I can't remember

Captain

Final Approach
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Mar 12, 2012
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First Officer
What are all the things you can never remember? For me it's:

-Max Hold speeds for given altitudes.
-light gun signals
-VFR cloud clearance
-VOR service volumes
-What's a dang brown airport on a NOS chart?
-O2 altitude requirements (I just figure above 10K cabin I need it.)
-Hydraulic fluid color (red or green...can never remember which one is skydrol)
-formula to determine hydroplaining speed. Square times the tire pressure plus half the weight of your fuel?
-121 rest lookback
-Lost comm stuff. Highest of everything forever but leave the fix at the planned time to land...but I took off 1:45 late...oh jeesh...???
-Oil pressure and temp limitations. Sorta plane specific here...

Got more?
 
Sounds 'bout right. I got asked by a fed what the max holding speed was at my current altitude. At the time I was in the process of trying to hand fly an entry into to the hold and flying single engine so of course my response was "uh.." In reality I was thinking, "my engine just blew up, I'm in an emergency situation. I really don't care at the moment."
 
What the "actual" TPA is for airport KXXX. I just use ground elevation plus a thousand and a call it a day. Seriously, what's the difference between 900, 1000 and 1100 feet AGL.
 
What the "actual" TPA is for airport KXXX. I just use ground elevation plus a thousand and a call it a day. Seriously, what's the difference between 900, 1000 and 1100 feet AGL.

Ditto
 
I have never even attempted to memorize light gun signals, except to answer a question on the knowledge test and forget it immediately afterwards.

I'm sure there are others but I, um, forget them.:goofy:
 
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What the "actual" TPA is for airport KXXX. I just use ground elevation plus a thousand and a call it a day. Seriously, what's the difference between 900, 1000 and 1100 feet AGL.
The airplane 100-200' above/below you you can't see? (I was lucky to notice it once -they were on final and warned them on the frequency)
 
It's easy to forget the things you don't use regularly. Maximum holding speed is irrelevant when you're flying a 170.
 
It's easy to forget the things you don't use regularly. Maximum holding speed is irrelevant when you're flying a 170.

It's always irrelevant, or partially so anyway. When I flew a CRJ our holding speed was always 220kts. So all I had to do was remember to advise ATC when holding at 6K or below. So the rest of it got data dumped. Yet the whole shebang is standard crap to know at an interview or oral.
 
What the "actual" TPA is for airport KXXX. I just use ground elevation plus a thousand and a call it a day. Seriously, what's the difference between 900, 1000 and 1100 feet AGL.

TPA at my field is around 800 AGL.
I got advised once flying 1000 AGL.
Tower: "6PC, you are aware Pattern altitude is 1400 not 1600?"

Maybe he just wondered about alt. setting but he sounded irritated.
 
TPA at my field is around 800 AGL.
I got advised once flying 1000 AGL.
Tower: "6PC, you are aware Pattern altitude is 1400 not 1600?"

Maybe he just wondered about alt. setting but he sounded irritated.
I've heard that at other towered airports when it was definitely the controller being irritated, especially when traffic gets busy.

I think the bottom line is standardized traffic pattern altitudes are "not about you" and getting down to the runway. They are about mixing aircraft in a way that assists in seeing and being seen, even by Tower controllers. One of my standard FR scenarios is what traffic pattern to use on a marginal VFR day at a Class E airport with an 1100' ceiling and an 800 AGL published pattern altitude.
 
No instrument approaches.. Oops. I should know this.. Studying for the IFR written and all.
 
I can't keep the 7500 7600 and 7700 codes straight. Tower lights for lost comms, no way, but for some reason I can remember FAR 91.205 lists instrument requirements for the plane. :dunno:
 
I can't keep the 7500 7600 and 7700 codes straight. Tower lights for lost comms, no way, but for some reason I can remember FAR 91.205 lists instrument requirements for the plane. :dunno:

I can always remember 7700 is emergency. From there I count down to the least likely thing I would want to have to squawk.

I'd much rather just lose comms than get hijacked, so that's the "last" code in my head (lowest).
 
I can't keep the 7500 7600 and 7700 codes straight. Tower lights for lost comms, no way, but for some reason I can remember FAR 91.205 lists instrument requirements for the plane. :dunno:

Easy....

75 won't take me alive (Hijack), 76 can't hear s*** (Lost Comms), 77 goin' to heaven (Emergency)
 
Easy....

75 won't take me alive (Hijack), 76 can't hear s*** (Lost Comms), 77 goin' to heaven (Emergency)

The one that made it stick in my head was posted by another POA member:

7500 "Hi Jack"
7600 "Can't talk right now"
7700 "I have an emergency"

...that and the cheat sheet printed on my knee board!
 
Definitely the light gun signals here, don't think I ever managed to get a good grasp on memorizing those.
 
I can't keep the 7500 7600 and 7700 codes straight. Tower lights for lost comms, no way, but for some reason I can remember FAR 91.205 lists instrument requirements for the plane. :dunno:

That one I remember. Just think about the codes in the order that it became a problem. There's always been emergencies so they started there...7700.

Then lost comms became a problem with the advent of radios so they added a code...7600.

Then folks decided it might be cool to take command of airplanes that don't belong to them so another code got invented...7500.
 
Same. Which is why I have them on my checklist.

Funny, tower guys don't know them either...which is why there's a sticker on the gun itself with the chart.
 
Light guns and IFR lost comms procedures have never been my strong point. Though, I have gotten better with them. Also, I've never been great with the right of way rules.
 
Light gun signals is the worst for me. I can, at any point in time, get about 80% of them correct. But, it takes a minute and it's never the same 80%. Not too many others..

Category A, B, C, or D approach speeds gets a lot of people.

Also, remembering how to fly because of my experiences in the war.
 
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