SFO Seawall Avoidance(Low Approach 28R)

[ChasenSFO]

Friends wanted an airplane ride after I got off work last night, so I rented a plane at 0030 that night. After a phonecall with someone from the school concerned about me flying late at night(I feel like this only happens with PAO/SQL schools), I had to find something to do. As luck would have it, an SFO FAA controller popped in during my shift and I asked him if I could get around the $100 landing fee. He suggested I request a "low approach" and don't actually land. He passed my request along, and I called the tower after work to double check and was told not to expect it due to many late arrivals. But, at around 0230, luck was on my side. Sorry about the language, I haz potty mouth.

Before anyone asks, yes I was cleared to do this, no, my wheels didn't touch the ground.

 

[inigo88]

It sure pays off to work 'down the hall' from the SFO controllers at times like this!

Congrats man, looks like a hell of a lot of fun. Unfortunately fun is a key part of flight training that can be easy to lose sight of.

 

[GypsyPilot]

That's pretty neat! That right there is why those that do the quickie All ATP stuff miss out big time.

Later today I'll be doing the FMS Bridge Visual to 28R, but it's not even close to as fun as your flight.

 

[fast89pony]

next... low approach fees.... looked like fun!

 

[mikecweb]

Ho Lee ....

 

[GypsyPilot]

Ho Lee ....

They were both going about the same speed, that's for sure!

 

[inigo88]

"Wi Tu Lo!" said @ChasenSFO that night.

 

[ChasenSFO]

That's pretty neat! That right there is why those that do the quickie All ATP stuff miss out big time.

Later today I'll be doing the FMS Bridge Visual to 28R, but it's not even close to as fun as your flight.

I really enjoy GA flying and hope I always have time to at least stay current. It's a lot of fun, I don't get why people who love flying rush thru flight training and don't look back to it fondly.

A shocking amount of local pilots are afraid to fly thru the Bravo and instead do their bay tours up the Pacific coast to avoid SFO. They're all people just like us, ask them a question and they'll give you an answer. It never hurts to ask. Hehe, when I was circling, SFO tower asked if I had a UA 737 on a 4 mile final in sight, I told them I did. Once they were about 1 mile out, SFO had them change to 28L so I could do my low pass 28R before the next arrival bank. The female pilot who responded sounded pretty pissed that she was asked to accommodate a 172 flyby in the middle of the night, but I couldn't stop laughing.

 

[gotWXdagain]

...I'd be pretty pissed if I was hauling balls down final in a 737 and got told to sidestep that close in for someone on a joyride. Just sayin.

 

[ChasenSFO]

...I'd be pretty pissed if I was hauling balls down final in a 737 and got told to sidestep that close in for someone on a joyride. Just sayin.

Yeah I was shocked, but makes for a better story.

 

[T/O w/FSII]

Unfortunately I am not longer a fan my self of doing these thanks to all the horror stories I have heard due to our friends at the FAA. Bastards.

 

[GypsyPilot]

...I'd be pretty pissed if I was hauling balls down final in a 737 and got told to sidestep that close in for someone on a joyride. Just sayin.

Most of those people would be pissed if you ask them to do anything slightly different. When I'm asked for something unusual, I'm usually up for it as doing the occasional side step or whatever breaks up the monotony. If it's a safety/FOQA/legal deal, then simply say "unable"! How hard is that?

I absolutely can not stand professional pilots who look for any excuse to act upset or offended when asked to work something out with a GA guy. Gimme a freaking break primadonnas.

 

[JordanD]

Most of those people would be pissed if you ask them to do anything slightly different. When I'm asked for something unusual, I'm usually up for it as doing the occasional side step or whatever breaks up the monotony. If it's a safety/FOQA/legal deal, then simply say "unable"! How hard is that?

I absolutely can not stand professional pilots who look for any excuse to act upset or offended when asked to work something out with a GA guy. Gimme a freaking break primadonnas.

Yeah seriously. Sucks even more when you're actually trying to get work done but get lumped in as just another GA guy and nobody wants to have anything to do with you...

 

[ChasenSFO]

Most of those people would be pissed if you ask them to do anything slightly different. When I'm asked for something unusual, I'm usually up for it as doing the occasional side step or whatever breaks up the monotony. If it's a safety/FOQA/legal deal, then simply say "unable"! How hard is that?

I absolutely can not stand professional pilots who look for any excuse to act upset or offended when asked to work something out with a GA guy. Gimme a freaking break primadonnas.

I personally really love doing non-standard stuff(late runway changes, odd vectors in the pattern, S-turns, ect) for the same reasons. Granted GA planes aren't hard to maneuver, but it's usually pretty fun.

I forgot to mention, one of my friends I brought along had never been in an airplane before, even commercially. A low pass at SFO and zig zagging around downtown San Francisco while he had the back seat with his date probably set the bar pretty high haha. Also, my friend who made this asked if he should put the song "Sail" on it, I told him I'd punch him in the throat.

 

[mikecweb]

http://forums.jetcareers.com/threads/does-the-captain-fly-the-first-leg.188523/page-4#post-2200234

 

[gotWXdagain]

I'm not advocating for not having fun in an airplane, I'm just saying I wouldn't want to make life harder for someone else if I don't need to. Not that it didn't work out for everyone in the end.

I've sat in enough 172's getting the "we'll get to you when we get to you" treatment from ATC to know what that's like, but at the same time if I don't want someone to ruin my day its not really my business to be ruining theirs if it can be avoided.

 

[Cal Goat]

I'm not advocating for not having fun in an airplane, I'm just saying I wouldn't want to make life harder for someone else if I don't need to. Not that it didn't work out for everyone in the end.

I've sat in enough 172's getting the "we'll get to you when we get to you" treatment from ATC to know what that's like, but at the same time if I don't want someone to ruin my day its not really my business to be ruining theirs if it can be avoided.

Side stepping is hard now? I actually enjoy it when SFO (or any other place on a nice day) asks me to side step because it breaks up the monotony of the daily grind. I LOVE flying, but the airline gig sucks a lot of the basic fun out of it. I get a rager on those rare occasions when the tower asks if I can make a short approach.

Coincidentally, I was flying a 210 up in Alaska many years ago landing at PANC when I accidentally tried to exit on a closed taxiway with a NW 757 behind me on 3ish mile final. Tower asked the 757 to sidestep which he did without issue. Later that night at the brewery downtown that very 757 captain happen to sidle up next to me at the bar. We got to talking and figured out that I had been the schmuck that made him sidestep due to my incompetence. Suffice it to say, he didn't care. We had some good laughs over a few beers.

 

[sweeps]

They were both going about the same speed, that's for sure!

That just made my night hahaha