Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Airtraffic

Holy Shit, that Incoming Plane is Getting Big!

Danf — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:24:20 -0800

Are air traffic controllers "pushing" it more? On a recent flight out of San Francisco, on Columbus Day, as day of severe rainstorms in the Bay Area, the regional jet I was on was taxiing into position. Out the right side of the aircraft, I saw the lights of a larger airliner approaching, seemingly seconds away from landing on the same runway we were queued up for.

I commented to my wife that, surely, this plane would touch down and then we would get on the runway and take off. Instead, our plane made a quick left turn, and, without stopping, accelerated, gained speed and took off. When we banked, I looked down and saw that the other place had already slowed down to a taxi on the runway we had just left. It seems like, if our plane had had any delay, then the other plan would have had to pull up, drastically, to avoid us.

Does anyone have any knowlege of protocols and procedures dealing with this? It really seemed like an "iffy" move, and I was going to ask the flight crew, who usually line up and say goodbye, but they were not there when I deplaned.

Planespotting

KokuRyu — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 12:01:01 -0800

I'd like to learn more about airline flight paths around the world. Does this information exist on the web? I do a lot of flying, mostly from Vancouver to Japan, or from Vancouver to different parts of British Columbia. I see a lot of mountains, I take a lot of photos, and I'd like to identify what I'm looking at. As well, I'd like to identify overflights from where I live, too. Just for fun.

Is there an online resource that maps out flight routes? In international airspace, can pilots fly anywhere they want? I noticed on a flight back to Vancouver from Japan that, according to the aircraft GPS, we flew a more southerly route, presumably to catch the jet stream (we made it back in just 7.5 hours, compared to 11 hours traveling to Japan).

Any help would be welcome.

Driving Miami to Oklahoma City need help

FLHunter3006 — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 04:33:11 -0800

Need to drive to Oklahoma City this weekend from Miami, need some help.... Will be helping my son with the driving over there ( he will be training at the FAA air traffic control center at the airport) Because of the short notice,FAA housing is not available at this time so he would have to stay at a motel nearby. If any of you have done the trip, please pass on your driving routes and any helpful suggestions. Also if you could recommend some short term stays near the airport and if there are any bad neighborhoods in the area to avoid. Thanks!