Through The Mist Darkly

Spent part of today driving around checking out some of the areas I knew when I lived here over 3 decades ago.

We lived in this house in West Vancouver for a few years.  Looks vastly different than I remember.  Used to be a dark blue as I recall and the door in front of the car used to be the garage door.

After that, it was out along Marine Drive to Horseshoe Bay.  One of the main ferry terminals to the Gulf Islands and Vancouver Island.  Still as pretty as I remember.

Finally, out to Deep Cove.  Very, very touristy now.

Tags: 1 by EyeNo
No Comments »

I transferred from the Richmond Inn to the Hilton yesterday.  Much nicer hotel with a great view of the mountains and the airport.  And other things.

Woke up this morning to the sight of a car fire about a block away from the hotel.  Nothing major so I placed a non-emergency call to the fire department.

Speaking of fire, last night’s sunset was pretty.

Was hoping for some nice weather but so far today is coming up cloudy and cool.  Oh well.

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

Love Vancouver.  Hate being stuck here alone on a long weekend on a business trip.  Don’t get to go home until Wednesday morning.

I’ll be working all day tomorrow and then have 2 days off.  Guess I’ll check out some of the sights over on the North Shore (West and North Vancouver) and if all else fails I’ll walk the seawall at Stanley Park.

I’d much rather be home with Jan.

(picture above taken on the Fraser River near the hotel.  Floatplanes are based here right across from Vancouver International Airport)

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

ZOOM Airlines pulled the plug today.  Especially sad news as one of my best friends is a Captain.  From their website:

Zoom Airlines sincerely regrets to advise its customers that it has ceased operations with effect from 18:00 UTC on Thursday 28 August.

600 people out of work.  Another lower cost alternative finished. 

Tags: aviation by EyeNo
No Comments »

Nothing makes a Vancouverite madder than someone saying "it always rains out here".  Well I lived here back in the 60’s and 70’s and I know it doesn’t *always* rain but it comes close some times.  (The above is the view from my balcony at the Richmond Inn).

The flight out here would have been fine except I came down with a migraine headache half way across the country.  A fistful of Advil and a quiet night will hopefully straighten me right out.

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

This week in ground school we had the second of three classes in meteorology. You think you know weather but until you start to look at through a pilot’s eyes you really have no idea of how important and complex it actually is.

Through how air moves (predictably) to the different types of clouds and what they mean to the dangers that weather holds for small aircraft, it’s a fascinating part of the studies. Unfortunately, I’m going to miss the final class next week as I’m off to Vancouver on business. I can make the class up later but I think it’s best to take all 3 in a row so I’ll jump out of the current schedule and pick it up again on a different night.

In the meantime, I’ve picked up a few books on the subject that I’ll read while I’m away.

If you’re interested in the subject, a good place to start is the Cloud Appreciation Society where you’ll find thousands of cloud pictures.

Tags: Flight Instruction, Flying Is Fun by EyeNo
No Comments »

As NASA looks to replacing the aging shuttle fleet, there appears that they might have a serious weight issue.

Their new Ares V cargo launch system will (when combined with the transporter and launch tower)  weigh in at a hefty  10.9 million kg.  The problem is that the crawler road may not take the load.  The shuttle in comparison is "only" 7.7 million kg.

I took this picture when I visited the Kennedy Space Center a few years ago and we’re talking a serious piece of road work here.  6.8 km long and 40 m wide and made up of special river rock, any work to make it capable of bearing a higher load would be very expensive indeed.

Tags: Space by EyeNo
No Comments »

Commercial for GE’s new GEnx engine.  Short and creative.

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

A Spanair MD-82 (similar to the one pictured) crashed on takeoff in Madrid Spain today and reports are now saying that over 100 people were killed.  The airline stated that a total of 166 pax and 9 crewmembers were  on board.

Spanair is owned by SAS and the aircraft was destined for Las Palmas in the Canary Islands.  The Boeing MD-82 (built by McDonnell Douglas) first took to the skies in 1980 and hundreds are still in service, the majority operated by American Airlines. Earlier this year, AA grounded its entire fleet of MD-80 series airplanes to check for hydraulic problems.  Though there is no official word on what caused today’s crash it only makes sense that this one area that will receive special scrutiny.

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

NOTAM : Notice to Airmen. A notice containing information (not known sufficiently in advance to publicize by other means) concerning the establishment, condition, or change in any component (facility, service, or procedure of, or hazard in the National Airspace System) the timely knowledge of which is essential to personnel concerned with flight operations.

NOTAMs will be in force to keep aircraft away from the upcoming Democratic and Republican conventions.  Ignore them and you might just have some company.

(found at at the always excellent PointNiner blog)

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

Last night in groundschool, we started a three week study of meteorology with a basic overview of terms and concepts.  One point we touched on was clouds.  Really didn’t know there were so many types.  So when I ducked outside for a smoke and saw this I just had to grab a picture with my Blackberry.

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

If you’ve never been to FARK, you’re missing some fun.  Of particular note are their Photoshop contests where insanely talented submitters have some fun.  Here’s an example from today’s “Unforeseen consequences of the energy crisis” contest. 

Submitted by user “inebriated brain”, it provides an interesting idea for the airlines who are suffering under the burden of high fuel costs.

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

The first of my finds from the shop out in St. Jacob’s.  Hertz pushing the luxury of air travel and car rentals as the 1950’s come to an end.  United is just about to launch regular service of their new DC-8 and Hertz is ready to rent you a shining new Chevrolet to make your trip complete.

What’s changed since then?  You hardly ever deplane right on to the tarmac anymore unless it’s at Heathrow in London or Charles De Gaulle in Paris and then it’s just to board a bus for the long trip to the terminal.  A 4 foot fence?  Not bloody likely and you certainly couldn’t drive a car right up to it without a SWAT team going postal all over your ass.  A smiling “Stewardess”?  Excuse me, we’re flight attendants and we have very little to smile about.

It’s the nostalgia of these advertisements that catch my attention.  The glamour of air travel is gone along with our naive innocence.

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

How long has it been since you studied for a test?  For me, the time is measured in decades!  So here I find myself on vacation on a wet rainy day studying for my PSTAR exam tonight.

I’ve gone through all 200 possible questions and looked up each answer in the  Aeronautical Information Manual (which is for some reason known as the AIP) and the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARS), even if I was sure I knew the answers.  We’re allowed to write the exam tonight even though we haven’t completely covered some of the areas.  Even with all the information at hand I managed to get a few wrong.  Wording gets tricky at time.

A passing grade is 90% or over but the exam can be taken again if you’re a complete idiot and somehow manage to fail it the first time  - or second, or third or……… 

How was St. Jacob’s?  Meh.  Weather on Tuesday wasn’t great with rain off and on all day.  The outlet mall didn’t have much to offer and even Jan couldn’t manage to spend a lot at her favourite stores.  Dinner in the evening at Benjamin’s was OK but their menu isn’t as adventurous as it used to be.  Wednesday morning we hit all the little shops in the village but even that was a little disappointing.  I managed to dig up a few old airline ads at an “antique” shop which I’ll start scanning and putting online after I get through tonight.

Speaking of tests, I passed my aviation medical on Tuesday morning!!  The examiner, Dr. Thicke (who just happens to be the father of Alan Thicke) was a real hoot and this marks the first time I’ve ever had a fun visit to a doctor.  I’m in pretty good shape for an old guy and nothing he saw precludes me from flying.

UPDATE:  I passed the PSTAR!!

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »

We’re just starting a week of vacation.  Looks like it will be a busy one!  Tomorrow morning (Tuesday), I go for my Class 3 medical which I need for my student pilot’s license and Thursday I’m writing my PSTAR exam.

In between, we’re off to one of our favourite spots – St. Jacob’s Ontario.  We arrive Tuesday afternoon and it’s straight off to the outlet mall.  Later in the evening we’re off to dinner at Benjamin’s in the centre of the village. Wednesday morning it’s more shopping and we’ll be back home in the afternoon so I can continue studying.

St. Jacob’s is a wonderful town for photography.  I took the picture above a few years ago because how often do you run across a broom maker?   The village is nestled in Mennonite country and, even though St. Jacob’s is very commercial,  time slows down just a little to accommodate their lifestyle.

Tags: Uncategorized by EyeNo
No Comments »