Thankfully nothing too dramatic yet. One or two near misses with both aircraft and birds. First time you do a spin is interesting as well.
Your Scariest Flying Experience
- Thread starter Acylum
- Start date
Earned a trip thru a seed company I sold for and met a very nice couple during it that did the same. They sat directly behind us on the flight home where we discovered the guy's wife was deathly afraid of flying. The husband ribbed her constantly during the flight and basically opened the door to us doing the same. As we approached the runway in St. Louis in the dark she stated she was relieved to finally see the runway lights, Being the ass I can sometimes be, I told her "those weren't runway lights, those are lines of emergency vehicles" at which we all (besides her) laughed. At that point we nearly touched down before we were pasted to our seats by what seemed to be a near vertical assent back into the nighttime skies and out of the view of the airport. Now we are all on the same wavelength as the guy's wife as we circled several times before the pilot announced "the runway was occupied by another plane". I did apologize to her.
About a year ago flying back to DMI there was a brutal storm in Des Moines so we were rerouted to MN and then descended into DM. The turbulence was the worst Ive ever experienced and Im already not good with flights even when they go well. This descent, I could hear people in the back throwing up and then I heard a loud clap and a flash of light. The plane was hit by lightning and then about 20 min later landed safely thankfully. Everyone clapped and cheered upon landing. I havent been on a flight since....I will at some point Im sure soon but I'll drive if at all possible
Yeah that was mine, wind shear. Flew from DC to DM through Twin Cities in the 1980’s. Near Des Moines, plane went into a nose dive. I was digging through my purse to find a pen to write a message to my husband on the tray table when pilot pulled us out of it. He explained what happened and stood at door as we got off to try and comfort people.
Uh, I once had to abandon a pair of underwear in the Detroit airport restroom.
Had nothing to do with a flight though.
Had nothing to do with a flight though.
For work I took a side trip from MSP to DSM. Was a storrmy night and we were landing just as a front was coming through Des Moines. I was sitting in the back of the plane and during descent I swore I could see the fuselage/cabin flex for an instant - kind of a twist, but I'm sure that isn't possible. Cross winds were so bad that we came down pointed crosswise on the runway then jerked forward as the wheels hit.
TL;DR - Landing in the Winter Derecho of December 2021
Connected from Miami to Des Moines in St Louis with a +3 hour layover. Landing in STL wasn't bad until we were right above the runway and the gusts hit us. We got on the ground fine and otherwise uneventfully. The next flight rolled as soon as we lifted off, but was actually a smooth flight until we started descending into DSM; then it was like a roller coaster. Once we were "lined up" with the runway, I could tell we were in heavy crosswinds since I could watch the runway get closer and closer like we were flying sideways. What surprised us all though, is nobody knew when we actually touched down. Smoothest landing I think I have ever experienced. Hope Southwest gave those pilots a nice pay raise for that! Probably would have had a full blown panic attack, if not for the family across the aisle with a bunch of little kids returning from Disney World who were having a BLAST because it was like another ride.
Unintended bonus: I was running late to catch my original flight from DSM-STL and had to park at the closest uncovered lots instead of economy, and when I got back to my car (now caked in the blowing dirt) I discovered that the winds had knocked out power to the parking lots and nearby businesses. Got free parking out of it since the arms go up at the gates when they lose power
Connected from Miami to Des Moines in St Louis with a +3 hour layover. Landing in STL wasn't bad until we were right above the runway and the gusts hit us. We got on the ground fine and otherwise uneventfully. The next flight rolled as soon as we lifted off, but was actually a smooth flight until we started descending into DSM; then it was like a roller coaster. Once we were "lined up" with the runway, I could tell we were in heavy crosswinds since I could watch the runway get closer and closer like we were flying sideways. What surprised us all though, is nobody knew when we actually touched down. Smoothest landing I think I have ever experienced. Hope Southwest gave those pilots a nice pay raise for that! Probably would have had a full blown panic attack, if not for the family across the aisle with a bunch of little kids returning from Disney World who were having a BLAST because it was like another ride.
Unintended bonus: I was running late to catch my original flight from DSM-STL and had to park at the closest uncovered lots instead of economy, and when I got back to my car (now caked in the blowing dirt) I discovered that the winds had knocked out power to the parking lots and nearby businesses. Got free parking out of it since the arms go up at the gates when they lose power
Tried landing at the Appleton Airport in WI twice during a snowstorm and both times we had divert. Third time, we didn't even try and landed in Grand Rapids, MI to wait out the storm and get gas. Never knew a plane could drop so quick and could climb so quick
KidSilverhair
Well-Known Member
When I worked for the football team, the plane ride back from Texas Tech in 2017 was pretty terrible. I remember landing you could tell only one side of the plane’s wheels were on the ground.
I even found a tweet from @brentblum from that day if he wants to chime in
I even found a tweet from @brentblum from that day if he wants to chime in
Nothing big in flight outside of a flying through a thunderstorm on my very first flight as a kid and a couple of wicked turbulence drops on other flights, but the plane completely losing power as it was backing away from the gate for takeoff rattled me a bit. On top of sitting there for with no air flow for a while, the announcement of we're going to see if we can get a jump both amused and worried me. They ended up getting it going so we didn't have to deboard to get on another plane, but that whole flight home had me thinking of what happens if power goes out mid-flight,
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As long as we are talking about team planes and scary situations I will share this one. After ISU won their NCAA tournament game against Michigan in 1986 to go to the Sweet 16 they were telling people on the radio to go to the Ames airport and greet the team when they returned that night. My brother and I went out there and we were worried that there was no security of any kind there. When the plane landed it taxied up near where everyone was milling around. When it came to a stop people starting running for the plane even though the props were still spinning. I saw one kid duck under a spinning prop to get to the side of the plane. After seeing this my brother and I and a couple other souls started trying to keep people away from the props. After the team got out of the plane we talked to the lone cop who showed up well after the danger and let him know what happened and to maybe be aware that this could happen again if they kept winning.
I shudder to think I just about witnessed someone get totally splattered about 20 feet away from me.
I shudder to think I just about witnessed someone get totally splattered about 20 feet away from me.
To be fair one was at an uncontrolled field and the other one I was being naughty not getting flight following.
1.Father was a WW2 Navy pilot. he had a buddy who was huge ND fan so we headed to Cotton Bowl when I was in HS. He had a Piper Commanche 260. We got to southern Illinois, got into some icing conditions and had to set it down in a farmers field. Ice melted and he paid the farmer to get his tractor out and tow us to the other end of his field, Field was very muddy, so I had to call out air speed so he would know when to rotate, with silo and farmstead getting huge in the windshield, he rotated at last second, did a vertical climb out between silo and barn like you see on a carrier. He had tip tanks for range, we got to Dallas Love field and I had to point out to him his right tip tank was well scratched from the gravel on the farmers driveway.
2. When working in Peoria, the National Air Guard unit had a old C131 and used it for familiarization trips to support the Guard,, local citizen boondoggle. I got invited to go on a trip to Davis Montham AFB down in Arizona, Guard pilots had to stay current on ratings, so these trips were always cross country, usually to a base that is interesting and has a golf course. Had a table set up where we could play poker if desired, when we crossed the arizona/New Mexico border, had an engine failure, out the window of the poker game, bets went from nickle dime quarter to folding money only. Captain comes on the intercom and lets us know the engine that is still running is overheating, so we will follow a highway to airport, including a pass thru a small mountain range, singles are now off the table, and bets are minimum 5 with 20 raises. We actually make it to airport, air force fire trucks and ambulances following down runway. Working engine locked up as we were taxing. Later told the airplane went directly to the boneyard,but I did win 300.00.
Have some others, including a 767 emergency landing, but don't want to bore people
2. When working in Peoria, the National Air Guard unit had a old C131 and used it for familiarization trips to support the Guard,, local citizen boondoggle. I got invited to go on a trip to Davis Montham AFB down in Arizona, Guard pilots had to stay current on ratings, so these trips were always cross country, usually to a base that is interesting and has a golf course. Had a table set up where we could play poker if desired, when we crossed the arizona/New Mexico border, had an engine failure, out the window of the poker game, bets went from nickle dime quarter to folding money only. Captain comes on the intercom and lets us know the engine that is still running is overheating, so we will follow a highway to airport, including a pass thru a small mountain range, singles are now off the table, and bets are minimum 5 with 20 raises. We actually make it to airport, air force fire trucks and ambulances following down runway. Working engine locked up as we were taxing. Later told the airplane went directly to the boneyard,but I did win 300.00.
Have some others, including a 767 emergency landing, but don't want to bore people
Fire away. Nobody is required to read a post that doesn't interest them...
Been on a plane with an aborted take off when the nose of the plane was starting to come up. We then had to wait about an hour for the brakes to cool down
Been on an aborted landing with the plane about a couple hundred feet from the ground due to another plane on the runway.
Neither was fun.
Been on an aborted landing with the plane about a couple hundred feet from the ground due to another plane on the runway.
Neither was fun.
I never personally saw it, but growing up we were told a story about our uncle down the road from us who was a crop duster pilot. they said he called the power company and said he wanted the power lines near the end of his landing strip buried. they responded that they "don't do work like that by request", so he asked them to at least come out and watch him take off. they agreed and watched him come down the runway, elevate enough to clear the perpendicular gravel road, but low enough to sneak under the power lines. then turn around and land and do the same thing in reverse.
They agreed to bury the lines.
Flying into MQT (9,000+ foot runway, was an old air base) on either an Embraer or CRJ. On the second missed approach the pilot got on the intercom and said he didn't know if he could land the plane. Landed on the 3rd try and all was well.
Flying to Orlando Sanford on Allegiant with my heavily pregnant wife and our at the time almost 2 year old. Worst turbulence I have ever experienced and I’m holding the kid scared out of my mind but trying to keep my wife and kid calm. We circled for an hour over the gulf coast waiting for the storms to clear up only to have to land and refuel in Tampa, then take the 20 minute flight to Orlando. Wife’s pretty paranoid about flying now.
