Position: Over KCMH (Columbus)Altitude: 34,000 feetGroundspeed: 414 knots (475 mph)Equipment: A319 Pax-on-Board: 123 + 3 jumpersAirborne...
Fi-Fi's nose is fifteen degrees into the quartering headwind of 120 knots to maintain the course line. In our six, the sun is barely above the horizon. Our cockpit is filling with early morning light... The kind of light that, along with Starbucks Christmas blend, pulls you out of an early morning circadian funk.
This is the biggest day of the year for the air carrier business... Wednesday before Thanksgiving. I was incredibly busy this morning dealing with captain's administrative work. That would be dispatch, maintenance control, operations, gate super, and flight attendants.
The co-pilot was busy with a last minute re-route, talking to clearance delivery, and trying to find the new airways on a hi-altitude chart.
A couple of kids wanted to see the flight deck, so we made time for them. Otherwise, I had an iPhone in my left ear, a pen in my right hand, and two large aircraft manuals open in my lap.
Every few minutes, a flight attendant would come into the flight deck with a pax seating problem, a broken thing-a-ma-jigee over row nine, overhead bins filling up and need to call the gate, coffee-maker forward galley not brewing yet, toilets not flushing yet, need more ice...
OK- yep- got it- yes- I just called- OK- yes mam- they know about it- OK- roger that- on the way...
Finally, the ducks lined up and quacked in the correct sequence three minutes before push; L-1 door closed and we pushed on-time with every seat full.
I called for gear up nine minutes later... The houses got smaller very quickly as the Electric Jet buried the vertical speed indicator at the top of the instrument case. Moms, Dads, and many kids are on the way to Grandma's... Again. How many times have I done this? Not sure... Can't remember anymore. The years run together into a 450 knot neuron stream.
Tomorrow, (hopefully) I will pick up a 100 pound non-rever, the wife-of-my-youth, for the eastbound transcon. The company will feed us turkey and dressing along the way. They are very good about catering excellent food on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Food delivery teams make sure every crew is fed somewhere, somehow.
But, for now, Thanksgiving Lift 2011, day two, is underway.
Life on the Line continues... Compass heading 272 degrees.
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