Where is Joe Patroni When You Need Him?!

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I can hear Dean Martin's voice shouting into his captain's microphone, "We need [runway] two-niner*!" A stuck airliner jeopardizes the emergency landing of Dean's plane on which a bomb has exploded. That was the plot of the wildly popular 1970 movie, Airport.

That came to mind from this scene from Wichita's Mid-Continent Airport this afternoon:
Wichita Mid-Continent Airport via Facebook
A United Express (known as United 'Distress' to frequent fliers) jet took a wrong turn and got stuck in the snow. No one hurt. A bus was brought for the passengers and they are all warm and safe.

Besides, none of Mid-Continent's three runways is oriented toward the west northwest. Runways are named for their orientation in compass degrees (i.e., landing on a runway toward the north would make it runway "36"). So, we won't have a runway two-niner to clear.

* Pilots say "niner" rather than "nine" 'cause it's cool.

Comments

  1. AnonymousFebruary 21, 2013 at 6:36 PM

    ...and to distinguish the sound of "nine" from the sound of "five."

    Nah....let's go with cool.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mike SmithFebruary 21, 2013 at 6:37 PM

    Scott: "Five" and "nine" don't sound that much alike. It is all about cool (see opening chapter of "The Right Stuff" and talking like Chuck Yeager).

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousFebruary 21, 2013 at 6:48 PM

    Ok. I'm thinking of being on the other end of the radio. As a dispatcher, I actually did have times I confused the numbers. Haven't read "The Right Stuff," but I take your word for it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Harger FamilyFebruary 22, 2013 at 10:36 AM

    It's actually to distinguish from the German word nine meaning no. Just in case a German pilot gets confused. I'm serious.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Mike SmithFebruary 22, 2013 at 11:13 AM

    @Harger. Very interesting. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete

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