Recent content by Shuckers86

I missed birthdays as well as Christmas, Easter, New Years, anniversaries, chicken pox, weddings, Halloween, swim meets, wrestling matches, etc. But I did get two weeks off a month, not necessarily where I wanted them, and almost the entire summer off!

I was fortunate to have a 35 year career actually making money flying airplanes, the last twenty plus years as a wide body captain. I never once asked how much money I would get paid in an interview. From CFI, to 135, regional, then majors I just wanted to fly. The climb to the airlines entails...

Whenever I hear someone say they “flew” somewhere, I ask them “Did you fly or did you ride?”. Thanks for sharing with this old pilot!

I flew the Tomahawk as both a student and a CFI. l loved flying it for a few reasons. I’m 6’4”, the Tomahawk has more room than the 150/152. I always thought it was a better trainer for professional students because it has two fuel tanks, fuel pump, and it feels like a bigger airplane than the...

A lot pilots called the Tomahawk a Taumahawk. I flew it with an open mind. It was fun to spin at a safe altitude, as long as you didn’t look at the tail. It had tendency to shake a little. The only negative compared to the 150/152 was the cockpit was a greenhouse in the summer, I taught in Florida.

I was a CFI back in the’80s. My flight school had both 152s and Tomahawks. I’m 6’4” and the Tomahawk was significantly more comfortable for me. I also thought it was a better all around trainer. I’m not sure how many are left although I did see a nice looking Tomahawk at KFIN.

I got a lot of time in the aforementioned Seneca. I enjoyed flying the airplane, especially the Seneca 3.

@lsaway and @Ventucky Red, I was a CFI in the Traumahawk! I thought it was a great trainer and time builder. If I had a student that looking to go beyond being a private pilot, I taught at a Part 141 school, I would steer them into the Tomahawk. In my opinion I liked that the student would have...

When I was younger I flew all over Florida and Georgia in a Tomahawk. I preferred it to the 152 because I’m 6’4”. I hear they are difficult to find these days. I ended up retiring on the 767 but I still have a soft spot for the PA38-112!

I flew a Boeing around the country and we had only a general idea of the wind. ATC never asked us either, the amazing 727!

“Fate is the Hunter” is my favorite aviation book ever. I’ve read it every five years since a guy I was flying with at Bar Harbor Airlines gave it to me in the mid80s. Flying over the Amazon following a magenta line is not quite the same as the way Captain Gann did it 90 years ago. Great read!

I’ve been trying to think how to respond to your posts. We actually do train for a complete engine failure like Sully. One of my last sims I landed a the plane in Boston Harbor with both engines shut down. I’ve also, in the sim, had a dual engine flameout at altitude. There is a check list and...

Everyone on that SWA 737 in KAUS should be very thankful there were real pilots in that FedEx 767. The pilots, not the airplane, chose to discontinue the approach in a low vis situation. Using their eyes, training, and judgment they avoided a catastrophe. A drone 767 might have continued to a...

I use Sky Harbor. The FBOs at CRG don’t come close to the FBOs at SSI or TLH but the people are great. The airport is very busy with A LOT of training all day long in VFR conditions. Some days it feels like ORD or JFK!

Pretty amazing! Merry Christmas to all.