WAS MY FACE RED!I took off at Buffalo one time to do a test job. I had been called up there as an expert and was supposed to be pretty hot stuff.I took the ship off and started rocking it violently from side to side. I kept this up through a variety of speed ranges, watching the ailerons closely all the time. I wanted to find out first of all if the ailerons had any tendency to flutter under a high angle of attack condition. Then I began horsing on the stick to see if anything unusual happened to the ailerons when I introduced the high angle of attack condition that way.I interrupted my observations of the ship’s behavior after a while to look around for the airport. I couldn’t find it! I had forgotten that I was in a high-speed ship and could get far away from the field in a very short time. Furthermore, the country was unfamiliar to me, and I had no map. Gee, if I had only thought to stick a map in the ship before I took off.I knew the airport was somewhere on the west side of town. I thought it was somewhat north. But how far north I didn’t know. I couldn’t remember even if it was close in to town or far out. I had a vague idea it was far out, but how far out I didn’t know. If I had only thought to bring a map! Or if I had only kept the airport in sight. Good old hindsight!I was panic-stricken. There I was, a supposedly high-powered test pilot, lost over the airport. What a dumb position for me to be in!Before I found the airport by just cruising around looking haphazardly for it, I might be forced down by the weather, which was none too good and getting worse, or I might run out of gas. What if I was finally forced to pick a strange field, a pasture or something, and cracked up getting into it? How would I explain that?I decided to cruise north and south, up and down, in ten- or fifteen-mile laps, starting far enough out of town to be sure to fly over the airport on one of the laps as I moved closer in on each one. That would be at least an orderly procedure.I found the field on my fourth lap. But was I in a sweat! And did I keep my eye on that field after that!
WAS MY FACE RED!I took off at Buffalo one time to do a test job. I had been called up there as an expert and was supposed to be pretty hot stuff.I took the ship off and started rocking it violently from side to side. I kept this up through a variety of speed ranges, watching the ailerons closely all the time. I wanted to find out first of all if the ailerons had any tendency to flutter under a high angle of attack condition. Then I began horsing on the stick to see if anything unusual happened to the ailerons when I introduced the high angle of attack condition that way.I interrupted my observations of the ship’s behavior after a while to look around for the airport. I couldn’t find it! I had forgotten that I was in a high-speed ship and could get far away from the field in a very short time. Furthermore, the country was unfamiliar to me, and I had no map. Gee, if I had only thought to stick a map in the ship before I took off.I knew the airport was somewhere on the west side of town. I thought it was somewhat north. But how far north I didn’t know. I couldn’t remember even if it was close in to town or far out. I had a vague idea it was far out, but how far out I didn’t know. If I had only thought to bring a map! Or if I had only kept the airport in sight. Good old hindsight!I was panic-stricken. There I was, a supposedly high-powered test pilot, lost over the airport. What a dumb position for me to be in!Before I found the airport by just cruising around looking haphazardly for it, I might be forced down by the weather, which was none too good and getting worse, or I might run out of gas. What if I was finally forced to pick a strange field, a pasture or something, and cracked up getting into it? How would I explain that?I decided to cruise north and south, up and down, in ten- or fifteen-mile laps, starting far enough out of town to be sure to fly over the airport on one of the laps as I moved closer in on each one. That would be at least an orderly procedure.I found the field on my fourth lap. But was I in a sweat! And did I keep my eye on that field after that!
I took off at Buffalo one time to do a test job. I had been called up there as an expert and was supposed to be pretty hot stuff.
I took the ship off and started rocking it violently from side to side. I kept this up through a variety of speed ranges, watching the ailerons closely all the time. I wanted to find out first of all if the ailerons had any tendency to flutter under a high angle of attack condition. Then I began horsing on the stick to see if anything unusual happened to the ailerons when I introduced the high angle of attack condition that way.
I interrupted my observations of the ship’s behavior after a while to look around for the airport. I couldn’t find it! I had forgotten that I was in a high-speed ship and could get far away from the field in a very short time. Furthermore, the country was unfamiliar to me, and I had no map. Gee, if I had only thought to stick a map in the ship before I took off.
I knew the airport was somewhere on the west side of town. I thought it was somewhat north. But how far north I didn’t know. I couldn’t remember even if it was close in to town or far out. I had a vague idea it was far out, but how far out I didn’t know. If I had only thought to bring a map! Or if I had only kept the airport in sight. Good old hindsight!
I was panic-stricken. There I was, a supposedly high-powered test pilot, lost over the airport. What a dumb position for me to be in!
Before I found the airport by just cruising around looking haphazardly for it, I might be forced down by the weather, which was none too good and getting worse, or I might run out of gas. What if I was finally forced to pick a strange field, a pasture or something, and cracked up getting into it? How would I explain that?
I decided to cruise north and south, up and down, in ten- or fifteen-mile laps, starting far enough out of town to be sure to fly over the airport on one of the laps as I moved closer in on each one. That would be at least an orderly procedure.
I found the field on my fourth lap. But was I in a sweat! And did I keep my eye on that field after that!