A pilot compares cockpits between the Spitfire and the 109

[bobbysocks]

this AD for the seat track doesnt affect you does it??

http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#204825

its about 1/3 of the way down...

[flynlion]

Originally Posted by bobbysocks

this AD for the seat track doesnt affect you does it??

http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#204825

its about 1/3 of the way down...

No, this is just a modification to a previous AD that has been around for a long time, I doubt it will change much. I wish all ADs were as simple to comply with LoL. Anyway it's been years since I've flown a Cessna product.

[bobbysocks]

haha...aint that the truth??!! i have chased ac around the country to get the work done before they dropped dead. then there was the door bars after 9/11.... get the whole fleet done in 3 days. yeah...no problem...

[flynlion]

That cockpit door AD was a real pain on the smaller Crj 200, it meant that the flight crew lost our closet and had no place to stow our bags. Don't worry, pilots will put up with anything if you give 'em a jet to fly. I dont miss that business one bit.

What kind of work do you do Bobby?

[bobbysocks]

in years past i was a ramp supe at PIT for the commuter ac...usairways express. we had beech 1900s, saab 320s, J-31s ( what a joy they were ), dash 8s and dornier 328s. i got out just as the rjs were starting to take over. i did have a chance to see the canada air and embraer ( dont remember the number...was a 50 seater tho ). we ourselves ran close to 300 flights a day and mainline a little more than that. now PIT maybe has 50 flights total. did that for about 5 or 6 years and then got a job with mainline scheduling mtx on the ac, setting up the work orders for the stations...weekly checks, a checks...all that happiness. was interesting and fun..sort of. i bailed out of the airline biz when airways was teetering on going defunct.

[flynlion]

Far out, I think you and I were at PIT around the same time (1998-2000?). I was an FO for Mesa on the 1900 then, later became a Capn on the Erj (the 50 seater is the EMB-145) and finally the Crj 900 based outta CLT. The last time I saw PIT it was like a ghost town.

What do ya do nowadays? I'm working part time as a tow pilot for a local glider club in South Carolina. It's lotsa fun but sure don't pay much LoL.

[bobbysocks]

it is a small world.... yep i was there during 98 and left june 2000. my zone was gates 17 to 22a where they were pushing back the "dorks" ( dorniers ). beautiful planes but you couldnt keep them in the air. but when they were short staffed ( as in always ) i would run 9 - 22a. i always had bunch of 1900s on my gates. i do miss that job. there was NEVER a dull moment. that wasnt your ac that the police attack dog got out of its crate in was it? the pilot trying to be a good guy left the bulkhead separating the cargo bay and the pax compartment down to give fido some air. well, somehow the beastie got loose and came growling over the wall chasing the crew off the plane! they had to slam the doors shut to keep him from getting out. crap like that wasnt an oddity it was a daily occurance..lol but the job didnt pay jack$#!t and my arms still ache from tossing bags...but i had so much fun there...and i miss the flight benes. adventures in non-rev travel. damn i have a whole lot of memories flashing through my mind. they closed the E gates maybe 6 years ago. it sat empty for years....they tore down one wing to construct a baggage system for usair. the latest plans are to turn it into the new employee parking lot.

mesa...now if i remember didnt you guys become "something midwest"? most of the ports you guys flew to are shut down. others are still in service but not from PIT.

glider tow huh? wish you were closer. i had been kicking around the idea of getting back in the air for the past several years and was looking into sailplanes. but the places aroudn here all folded up. now i have my eye on something else. but i dont want to mess with towers, transponders, ...the FAA..haha. no chance of you instructing or flying air taxi, ferrying ac parts?? didnt you do that while you were building time? i would think that "should" put more $$ in your pocket and you could name your hours. i never got that for so i dont know the ins and outs of that. do yo ever get back up this way??

[flynlion]

Mesa bought out Air Midwest and for a while had all of the 1900s on the Air Midwest certificate, right around the same time that I moved to the RJs in CLT.

You should definately try soaring, its the funnest flying that I've ever done. Compairing soaring to airline flying is like compairing a small sailing yacht to an oil tanker. One is more fun, but the other pays better. There used to be several reputable soaring operations in PA that would work those ridges in the Allegheny mts, are they all gone now? That would be a shame.

What kinda work do you do now? I'm always curious about how those ininterested in aviation actually make a living. This glider towing thing is fun, but it really don't pay the bills, and flight instruction pays even less. I could do charter or corporate work but I have a problem with being on call all the time, and I pretty much can't stand rich people LoL.

[bobbysocks]

closest soaring clubs are cleveland ( 2 + hours drive ) and 1 up near warren, pa...basically the same time frame driving. now i do have a camp up near the one at warren and if i already had my license i would probably be more inclined to go. but to head up there for dual time...i see you can do the ground school online or at least get the manuals for free. still toying and deciding. been checking out the ultralights and thinking hard about them. i dont want the freaking parachute with a fan on my back....or kite with a chainsaw motor. there are several that look and supposedly fly like a cub and some decent low wing versions. not readly to throw the money yet but it is an option worth investigating. i see a bunch down that way online....

i am sort of surprised that you cant make a decent buck instructing but then again i am not. the flight schools ( like commuters ) know you are there to build hours so they have you by the short ones... too bad. and charters...i understand. had realtives and friends who did that....operative word DID. NOW if you were young and single i would suggest bee bopping around the caribbean flying island hoppers. sure them money isnt good but witht he sun, sand, surf, and all the nice things that go with it....who cares..lol.

[flynlion]

I did the island hopping thing years ago, flew for a charter company outta St Croix. The main problem with it was that I was always on call, and its pretty hard to enjoy the sand or the rum when you're wearing a beeper. I also tried the island commuters while I was there, but they have the same problems as commuters everywhere and anyway prefer to hire local pilots. My favorite flying job was in Alaska, worked up there for a year. I've often thought about going back but I was 20 years younger then and the winters get so damn cold LoL. I think what I'd like to do now is find a decent paying ground hog job that I don't hate to pay the bills, and tow gliders on my days off. Sounds simple enough yes?

I think you should just bite the bullet, take some time off and go get a pilots license Which rating you get is up to you, but we get a LOT of people at my school who stay with us for days at a time and bang out their glider ticket in a matter of days. Here's where I tow:

http://www.bermudahighsoaring.com/

And of coarse Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref...88101617879369