Here’s another one of those email folktales floating around the net. It’s also probably complete BS but it is still quite funny and plausible.

A military pilot had been having difficulty with smooth landings and the crew was required to make note of the exact time the plane landed at different bases. One particular landing took several bounces before staying on the ground. The crew reportedly called up to the pilot, “Which landing shall we note for the record, Sir?”

Tower: “Delta 351, you have traffic at 10 o’clock, 6 miles!”
Delta 351: “Give us another hint! We have digital watches!”

“TWA 2341, for noise abatement turn right 45 Degrees.”
“Center, we are at 35,000 feet. How much noise can we make up here?”
“Sir, have you ever heard the noise a 747 makes when it hits a 727?”

From an unknown aircraft waiting in a very long takeoff queue: “I’m f…ing bored!”
Ground Traffic Control: “Last aircraft transmitting, identify yourself immediately!”
Unknown aircraft: “I said I was f…ing bored, not f…ing stupid!”

Control tower to a 747: “United 329 heavy, your traffic is a Fokker, one o’clock, three miles, Eastbound.”
United 239: “Approach, I’ve always wanted to say this…. I’ve got the little Fokker in sight.”

A DC-10 had come in a little hot and thus had an exceedingly long roll out after touching down. San Jose Tower noted: “American 751, make a hard right turn at the end of the runway, if you are able. If you are not able, take the Guadalupe exit off Highway 101, make a right at the lights and return to the airport.”

A military pilot called for a priority landing because his single-engine jet fighter was running “a bit peaked.” Air Traffic Control told the fighter pilot that he was number two, behind a B-52 that had one engine shut down. “Ah,” the fighter pilot remarked, “The dreaded seven-engine approach.”

Allegedly, a Pan Am 727 flight waiting for start clearance in Munich overheard the following:
Lufthansa (in German): “Ground, what is our start clearance time?”
Ground (in English): “If you want an answer you must speak in English.”
Lufthansa (in English): “I am a German, flying a German airplane, in Germany. Why must I speak English?”
Unknown voice from another plane (in a beautiful British accent): “Because you lost the bloody war.”

Tower: “Eastern 702, cleared for takeoff, contact Departure on frequency 124.7”
Eastern 702: “Tower, Eastern 702 switching to Departure. By the way, after we lifted off we saw some kind of dead animal on the far end of the runway.”
Tower: “Continental 635, cleared for takeoff behind Eastern 702, contact Departure on frequency 124.7. Did you copy that report from Eastern 702?”
Continental 635: “Continental 635, cleared for takeoff, roger; and yes, we copied Eastern… we’ve already notified our caterers.”

One day the pilot of a Cherokee 180 was told by the tower to hold short of the active runway while a DC-8 landed. The DC-8 landed, rolled out, turned around, and taxied back past the Cherokee. Some quick-witted comedian in the DC-8 crew got on the radio and said, “What a cute little plane. Did you make it all by yourself?” The Cherokee pilot, not about to let the insult go by, came back with a real zinger: “I made it out of DC-8 parts. Another landing like yours and I’ll have enough for another one.”

Allegedly the German air controllers at Frankfurt Airport are renowned as a short-tempered lot. They, it is alleged, not only expect one to know one’s gate parking location, but how to get there without any assistance from them. So it was with some amusement that we (a Pan Am 747) listened to the following exchange between Frankfurt ground control and a British Airways 747, call sign Speedbird 206.
Speedbird 206: “Frankfurt, Speedbird 206 clear of active runway.”
Ground: “Speedbird 206. Taxi to gate Alpha One-Seven.” The BA 747 pulled onto the main taxiway and slowed to a stop.
Ground: “Speedbird, do you not know where you are going?”
Speedbird 206: “Stand by, Ground, I’m looking up our gate location now.”
Ground (with quite arrogant impatience): “Speedbird 206, have you not been to Frankfurt before?”
Speedbird 206 (coolly): “Yes, twice in 1944, but it was dark,… and I didn’t land.”

Allegedly, while taxiing at London’s Gatwick Airport, the crew of a US Air flight departing for Ft. Lauderdale made a wrong turn and came nose to nose with a United 727. An irate female ground controller lashed out at the US Air crew, screaming: “US Air 2771, where the hell are you going?! I told you to turn right onto Charlie taxiway! You turned right on Delta! Stop right there. I know it’s difficult for you to tell the difference between C and D, but get it right!” Continuing her rage to the embarrassed crew, she was now shouting hysterically: “God! Now you’ve screwed everything up! It’ll take forever to sort this out! You stay right there and don’t move till I tell you to! You can expect progressive taxi instructions in about half an hour and I want you to go exactly where I tell you, when I tell you, and how I tell you! You got that, US Air 2771?” US Air 2771: “Yes, ma’am,” the humbled crew responded. Naturally, the ground control communications frequency fell terribly silent after the verbal bashing of US Air 2771. Nobody wanted to chance engaging the irate ground controller in her current state of mind. Tension in every cockpit out around Gatwick was definitely running high. Just then an unknown pilot broke the silence and keyed his microphone, asking: “Wasn’t I married to you once?”



  1. Joe says:

    Nice. I especially liked the “seven engine approach”.

  2. busdriver says:

    For real time entertainment, go to jfktower.com listen in to the tower audio for JFK airport in NYC, especially during the international push from 5 – 9 pm est. It is very entertaining and is another glimpse into organized chaos.

  3. KVolk says:

    LMAO….good stuff….

  4. glenn says:

    As my journalist friend often says: “If it isn’t true, it ought to be”

  5. chudez says:

    Variations on a theme related to BryanP’s comment above

    (from Reader’s DIgest, Humor in Uniform — i think)

    Some fighter jocks were meeting up with a refuelling tanker and the fighter pilots started boasting how great it is to be flying a fighter plane, and how it probably really sucked being a tanker pilot. The tanker pilot responded saying he was willing to bet he can do several things in his tanker that the fighter pilots couldn’t possibly do by ordering. The fighter pilots stayed clear of the tanker for 10 minutes waiting for the tanker to make it’s move but nothing happened.

    “Well, there, I’ve done it” the tanker pilot said over the radio.

    “Done what? You didn’t do anything!” the fighter pilots protested.

    “What do you mean nothing? I turned on my autopilot, turned over command to my co-pilot, got up, stretched, when to the lavatory, then i went to the pantry and got myselft a cup of coffee before coming back here.”

  6. BubbaRay says:

    I might have posted this before, if so I’ll get Hop’s UUKKMA. True story from an old logbook [1984], overheard crossing DFW, 0230Z [MA flight number changed to protect my failing memory the guilty].

    DFW approach: Twin Cessna 3256 X-ray [me], ident, TCA crossing approved heading two six five, maintain four thousand. [Now agitated controller]: Mexicana flight 154, I told you to cross Blue Ridge VOR at flight level two zero zero, you’re still at flight level three zero zero!! [Mexicana 154, lazy drawl and accent]: Approach, one five four, yesterday we make it, today we no make it.

    I can’t repeat approach control’s reply, but it had something to do with someone’s mother, heredity and piloting skills. Nothing but silence for 30 seconds. 🙂

  7. aitchison says:

    excellent, brightened my Saturday, just before i leave for the airport haha


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