Short Final: Birthday Balloons
While holding short of 11L at Tucson International Airport recently I heard the following:
Tower: “American 1234 cleared...
Short Final: How To Get To HEVVN
Just off the shore of northwest Florida, in the Gulf of Mexico, is HEVVN, an oft‑used fix for pilots crossing the Gulf...
Short Final: Rainy Days
One Sunday morning my home airport was forecast to have low clouds and drizzle until around 10 a.m., when the rain would...
Short Final: Say Parking
A while ago, I was flying into Bishop International Airport in Flint, Michigan, as a student pilot when I was cleared to...
Short Final: Bald Eagles
While it’s common for airports to list “birds in the vicinity,” this alert for Situk Airport in Alaska warns of especially distracted type engaged in perpetuating our national symbol...
Short Final: Slow Down
Battling 25-knot headwinds, northbound into Atlantas DeKalb-Peachtree, ATC gave clearance to both my Mooney Ovation and a nearby Bonanza...
Short Final: Falling People
A few months ago, I was with Atlanta Center when I heard the controller and a pilot doing parachute jumping operations...
Short Final: PIC
I was piloting N7304Y, a Miller Twin Comanche (a veritable hot rod) from San Antonios Stinson Airport to Houston Hobby Airport early in the morning. Houston Center passed me to Approach and then to the final controller for Hobby...
Short Final: Altitude Reporting
Best radio call I ever got to make...
Short Final: Darn Numbers
I was on descent into a congested metropolitan area when I had this exchange with the center controller...
Featured Video
City Of LAX: A Marvel In Timelapse
In this stunning timelapse film, Chris Pritchard expertly reveals the hidden views and complex layers of movement of the world's third busiest...