170, I've been re-familiarized with the uncontrolled field, flying farmer, "Ah learnt mah self how ta fly in mah daddy's cub 50 years ago", never had a BFR or medical crowd, so here's mah recent pet peeve:

Bubba:"Ah, Cezzna in the pattern, say yer position.."
Me:"Downwind 17"
Bubba:"Ok, we're over the water tower, gonna fly over the field and enter downwind. I don't see you, but we'll be looking"
Me: "I hope so."

 

[wrlane]

I fly out of an uncontrolled field and get sick of hearing, 1)"...any other traffic please advise". I give most pilots credit for knowing when to respond to a radio call. State your position and intentions and I'll bet anyone with a radio will let you know what's going on. 2) Making position reports on CTAF from a fix. This seems to be a low time instructor thing. If you call 5 SW of Putts intersection inbound and I'm not familiar with the airport give me just a second so I can get all my approach plates out to figure out were you're at. 3) Guys who are on Instrument flight plans on CAVU days and the controller says, "call the airport insight", please don't let the poor guy go through the whole, "cleared for the visual, cancel on ..." just to hear, "cancel IFR".

 

[CA1900]

3) Guys who are on Instrument flight plans on CAVU days and the controller says, "call the airport insight", please don't let the poor guy go through the whole, "cleared for the visual, cancel on ..." just to hear, "cancel IFR".

For guys under 121 or 135, it may not be that simple, and it's specified in their manuals. Some are simply not allowed to cancel in the air. For us, we can, but only if we get a field condition report from our operations. If they're out having a smoke break and don't answer, that means I cannot legally cancel IFR until I'm on the ground. Just FYI.

 

[leardawg]

122.8 on any given day; High-pitched nasal voice: "FLUFFERDUFFER UNICOM THIS IS, UUUUHHH, NOVEMBER 4532 SIERRA WE ARE, UHHHH, APPROXIMATELY
squeeeeeeeeeeeeeellllllll scrooooooonnnnnnncccccchhh blurbleblurbleblurble (new Homer Simpson-sounding voice) "Departing the traffic pattern on a fourty-" Bleeeeeerrrrrrrr grogglegrogglegroggle groziglleglrrrrb (Another voice sounding like Mr. Rogers) " Aircraft approaching Poisonwell Municipal, state your pos" Weeeeeeeeeeeehhhhhhhh gurglegurglegurgle cackcackcackcakccack (New guy sounds like the Slingblade guy) "10 mile west requestin' airport advi" gnnnnnnooooorrrrrrrrllllllwubbawubbawubba (original high-pitch nasal guy):"COULD YOU, UHHHHHH, PLEASE REPEAT THAT FOR NOVEMBER 453" yyyyyyeeeeeeeeaaaaaaawwwwwwwwawawawawawa and on and on and on .....

Oh the boobery of it all!!! It's like fingernails on a chalkboard to me!

 

[A Squared]

Guys who are on Instrument flight plans on CAVU days and the controller says, "call the airport insight", please don't let the poor guy go through the whole, "cleared for the visual, cancel on ..." just to hear, "cancel IFR".

Our Ops specs allow us to accept a visual clearence from 35 NM out, but we can only cancel if we're within 10 Nm. So, there may be very good reasons why somone calls for a visual then subsequently cancels.

 

[leardawg]

Another thing I can't stand: pilots who start snapping demands and treating line people (and anyone else they are "forced" do deal with) like crap, as soon as the airplane door opens. Especially the corporate jet types.

I've had my share of issues with line people et. al., but it takes an effort on their part to get me ticked off. I always treat people I work with respectfully even if I'm in a lousy mood. I once saw a Fractional guy bark an order at a line guy (he whistled at the guy, then yelled "Hey Buddy! I said fill our coffee pots!") The line guy whipped around, bug-eyed, walked up to him and pointed his (big) finger in the dork's chest and yelled: "Get one thing straight: you do NOT yell orders at us! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?! I SAID DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!" The pilot nodded his head and muttered something. I thought the guy was going to lay the pilot out on the ramp, but he just walked away with the pilot standing there with this stunned look on his face! As far as I was concerned, he probably could have used a good thrashing.

 

[Foxcow]

props to that line guy!

 

[leardawg]

props to that line guy!

BIG African-American guy. I think he would have bent the pilot's head up into his a** if it had come to a fight!

 

[CherryBomb]

When I was in grade school I worked line service at a small Texas airport. We were the only FBO on the airport so we covered the unicom.

Almost on a daily basis I would hear someone call up and ask "what runway are ya'll usin'". I thought it was funny they were asking a 15 year old kid where to land their $100,000 airplane.

And yes, we had an AWOS. Not to mention a big bright orange wind sock.

 

[evilgrimace]

"...taking the active" or "...taking runway 6"

how about leaving it for someone else to use, hmmm?

 

[Traumahawk]

Pilots who insisted on discussing their political, religious and moral beliefs in the cockpit. (I'll get more out of reading the instructions on the vomit bag)

Approach, Departure, and tower controllers in Phoenix, AZ

Anyone who is under the impression that they are so special they demand that all "all other traffic please advise"

Mental Giants who start their radio calls with "UUUUUHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" (think it through then press the button)

Guys at uncontrolled fields that listen to 3 or 4 airplanes make radio calls in the pattern such as "so and so, downwind for runway 9" wait for a gap on CTAF then use it to call unicom and ask "which runway is the active today"

The AMF pilot in the Lance at PHX that in the middle of rush hour ate up 7000 feet of runway getting his Lance down and stopped, forcing me to have to go around and spend another 30 minutes circling outside class B waiting to getting sequenced in again. (Thank you sir....you are an inspiration to us all)

Guys who after being handed off to another controller end their reply to the previous controller with "SSSSSEEEEEEEE YYYAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!. (Your are not a VJ for MTV just say thank you and carry on with your day)

The CAP pilot I saw taxiing out in an old Mooney with a current issue military flight helmet on and the dang visor down. (anyone who feels this is necessary equipment to fly a 40 year old Mooney needs to be locked in a portable toilet and set on fire!)

You must have read Moondog's....

My pet peeves....Nosewheel Pilots, except for Tomahawks

STARVINGCFI...you and me both man....

 

[FN FAL]

Aeronautical Pet Peeves?

Pilots who think that there's "reverse sensing" on the back course, rather than reverse indicating.

There is no sensing reverse. Either you're on the one side or you're on the the other and that's it.

 

[leardawg]

People who say Airelon instead of Aileron; Yaw Dampener instead of Yaw Damper; Pie-tot Tube instead of Peetoh Tube. ..... Nucular instead of Nuc-le-ar; Toe-mah-toe instead of Toe-may-toe.

 

[CA1900]

Carnies.

 

[FN FAL]

Carnies.

Carnies who Bogart.