Land left

By lex, on December 3rd, 2007

Training Command CQ aboard the USS Lexington, AVT-16, back in the late 80′s. The Lady Lex – as contrasted to your correspondent – was a wee, bitty thing with old fashioned equipment: A catapult that was “instant on” – none of your gradually increasing acceleration aboard the Lex – and arresting gear that required due diligence from the pilot and LSO combination to land on centerline, without any drift, since (unlike modern day arresting gear) it had no centering mechanism to keep Dilbert from getting dunked, if he landed in a drift.

Thanksgiving 2007

By lex, on November 23rd, 2007

Last year I told my secret about I how I get the family to smile so broadly just before a picture is taken: “If there’s one sure thing I’ve learned over the years, it’s that the only way to make everyone really smile for a picture is to say something absurd or entirely out of character and then give them three seconds to realize why you did so.”

It turns out there’s an easier way –

Crosswind landing

By lex, on November 18th, 2007

Best case is winds down the runway at 5-15 knots. Runways are typically constructed with a view towards the predominant winds. That doesn’t mean that winds are always down centerline, however. When a weather front comes in, sometimes they’re offset as much as 45 degrees. Sometimes more.

Generically speaking there are two crosswind landing techniques: The “wing down, top rudder” landing, and the crab.

Slippin’ them surly bonds

By lex, on November 18th, 2007

So, yeah, got to go flying yesterday in the Varga Kachina. Toodled up the 5 on mein Teutonic krad, which ended up being an unnecessary precaution – if you can call riding a motorcycle “precautionary” – on the way up, but a godsend on the way down. That’s life in North County Sandy Eggo these days. Best get used to it. Met up with Chuck the Chief Pilot and talked a bit about the spiel given to paying customers. Didn’t talk too much about the machine itself – I’d done my homework pretty thoroughly since last weekend – just got in, strapped in, followed Chuck through a quick cockpit fam and then cranked that puppy over.

Because I have daughters

By lex, on November 15th, 2007

One of the things I’ve told my daughters to look for when they venture out into the world and date, you know: Men – is that not all of them are the people they’ll present themselves to be. Some of them will be good folks, and some of them less so. It’s really hard to tell the difference between the two while they’re trying to woo you. There are good men out there. But men can be swine.

I know from men.

Daughters: How do you tell the good guys from the users, dad?

Your Correspondent: Here’s a hint: When he takes you out to dinner, don’t pay so much attention to the way he treats you. He’s trying to impress you. If you want to know how he’ll treat you when the time for impressing you is over, watch the way he treats the waitress. That’ll show you what kind of person he is inside, whether his heart is in the right place, or whether he’s only faking it until he gets what he wants.

I think that’s pretty good advice.

 

Back To The Index

Hired

By lex, on November 14th, 2007

Because there wasn’t enough going on in my life, I took the opportunity proffered by a generous benefactor to make contact with a local firm flying Varga Kachina’s (among other things) at Palomar Airport. The company is called “Barnstorming Adventures,” and one of their business lines is demonstrating air combat maneuvering to folks who may or may not be actual pilots. The customer rides in back and the “employee” – strange, thinking of myself in that way – flies up front. A formation take-off and flight to the operating area and some fairly mild maneuvering – the planes are aerobatic, but for insurance and certification purposes, the planes are kept inside aerobatic limits.

Going Sinker

By lex, on October 25th, 2007

One week minimum. I’ll let you know if it’s longer. Or if we’re finally done.

It’s a combination of things: Personal, professional, academic. Private.

If it’s really over, I’ll put a little something up to say goodbye with.

Surf somewhere else for a while.

Ciao.

A Cold War story

By lex, on October 2nd, 2007

Pictures of Arleigh Burkes refueling Russian Federation destroyers brings back memories that even in the bad old days, we still managed to have some fun. I’ve written before about the Bear Box and Gate Guard missions but may have failed to share a story I heard about that occurred during one ship’s transit through.

This particular ship was to start her transit of the box on Christmas Day, which was – in honor of the holiday – scheduled to be a day of relative rest. Holiday routine and a no-fly day to give the flight deck a day off. Since they were entering the Box and didn’t want to be caught flat-footed by long range bombers, they had changed course slightly, stood up alert 5 and 15 fighters and raised the EMCON status to increase the circle of uncertainty – they’d never be found!

Right.

Grace

By lex, on September 29th, 2007

A bit more than 50 years ago the governor of Arkansas called out his national guard to prevent nine black students from attending Central High in Little Rock. Shortly thereafter, President Dwight Eisenhower sent the 101st Airborne to ensure that they could attend.

In between the world bore witness to the ugliest of emotions: Raw, insensate hatred.

Unrestricted climb

By lex, on September 28th, 2007

Date: March, 1991

Place: Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona

Ride: TF-16N

It had been a long day. A buddy and I had flown three hops that day in the two-seat Viper, alternating front and back seats. We’d were going through the TOPGUN Adversary Course, the better to qualify us as bandits when we returned home to NAS Key West. Coming to the end of the course, the scars that the TOPGUN IP’s had inflicted at the beginning of the course were beginning to fade. Your humble scribe was starting to once again feel his oats.