Scary flying stories

[ripster]

My time has yet to come to get too scared in a military aircraft but I have a FEW from civilian flying:

1) First solo turning final and a Lear passes a hundred feet off the nose right to left and then calls tower "short final." (I cleared final but I was in a high wing and didn't see him.)

2) First solo over the numbers when an experimental aircraft calls emergency. He flies across the runway I am on, missing me by about twenty yards right to left, and crashes midfield in the grass almost taking out the VOR. (He lost oil pressure and panicked. Had four souls on board. No injuries but experimental lost a wing doing a ground loop.) His radio transmission was "I will be crash landing on the airport". That is it.

3) Late to class one night so I borrow an airplane to fly to another airport just a mile from the college. On my way back to drop the plane off I was IMC in a C-177RG. Strong downdraft when I was at 4000 feet. Full power nose up. VSI reversal at 900 ft-ish. I was probably a quarter mile or less from a tower that went to 1000 feet. I know this because I was just checking my DME on a radial when it happened. That night I checked on the sectional where I was at and there were towers REALLY close that I was below.

[outbreak]

I wasn't thinking about civie flying, but this is one of those didn't-realize-it-till-afterwards stories.

I have a fresh commercial ticket, a complex endorsement, and a rental checkout at the local FBO. $100 hamburger time. So I take a good friend, who at the time was a student pilot, and we fly about an hour north for lunch, and fly back by the same route. All GPS direct, VFR, about 2,000ft to see the sights. I was too lazy to check NOTAMs for anywhere but departure and destination back then.

We had a great flight, the airplane flew well, and we get back and start shooting the shit with some of the guys at the airport. One of them says, "oh, you went up to Lancaster. Did you see the balloon?" What balloon? "You didn't see the NOTAM for the tethered balloon 20 miles out of that field? Let's go take a look at it."

So we go into the flight planning room at the FBO, find the NOTAM (Tethered balloon at RAD/DME from VOR at 2,000ft from this day to that day), and plot it on my sectional. I have no idea how I didn't hit it, muchless see it. TWICE!

Went and bought a lottery ticket after that.

[busdriver]

The AF.mil story

The above link focuses on the crew from Moffett as the article was written by their PA office. I was the Aircraft Commander on chalk 2.

Another one of those didn't have time to think about it then, but after the fact it's kinda creepy. After lead got shot up, I ended up landing to pick up some of the folks on the ground at their emergency landing site, another 30 seconds and it probably would have been a crash landing site. At the time it almost didn't seem real, watching rounds hitting the dirt just outside the rotor disc and just waiting for the PJs to load everyone up. How we didn't take a single round is absolutely beyond me.

[Champ Kind]

The AF.mil story

The above link focuses on the crew from Moffett as the article was written by their PA office. I was the Aircraft Commander on chalk 2.

Another one of those didn't have time to think about it then, but after the fact it's kinda creepy. After lead got shot up, I ended up landing to pick up some of the folks on the ground at their emergency landing site, another 30 seconds and it probably would have been a crash landing site. At the time it almost didn't seem real, watching rounds hitting the dirt just outside the rotor disc and just waiting for the PJs to load everyone up. How we didn't take a single round is absolutely beyond me.

Wow.... I just had a "big picture" check. I know her from pilot training (few classes ahead of me). I had no idea about this story until you posted the link. Why? Because my base was doing an ORI when this was published. Definitely a reminder on what's important and what isn't.

Thanks for sharing. Thanks for what you guys are doing.

[Toasty]

That was YOU?!?

Haha, I've also heard this story before!

[tac airlifter]

Haha, I've also heard this story before!

It may have happened to more than one crew. But yup, early 2006 that was me. The rest of the story was a backend full of rowdy PUC's and some shenanigans with the Army that almost became a major international incident while the O's watched helplessly from the field; but I'll refrain from details.

Bottom line, the herc schoolhouse tells everyone to run into a field during an EGE because in the 80's some guy got hit by the fire truck responding to the incident (driving on the runway). I recommend staying on a paved surface when you're at an isolated shithole with the potential for mines; we were a solid crew but this is one of those things you just never think about.

[Guest merlock]

because in the 80's some guy got hit by the fire truck responding to the incident (driving on the runway).

Now I feel better about having to wear a reflecto-belt.

[OL Patch]

Circa 1989.....BFM IPUG ride for a dude at Eglin. He gets tree'd with me about 1500' back and working the stabs to get my nose on him....attempts to pirouette our of said situation...swaps ends dramatically and proceeds to fall across the top of my canopy basically down the centerline of my jet close enough to count the rivets on the bottom of his C-model--KIO, go home, great move...NESP..do over!

retguy

[stract]

was that english?

[Muscle2002]

Circa 1989.....BFM IPUG ride for a dude at Eglin. He gets tree'd with me about 1500' back and working the stabs to get my nose on him....attempts to pirouette our of said situation...swaps ends dramatically and proceeds to fall across the top of my canopy basically down the centerline of my jet close enough to count the rivets on the bottom of his C-model--KIO, go home, great move...NESP..do over!

retguy

was that english?

More importantly, did you get any RATRs on him?

[OL Patch]

was that english?

BFM--Basic Fighter Maneuvers

IPUG--Instructor Pilot Upgrade

Eglin--A base in Florida (sarcasm)

Tree'd--Stuck in a high low stack

Pirouette--Normally a ballet move (suitable for C Model drivers-sarcasm-used to be one)

KIO--Knock it Off

NESP--Non effective student progession

Been awhile, and it may not be considered English, but it was the speak we spoke..

Cheers,

Retguy

[Muscle2002]

BFM--Basic Fighter Maneuvers

IPUG--Instructor Pilot Upgrade

Eglin--A base in Florida (sarcasm)

Tree'd--Stuck in a high low stack

Pirouette--Normally a ballet move (suitable for C Model drivers-sarcasm-used to be one)

KIO--Knock it Off

NESP--Non effective student progession

Been awhile, and it may not be considered English, but it was the speak we spoke..

Cheers,

Retguy

Did the student attempt a pirouette out of a defensive position or was the fight neutral? If it was the former, aside from the near mid-air, I would hook him on poor BFM execution/maneuver selection.

[OL Patch]

Former...learned his lesson well and became one of the finest FWIC IPs I ever knew.

Now on to more scary stories....never, ever, ever try to stick your nose into a circle of Hogs just north of Belted Peak while on a FWIC upgrade ride. As my grizzled IP said; "NOT the correct choice"!

Shouldn't this thread be in the bar section, oh never mind.....