You’re “oops” moment aviation?

Sport Pilot

Sport Pilot

Pre-takeoff checklist
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My moment was not paying attention to civil twilight at the end of the year and coming to the airport when it was dark.

Go!
 
Writing a check for the airplane. I can't think of anything where I did and oops like that. But I don't always wear my seatbelt when I taxi to the fuel pumps from the hangar. That's a conscious decision though.
 
Not buying a plane sooner.

Most of my big oops were when I was 19/20. Learned a ton and now 20 years later most of oops are small. Still make them and always learning.
 
You're burning up the boards with your post here! ;-)

My biggest oops was using the wind cues on the ridge line above the airport to decide on which runway to land on. When I flared and realized I had a huge tailwind, I almost didn't have enough left to wave off. Took awhile to get the wrinkles out of the seat cushion that time.
 
Ooops moment? Like singular? ;)

There have been many oops moments. And many more I've not made... yet. :p
 
An instructor I was flying with one day told me, "Twenty years ago I was flying with my wife when I said `oops`, and she still hasn't let me forget it."
 
dmspilot said:
An instructor I was flying with one day told me, "Twenty years ago I was flying with my wife when I said `oops`, and she still hasn't let me forget it."
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Yeah, I learned early on that passengers really don't like to hear "oops" or "oh crap" over headset from the pilot for some reason!


I'll admit mine...

Destination flight with friends for a few day vacation, chatting in cockpit, get offered short approach by tower to get ahead of landing traffic, dive for the numbers (which I am very comfortable doing)...cross the threshold...holy crap I am hot and fast...put her down long and still blazing fast...slamming on brakes as there is zero runoff and a fence...slow her down and hard braking to make last turnoff...WTF?...reach down to clean up airplane and raise the fla...holy chit, I forgot he flaps!

Now, not that a no flap landing is a big deal...expcept when you are expecting and anticipating the performance of a full flap landing on a shorter than your are used to runway on a non standardized approach!

...and that kids is how complacency kills!
 
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dmspilot said:
An instructor I was flying with one day told me, "Twenty years ago I was flying with my wife when I said `oops`, and she still hasn't let me forget it."
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Along the same line:

I pointed out the airport to my wife and said, "There it is. We're going down." Should have said "We're beginning our descent." Boy, she has a long memory!
 
While on an IFR flight... thinking "I wonder what it would be like to fly through that cloud" (it was smack dab in my flight path). Weeeeeeeeee. No, it wasn't a towering building cloud, but...

Fortunately I haven't had a serious oops.
 
Sort of an oops: flying in the late afternoon of a clear sunny day, eventually we landed after sunset as the end of civil twilight was approaching. Boy, it was darker that I would have thought... then I took off my sunglasses. <sigh>
 
Circa 1975 in SW Florida:

me: abc county November 7 triple one golf on short final
ATC: 11G, we don't have you in sight. Do you happen to see a bunch of really big gray high-wings on the field?
Me: Affirmative.
ATC: 11G, trun right 090 degrees immediately. That is the Air Force base.

I have made other mistakes since then, but that one stands out for me. Perhaps it was because it was my first cross-country. In my defense, I had no magenta line to follw.
 
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Was in a rented Cessna flying with the GF who would eventually become my wife. A full day of fun cut slightly short by impending thunderstorms. On approach to the Class C airport I hear: Cessna, keep your speed up, you’re number 1 for the approach, 6 planes behind you and 4 to depart before the storm hits, cleared to land!
I dive for the numbers, full power. On short final enter an impressive slip and dissipate the energy. Land. Make the first turn off. Towers says Thank you, good job.
Cleaning up the plane and I look over and the GF/Wife-to-be says: What in the hell was that?
It seems she thought the nearing storm had gripped our plane and was tossing us about.
Had to come home, open the books and show how a slip was an approved aviation maneuver.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
long time ago, stopped at the airport vending machine for something quick to eat while flying. Twinkie's might have the best or only thing in the vending machine.
About an hour later while cruising, tried to take a bite and stuffed the cream filling all over my microphone and almost took a bite out of the microphone.:)

Brian
 
I just re-read the title. I/We are an oops moment?

Damn. Harsh.
 
JOhnH said:
Circa 1975 in SW Florida:

me: abc county November 7 triple one golf on short final
ATC: 11G, we don't have you in sight. Do you happen to see a bunch of really big gray high-wings on the field?
Me: Affirmative.
ATC: 11G, trun right 090 degrees immediately. That is the Air Force base.

I have made other mistakes since then, but that one stands out for me. Perhaps it was because it was my first cross-country. In my defense, I had no magenta line to follw.
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https://www.tampabay.com/news/milit...rport-elicits-theories-but-few-facts/1241869/

It happens the other way around down there too
 
Significantly and inadvertently busted the Knoxville,TN Class C. Filed an ASRS report and never heard a thing.
 
Flying a C-206 in Alaska. I took the key and put it in my left pocket.

When we came back to the plane, it took 30 minutes to find the key.





I normally put keys in my right pocket.....
 
Buying into a partnership with two friends, no paperwork, and very different ideas about what constitutes maintenance. That was, BY FAR, my biggest aviation ooops. On the other hand, although it pretty much destroyed two friendships, that partnership did enable me to get my PPL much cheaper than it would have, and I have since bought them out and am now going through the incredibly long and difficult process of getting the airplane maintenance fully and exactingly addressed, so it's working out. Just would NEVER do it that way again.
 
Waiting 34 years and 1 day to get my PPC.
 
One of many:

Teaching a new dock hand how to do his job. I was flying a PA-12 on EDO 2000 floats. Emphasized "One should not release both lines at the same time except when pilot says to do so." While teaching this I was in fact and unwittingly releasing both lines at the same time. Turned around and the airplane had already drifted 20' from the doc. Airplane was drifting into the Chesapeake and towards the unpleasant looking rocks on the other side of the little bay at Havre de Grace, MD. Quickly ditched my shirt and shoes, swam to the ship, repeating over and over "please start, please start, please start . . . " Climbed onto the float jumped into my seat and alas she did start right away. A very humble, and wet, pilot returned to the dock sitting in his plane.

I didn't even know I could swim that fast.
 
New IFR pilot, got rated just e few days earlier. Rented a C172 at North Island NZY, destination Van Nuys VNY. I hadn’t flown this airplane IFR before. Southern California was solid IFR, filed, alternate I don’t remember but it had 600/2 forecast. Got the ATIS for VNY about 25 miles out, ILS 16R in use. Start briefing the Approach and getting things set up, then I noticed it. Over an hour in the air, actual, using two VORs for airways and intersections, it’s not until then I see this plane does not have a Glideslope. That Approach did not have Localizer only minimums. I did the LDA-C and broke out right at minimums, 500 AGL. The tail was probably still in the goo. There was not one airport in my range that had 800/2 forecast.
 
Did a longer than usual solo cross country for my PPL from Bay City up to Corsicana, TX. All of my other flying had been along the coast so field elevation was of no concern. Initially flew downwind at about 500 AGL because I didn't consider the elevation change and thought, "huh, this seems kind of low for some reason."
 
Took the wife for a flight and was trying to be very professional in letting her know what would happen and why i.e. " you will hear the engine slow down a bit as we level off for cruise flight" etc. All was well until I got back to the home field while being sure to make all my radio calls from 10 miles out until I realized while preparing to turn base that I had not returned the radio to the proper frequency for the unicom at the home field. As I reached over and dialed in the proper frequency she looked over at me and smiled and I knew I was busted! :dunno:
 
Forgot to put the oil cap back on, when pre-flighting a Skyhawk.

I discovered the problem only after landing. There was oil all over the side of the airplane, and not much in the engine.
 
eman1200 said:
I had to do a go-around once.
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It's not an ooops when you only did it to show you could. ;)

Bob Noel said:
Sort of an oops: flying in the late afternoon of a clear sunny day, eventually we landed after sunset as the end of civil twilight was approaching. Boy, it was darker that I would have thought... then I took off my sunglasses. <sigh>
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^^^+1 for one of these.
 
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VFR to IMC on my third solo flight, oh yeah and I had 0 simulated instrument time with my instructor yet. Luckily I had been watching instrument "lessons" on Youtube for the past few years so I had some idea of how to do a scan. I mostly just focused on keeping the same attitude and heading until I was through it.

It was BKN 1300 at the field and I thought I could climb up and above the hole in the clouds. Obviously the 172 didn't have the climb performance to do so, hence I got "sucker-holed". It was only about 50 feet tall so I was out after about 5 seconds, but it seemed like an eternity and I promptly returned to the field and wiped the sweat off my head despite it being a cold winters day. This occurred due to complacency of never having a low cloud base in my training up until that point, not looking up at the sky before getting in the plane, and not "listening" to what the ATIS said. Also when I saw myself getting closer to those clouds I could have stoped my climb, but seeing it sort of short circuited something in my brain preventing me from making that decision. ADM saves lives!

You can bet I'm more diligent to what the layer is before I even step foot in the airplane now!
 
Once, during taxi, another plane told us our baggage door was open. My instructor asks ground for permission to step out, closes the baggage door, comes back in to an embarrassed student that promised a better pre-flight next time.
 
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