Trouble ahead
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
We were just a couple of pilots flying cross country in a private airplane. The takeoff, approach and landing portions of such flights are busy times. In fact, professional airline crews are enjoined to suppress any extraneous conversation, they call it a "sterile cockpit," and concentrate only on the business at hand during those critical phases of every flight. After climb out and level off with the autopilot capably handling the flying duties, the pilots relax and simply monitor progress. That quiet time is usually filled with friendly banter interspersed with the occasional short responses to air traffic controllers. The old adage applies "flying is hours of boredom interspersed with moments of sheer terror"!