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Actual
exchanges between pilots and control towers
Note: For those that don't know, "The Sled"is
the SR-71 Blackbird spy plane from the 1960's
and still the fastest airplane.
In his book, "Sled Driver", SR-71 Blackbird
pilot Brian Shul writes: "I'll always
remember a certain radio exchange that
occurred one day as Walt (my back-seater)
and I were screaming across Southern
California 13 miles high. We were monitoring
various radio transmissions from other
aircraft as we entered Los Angeles airspace.
Though they didn't really control us, they
did monitor our movement across their scope.
I
heard a Cessna ask for a readout of its ground
speed."90 knots" Center replied. Moments later,
a Twin Beech required the same. "120 knots,"
Center answered. We weren't the only ones proud
of our ground speed that day as almost instantly
an F-18 smugly transmitted, "Ah, Center, Dusty
52 requests ground speed readout." There was a
slight pause, then the response, "525 knots on
the ground, Dusty." Another silent pause.
As
I was thinking to myself how ripe a situation
this was, I heard a familiar click of a radio
transmission coming from my back-seater. It was
at that precise moment I realized Walt and I had
become a real crew, for we were both thinking in
unison. "Center, Aspen 20, you got a ground
speed readout for us?" There was a longer than
normal pause.... "Aspen, I show 1,742 knots"
(That's about 2004.658 mph who don't know)
No
further inquiries were heard on that frequency.
--------------------------------------------------
In
another famous SR-71 story, Los Angeles Center
reported receiving a request for clearance to FL
600 (60,000ft). The incredulous controller, with
some disdain in his voice, asked, "How do you
plan to get up to 60,000 feet?
The pilot (obviously a sled driver), responded,
"We don't plan to go up to it; we plan to go
down to it." He was cleared.
-------------------------------------
The pilot was sitting in his seat and pulled out
a .38 revolver. He placed it on top of the
instrument panel, and then asked the navigator,
"Do you know what I use this for?"
The navigator replied timidly, "No, what's it
for?" The pilot responded, "I use this on
navigators who get me lost!"
The navigator proceeded to pull out a .45 and
place it on his chart table.
The pilot asked, "What's that for?" "To be
honest sir," the navigator replied, "I'll know
we're lost before you will."
--------------------------------------------
When Hillary Clinton visited Iraq last month the
Army Blackhawk helicopter used to transport the
Senator was given the call sign "broomstick
one". And they say the Army has no sense of
humor!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tower: "Delta 351, you have traffic at 10 o'clock, 6
miles!"
Delta 351: "Give us
another hint! We have digital watches!"
------------------------
Tower: "TWA 2341, for
noise abatement turn right 45 Degrees."
TWA 2341: "Center, we
are at 35,000 feet. How much noise can we make up here?"
Tower: "Sir, have you
ever heard the noise a 747 makes when it hits a 727?"
------------------------
From an unknown
aircraft waiting in a very long takeoff line of aircraft
"I'm f...ing bored!"
Ground Traffic Control: "Last aircraft transmitting,
identify yourself immediately!"
Unknown aircraft: "I said I was f...ing bored, not f...ing
stupid!"
------------------------
O'Hare Approach Control
to a 747: "United 329 heavy, your traffic is a Fokker,
one o'clock, three miles, Eastbound."
United 329: "Approach, I've always wanted to say
this...I've got the little Fokker in sight."
--------------------------
A student became lost
during a solo cross-country flight. While attempting to
locate the aircraft on radar, ATC asked, "What was your
lastknown position?"
Student: "When I was number one for takeoff."
------------------------
A DC-10 had come in a
little hot and thus had an exceedingly long roll out
after touching down. San Jose Tower Noted:
"American 751, make a hard right turn at the end of the
runway, if you are able. If you are not able, take the
Guadeloupe exit off Highway 101, make a right at the
lights and return to the airport."
--------------------------
There's a story about
the military pilot calling for a priority landing
because his single-engine jet fighter was running "a bit
peaked".
Air Traffic Control
told the fighter jock that he was number two, behind a
B-52 that had one engine shut down.
"Ah," the fighter pilot
remarked, "The dreaded seven-engine approach"
--------------------------
A Pan Am 727 flight,
waiting for start clearance in Munich, overheard the
following: Lufthansa (in German): "Ground, what is our
start clearance time?"
Ground (in English):
"If you want an answer you must speak in English."
Lufthansa (in English):
"I am a German, flying a German airplane, in Germany.
Why must I speak English?"
Unknown voice from
another plane (in a beautiful British accent): "Because
you lost the bloody war!"
------------------------
Tower: "Eastern 702,
cleared for takeoff, contact Departure on frequency
124.7"
Eastern 702: "Tower,
Eastern 702 switching to Departure. By the way, after we
lifted off we saw some kind of dead animal on the far
end of the runway."
Tower: "Continental
635, cleared for takeoff behind Eastern 702, contact
Departure on frequency 124.7, did you copy that report
from Eastern 702?"
Continental 635:
"Continental 635, cleared for takeoff, roger; and yes,
we copied Eastern... we've already notified our
caterers."
----------------------------
One day the pilot of a
Cherokee 180 was told by the tower to hold short of the
active runway while a DC-8 landed. The DC-8 landed,
rolled out, turned around, and taxied back past the
Cherokee.
Some quick-wittedcomedian in the DC-8 crew got on the
radio and said, "What a cute little plane. Did you make
it all by yourself?"
The Cherokee pilot, not about to let the insult go by,
came back with a real zinger: "I made it out of DC-8
parts. Another landing like yours and I'd have enough
parts for another one."
--------------------------
The German air controllers at Frankfurt Airport are
renowned as a short-tempered lot. They not only expect
one to know one's gate parking location, but how to get
there without any assistance from them.
So it was with some amusement that we (a Pan Am 747)
listened to the following exchange between Frankfurt
ground control and a British Airways 747, call sign
Speedbird 206.
Speedbird 206: "Frankfurt, Speedbird 206 clear of active
runway."
Ground: "Speedbird 206. Taxi to gate Alpha One-Seven."
The BA 747 pulled onto the main taxiway and slowed to a
stop.
Ground: "Speedbird, do you not know where you are
going?"
Speedbird 206: "Stand by, Ground, I'm looking up our
gate location now."
Ground (with quite arrogant impatience): "Speedbird 206,
have you not been to Frankfurt before?"
Speedbird 206 (coolly): "Yes, twice in 1944, but it was
dark, -- And I didn't land."
----------------------------------
While taxiing at London's Gatwick Airport, the crew of a
US Air flight departing for Ft. Lauderdale made a wrong
turn and came nose to nose with a United 727.
An irate female ground controller lashed out at the US
Air crew, screaming: "US Air 2771, where the hell are
you going?! I told you to turn right onto Charlie
taxiway! You turned right on Delta! Stop right there.
I know it's difficult for you to tell the difference
between C and D, but get it right!" Continuing her rage
to the embarrassed crew, she was now shouting
hysterically: "God! Now you've screwed everything up!
It'll take forever to sort this out! You stay right
there and don't move till I tell you to! You can expect
progressive taxi instructions in about half an hour, and
I want you to go exactly where I tell you, when I
tell you, and how I tell you! You got that, US Air
2771?"
"Yes, ma'am," the humbled crew responded.
Naturally, the ground control communications frequency
fell terribly silent after the verbal bashing of US Air
2771. Nobody wanted to chance engaging the irate ground
controller in her current state of mind. Tension in
every cockpit out around Gatwick was definitely running
high.
Just then an unknown pilot broke the silence and keyed
his microphone asking: "Wasn't I married to you once?"
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