[Rhodes22-list] Special information to lift Brad's Spirits

[ed kroposki]

Here are some conversations that airline passengers normally will never
hear. The following are accounts of actual exchanges between airline pilots
and control towers around the world.



  Tower: "Delta 351, you have traffic at 10 o'clock, 6 miles!"

  Delta 351: "Give us another hint! We have digital watches!"

  =========================================================

  "TWA 2341, for noise abatement turn right 45 Degrees."

  "Centre, we are at 35,000 feet. How much noise can we make up here?"

  "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 queue: "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 239: "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 last known

  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 Guadalupe exit

  off Highway 101, make a right at the lights and return to the airport."

  ==========================================================

  ==========================================================

  Taxiing down the tarmac, a DC-10 abruptly stopped, turned around and

  returned to the gate. After an hour-long wait, it finally took off. A

  concerned passenger asked the flight attendant, "What, exactly, was the

  problem?" "The pilot was bothered by a noise he heard in the engine,"

  explained the flight attendant. "It took us a while to find a new pilot."

  ==========================================================

  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-witted comedian 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'll 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?