Good Morning Fairbanks!

[mar]

PAFA 161853Z 00000KT 10SM VCFG FEW006 M33/M36 A2981 RMK AO2 SLP118 VCFG N-E T13331361

[It was *raining* last week]

 

[340drvr]

Yow! It's probably warmer in McMurdo.
I was going to send Warbelow's a resume, maybe I'll wait!
Keep your mittens on!

 

[Gulfstream 200]

M33???

F THAT.

 

[414Flyer]

I saw some mornings in Fargo very close to that.

 

[Hovernut]

...that's why I put up with the commute from Orlando!

 

[Iceman21]

VCFG

????

Pardon my ignorance

 

[Singlecoil]

VCFG = Fog in the Vicinity

 

[OtterFO]

That rain then severe cold, it planned to keep you from being able to close the cargo doors on the DC-6, or open your car door. In my case the choke cable on my four wheeler is froze up and that sucker ain't startin again until May.

 

[Buzo]

It was M16 in Anchorage Saturday morning and we couldn't get the ol engines to light. I was debating whether I should give Frontier Flying Service a call, but I think it is just too cold.

 

[pavelump]

Well, at least it isn't windy...

I've got a friend who works at the university there and he was trying to convince me to come up there to look for work.

I'm not so sure how long I would last with that!

Dave

 

[Typhoon1244]

Re: Re: Good Morning Fairbanks!

Pardon my ignorance...

Very Cold Fog...

Mar, I've been meaning to ask you...what the fcuk are you doing in Alaska anyway? Couldn't find anyplace colder?

 

[siucavflight]

I like Alaska

 

[mar]

I like Alaska too!

In fact I think I may have blown a Cathay Pacific interview when the guy asked me if I like living in Alaska. I replied, "I love it."

...Thank you very much, we'll be in touch...

Typhoon, man, I only came to Alaska because I was tired of flight instructing and *literally* could not find a job anywhere else in the nation.

It was 1995. They paid me 28$/hr to fly 172s and 207s. It was 135 experience.

I never had big dreams of flying in the bush. I just wanted to make some money and log some time.

Then I met some people; saw some things; developed skills I never thought I'd need and made some pretty good coin on top of it all.

I was changed forever; best decision I ever made.

I'm glad you asked because I love to let people know what we do up here. So often, as you well know, it seems the entire industry revolves around RJs and contracts.

A while back, I mentioned RJs to one of our captains and he said, "What's that?"

 

[Timebuilder]

You know, Mar, you almost make it sound attractive.

What's an RJ. I like that!

 

[Typhoon1244]

Re: I like Alaska too!

So often, as you well know, it seems the entire industry revolves around RJs and contracts.

It doesn't ?!?

I know what you mean, though. One of my father's best friends is a former Air Force and Air Florida guy. I remember them sitting in the living room and talking for hours about "airplane stuff." It was the highlight of my childhood to sit there and listen to dad's DC-9 stories and Steve's F-4 stories.

Then came Frank Lorenzo, etc., and before long all dad and Steve were talking about was contracts, cooling-off periods, B-scales, hostile takeovers, cabotage, duty rigs, retirement, etc, etc.

It was depressing.

 

[mar]

That's 31 *above* zero.

PAFA 210353Z VRB04KT 10SM FEW200 31/09 A2996 RMK AO2 SLP147 T03060089

Heh. Ironically, it was raining last week....

 

[HAL]

Moving on

OK, what's wrong with this picture...

I spent the winter in Fairbanks where I saw lows (during a trip to Fort Yukon) of -52F, and now I'll be spending the summer in training with America West in Phoenix at around +120F.

Somehow I've got this all backwards!

HAL

 

[English]

OK, what's wrong with this picture...

I spent the winter in Fairbanks where I saw lows (during a trip to Fort Yukon) of -52F, and now I'll be spending the summer in training with America West in Phoenix at around +120F.

Somehow I've got this all backwards!

HAL

But it's a dry heat...

 

[Pilot124]

How good looking are the women in Alaska. I am thinking about making the jump up there too. But NOT with out Da' Women!

 

[mar]

This and that

HAL--Congrats! I can't believe they made you fly in anything less than -40F. Usually brittle door handles and steps are enough to convince management it doesn't pay to fly when it's that cold. Yeah, yeah, I've heard all those stories from the old days too...I'm not old school.

Women in Alaska? The old joke goes, There's one behind every tree--but there ain't no trees.

What can I say? There's a small oasis in Anchorage and a smaller one in Fairbanks. I've never spent anytime in Juneau so I can't say. But I know quite a few pilots that have met the love of their life when they picked up a young teacher or nurse to bring her back to town.

You just never know.

 

[OtterFO]

Pilot124,

In ANC and FAI there is a pretty good selection of women. Both towns have colleges. In the villages you never lose your girlfriend, you just lose your turn.......

 

[TurboS7]

I spent two night in ANC the beginning of May. I was walking around town with the FA's and showing them moose sign, tracks, tree rubbings(where they stratch their backs) and moose poop. They didn't believe me. The next morning we went to the wrong gate at Elmendorf. Sure enough, standing right there in a big mud puddle at 0400 in the morning was a big cow moose and her calf. Thank you Alaska. It took me 20 years to get back to ANC I wonder how long it will be now before I return.

 

[Dan CFI/CFII]

In my still short time up here, I met more of the womenfolk in Juneau than anywhere else.

But I personally rank Fairbanks slightly above Anchorage in the fairer sex department. However, Anchorage does have the Moose's Tooth, which I swear has more pretty girls than just about anywhere I've ever been (and I worked for a long time where I was outnumbered by 10:1 by girls my age--so that's saying something).

But, if you're headed this way just for the women, you'll probably be sucked into buying a snow machine and a fishing pole and forget all about them anyway.

Dan

 

[HAL]

METAR PAFA 281453Z 00000KT 1/4SM R01L/3000FT FU VV003 18/10 A3014
RMK AO2 SLP207 T01780100 51008=

63 forest fires burning in interior Alaska. Forecast high above 90. Smoke so thick we've cancelled operations for the morning.

Gotta love the weather here!

HAL

 

[Dan CFI/CFII]

Man, you guys cancelled some operations eh?


While we were stuck on the ground due to a fine government memo, we still managed to shoot approaches to Fairbanks only about a million times, or so.

I've NEARLY gotten my snot blown out (I am back in Anchorage for the night--but I'm headed back tomorrow). That smoke was/is incredible.

HAL, did you guys fly on Tuesday and go through the dark spots out there? We went through a couple that made us turn up all our cockpit lights it was so dark going through there.

I really we we had a camera for some of that stuff, because it was dark inside, but glowing orange outside (and that was at 10 grand or so).

Simply amazing.

Dan