F-18 Flight Training Landing in Civilian Airport (LAX)

[Skyviper]

[Nesher]

where were they when I was near by? :P

cool vid

[Skyviper]

I did some more digging and apparently this show got cancelled ... I wish I had the money I'd bring it back and make it a CombatACE exclusive ... I think it's cool myself. I do think it's messed up though that 1) They couldn't go to another military base and 2) They had no priority ... but it's a busy airport so I can understand why. Just sayin

[+Typhoid]

I did some more digging and apparently this show got cancelled ... I wish I had the money I'd bring it back and make it a CombatACE exclusive ... I think it's cool myself. I do think it's messed up though that 1) They couldn't go to another military base and 2) They had no priority ... but it's a busy airport so I can understand why. Just sayin

 

what I gathered from the video was that they went to LAX precisely because it is a challenging flight for students. 

 

sorta - if you can survive this.......

 

 

waaaaaay back when I was a student NFO one of my training flights was pretty similar.  Cross country to a civilian field and back through a MONSTER DAMN THUNDERSTORM

 

[+1977Frenchie]

The shown have not been cancelled (in Canada) as i watched it :) There were about 8 episodes and they followed pilot on training for the CF-188 (if i remember well, 6 graduated for the Hornet, and 1 failed on the G tests and been linked to another type of aircraft). One of them was the first RCAF women pilot to intercept a Tu-95 in Canadian northern sky.

 

Was a great show btw. This particular episode was a training flight from Cold Lake to LAX airport to have a go at what is going on in a busy airport, and passed a few days there to relax as they were in the final stages of their formation.

Edited November 13, 2015 by 1977Frenchie

[xrearl]

thanks 

[Skyviper]

The shown have not been cancelled (in Canada) as i watched it :) There were about 8 episodes and they followed pilot on training for the CF-188 (if i remember well, 6 graduated for the Hornet, and 1 failed on the G tests and been linked to another type of aircraft). One of them was the first RCAF women pilot to intercept a Tu-95 in Canadian northern sky.

 

Was a great show btw. This particular episode was a training flight from Cold Lake to LAX airport to have a go at what is going on in a busy airport, and passed a few days there to relax as they were in the final stages of their formation.

 

Thank you!

what I gathered from the video was that they went to LAX precisely because it is a challenging flight for students. 

 

sorta - if you can survive this.......

 

 

waaaaaay back when I was a student NFO one of my training flights was pretty similar.  Cross country to a civilian field and back through a MONSTER DAMN THUNDERSTORM

 

 

Whoa ... talk from the frying pan into the fire!

 

Hey I wanted to ask this somewhere here on this site (But since you're a flight officer I'll ask here) there was another clip featuring these same students learning how to fly close to each other (Looked as if they were practicing to be Blue Angles). So why must pilots learn to fly that close to each other? Is it so they can mask numbers on radar or something? There was a part where one had to fly so close the exhaust from the lead plane was rattling his.

[+Typhoid]

flying close does a lot of stuff, able to mask radar, provide mutual support, etc.

also need that skill for air refueling.

 

but I was not a tactical jet guy so I'll stop there.

[+FastCargo]

Tactically, it's actually not that useful to fly that close (what we call fingertip) to lead.  The problem is simple...when you're that close, the majority of your attention is focused on maintaining position.  To the point where your SA outside of that focus is low...you can't clear lead's 6, nor your own, nor help with threat reaction, sort, etc.
 
Here's a sad example of what that can lead to:

1982 Thunderbirds Crash
 

There are a few reasons that it is flown though.

 

1) It looks good.

2) It is good practice for air refueling.

3) It allows lead to bring multiple aircraft through the weather (cloud, fog, etc).  Otherwise, if the aircraft are not in sight of each other, you have to get altitude or significant distance separation so as to not risk collision, which stretches out your 'space' you take up in crowded airspace.  When the weather is clear, it's not a big deal to fly all sorts of formations at varying distances to help with clearing and checks.  But, when the weather sucks, you HAVE to be close, or be far away.

 

Flying into a busy international airport can be very challenging, especially for single seaters, where one person is managing the aircraft and all the systems.  I've flown in some of the busiest civilian airspaces and airports, in both crew and single seat aircraft.  It is not a time for dicking around...controllers will have no hesitation to boot you out if you aren't on your 'A' game.

 

And taxiing at some of the larger airports is a challenge in and of itself.  Check out this taxi diagram:

 

Imagine you've just landed on Runway 9 and you've got to taxi to US Customs but taxiway Z is closed between runways 12 and 8R including the intersections, so now you've got to go through the terminal area.  Your instructions are 'Roper XX, taxi via Victor, cross 12, Papa, Whiskey, Yankee 1, Yankee, hold short taxiway Mike'.

 

That only takes you halfway...and you can't turn in the wrong direction or you could find yourself beak to beak with a A380.  And most aircraft don't have a 'reverse' gear...

 

And just imagine the fun at airports where instead of using a alpha numeric combo, taxiways use alpha alpha combo (ie instead of W1, W2, you get WA, WB, WC, etc...).

 

FC

[Skyviper]

Thank you FC and Typhoid for taking the time to answer my question. I can see how that makes sense to get everyone grouped up so they can punch through a storm.

 

Now about those taxi instructions ... I decided to have a little fun and attempt to make sense out of the map (this is of course assuming like you mentioned FC there aren't any other obstacles in the way.

 

 

So if I understand those instructions correctly .... Roper is a slight pervert, so you take a taxi with Victor, you cross 12th street, and meet your Papa and grab some Whiskey and talk to a Yankee about the Yankees and then you hold up a short Mike...

 

Okay seriously this is what I got. And just wow. Wow. I mean ... wow.

 

[+FastCargo]

Skyviper,

 

Not bad, the only thing you got wrong there is that you can't 'cut across' directly from Victor to Yankee 1.  You have to take a left at Papa, then right on Whiskey, then left on Yankee 1.

 

FC

[Skyviper]

FC,

 

Ohh. I gotcha. Because there would be parked planes there ... out of curiosity as I study the diagram more. I'm wondering what's the penalty box? Is that for suspicious aircraft or something?