Busted an Alert Area

SixPapaCharlie

SixPapaCharlie

May the force be with you
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Preparing to fly to Jay's place this weekend, I glanced down and noticed all the MOAs and was like whateve...
Well en route (I know...) I realized some of them were "Alert" areas.

I had a conversation w/ My CISP a week earlier who made these areas out to be
certain death for anyone that enters.

He is a little over dramatic.
On FF once, he actually asked ATC if he was cleared to transition a local D while on FF
Controller says "Yes you are cleared through it.

He asks "Well did you call them and confirm?"
I am like WTF? Controller confirms he did in fact notify the D that there would be upcoming penetration.


At any rate I am in between a handful of what I now realize are alert areas and I am having trouble raising Houston center. so I climb and climb in a spiral hoping to get them while at the same time trying to avoid these death zones.

For whatever reason, I get to 7k+ feet and they are not answering.
Then I decide to try and raise jay (using FB messenger with assistance from my wife.)

We were too high for facebook and too low for center I guess.

I decided to land and make some phone calls but I hear garbled "Aircraft calling contact corpus approach on xxx.xx"

I get them and get FF straight through a handful of alert areas to mustang beach airport somehow managing to avoid death from heat seeking missiles I had been promised by the CISP.

Am I lucky top be alive?
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
Am I lucky top be alive?
Click to expand...

I think the general consensus on this is going to be that you are very lucky to be alive.

Not because you flew through an alert area.

You're jus' very lucky to be alive considering all the stuff you've posted here...
 
Clark1961 said:
I think the general consensus on this is going to be that you are very lucky to be alive.

Not because you flew through an alert area.

You're jus' very lucky to be alive considering all the stuff you've posted here...
Click to expand...



:yes::yes::yes:.......:D
 
Before I ask specific questions, let's get a few more facts into evidence....

Were you on Flight Following to start with? What was your cruise altitude before you encountered these chain of events?
 
Some alert areas are alert areas because they are filled with student pilots. And they are probably not even getting FF. So it should be no problem for a seasoned pilot like you. Just be alert!
 
eb87f said:
Some alert areas are alert areas because they are filled with student pilots. And they are probably not even getting FF. So it should be no problem for a seasoned pilot like you. Just be alert!
Click to expand...

yea, there is an alert area in the Oklahoma panhandle I fly around. I figure a low time pilot (me) and an air force student pilot in similarly equipped "high performance aircraft" best not be in the same airspace.

I fly around.

Facebook while flying??! Seriously?
 
brian];1893559 said:
yea, there is an alert area in the Oklahoma panhandle I fly around. I figure a low time pilot (me) and an air force student pilot in similarly equipped "high performance aircraft" best not be in the same airspace.

I fly around.

Facebook while flying??! Seriously?
Click to expand...

How else is he supposed to know what his buddies and some folks he went to High School with are having for lunch?
 
I think if you are seriously asking this question, you'll be soon enough doing a 709 ride for something that it won't matter.
 
You don't need clearance to enter an alert area.

It's not restricted airspace.

The danger is generally traffic volume, sometimes with low time pilots. Not even up to MOA standards…. We have one local alert area here, associated with Travis AFB. On weekdays, you can see lots of real low time "heavy" pilots (Travis is a logistical base, hosting C-5s, C-17s, KC-10s, etc.). On weekends, it is D E A D, and I frequently use that alert area for CAP orientation flights. It's a good one, with lots of nice landmarks, no terrain to speak of, very little weekend traffic, and rather quiet flight following.
 
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eb87f said:
Some alert areas are alert areas because they are filled with student pilots. And they are probably not even getting FF. So it should be no problem for a seasoned pilot like you. Just be alert!
Click to expand...

Around Corpus Christi (which is where the OP was) the alert areas are for Naval Aviator training and they do talk to approach. The alert areas include the note: Concentrated Jet Training.
 
luvflyin said:
wtf is a CISP?
Complicated Internet S**t Professional???
Click to expand...

Er. CSIP I never remember which.
I forget what it stands for though.

I think the P is for parachute though.

They are just really expensive CFIs
 
KSCessnaDriver said:
I think if you are seriously asking this question, you'll be soon enough doing a 709 ride for something that it won't matter.
Click to expand...
I don't think he is being serious. I believe this is another one of those funny tantrums. :)

Clark1961 said:
The alert areas include the note: Concentrated Jet Training.
Click to expand...

Just add water and you have a real jet, right? :-D


Bryan (with a Y), I am absotively posilutely sure that they had you in their gun sights:
"Overlord, Raven 1 has the bogey in sight and locked. Requesting permission to fire."
"Negative, Raven 1, do not engage."
"Overlord, I already lifted the finger guard and am twitching to fire at this son of a bish."
"Negative, Raven 1, disengage. We checked the tail number, he is just a harmless Internet troll. I repeat, disengage."
"Awwwwwwwww ..."
 
AggieMike88 said:
Before I ask specific questions, let's get a few more facts into evidence....

Were you on Flight Following to start with? What was your cruise altitude before you encountered these chain of events?
Click to expand...


No the story is way more boring.
I landed at a planned fuel stop in Jackson Co near Victoria.

As soon as we landed, a dog with the biggest set of nuts I have ever seen jumps up on the wing and begs for attention. It was a black lab with even bigger blacker nuts. We couldn't not talk about them for the rest of the flight. It was like the elephant nuts in the room.

Oh so we stopped for fuel.

I had been on FF and the prior controller said "When you get back up ring Hou Ctr on xxx.xx"

I got up and tried that freq. but no dice
Then I tried the freq. listed in the afd for Jackson Co.
It also didn't work.

So I called the former controller and he advised I try Corpus.
That worked.

It is a far more boring story that way. Cept for the part about the dog nuts.
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
No the story is way more boring.
I landed at a planned fuel stop in Jackson Co near Victoria.

As soon as we landed, a dog with the biggest set of nuts I have ever seen jumps up on the wing and begs for attention.
Click to expand...

You from Chicago?
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
No the story is way more boring.
I landed at a planned fuel stop in Jackson Co near Victoria.

As soon as we landed, a dog with the biggest set of nuts I have ever seen jumps up on the wing and begs for attention. It was a black lab with even bigger blacker nuts. We couldn't not talk about them for the rest of the flight. It was like the elephant nuts in the room.

......
It is a far more boring story that way. Cept for the part about the dog nuts.
Click to expand...

Chip Sylverne said:
You from Chicago?
Click to expand...

Sac-Arrow? :yikes::goofy::nono:
 
KSCessnaDriver said:
Ah yes, I forgot, part of the reason why this forum has started to go to hell. A bunch of worthless **** posts.
Click to expand...

When you believed it was legit, how was your response about it not mattering / 709 ride any more beneficial of a contribution to the forum than the post?
 
Checkout_my_Six said:
Sac-Arrow? :yikes::goofy::nono:
Click to expand...

Nah, an oblique reference to an old, mediocre John Belushi movie where he's a reoprter out in the wilds of Alaska alone casing some naturalist skirt, and a wildcat wanders into his cabin. In the aftermath, the story in part goes something like " and this cat had the biggest set of balls I've ever seen, and I'm from Chicago!"
 
Alert Area is similar to the MOA, not required. One exception I know of is the one out in Phoenix around Luke AFB, part of the Alert Area requires you to be in contact with Luke Approach.
 
Oh and I legitimately wasn't sure about the alert area.
I was taking my BFR and one of the things he brought up was staying out of the alert areas because they are unsafe for GA traffic.

Obviously KRAS is in the middle of one so it can't be avoided but I always thought they were like MOA. Go around if you can or go through but keep your head on a swivel.

I didn't think they were as big a deal as this gentleman was making it out to be.
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
I didn't think they were as big a deal as this gentleman was making it out to be.
Click to expand...

In my experience, they aren't. And if one is going to be "hot", the controller will definitely be aware and advise you.

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

BTW, 6-8 of us pilots are meeting for dinner at the Denton Smokehouse at 5:45pm if you care to join with us.
 
Is this a test to check our knowledge level. Or are you making a point of information,some of the replys are comical.
 
In alert areas you have to drop to treetop level, pop chaff & flares, and activate ECM if you are so equipped. It's really the only way to stay alive.
 
KSCessnaDriver said:
Ah yes, I forgot, part of the reason why this forum has started to go to hell. A bunch of worthless **** posts.
Click to expand...

Well this IS in the Hangar Talk area... Lots of silly stuff gets talked about in Hangars. Some bad stuff happens too. I've had some pretty weird **** go down in my hangar :eek:
 
And, let's be fair, the dog's nuts were ridiculous. :yes: I actually felt sorry for him. :redface::redface:
 
Goodness
1. Yes, really curious about the seriousness of alert areas. The man giving the BFR does at times stretch things out of proportion and when I saw them, I started to wonder if this was him being him or maybe there was more to it.

I couldn't get a hold of center but that is not an issue

The dog had MASSIVE nuts

The rest was adding flavor to the story to capture the reader's attention.


I mean seriously HUGE nuts.
 
When I entered the Alert Area north of Pensacola on Friday the controller advised me that there was allot of uncontrolled student activity and I said we would keep a look out. I had my $100 ADSB working and didn't have any problems. No, I didn't depend on it, but it was helpful.
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
Goodness
1. Yes, really curious about the seriousness of alert areas. The man giving the BFR does at times stretch things out of proportion and when I saw them, I started to wonder if this was him being him or maybe there was more to it.

I couldn't get a hold of center but that is not an issue

The dog had MASSIVE nuts

The rest was adding flavor to the story to capture the reader's attention.


I mean seriously HUGE nuts.
Click to expand...

I've never done a BFR, but it seems like it's time to find someone else to do them if you don't like how that person does them.
 
KSCessnaDriver said:
I've never done a BFR, but it seems like it's time to find someone else to do them if you don't like how that person does them.
Click to expand...

Yup. Lesson learned.
It was a 2 hour talk, way more intense than my PPL oral.

Next go round I amusing my original CFI.
I dont think the BFR is supposed to be a beating.
 
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