How many times have you said that to yourself?

Last night was one of those nights. There was an amazing strong thunderstorm that passed through Chicago last night around 7:30 P.M. Right after it passed through, there was an amazing scene that I feel fortunate enough to witness. Picture this…dark clouds on the right, orange sky on the left, double rainbow in the middle, the airport lights on full bright, and propagating lightning surrounding the whole scene. (that’s where the lightning appears to crawl through the sky). Yeah, words definitely don’t do it justice. It was simply amazing. And all I could think of, was “Man, I wish I had my camera!”

So for today’s trip, I bring my camera. And lucky enough for me, there was this beautiful turbine converted DC3 sitting on the ramp. Of course, my camera memory card was almost confiscated during an ugly incident with a customs official that was clearing this aircraft but that is a different story….so enjoy the photo because I went through a lot to get it.

I think my camera is now officially part of my flight kit. Fly Safe.

Funny story for you with humor that only a pilot may understand. I was checking the ASOS at my home airport on the way in tonight and I heard something interesting on the radio:

Automated weather, time 2156 zulu, winds 290 at 9, visibility 10, sky clear, light rain, temperature 22, dewpoint 16, altimeter 30.22

Sky Clear and Rain? I’m confused. I’m not sure where the rain came from? I sure didn’t see any. Now here is the really funny coincidence, as I was listening to the radio on the way home, Creedence Clearwater Revival came on singing, “Have you ever seen the rain?” Now if you aren’t familiar with the lyrics, let me quote the chorus for you:

I want to know, have you ever seen the rain?
I want to know, have you ever seen the rain?
Comin down on a sunny day?

No, CCR, I haven’t seen the rain come down on a sunny day, but it sure wasn’t for the lack of trying.

Now, to turn this into an educational experience, I’m going to add a quick lesson. How do you seriously know when an ASOS might be reporting inaccurate or corrupted data? You can look for a “$” sign at the end of the METAR report. Here’s an example:

260256Z AUTO 19007KT 8SM FEW080 22/19 A3002 RMK AO2 56010 T02220194 LTG DSNT NW-NE SLP158 $

You know from the $ sign at the end of the report that maintenance is needed on the weather station system making this report. That is the station’s way of saying, “I’m in need of some attention.” You don’t know what is broke but you know that something may be inaccurate. I would recommend trying to find another surface observation in the area and compare it to the other to make sure they are reporting somewhat similar weather.

Fly Safe.

I just saw this video and had to share it. Apparently, a Cessna 150 landed on a highway in Florida after one of it’s cylinder’s seized up. After making repairs, the owner got FAA permission to take off on the highway! The owner told police that he would need 600 feet for takeoff. I bet some instructor his proud of his short field takeoff instruction!

Here is the link to the story: http://www.wesh.com/news/16634189/detail.html