As a pilot, we operate the aircraft to the best of our ability and amuse ourselves with various different aspects such as flight controls, efficiency, navigation, communication with other aircraft and ATC, and numerous other procedures that are not apparent to or involve our PAX. The PAX just have to sit there in a small space for hours at a time. A recent long trip brought to my attention the need to engage my PAX (Read: my wife) in some of these aspects as a boring or scary experience could quickly diminish the desire to fly. This could drastically reduce how often we use the aircraft for our travel needs. This particular trip had us flying in some significant haze produced by Mexican farmers burning the stubble from their fields in Mexico and the resulting ash and smoke migrating northward into Texas skies. This is an annual happening and we just deal with it but the haze at various flying altitudes limits forward visibility to about 2 or 3 miles. The wife was not liking the idea we would have little visibility to detect oncoming aircraft to respond to although the downward visibility was good. Not necessarily IMC but in some aspects close; we were VFR and monitoring the various airspace frequencies for traffic and occasionally visiting with Approach Control and ATC and getting some flight following. I spent the bulk of the trip identifying landmarks and helping her develop ways to recognize them along our route.

I haven't seen much about this subject and thought I'd ask what some of y'all do to amuse your PAX along some of the long cross country flights?

99.9% of my long XC flights were the 3,500 miles of pipeline I flew each week. I often took students and made it a free instructional flight.

While husbands make the worst instructors, I would involve the wife in as much pilot or crew responsibilities as she would be willing to accept. This technique was used on me from a very young age. My Dad's pardner involved me, from a very, very young age in both navigation and flying. Because, for a few years, I couldn't reach the rudder pedals or see over the cowl of the C-180, I just flew instrument. By the time I was old enough to get my PPL, I was filing and flying instrument XC on a regular basis. He was ex-military (B-24) but not an instructor.

Involving nuclear family is a difficult process and involves much diplomacy. My wife "just said NO!"

Smoke is more deceiving than clouds. Generally, but not always, staying as low as possible has worked for me. Much depends on how close you are to the source and wind speed/direction. I think there are some aerial firefighters on here who could help more with that.

contactflying wrote:99.9% of my long XC flights were the 3,500 miles of pipeline I flew each week. I often took students and made it a free instructional flight.

While husbands make the worst instructors, I would involve the wife in as much pilot or crew responsibilities as she would be willing to accept. This technique was used on me from a very young age. My Dad's pardner involved me, from a very, very young age in both navigation and flying. Because, for a few years, I couldn't reach the rudder pedals or see over the cowl of the C-180, I just flew instrument. By the time I was old enough to get my PPL, I was filing and flying instrument XC on a regular basis. He was ex-military (B-24) but not an instructor.

Involving nuclear family is a difficult process and involves much diplomacy. My wife "just said NO!"

Smoke is more deceiving than clouds. Generally, but not always, staying as low as possible has worked for me. Much depends on how close you are to the source and wind speed/direction. I think there are some aerial firefighters on here who could help more with that.

Good points all, Jim. And, yes, smoke can be sneaky stuff. As you note, smoke close to the source is usually very different than smoke further away. When you're fairly close to the source, you can go from 2 or 3 miles visibility to 0 in a few seconds, and you won't see it coming. I've flown literally right over a significant wildfire playing that game.....duh.

Also, the sun makes a huge difference in your effective forward visibility. Turn 180 degrees in a couple miles vis, and you may have almost no forward visibility. If you're going to fly in smoke, best to be very current and proficient at flying on instruments. And, just a reminder that 2 mile visibility at greater than 1200 feet in most of the country is not legal VFR. How good are you at judging 2 mile vis versus 3? Or 1 mile vs 3, for that matter? I'm not very good at it, and I've spent many many hours flying in restricted visibility while VFR. Be careful out there.

On the topic of taking care of your passengers, which is a very good subject: Involving your regular passengers in some aspect of the flying is a really good idea. If they're a regular passenger, and you feel comfortable with it, let them take the controls while in level flight. Show them how to keep the airplane on track. Or give them a map and ask them to back up navigate. Teaching them how to operate the radios is a good plan as well.....you never know when they may have to become a pinch hitter.

But, mostly just explaining what's going on and why you're doing things really helps to allay the fears of some wobbly flyers.

Air sickness is the absolute enemy of ensuring that your friends and loved ones will want to fly with you again. And, avoiding air sickness can be really tough. That said, the first step in doing so is trying to minimize the fear and the unknowns.

Good topic, indeed.

MTV

DeltaRomeo wrote:I haven't seen much about this subject and thought I'd ask what some of y'all do to amuse your PAX along some of the long cross country flights?

I sometimes put a quarter of an alka seltzer in my mouth to get a good foam going then fake a seizure.

I became more conscious of passenger comfort when I did SE135 charters. We were told to "fly like the airliners", and that meant no abrupt control movements, warnings about possible turbulence, extra care to make smooth landings, etc. We had to remain VFR--not even allowed to file IFR--but VFR flight plans and flight following were required.

But one of the things I learned later in my personal flying is that many passengers are really bothered by IMC--not all, but some. It freaked my gal out so much on an NDB approach into Holdrege, NE, several years ago that she hasn't flown since we returned from there. I had done a really poor job of explaining to her what we were about to do, because I just didn't realize how she would react. She often refers to it as "the time I almost died"--yet it was a picture perfect, smooth approach, resulting in an easy landing. It didn't help that she was a reluctant passenger anyway, but that approach was the icing on the cake, so to speak.

One of my friends, who is also a pilot but who had never flown in the clouds, became really apprehensive when we descended into a cloud layer on approach to Omaha a few years ago. I glanced over at him, and he was clenching the passenger assist handle with his right hand and the seat cushion with his left hand. Later he admitted that although the flight up to that point was a lot of fun, going into the clouds was really frightening.

On the Angel Flights I've done, some of the passengers have been really interested in the details, and others have just fallen asleep. One lady was constantly airsick, but her husband told me that she gets carsick just driving 4 blocks to the post office. He was very interested in all the details of our flight from Denver to Hardin, MT, with a stop in Casper. Another lady, on a flight from Cheyenne to Omaha, was so interested in the details that at one point she asked how hard it was to fly the airplane, so I asked her if she wanted to try it. She did, but since we were on an IFR flight plan, I had to be picky about holding altitude and course, so after about 20 minutes, she was getting tired.

The bottom line, I think, is to do whatever appears necessary to keep the passengers comfortable, which usually means flying as smoothly as possible, not flying into weather, and minimizing their experience with turbulence if at all possible.

Cary

Alka seltzer! I know a victim for that one (just not the wife)!

I had tears on that one

I try to talk through all the stuff that's happening and explain it as time permits. Except my wife. Usually she studies for her classes on cross countries. Then she just tells me to shut up, hahaha.

My family....

With the kids it was like driving somewhere in the car. Absolutely routine. "Don't make me stop this airplane you two!"

Natives...

They couldn't give a shit less what you did as long as you got them where they wanted to go. But, you were judged and graded, and heaven help the pilot who was a jerk or asshole. Some of us worked real hard to give Class A rides and be welcomed into the community.

The worse...

F**king schoolteachers. The first to bitch about the ride, the weather, flying too close to the ground, etc, etc, etc. And the first to call when they needed to be rescued from a village when they pissed everyone off.

Gump

And that sometimes works both ways.

For several years my next door neighbor in Kodiak was Fr. Kreta, a Russian Orthodox Arch Priest. A really nice gentleman. One day I was coming up the east side of the island, headed for town and stopped in Old Harbor to talk to someone there.

When I got back to the plane Fr Kreta was there.....turns out he'd missed the last mail plane back to Kodiak. He asked me if I was headed back to town, and if so, could he ride along. I said yes, and most assuredly.

I'm getting ready to launch and the good Father is acting a bit reluctant. I asked if there was a problem. He asked rather sheepishly if I'd mind if he blessed the flight. I told him to go right ahead. We loaded up and launched and I asked him why he was so reluctant to ask about blessing the flight. He responded that some pilots got really offended by this, as if he was questioning their competence.

I told him I'd take all the help I can get when it comes to flying.

MTV

Wrong, wrong, wrong, the absolute worst passengers are......pilots!

Them: "I am a pilot, I should sit up front in case something goes wrong"
Me: "if you are a pilot you understand weight and balance so you don't mind getting in back"

The orthodox villagers crossed themselves multiple times before we would take off, I figured I would take all the help I could get.

The villagers have seen all types of pilots, they hate the new pilots and won't fly with them til they have to, then they give a full report to the village upon landing. I remember being in Nanwalek one time and a plane was landing. The villager says "Oh, I have something to give Jimmy" (the pilot) I asked how he knew it was Jimmy coming in, he proceeded to tell me how all seven of the pilots flying the bay at the time made their approaches and landing.

As far as most of my passengers, I try to play to my audience, sometimes they are joking around, sometimes they want to here stories about the area, sometimes they are really worried and want a lot reassurance.

For first timers on private flights I always took them at night. The lights are beautiful and there was no thermals.

As far as flying goes, the wife seems to be a pretty good trooper. The usual turbulence encountered passing through thermals are no more intense than driving on some of our local roads that oilfield traffic has mashed up. Whenever we pass through one, I rate the intensity by comparing it to a particular road.

She hasn't bitten off on night flying yet. I really like it and had a blast with it during training. I want to do some more night flying but we've been so busy getting all the little kinks out of the 35 year old M5.