Aviation Adages
 

Sorry if these are a repeat.

PILOTS: People who drive airplanes for people who can't fly.

The FAA Motto: We're not happy till you're not happy.

Wheelbarrow: Device invented to teach FAA inspectors to walk on hind legs.

Fighter Pilots: Cold, steely eyed, weapons systems managers who kill
bad people and break things. However, they can also be very charming
and personable. The average Fighter Pilot, despite sometimes having a
swaggering exterior, is very much capable of such feelings as love,
affection, intimacy and caring. These feelings, however, very rarely
involve other people.

Words of Wisdom From Aviators:

Flying is a hard way to earn an easy living.

Both optimists and pessimists contribute to society. The optimist
invents the airplane; the pessimist, the parachute.

If helicopters are so safe, how come there are no vintage helicopter fly-ins?

Death is just nature's way of telling you to watch your airspeed.

Real planes use only a single stick to fly. This is why bulldozers
(and helicopters*) *need two.

There are only three things the copilot should ever say:

1. Nice landing, Sir.
2. I'll buy the first round.
3. I'll take the fat one.

As a pilot only two bad things can happen to you and one of them will:
a. One day you will walk out to the aircraft knowing that it is your
last flight.
b. One day you will walk out to the aircraft not knowing that it is
your last flight.


There are Rules and there are Laws:

The Rules are made by men who think that they know better how to fly
your airplane than you.

Laws (of Physics) were ordained by God.

You can, and sometimes should, suspend the Rules, but you can never
suspend the Laws.


About Rules:

a. The rules are a good place to hide if you don't have a better idea
and the talent to execute it.
b. If you deviate from a rule, it must be a flawless performance
(e.g., when flying under a bridge, don't hit the bridge.)

Additional pilot & aircraft insights:

The ideal pilot is the perfect blend of discipline and aggressiveness.

The medical profession is the natural enemy of the aviation profession.

Ever notice that the only experts who decree when the age of the pilot
is over __ are people who have never flown anything? Also, in spite of
the intensity of their feelings that the pilot's day is over, I know
of no expert who has volunteered to be a passenger in a non-piloted
aircraft.

Before each flight, make sure that your bladder is empty and your fuel
tanks are full.

He who demands everything that his aircraft can give him is a pilot;
he who demands one iota more is a fool.

There are certain aircraft sounds that can only be heard at night.

The aircraft limits are only there in case there is another flight by
that particular aircraft. If subsequent flights do not appear
likely, there are no limits.

Flying is a great way of life for men who want to feel like boys, but
not for those who still are.

"If the Wright brothers were alive today, Wilbur would have to fire
Orville to reduce costs."
President, DELTA Airlines.

In the Alaskan bush I'd rather have a two-hour bladder and three hours
of gas than vice versa.

It's not that all airplane pilots are good-looking. It's just that
good-looking people seem more capable of flying airplanes.

An old pilot is one who can remember when flying was dangerous and sex was safe.

Airlines have really changed, now a flight attendant can get a pilot pregnant.

I've flown in both pilot seats, can someone tell me why the other one
is always occupied by an idiot?

Son, you're going to have to make up your mind about growing up and
becoming a pilot. You can't do both.

There are only two types of aircraft* - fighters and targets.

The scientific theory I like best is that the rings of Saturn are
composed entirely of lost airline baggage.

You define a good flight by negatives: you didn't get hijacked, you
didn't crash, you didn't throw up, you weren't late, and you weren't
nauseated by the food.