mtv wrote:A similar "unofficial" arrangement was in place last time I flew in NW Alaska. Gump??

Still is. Everything northwest of OTZ is 122.8, to the east up the Kobuk River is 122.7, and south 122.9. That way you know exactly where everyone is and what they're doing. Only caveat is, there is really no GA up there. It's all air taxi guys working, or off -duty air taxi guys out playing. But radio gets handled the same, and for the most part it's all wx and conditions related.

For idle chatter, everyone has their company or "secret" freqs to go to, and the area frequencies stay sterile. It's actually a really nice system, and once you learn it and learn the players, you know exactly who is out there, where they're going, and what they're going to do. And, you know who you want to follow wx wise. One guys "It's not bad" is an others, "I ain't going anywhere near there."

Gump

You know... I just need some simple symbols to add to my posts. They might include: just joking here.... obvious to 99% of the readers but one guy will roast you before he stops to think.....
To the guy that took the texting suggestion seriously.... JUST KIDDDDDDDDING.
You say you like to yack to friends on the radio for fun. FINE...... the idea might include COM 2.
Yack there and listen to the traffic advisories on the primary. You don't even need a high dollar audio panel to do it. Modern radios don't care if they are paralleled to the headset load.
A $2 toggle switch controls which box transmits. EASY.... like they say at Staples.
If this is too brief, technically... just PM and I will be happy to explain it.
In the meantime, we were talking about saving lives. That might .... might just take precedence over the chat to the buddies in formation. Whadda Ya Think?

Hey Step, if your offseting your course too, make sure you go to the right so I don't run into you half way.

Jaerl wrote:Hey Step, if your offseting your course too, make sure you go to the right so I don't run into you half way.

I am confused here. If going in the oposite direction, are you not supposed to be 1000 ft lower or 1000 ft higher.

Just wondering.

Tim

The question of GPS accuracy and midair collisions was covered very well in an article by William Langwiechsche, son of the "Stick and Rudder" author. The article is about the midair over the Amazon between a 737 and bizjet a few years back. Here is the link to it. It's very sobering.

http://www.vanityfair.com/magazine/2009 ... rash200901

Dave

flightlogic wrote:You know... I just need some simple symbols to add to my posts. They might include: just joking here.... obvious to 99% of the readers but one guy will roast you before he stops to think.....
To the guy that took the texting suggestion seriously.... JUST KIDDDDDDDDING.
You say you like to yack to friends on the radio for fun. FINE...... the idea might include COM 2.
Yack there and listen to the traffic advisories on the primary. You don't even need a high dollar audio panel to do it. Modern radios don't care if they are paralleled to the headset load.
A $2 toggle switch controls which box transmits. EASY.... like they say at Staples.
If this is too brief, technically... just PM and I will be happy to explain it.
In the meantime, we were talking about saving lives. That might .... might just take precedence over the chat to the buddies in formation. Whadda Ya Think?

Holy shit, you got TWO comm radios???? Cool!

I don't, and better'n half the folks on this list probably don't.

I do, however, agree about the priorities of communications. I've heard waaaay too much BS on radio frequencies. If you want to play that game get someone to install a CB radio in your plane, and you can do the "Come back good buddy" gig all you like.

Or, as Gump notes, at least go over to another frequency to shoot the bull.

Again, this is why a system like Canada's works well. Going up the Trench, and wonder what the weather's like to the north? Meet someone, switch to the "all-comm" frequency, and give em a call.

MTV

qmdv wrote:

Jaerl wrote:Hey Step, if your offseting your course too, make sure you go to the right so I don't run into you half way.

I am confused here. If going in the oposite direction, are you not supposed to be 1000 ft lower or 1000 ft higher.

Just wondering.

Tim

It may be different now....but I am here to tell u no one paid any attention to VFR alt in Alaska when I was there

Fucking A... I could fly a year and never get up to 1000 ft AGL, much less up to 3000 ft AGL where the VFR altitude rules apply.

Gump

GumpAir wrote:Fucking A... I could fly a year and never get up to 1000 ft AGL, much less up to 3000 ft AGL where the VFR altitude rules apply.

Gump

pretty much still that way. With the exception of the guys on wheels crossing cook inlet. Then its generally 3500 to 6000 or as high as weather allows.

VFR above 3000 AGL is Odd +500 for Eastbound Traffic, and Even + 500 for Westbound.

I though they said the accident was under a 1000' ceiling. It goes to figure both pilots were pretty close to the middle. Plus if your getting paid on what you haul your going to keep pretty close attention to staying on course so you don't pay any more for fuel than you need to. I'm sure we'll see a lot more of these too.

'Round here if the ceiling is 1500' the air taxis are all flying at 1500', in and out of the base. I don't understand that.

Not saying that's what happened in this case.

This changes things...

http://www.adn.com/2011/09/04/2049411/pilots-flying-together-before.html

They were flying together and hit each other...

907Pilot wrote:This changes things...

http://www.adn.com/2011/09/04/2049411/pilots-flying-together-before.html

They were flying together and hit each other...

Now that sucks,,, big time.

Step wrote:...When flying east, does anyone fly VFR at, say, 8400 or 8600 ft instead of 8500?

The hemispherical rule applies above 3000' AGL-- 1-180 degrees fly odd's plus 500, 181-360 fly evens plus 5. Since 8500 is an west-bound altitude, adding or subtracting a hundred feet is probably a good idea..... ....maybe a better idea to add or subtract a thousand.

Thanks for the correction, hotrod150. I had a brainfart and got it backwards.

An instructor once taught me that "everything is backwards in aviation. When heading east (East starts with an 'E'), you go odd plus 500 (even starts with an 'E' just like the east heading which would make it easy to remember, but everything is backwards). Same with wingtip lighting. The right light could be the red light, but since everything is backwards, the left light is red."

The one challenge with flying 100+\- recommended flight level is if anyone's altimeters are off. But, I do it anyway.

I frequently fly through the Wasilla/Palmer area here in Alaska, and while the population in this area probably doesn't exceed 50,000 people, it has the highest concentrations of private airstrips in the United States. And, it has a multitude of frequencies that you are supposed to use depending on the geographic area that you are traversing: 122.9, 122.8, 122.7, and 123.6. I find this multi-frequency situation to be dangerous. I almost had a mid air while landing at Wasilla one time when I found that I had dialed in the wrong "local" frequency to announce my intentions. Years later we had a mid air in the same general location when two very experienced pilots went down to their demise. Out here in the Wrangell mountains we use one frequency but temporarily go to individual private frequencies if needed. I like the Canadian system of using one frequency for all common air traffic. I think it is safer then our present system so long as people don't get to chattering on it.

Probably shouldn't say it but.... they taught our class that everyone from back East is odd so that makes it easy to remember.

Jaerl wrote:[-X Probably shouldn't say it but.... they taught our class that everyone from back East is odd so that makes it easy to remember.

Works for me.