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To: Rodamala

A friend and I were wave soaring on the secondary one day in SoCal, unfortunately pretty much in the middle of a MTR (Military Training Route,about 8000’.

B1 bomber appears waay to the north,and straight at us. Should we leave, or hope he’s looking at his ‘dar (we in a big aluminum plane, and motionless).

Just as we are getting to one of those go/no-go decision-points, he executes a big ol’ 180 around us, couple of miles out.

Guess he’d been having a good day (and makes up for the number of times Edwards jet jocks busted our home-drome airspace.)


31 posted on 07/07/2015 1:49:53 PM PDT by telstar12.5 (...always bring gunships to a gun fight...)
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To: telstar12.5

Back in the 60’s there was an oil burner route between Lubbock and Holloman AFB in New Mexico that ran just south of our airport and adjacent to our student pilot training box. Instructor insisted we stay in the box and watch out for jets on that route. Turns out they used to use us for “targets” and would scare the crap out of us, waving at they passed us.

The head-on closure rate of an airplane going 100mph and one doing 500mph is unbelievably short from first visibility to passing. Just a few seconds to recognize the oncoming aircraft and to initiate an evasive maneuver.


37 posted on 07/07/2015 2:35:47 PM PDT by biff (Et Tu Boeh-ner)
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To: telstar12.5
Straight at you? That mean a collision course. Big aircraft are easier to see, as opposed to a small aircraft.

B-1 likely did not “see” you until they could pick you up visually.

I hope you were at least talking to someone, not under ATC control, but talking to someone to let them know you were in the MTR. At any rate, unless it is restricted or controlled airspace you need not talk to anyone, but is a good thing to do.

45 posted on 07/07/2015 2:51:19 PM PDT by Hulka
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