[phantom4570]

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 round, 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."

 

[shep854]

Good one! Cherokees are great planes.

 

[Skeptic49]

Cherokee candy bar wings! Who ever heard of a low wing bird?
I work at an airport and a Cherokee scared the heck out of me, it flared for landing hit CAT and displayed a perfect wing plan shot...at ZERO METERS! Somehow the pilot made it down alive.
Geoff
Who is a Cessna fan.

 

[ExSarge]

What is all that about CAT, wing plan shot and zero meters? I have over 2500 hours and never heard that before....Oh yes, I also have a commercial ticket...

 

[shep854]

What is all that about CAT, wing plan shot and zero meters? I have over 2500 hours and never heard that before....Oh yes, I also have a commercial ticket...

Sounds like the pilot caught a wind gust just before touchdown and got rolled 90 degrees.

 

[CaptainGyro]

CAT = Clear air turbulence.

I might speculate that it is more likely to have been wake turbulence. The clue is the rolling effect. CAT would induce a relatively symmetrical bounce, whereas wake turbulence is a rolling horizontal vortex.

I had wake turbulence from a preceeding L-1011 roll me almost to 90 degrees in a DC-9 over Queens one day, approaching LaGuardia. The folks in Brooklyn got a "perfect wing plan shot", as Geoff puts it. Musta' been a real crowd-pleaser from the ground.

 

[Charlie Petty]

what was the reaction in back?

 

[CaptainGyro]

I was way too focused at the time to hear anything from the back.

I was the co-pilot, and the captain was flying. I was expecting a right turn to downwind, and was clearing in that direction, when we started rolling left. That got my attention, so I looked over at the captain, who had full right aileron deployed as we continued to roll left. As the bank increased and the nose started to drop, he said something I've never heard from another pilot before or since: "Help me."

It was apparent that aileron wasn't doing the trick, so I buried the top (right) rudder pedal. That stopped the roll, but we were still banked pretty hard to the left. All of a sudden we exited the vortex, and the jet fairly snapped back to the right. We both neutralized right away, and ended up perfectly wings level.

About that time, approach control said, "Use caution, previous two arrivals were L-1011's." Thanks for the heads-up.

I'd like to report that strong men were weeping and numerous women wanted to have my babies, but everyone was pretty quiet getting off at the gate. I think they were just relieved to be on the ground (at the airport, as opposed to the Long Island Expressway).

 

[Charlie Petty]

Hopefully the capt. had to stand in the door...