General Discussion

jon10

(46 posts)

111. should computer programmers know how to use punchcards, too?

Wed Oct 30, 2013, 01:09 PM

Oct 2013

i would want a pilot with the best knowledge optimized for the current technology state of the plane

the rest, is trivia and distraction. that doesn't excuse newer pilots who allow easier technology to make them sloppy, but i would want their efforts directed to the present, not the past

in an emergency, i would not be comforted by someone who takes 17 paragraphs to make a simple point - i would prefer someone who is CONCISE over someone who is

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This is what airline pilots USED to know. [View all] trof Oct 2013 OP

I enjoyed this. mgc1961 Oct 2013 #1

Thanks for sharing this, trof. Ptah Oct 2013 #2

Well that's nuthin'... ret5hd Oct 2013 #3

Wow! What a gripping story, my dear trof... CaliforniaPeggy Oct 2013 #4

Agreed mcp37 Oct 2013 #103

welcome to DU gopiscrap Oct 2013 #106

Wonderful story Blue_Tires Oct 2013 #5

I haven't been in a passenger plane since October of '70 madokie Oct 2013 #6

That sounds absolutely hair-raising. The Velveteen Ocelot Oct 2013 #7

Perfect micro of the macro. dchill Oct 2013 #8

Thanks. 1000words Oct 2013 #9

Great read. Liberal In Texas Oct 2013 #10

I am absolutely gobsmacked at the reception and recs here. trof Oct 2013 #11

Wow. It's great. I hung on every word and am still "on the edge of my seat" Thor_MN Oct 2013 #18

Same here! laundry_queen Oct 2013 #68

you're a long trusted and valued DUer, trof Skittles Oct 2013 #22

Would you like to go steady? trof Oct 2013 #27

I got my fill of pilots in USAF LOL Skittles Oct 2013 #44

Are you kidding? I'd read your stories for days Blue_Tires Oct 2013 #35

yup Skittles Oct 2013 #55

It was a visual feast with few words. Spitfire of ATJ Oct 2013 #67

It's not the length of the post... krispos42 Oct 2013 #99

What did he mean by being outside? hootinholler Oct 2013 #12

He was looking out the windshield for visual clues. trof Oct 2013 #17

Makes perfect sense hootinholler Oct 2013 #36

"which does that for you with a computer"... bvar22 Oct 2013 #113

Fantastic! LeftofObama Oct 2013 #13

Recommended. NYC_SKP Oct 2013 #14

I'll be darned. It does stand for "I Follow Roads". Scuba Oct 2013 #15

Ha! IFR trof Oct 2013 #20

I'm writing some code for the FAA hootinholler Oct 2013 #40

Cool. n/t JimDandy Oct 2013 #96

He couldn' t do that today, of course, JimDandy Oct 2013 #97

Absolutely worth the read! Thanks for posting... (nt) petronius Oct 2013 #16

LOVE this Skittles Oct 2013 #19

Good read mikebl Oct 2013 #21

Gann was the master. trof Oct 2013 #25

I knew Ernie Gann slightly but PearliePoo2 Oct 2013 #101

Didn't kmow about Gann's wife. Thanks. trof Oct 2013 #124

Great Story! I learned to fly out of Stapleton in the early 70s' MindPilot Oct 2013 #23

AA Pilot in family...I loved this read...and will pass along KoKo Oct 2013 #24

Even though a bit of it was too technical for me rock Oct 2013 #26

excellent article. littlewolf Oct 2013 #28

That was a nail-biter! procon Oct 2013 #29

I have about 100 hours in a C172 and have tried flying commercial jets on flight sim and..... yourout Oct 2013 #30

Very, very true nadinbrzezinski Oct 2013 #31

Good read, thank you. I knew Stapleton well. n/t Egalitarian Thug Oct 2013 #32

Very much worth the read, Trof. dixiegrrrrl Oct 2013 #33

That's a pretty freaking cool story! hatrack Oct 2013 #34

Thanks, trof. enlightenment Oct 2013 #37

What an exccellent post malaise Oct 2013 #38

Pilot Here - Good Read cantbeserious Oct 2013 #39

excellent icarusxat Oct 2013 #41

I really appreciate you sharing this. n/t Wilms Oct 2013 #42

Of course... Aviation Pro Oct 2013 #43

But when all else fails, that pilot better know what to do.. mountain grammy Oct 2013 #49

I had a chance to meet Al Haynes... Aviation Pro Oct 2013 #125

Great story.. printed it for my retired aircraft mechanic husband mountain grammy Oct 2013 #45

fanfuckingtastic pasto76 Oct 2013 #46

One of the best reads in a while here. longship Oct 2013 #47

Best story I've ever read on DU. Thanks for this ! nt steve2470 Oct 2013 #48

I think in my lifetime we might see "drone planes." MADem Oct 2013 #50

Under good conditions Stapleton was a difficult field. HubertHeaver Oct 2013 #51

thanks for that Locrian Oct 2013 #52

K and R panader0 Oct 2013 #53

Great read. n/t louslobbs Oct 2013 #54

Outstanding. westerebus Oct 2013 #56

A subject near and dear to my heart! Thanks, trof! DemoTex Oct 2013 #57

Wow. Great story. And a hell of a lesson in that. K&R n/t jtuck004 Oct 2013 #58

I loved it. Great read. BlueJazz Oct 2013 #59

Didn't they pay the pilots a decent wage in those days? YBR31 Oct 2013 #60

Wow, what a great story. NealK Oct 2013 #61

awesome alato Oct 2013 #62

hats off to a real professional heaven05 Oct 2013 #63

What my husband, who's a pilot, has told me is that "any landing you can walk away from calimary Oct 2013 #64

Flying a jet liner with needle, ball and airspeed... zeemike Oct 2013 #65

I hope DemoTex sees this. WilliamPitt Oct 2013 #66

+1 bullwinkle428 Oct 2013 #71

He did. See post #57. n/t CaliforniaPeggy Oct 2013 #82

Great story. mn9driver Oct 2013 #69

k+r ...nt TeeYiYi Oct 2013 #70

Taking flight lessons now. riderinthestorm Oct 2013 #72

Get yourself a copy of "Stick and Rudder". by Wolfgang Langewiesche. AdHocSolver Oct 2013 #88

Many thanks! I'm 15 hours in and loving it! nt riderinthestorm Oct 2013 #100

Wow catchnrelease Oct 2013 #73

Heart-Pounding! Great writing - Thanks, trof NBachers Oct 2013 #74

Very cool. blackspade Oct 2013 #75

Excellent. Very nice. Thanks for posting. n/t A HERETIC I AM Oct 2013 #76

K&R Change has come Oct 2013 #77

I love reading this stuff as I am a pilot and my dad flew with united for 30yrs litlbilly Oct 2013 #78

25 years in Airline bus, I fearlessly flew with Ozark, TWA and United, but no more.... joanbarnes Oct 2013 #79

You flew Ozark? HubertHeaver Oct 2013 #87

That was too cool! Gidney N Cloyd Oct 2013 #80

A nice yarn, but caraher Oct 2013 #81

Nice research and follow up, thanks! Nt Logical Oct 2013 #84

sorry some of my details were wrong, it was in 72 so i forgot a few things, here it is litlbilly Oct 2013 #93

As I recall litlbilly Oct 2013 #95

Always appreciate a good read hueymahl Oct 2013 #107

Well, air travel is safer than ever, so something good is happening. Nt Logical Oct 2013 #83

I am always amazed at how much trust people put in electronics and computer software. AdHocSolver Oct 2013 #85

Great story - kept me locked in to the end Not Sure Oct 2013 #86

K&R! n/t Lugnut Oct 2013 #89

I think we studied this in flight attendant training! flygal Oct 2013 #90

wow. hung on every word. holding my breath. finally ... I could exhale. whew. made it. Tuesday Afternoon Oct 2013 #91

Kicked and recommended. Uncle Joe Oct 2013 #92

Wonderful post! Thanks! (nt) Recursion Oct 2013 #94

The key to learning well is over-learning. Excellent lesson well told. Thanks. nt Bernardo de La Paz Oct 2013 #98

Definitely worth the read! alcibiades_mystery Oct 2013 #102

k&r for exposure. n/t Laelth Oct 2013 #104

That was a great read, trof! Thank you for sharing. CrispyQ Oct 2013 #105

Great post! ScreamingMeemie Oct 2013 #108

Thanks.. ewagner Oct 2013 #109

Wonderful story arikara Oct 2013 #110

should computer programmers know how to use punchcards, too? jon10 Oct 2013 #111

not a valid comparison. bvar22 Oct 2013 #114

very valid, there were days when mech altimeters were "gadgets" uponit7771 Oct 2013 #115

That doesn't make any sense. bvar22 Oct 2013 #116

I believe he is saying that even a mechanical altimeter isn't needed to fly a plane whopis01 Oct 2013 #130

"Denver weather was 300 feet with visibility one-half mile in heavy snow" bvar22 Oct 2013 #134

Who is saying you wouldn't? n/t whopis01 Oct 2013 #135

So people didn't fly BEFORE altimeters? Yes, they did... they prolly thought the altimeter was a fan uponit7771 Oct 2013 #137

YES!!!... Brilliant!!! ...You are really "showing your stuff" in THIS thread!!! bvar22 Oct 2013 #140

No one said it was useless just like stick feedback isn't useless today... same thing no? tia uponit7771 Nov 2013 #141

UM...they guy who said pilotage was like computer punch cards bvar22 Nov 2013 #142

+1 uponit7771 Oct 2013 #136

Wrong analogy. Should be "should computer programmers know binary?" Xithras Oct 2013 #122

Indeed they should. onyourleft Oct 2013 #139

This story was so good, even a few lurking Freeps probably liked it! Patiod Oct 2013 #112

K&R SlipperySlope Oct 2013 #118

K&R excellent read passiveporcupine Oct 2013 #117

I loved reading this! I worked for a Denver-based airline for Turn CO Blue Oct 2013 #119

From an old air traffic controller billh58 Oct 2013 #120

K & R fadedrose Oct 2013 #121

I wish my Dad (a career Naval Aviator) was alive to read this. He could describe a "night trap" ... 11 Bravo Oct 2013 #123

As I read through the OP I think about new car commercials - truedelphi Oct 2013 #126

Just WOW! Did this story ever have legs. trof Oct 2013 #127

Very cool cvoogt Oct 2013 #128

Way overstates the role of autopilot! HERVEPA Oct 2013 #129

I made a zero-zero autoland at Heathrow in an L-1011 back in the day. trof Oct 2013 #131

Loved that! Grew up in Denver, flew in and out of Stapleton many times! likesmountains 52 Oct 2013 #132

Fascinating. (n/t) spin Oct 2013 #133

I read this... onyourleft Oct 2013 #138

Professionalism is not outmoded in an age of technology (KnR) Agony Nov 2013 #143

Thanks so much curlyred Nov 2013 #144

thank you KentuckyWoman Nov 2013 #145

The Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 brought me back to this ... SomeGuyInEagan Mar 2014 #146

Wow! Talk about resurected. trof Mar 2014 #147