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SMAC055 – Flying Lawn Chairs & Crash Landings with Joe Barbera

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Today’s interview is without a doubt the most UNIQUE and CRAZY story we’ve shared on the podcast yet! A while back one of our listeners sent us an email after hearing a guy tell the story of his homemade flying lawn chair adventure at a local EAA chapter meeting. Curiosity got the best of us so we reached out to this flying lawn chair aviator and asked him to come on the show.

The story of Joe Barbera includes his inspiration behind the flying lawn chair, trials and tribulations of building the homemade craft, launch day challenges and why he left everything (including his shoes and toilet paper) behind, intentions to break world records, crash landing in the trees, and so much more. This episode is not to be missed!

Without further ado we bring to you Flying Lawn Chairs and Crash Landings with Joe Barbera.

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Pre-Flight

Announcements

  • California Capital Air Show – The California Capital Airshow at Mather Airport on October 5th and 6th, 2013 promises, “spine-tingling performances including an international jet team, the Snowbirds, jet demonstrations, world-class aerobatics, wingsuit flyers, barnstorming, wing walking, and endless entertainment and displays along the ramp.”
  • Georgetown-Scott County Aviation Festival – On September 14th, 2013 the gates open for this Kentucky aviation festival featuring static aircraft displays, B-25 and Huey rides, skydiver demonstrations, antique tractors, and more! Sorry, no whiskey or bourbon until after the show.
  • Stuck Mic AvCast Blog Posts – Some new additions to the website – Stuck Mic? There’s a Message For That! and Quick Guide to Air Traffic Control Facility Guides. Check those out for some reading enjoyment!

Cruise Flight

Show Notes

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After Landing Checklist

~ Picks of The Week ~

No Picks of the Week were included in this interview episode.

Quick Guide To Air Traffic Control Facility Codes

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It’s pretty amazing JUST how much information is out there on the Internet; you can find the answer to virtually any question in the universe. Except maybe what the meaning of life is or Where’s Waldo (still on the loose that little bugger!).

On July 13, 2013, the C90 TRACON (Terminal Radar Approach Control) was evacuated for a fire alarm. It was noted on the FAA National Airspace System Status website, cited as the reason for an FAA issued Ground Stop.

Quick explanation of a Ground Stop; that’s when Air Traffic Control does not permit any air traffic to depart an airport for flight into or out of their airspace for various reasons. Most commonly used when bad weather is affecting a large area or specific airport.

But who is C90 and where is that facility located? You obviously failed Pilot Training 101.

KIDDING!

There actually happens to be a list of all these codes to help you decipher the myriad of abbreviations. Behold, the Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) Facilities code list provided so graciously by the FAA. Using this list you can see that C90 is the Chicago TRACON located in Elgin, Illinois. Use it the next time you need to crack these mysterious identifiers.

The above mentioned fire alarm caused the Chicago TRACON to be evacuated and a subsequent Ground Stop was issued at Chicago O’Hare (ORD) and Chicago Midway (MDW) as you clearly can’t control air traffic from a parking lot. In fact, sources close to us said the fire alarm incident was the second one over the course of about a week. Hey, these things happen! True story.

Hope you have enough gas to hold or divert–just another contingency to plan for it seems. Who knew?

Clear Skies & Calm Winds,

SMAC