Stupid Guest Tricks

February wrote:I used to be such a good flyer. Then we did something called an "aborted take-off" and I stopped being a good flyer.

An aborted takeoff is better than an aborted landing. Had one of those once due to a presidential haircut.

C'mon Susi, tell us about the trip!!!!!!! I'm sure there are GREAT stories coming....Maybe some more ECV casualties?

So what are an aborted takeoff and an aborted landing?

No matter what they sound like no fun at all and I hope my flights coming up are very uneventful.

February wrote:I used to be such a good flyer. Then we did something called an "aborted take-off" and I stopped being a good flyer.

I was on a military charter 727 taking off from Phoenix. About two thirds down the runway the brakes came on and we slid to a stop. The pilot came on the PA and announced he'd seen an overheat condition in one engine so we were going to taxi back to the other end of the runway and try again. From the back of the plane we heard a shrill voice scream, "Not with me on here you're not!!"

I think it was our commanding general who was a terrible flyer.

On the second attempt, everyone sitting on the aisles were making rowing motions.

Zazu wrote:An aborted takeoff is better than an aborted landing.

A friend's daughter was a brand new co-pilot with United. That meant she always got the flights no one else wanted. She was on final approach into Mexico City when suddenly out of the really thick orange haze (the oxygen booths are not a joke) comes an old beater fuel truck crossing the runway. Someone on the ground told them the wheels cleared the truck by ten feet. She threatened to quit if she ever got scheduled for MC again.

Shorty82 wrote:So what are an aborted takeoff and an aborted landing?

No matter what they sound like no fun at all and I hope my flights coming up are very uneventful.

Come on guys, no more airplane scare stories until Shorty gets back from WDW. Give the guy a break! :D:

Whazzup wrote:Come on guys, no more airplane scare stories until Shorty gets back from WDW. Give the guy a break! :D:

I'm not worried. I know that airplanes are very safe for the most part. There are thousands of flights a day and rarely are there any incidents of any kind worth mentioning.

I am curious as to what those terms mean though.

Shorty82 wrote:So what are an aborted takeoff and an aborted landing?

No matter what they sound like no fun at all and I hope my flights coming up are very uneventful.

Aborted take off - Pilot receives a warning while the plane is accelerating down the runway that indicates they need to stop the plane and NOT take off. There is a speed where they cannot abort safely, so they will take off, notify air traffic control (ATC) and then either trouble shoot the problem and continue on, or circle until they dump enough fuel for a safe landing.

Aborted landing - Something happens where they cannot land safely, usually something else (plane, truck, some sort of animal) on the runway, or they have a bad approach and have to 'go around'. You'll know if this happens, you'll be on approach (aka landing) and you'll hear the engines spool back up, the gear retracts (if it's down) and the flaps retract. Then you start going back up. This actually happens quite a bit.

Either way you'll be fine, they will let you know what happened and (sometimes) why.

Shorty82 wrote:So what are an aborted takeoff and an aborted landing?

No matter what they sound like no fun at all and I hope my flights coming up are very uneventful.

Aborted takeoff was my nightmare come true. Takeoff always scares me most- and we're getting up speed and off the ground, then going lower, then suddenly we're slamming back into the runway.

They said they had a light indicating that the cargo door was not secure. They claimed after 2 hours of having technicians look at it that it was just a light that was acting up in the cockpit.

I told my husband, "that's it, the next time I get on a plane there better be a Mouse waiting for me on the other end." (we were not flying to Disney that trip, obviously!)

You have my sympathies. I am completely airplane-phobic and do not fly. My three CPs I drove from Missouri and back (which had the added bonus of having my car with me for my CPs) and we are driving for spring break as well.