John J
Line Up and Wait
Just thought I would share some old scrap book stories with you all
Early this afternoon I was going through some of my old flight stuff and scrap book. I found a note in my scrap book, on how to talk to a control tower. I wrote this when I was 16 working for flying lessons at the airport. I looked into my first log book and found the date that I remember so well when I had to fly to a controlled field. This was over 45 years ago. It was in the late summer of 1960 and the day was so wonderfully clear. I had soloed and was well along on my cross countries both dual and solo. It was early in the afternoon while I was having my lunch brake when my wonderfull instructor came to me and said, "Do you want to fly?" Of course I wanted to fly and I stopped eating and said, "When"? He use to love to do this to me for I would get all reved up and I would stop everything just to go.
Well he told me that he thought it would be a great ideal that I learn how to use the radio to talk to towers. I began to sweat immediately.
I was afraid of talking on the radio. The radio we had in the flight school PA 12 was the venerable Narco Superhomer. It had a whopping 3 channels to talk on and a "Coffee Grinder" receiving tuner. The radio weighed close to 20 pounds and it needed time to warm up. Yes it had tubes.
My instructor and I went over all the procedures concerning when to call the tower using position, altitude, number, type of plane and receiving frequency. There was no duplex in those days. The receiving frequency was very critical for this radio only had 3 chanels to talk on. i still remember them all 122.5 121.5 and 122.8 At that time 122.5 was a common tower frequency and I would transmitt on that and receive on the published frequency on the chart or AIM. The ideal was you would call the tower and ask for a short count on the receiving frequency. This is where the "Coffee Grinder" tuner comes in. You would call and listen for the tower to read back a short count while you are tuning in the receiver. Of course you did this while flying the plane, holding charts and looking out the windows. Interesting the Headsets were the old Headphones used in WWII and the mike was one of those real clunky ones that was big as a 4 cell flash light.
After this briefing my instructor and I took off from Annapolis to fly up to Baltimore's Harbor Field. It was the first commercial airport in Baltimore not far from Sparrows Point.Friendship or now BWI was built after WWIi in 1949.Harbor Field was right out of the 1930's. The flight was short about 25 miles Right after take off we turned on the Superhomer and waited about 2 minutes to get it warmed up. I was terrified to talk to the tower. I knew I had to call them at 10 miles out. Soon I was at the ten mile out point. I was sweating as I called the tower to ask for a short count. I tuned the receiver back and forth while flying the plane with my knees and feet. Quickly I heard the tower giving me the short count. Wow I could not believe it, first try. I talked more and was told to report 2 miles out for runway 9. I was worried the tuner might drift off frequency as I flew but it stayed on. I called again and was cleared to land. I was so happy to have made it without making a mistake. I knew though I had to fly home using the radio.
After having some cold water and just watching all the activity at the airport I felt ready to face the radio and tower again. Just before we climbed into the plane my instructor pointed to a large white circle painted onto the tarmac close to the base of the tower. He told me that where we will taxi to. I asked him why but he just smiled. I did not know it yet be he was going to teach me about working with light gun signals.
We started the plane and I reached to turn on the radio and he told me to leave it off for now. He told me to taxi over to the circle. Once I got to the circle he told me to face the tower. I did and then he told me to stir the stick and look at the tower. My sweaty hands held the stick as I stirred. Shortly I saw a nice flashing green light from the tower. My instructor told me I just had been cleared to taxi to the end of the runway. He then told me to turn on the Superhomer. We reached the end of the runway just as the Superhomer warmed up. Lucky the tuner section had not "Wondered" from the tower frequency. After the runup and final checks my instructor then told me to do the 360 turn slowly, checking for traffic and look at the tower at the end olf the turn. I did this and shortly I got a very beautiful sight. A very steady green light. The take off was great and wow I was so relieved I did not have to talk on the radio. The little home airport never looked so good.
Thank you for reading.
John
Early this afternoon I was going through some of my old flight stuff and scrap book. I found a note in my scrap book, on how to talk to a control tower. I wrote this when I was 16 working for flying lessons at the airport. I looked into my first log book and found the date that I remember so well when I had to fly to a controlled field. This was over 45 years ago. It was in the late summer of 1960 and the day was so wonderfully clear. I had soloed and was well along on my cross countries both dual and solo. It was early in the afternoon while I was having my lunch brake when my wonderfull instructor came to me and said, "Do you want to fly?" Of course I wanted to fly and I stopped eating and said, "When"? He use to love to do this to me for I would get all reved up and I would stop everything just to go.
Well he told me that he thought it would be a great ideal that I learn how to use the radio to talk to towers. I began to sweat immediately.
I was afraid of talking on the radio. The radio we had in the flight school PA 12 was the venerable Narco Superhomer. It had a whopping 3 channels to talk on and a "Coffee Grinder" receiving tuner. The radio weighed close to 20 pounds and it needed time to warm up. Yes it had tubes. My instructor and I went over all the procedures concerning when to call the tower using position, altitude, number, type of plane and receiving frequency. There was no duplex in those days. The receiving frequency was very critical for this radio only had 3 chanels to talk on. i still remember them all 122.5 121.5 and 122.8 At that time 122.5 was a common tower frequency and I would transmitt on that and receive on the published frequency on the chart or AIM. The ideal was you would call the tower and ask for a short count on the receiving frequency. This is where the "Coffee Grinder" tuner comes in. You would call and listen for the tower to read back a short count while you are tuning in the receiver. Of course you did this while flying the plane, holding charts and looking out the windows. Interesting the Headsets were the old Headphones used in WWII and the mike was one of those real clunky ones that was big as a 4 cell flash light.
After this briefing my instructor and I took off from Annapolis to fly up to Baltimore's Harbor Field. It was the first commercial airport in Baltimore not far from Sparrows Point.Friendship or now BWI was built after WWIi in 1949.Harbor Field was right out of the 1930's. The flight was short about 25 miles Right after take off we turned on the Superhomer and waited about 2 minutes to get it warmed up. I was terrified to talk to the tower. I knew I had to call them at 10 miles out. Soon I was at the ten mile out point. I was sweating as I called the tower to ask for a short count. I tuned the receiver back and forth while flying the plane with my knees and feet. Quickly I heard the tower giving me the short count. Wow I could not believe it, first try. I talked more and was told to report 2 miles out for runway 9. I was worried the tuner might drift off frequency as I flew but it stayed on. I called again and was cleared to land. I was so happy to have made it without making a mistake. I knew though I had to fly home using the radio.
After having some cold water and just watching all the activity at the airport I felt ready to face the radio and tower again. Just before we climbed into the plane my instructor pointed to a large white circle painted onto the tarmac close to the base of the tower. He told me that where we will taxi to. I asked him why but he just smiled. I did not know it yet be he was going to teach me about working with light gun signals.
We started the plane and I reached to turn on the radio and he told me to leave it off for now. He told me to taxi over to the circle. Once I got to the circle he told me to face the tower. I did and then he told me to stir the stick and look at the tower. My sweaty hands held the stick as I stirred. Shortly I saw a nice flashing green light from the tower. My instructor told me I just had been cleared to taxi to the end of the runway. He then told me to turn on the Superhomer. We reached the end of the runway just as the Superhomer warmed up. Lucky the tuner section had not "Wondered" from the tower frequency. After the runup and final checks my instructor then told me to do the 360 turn slowly, checking for traffic and look at the tower at the end olf the turn. I did this and shortly I got a very beautiful sight. A very steady green light. The take off was great and wow I was so relieved I did not have to talk on the radio. The little home airport never looked so good.
Thank you for reading.
John
