# Flying hazards you walk away from



## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

@SDF880

I thought i'd show you this one from long ago, the light blond, second from left, is me.

Lost rudder and stabilator control, 100 hours tt on it.

Hit the trees at 100+ mph.

Flap counter balance spring broke, sheared the cables.

Last thing I remember was shutting off the mags and gas.

Forty eight years ago this month.


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Yikes. Glad you walked away from that one.


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## Camel923 (Aug 13, 2014)

Evedently your guardian angel was on the job.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

I have been living on borrowed time long since before that incident, 

consider myself lucky to have cheated death many times.

Lost both engines another time on final approach.

Picture is from the front page of the newspaper, found it a while back in a book.


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

If they Lord had meant for us to fly He would have gave us free tickets. Good point.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

bigwheel said:


> If they Lord had meant for us to fly He would have gave us free tickets. Good point.


Some people love to drink, I loved to fly.

I have to keep away from them just like a guy would in AA.


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## A Watchman (Sep 14, 2015)

I' ve got a buddy who is a flight instructor that has "dropped "twice. One time he killed a student and ended up in the hospital himself for 6 months. Typically a plane does well at gliding ..... it's them darn treetops that will get ya.


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## dwight55 (Nov 9, 2012)

Coming back the last time from 'Nam, . . . had been in the air it seemed as much as on the ground at times.

Developed a real love of flying, . . . enjoyed being "up there".

I had in the back of my mind a plan to use my GI bill to get my pilot's license, . . . and let whatever take it's course.

Got some bad advice from a mentor on that idea, . . . then got a good job as an electrician, . . . making good money at the time, . . . 

Long story short, . . . never got time to follow thru, . . . and looking back, might not have been quite as fortunate as others in the air. 

I sometimes have a tendency to overlook little things, . . . that'll get you hurt bad if it brings your aircraft down.

May God bless,
Dwight


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

SOCOM42 said:


> I have been living on borrowed time long since before that incident,
> 
> myself lucky to have cheated death many times.
> 
> ...


A long time ago I worked with a captain who not once but twice had both engines fail on jet aircraft just after rotation!
First time he was flying a Hansa Jet and second time a DC-9, What are the odds of that?


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

Good landing, according to the old saying.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

Denton said:


> Good landing, according to the old saying.


Ah yup, "anyone ....................".


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## maine_rm (Jun 24, 2017)

In all my years I was only on one bird that crash. And that was A technicality....we just hit the ground way too hard. Saw a few bad ones but I guess I’m just lucky.


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

Wow! Somebody up there likes you.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

maine_rm said:


> In all my years I was only on one bird that crash. And that was A technicality....we just hit the ground way too hard. Saw a few bad ones but I guess I'm just lucky.


I never did like being a passenger, your fate is in someone else's hands.

Was on a C-130 flight, had a hydraulic leak happen, PIC declared,

crew chief poured water in system while coming in on a straight in approach.

They brought in another 130 to get us to our destination.


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## modfan (Feb 18, 2016)

I always loved aircraft and the art of flying. Its really too bad I'm scared of heights.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

modfan said:


> I always loved aircraft and the art of flying. Its really too bad I'm scared of heights.


I am terrified of heights! I have to force myself to go on my roof 16 feet up, after a tranquilizer.

The only time it bothered me was one time at around 12,000 feet, regulator was not flowing right.

I realized what the problem was and side slipped down to 8,000 put it on AP,

turned around and wound up the regulator flow rate.

Relaxed for a bit and then climbed to 14K and finished the hop.

Got a demand regulator to use after that.


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Wow..I thought I was the only one who did not like to fly because of acute acrophobia..but guess not. Having flew a few times..I am also afraid the wing is going to come off like in the old John Wayne movies. Not sure what phobia they call that. I could fly if they go close to the ground and let me have a parachute and keep my gun on my person. Otherwise it makes me nervous. I can do it if Im real drunk. Panic attacks are not nice.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

bigwheel said:


> Wow..I thought I was the only one who did not like to fly because of acute acrophobia..but guess not. Having flew a few times..I am also afraid the wing is going to come off like in the old John Wayne movies. Not sure what phobia they call that. I could fly if they go close to the ground and let me have a parachute and keep my gun on my person. Otherwise it makes me nervous. I can do it if Im real drunk. Panic attacks are not nice.


If your close to the ground the chute is useless.

Hell even with a static line I think you need 1K.

I carried a chute in some planes I flew or flew right seat in,

don't think I would have the balls to jump, unless flames were licking my ass.

A couple like the AT-6, I sat on the chute as a seat cushion, was by design.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

I'm much happier when there is air between my feet and the ground! Even with GPS I get goofed up on the ground
and i grumble get me airborne so I can find out where the Heck I am, LOL


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## Prepared One (Nov 5, 2014)

WOW. Well you know the old saying I am sure. My dad flew planes most of his life and not one mishap, although a few scary moments. At 83 he insists he can still fly a plane.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

Prepared One said:


> WOW. Well you know the old saying I am sure. My dad flew planes most of his life and not one mishap, although a few scary moments. At 83 he insists he can still fly a plane.


He is right, like a bicycle, once you learn.

I originally learned when I was 13, grandfather took me for lessons.

Flew in a J3 cub, had about 20 hours when first stopped, all from a cow pasture on Sunday mornings.

Was about 10 years later when I started up again, never told the new instructors about it.

At about 10 hours, my primary instructor said I was ready to solo and the exam, but had to have 40 hours logged.

My original log book was lost when we moved when I was 16.

Virtually spent the rest of the lesson time flying instruments, at 40 hours passed the test,

at 200 had my instrument and multi rating.

My instructors were all WW2 fighter or bomber pilots,

navy and air force. Bob flew F6F's and had shot down a few Japs.

Your father is only 6 years older than me.


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## Prepared One (Nov 5, 2014)

SOCOM42 said:


> He is right, like a bicycle, once you learn.
> 
> I originally learned when I was 13, grandfather took me for lessons.
> 
> ...


Yea I am betting he could still fly, no doubt. It's an expensive proposition these days with gas, insurance, rental fees, etc. He used to own part of one when he was flush with money once. When he had money he flew, when he didn't ( Which was a lot of the time when I was growing up ) he didn't fly. Gave it up years ago tho. I can tell he misses it.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

Here are some pictures of one just like the one I owned outright,

Cost me more that my first house.

This one is quite a bit newer.

Full IFR, coupled autopilot.

Let me tell you, it truly is an addiction,

just doing this thread and looking at these pictures are so compelling.

I even had mental images of sitting on 29 pushing the throttle forward and rolling.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

Stuff like this doesn't happen often. I remember a National DC-10 in 73 where a passenger went out a shattered window at 39,000 feet
and a British BAC-111 captain who partially went out after the windshield failed.

WN 1380 LGA-DAL emergency landing at PHL - Airliners.net


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## equyst (Apr 10, 2018)

subscribed, this seems like a very interesting thread


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

equyst said:


> subscribed, this seems like a very interesting thread


Howdy - yes it is and usually lots of good stuff here!

Wud be good to make an introduction post!


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

SDF880 said:


> Stuff like this doesn't happen often. I remember a National DC-10 in 73 where a passenger went out a shattered window at 39,000 feet
> and a British BAC-111 captain who partially went out after the windshield failed.
> 
> WN 1380 LGA-DAL emergency landing at PHL - Airliners.net


Woman was killed, fan fail???

Just saw a pic of the engine, bypass fan fail.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

SOCOM42 said:


> Woman was killed, fan fail???
> 
> Just saw a pic of the engine, bypass fan fail.


Sure looks like it! That's twice now in less than 2 years for Southwest and that engine type! 
UAL had a similar incident with a 777 a few hours out of HNL not long ago!

Seems pretty rare for the fan section to fail I haven't seen many compared to the turbine section
shitting itself!

Looks like crew did a good job! Saw some video in the cabin pax on the drop down masks. I always test
my O2 mask when I jumpseat make sure it'l work in a crisis!


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

well we dont fly so this aint our problem


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## A Watchman (Sep 14, 2015)

equyst said:


> subscribed, this seems like a very interesting thread


There are others as well, speaking of interesting ..... just who the heck are you? (that's your second hint to do an Intro).


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

bigwheel said:


> well we dont fly so this aint our problem


True if you avoid flying.

However you could have one land on top of you.

A long time ago here, an F86 crashed into two houses, killed six plus the pilot.

We all take risks at one level or another, you chose one of the most dangerous occupations, LEO.

Statistically you had a greater chance of being killed that an airplane pilot, and you are still here.

Living a sedentary life is no life at all.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

Looks like at the minimum there will be an AD issued on that engine.

I would guess the woman never knew what hit her.

Looks like the fan shed the blade/s which went right through the window and struck her in the head.

Never flew a pure jet, just turbo shafts, never thought about the parting out, never did.


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## maine_rm (Jun 24, 2017)

I worked at 1:35 out of Nodak with the new engines not the old JSTARS. Still talking about 30-year-old engines and I never saw a front and sale. And I am seeing them ingest some stuff.. Compression failure was not uncommon. Lotta borescope ports not a lot of fun LOL. Keep in mind these aren’t the nice borescopes with the remote HD video LOL

One morning on an early lunch maybe 5 AM at least two dozen pigeons flew directly into the intake.. of course we had to ground and do a full inspection. That was a mess I don’t want to soon visit. Also sow a LOT of sand go into them over the years in the desert. At night it would look like 4 glowing circles depending on which way the wind was blowing engines would run for hours on alert. This is really pushing the old memory but I believe we used up pull them all out and do an inspection on the Internet every 6hundred hours? I must’ve done 100 of these inspections and don’t recall ever tossing a blade.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

Ya I bet AD gets issued quickly! Lots of those engines and variants out there! 
Remember the AA 767 that aborted T/O at ORD with an engine fire? A turbine section flew apart
at takeoff power and they had an uncontained failure a piece of that turbine section was thrown 
2800 feet and went thru the roof on the UPS ORD facility! Amazing how many RPM some of these engine parts
are moving! I had almost forgotten about the Delta MD-80 in the 90's 2 killed see link below!

https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19960706-0


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

When they come apart, they really come apart!

Looks like they need to put armor plate around the engines.

Whenever I flew in the B25 I always had in the back of my head that if it shed a port side prop I was in the way to stop it.

When they forged and machined the blades there was little of this.

Now with investment castings there are many failures.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

SOCOM42 said:


> When they come apart, they really come apart!
> 
> Looks like they need to put armor plate around the engines.
> 
> ...


A long time ago I rode around on twin turboprop cargo planes at night. My job was to offload and onload quickly as possible , do the weight and balance
and get out of dodge. I did this for 2 years and kind of a cool job out of college and the crews sometimes would let me fly! My seat in the back was just forward beside
the number 1 prop and I never felt comfortable sitting there! The plane had large re-enforced metal strips inline with the props and it always unnerved me some when they would 
sling ice off and it would make a big bang on the side of the plane! Those planes would pick up ice big time and that concerned me sometimes! I was in the jumpseat and we were pretty iced
up on unprotected areas and on final one night crossing the marker the captain says I have no elevator control! Captain went back to previous flap setting and increased power and speed a hair and he regained some control! Found out the unprotected area between the engines and cabin iced up badly and affected air flowing over the stab and elevators. Another company crashed
same type plane in bad ice and that is what they found and flaps were restricted to 20 in ice.

I remember when I was a kid Lake Central airlines lost a Convair 580 in NW Ohio due to a prop blade coming off and going thru the cabin!


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

SOCOM42 said:


> When they come apart, they really come apart!
> 
> Looks like they need to put armor plate around the engines.
> 
> ...


TWA tried using hollow props on some of their connies back in the day. I remember reading about LHR-SFO/LAX 
shedding a blade and diverting into some remote airport somewhere. I can barely remember riding on a 1649
and it having a LONG wing!

https://books.google.com/books?id=D...TAG#v=onepage&q=TWA hollow propellers&f=false


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## 7515 (Aug 31, 2014)

Landed in a Martin 404 in Muscle Shoals Alabama. 
Came in to steep and the pilot blew out the tire in the nose gear. 
The 404 has tricycle landing gear. With no wheels on the nose is was a squirrelly landing. 
It was the early 70s not sure the year.


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

SOCOM42 said:


> True if you avoid flying.
> 
> However you could have one land on top of you.
> 
> ...


Well funny this brings up another of a lot of folks most dreaded phobias about an airplane crashing into your house. I watched it on the Twlight Zone so it got embedded at an early age. Now anybody wants to know the most dangerous jobs available in the US..used to be Lumberjacks running neck in neck with commercial fishermen. On the hazardous duty scale cops and firemen rank one notch more dangerous than office workers. Flying in a commercial airplane is safe statistically speaking but them who fly small airplanes are living on borrowed time. Crop dusters are particually crazy. One of my old pals who did that said he couldnt do it unless he was drunk. Poor guy. He carried a round ball of aluminum on his key chain which he claimed was what was left out of his latest wreck.
The Top 10 Most Dangerous Jobs in America | Time


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

Box of frogs said:


> Landed in a Martin 404 in Muscle Shoals Alabama.
> Came in to steep and the pilot blew out the tire in the nose gear.
> The 404 has tricycle landing gear. With no wheels on the nose is was a squirrelly landing.
> It was the early 70s not sure the year.


Another good landing as per quote.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

bigwheel said:


> Well funny this brings up another of a lot of folks most dreaded phobias about an airplane crashing into your house. I watched it on the Twlight Zone so it got embedded at an early age. Now anybody wants to know the most dangerous jobs available in the US..used to be Lumberjacks running neck in neck with commercial fishermen. On the hazardous duty scale cops and firemen rank one notch more dangerous than office workers. Flying in a commercial airplane is safe statistically speaking but them who fly small airplanes are living on borrowed time. Crop dusters are particually crazy. One of my old pals who did that said he couldnt do it unless he was drunk. Poor guy. He carried a round ball of aluminum on his key chain which he claimed was what was left out of his latest wreck.
> The Top 10 Most Dangerous Jobs in America | Time


Well, like you I am still here, and I did both, pilot and LEO.

Some of the best memories of my life are related to flying all kinds of planes.

There are sights that you can never see or feel being earth bound.

This below is said so true,

I knew this poetry before flying but never really understood it until I became part of it myself.

High Flight
John Gillespie Magee, Jr

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth,
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds, --and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of --Wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air...
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark or even eagle flew --
And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

THIS you cannot feel on the ground.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

I should add, being a passenger in an airliner is not the same as being PIC.

Alone, solo, you are the master of your fate.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

Box of frogs said:


> Landed in a Martin 404 in Muscle Shoals Alabama.
> Came in to steep and the pilot blew out the tire in the nose gear.
> The 404 has tricycle landing gear. With no wheels on the nose is was a squirrelly landing.
> It was the early 70s not sure the year.


That sounds like Southern Airways!!


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

Love that B-36 pic! It is amazing to me we could put something like that in the air
50 ish years after Wright bros first flight! B-36 then Convair followed it up with 
the amazing B-58! I never saw the B-36 fly but did see some B-58's when I was a kid!


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

I seen a few B36's that took off from Westover AFB back in the 50's, climb out brought them over where we lived.

You could hear those P&W 4360 engines 10 miles away!

Six turning and four burning.


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## Prepared One (Nov 5, 2014)

SOCOM42 said:


> Another good landing as per quote.


My Dad used to say a landing was a controlled crash, that's all it was. :vs_laugh: Your attempting to collide a fast moving object ( The plane ) with an immovable object (The Ground ). Just do it softly! My Mom hated this analogy, then again she was afraid to fly back then. Had to get her half drunk to get her on an airliner and shit faced to get her in a small plane.


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## 7515 (Aug 31, 2014)

SDF880 said:


> That sounds like Southern Airways!!


You'd be right. My father worked for them.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

Neither of my parents had flown in any sort of aircraft before I started flying as a licensed pilot.

One brother was going to med school down south at the time I had bought my 200 Arrow..

Mother wanted me to take her to see him in PA where he was playing soccer.

My parents fought like cats and dogs for a week about it, he kept telling her she would get killed by me.

He called me every name under the sun for allowing her to step into the plane.

She was terrified once I started the engine, had a white knuckle grip on an assist strap.

Her desire to see her son after after two years over-road her flying fears.

She yelled "what was that?" as the landing gear locked up upon retraction after lift off.

She soon relaxed after were were on course and the AP was engaged, three of us started chatting.

Mother stared out the windows in utter fascination on both legs of the trip.

She was amazed that she could not tell when the wheels contacted the runway on either landing.

Also she could not understand how I could find the way with just the dials on the instrument panel and a map.

Back at home she started talking about me taking her to the cape and other places, father went nuts with the table talk.

She became a convert while father remained a ground hog.

I took her when time allowed a few times, father would not speak to her for a week after each hop.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

Box of frogs said:


> You'd be right. My father worked for them.


Cool! I never flew on SOU but sure saw them everytime going thru ATL. DC-9's, 404's and Metro's
later on.

Airline I work for had a captain retire awhile back he was the son of SOU242 captain. I never met him
but saw his name on the flight paperwork now and then.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

SOCOM check this little jet out! Don't know much about it still checking. I think I read it is limited to FL270 or 280.
Maybe not RVSM cert? Looks cool! Single engine tho but you can get the ballistic parachute! Avionics look pretty cool
but I'm a steam gauge guy so I'd need time for anything like this! Pretty neat tho! I need to hit a lottery before I get too old!
I'm going down to E TN in a few weeks and going to stop by Cirrus Aircraft at Knoxville airport see if I can get the 5 cent tour!


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

SOCOM42 said:


> Well, like you I am still here, and I did both, pilot and LEO.
> 
> Some of the best memories of my life are related to flying all kinds of planes.
> 
> ...


Heard that narrative several thousand times which was aired right before the TV station signed off for the night. It was always inspirational. Thanks for your Service Sir!


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

SDF880 said:


> SOCOM check this little jet out! Don't know much about it still checking. I think I read it is limited to FL270 or 280.
> Maybe not RVSM cert? Looks cool! Single engine tho but you can get the ballistic parachute! Avionics look pretty cool
> but I'm a steam gauge guy so I'd need time for anything like this! Pretty neat tho! I need to hit a lottery before I get too old!
> I'm going down to E TN in a few weeks and going to stop by Cirrus Aircraft at Knoxville airport see if I can get the 5 cent tour!


Looked interesting on the roll.

I don't care too much for a glass panel either, prefer the old primary instruments,

loose that system and almost everything is gone.

Yeah , I like the art horizon, turn and bank, DG, rate of climb, alt, radio alt, radio compass, mag compass,

VOR/GS heads, air speed, ADF, all in separate units.

I could go for a HUD and GPS display. I still like the Jepp plates on the yoke or knee board.

The only two I remember failing were a Narco transponder and a DG of WW2 vintage.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

Twice now once after a lightning strike and the other unknown I have had my flights lose both panels! One of them landed by flashlight
shining on what was left of standby horizon the other pretty much same thing! DC-9 and DC-8. Had an L-1011 with 1 Gen on MEL somehow lose everything
just N of San Juan and APU would not start and they landed ok on battery at night, whew!

Twice I have lost all electric power in a Cessna! First time I was very green and going into a very busy tower controlled airport and my head was racing squawked radio fail and 
what exact light gun signals will I get? Sure enough tower flashed them at me and I landed ok. Pretty much same on the other and it was in a 172 I half owned
and I hear a big bang then shortly after all went dead but was out in the middle of nowhere Indiana and ducked into an uncontrolled field.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

Lightening overloaded the primary buss line. Seen that happen.

You realize the ground hogs here are thinking you and I are NUTS!


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## preppermyA (Aug 19, 2017)

SOCOM42 said:


> Well, like you I am still here, and I did both, pilot and LEO.
> 
> Some of the best memories of my life are related to flying all kinds of planes.
> 
> ...


I remember the TV stations signing off with that many years ago.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

The DC-9 was released with a APU inop no problem over W KS a CSD temp went into the red and crew pulled wrong disconnect on remaining CSD/GEN
and were down to ships battery power at FL350 at night over central KS. They landed ok at MCI with the f/o holding a flashlight on the stby horizon!
It was VFR but still....yikes! They would of diverted to nearest suitable anyway down to one GEN but complicated everything pulling the good GEN disconnect!
I remember Northwest did this same exact thing way back and landed at a high elevation airport at night Colorado. Air temp was below zero and no power
on the ground! APU inop Gens disconnected! Passengers had mild discomfort to say the least!


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## preppermyA (Aug 19, 2017)

As was said, any landing you can walk away from....
.
The only "scary" flight I was ever on was coming in to Wake Island in 1961 on three engines. (707 as I recall)
There was a lot of commotion outside once we stopped.
Still follow all of the flying sites even though I'm not a pilot.


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## TGus (Sep 18, 2017)

I had a flying hazard I walked away from when I fell off the roof of my 4 story home, and made a big crater in the back yard, with only a small scratch on my knee to show for it.


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

AD is out on these engines! I would not hesitate to ride on one! My company had just shy of 200 of these engines
on a different aircraft type over a 20 year period and never any fan blade issues! Very reliable engine!

https://www.flightglobal.com/news/a...fm56-inspection-requirements-with-new-448230/


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

TGus said:


> I had a flying hazard I walked away from when I fell off the roof of my 4 story home, and made a big crater in the back yard, with only a small scratch on my knee to show for it.


How deep it gets.

I don't think that you can beat the airline stewardess that fell 20,000 feet without a parachute and survived.

Here some of us trade flying experiences, and some need to bullshit regardless of the subject.

Those same bulshitter's think we lower life's are stupid people, such arrogance.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

SDF880 said:


> AD is out on these engines! I would not hesitate to ride on one! My company had just shy of 200 of these engines
> on a different aircraft type over a 20 year period and never any fan blade issues! Very reliable engine!
> 
> https://www.flightglobal.com/news/a...fm56-inspection-requirements-with-new-448230/


We knew it was coming.


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