uaflyer15

There was a time when I got nervous flying, especially during bad turbulence. Luckily this time is long past -- in fact, listening to channel 9 really helped me gain an understanding of what's going on. But has anyone ever heard something said on channel 9 that gave you quite a scare?

I have two examples:

1) (mild) I was on final approach into IAD on a 777. The pilot said "wind check for UA XXX". ATC replied with the answer. My pilot then shouted "oh no!". That was all that I heard.

2) (much more troubling) About 30 minutes into my ANC-DEN flight two years ago in December, I heard the following conversation on channel 9 that roughly went like this:
UA Pilot: "UA XXX requesting San Francisco maintenance (or something like that)." **call transfered to maintenance**
UA Pilot: "UA XXX calling, A320 nose number XXX. Our de-icer on the right wing has failed and I'm showing some ice build-up. In case we lose an engine, can you please calculate if we have enough thrust on one engine to clear the upcoming mountain range?"
That's where they turned off channel 9. Well, we did land in DEN, and with 2 engines as far as I know.

Any other similar stories?

Tiojelly

Hearing ground traffic control yelling at a (I think) Aeroflot pilot for making a wrong turn got me a bit worried as to where they turned.

Liz

Those are reasons some pilots won't turn on Ch. 9. They don't want to read reports like this.

SkiAdcock

Yeah what Liz said. I always ask (politely) for them to turn it on & also mention it's a competitive advantage compared to other airlines. I also mention how much I enjoy it.

Neither I nor ATC took offence when yest's pilot said Yeah Sure No Problem, er, Roger That, when ATC asked them if they could (fill in the blank). ATC said no problem we understand sure, no problem.

The REAL reason the pilots said what they said in Scenario 1 & 2 of OP - they wanted to spoof someone who was that worried LOL...Kidding, I have no idea but truly unless it's a oh fudge, we're going down, I'm pretty much ok w/ whatever the pilot says. Main reason being I can't affect anything, whether right or wrong w/ plane flying so what does it truly matter, unless I get 30 seconds heads up on things going well or bad, and oh yeah, did I mention I can't affect anything even knowing?

Also I've never quite understood the FT obsession w/ reporting bad stuff (try reading the most scary flight threads on Travelbuzz for example). It's kind of like folk getting their wisdom teeth taken out - everyone feels the need to scare the poor person (my cousin was out for weeks looking like a chipmunk & in total pain or I know someone who died); same w/ FT.

To the OP - do us a favor, if you truly feel the need to talk about the negatives you heard on C9, keep it to here & don't tell the pilots on your next flight. The rest of us would prefer to listen to C9 rather than have it shut down.

Cheers.

flyinbob

Not sure what you mean by this Liz. Pilots are hoping such things never come to light and they can cover up their mistakes, or they simply don't want to have to explain to us dumb laypersons? I'm not aware of anyone injured as a result of channel 9 being on, or any on board riots resulting from what is heard, and it has been on for many years. People on the JetBlue flight last year watched themselves on inflight TV make an emergency landing. I'm thinking it is more an ego thing, with too many pilots not wanting to open the door and let people see they're not perfect.

ajc1970

i can't speak for liz, but i think she means that pilots may say something routine (or non-routine) that might spook or upset a passenger, and besides not wanting to spook/upset pax, they probably don't want to have to deal with any potential consequences of those pax getting spooked/upset... which might include people writing about them on the internet, or writing to their employers, or who knows what else...

justageek

If you listen to Channel 9, or a scanner that covers the aviation band, or liveatc.net long enough, you hear just about everything. There's no reason a customer who flies UA regularly (or uses the other means I mentioned to listen to ATC communications) would be alarmed by anything they hear on Channel 9.

boiflyer

right after a hard pull up and bank with some significant engine thrust (descending into BOI):

to atc momentarily after new instructions from atc "uh...did you know we just had a terrain warning"

big ^ to the crew for not turning off ch. 9 afterwards.

Liz

Correct. The average person does NOT listen to a scanner at home. This is NOT about covering anything up, they really can't!! Mistakes in altitude, speed, etc. are caught by ATC and recorded by the a/c up to a point. This is about keeping Ch. 9 available. By not "freaking out" more pilots will use it. They read on here it scares people, they might turn it off. I don't listen to it (unless I want to sleep) but I know a lot of people love it.

Also, conversations between the company, maintenance, and f/a's should not be on Ch. 9. If you hear that, please let the f/a know, a switch is in the wrong position. F/a's are not part of the Ch. 9 experience.

kkirksea

On final, about 100 feet off the ground...

".... - PULL UP! PULL UP! AIRCRAFT IS ON THE RUNWAY"

wimpypipsqueak

These are usually the best bits and always bring a smile. Its where you hear of the real reason for the delay, or why the captain needs a cup of coffee.

I do usually let an FA know just in case other pax don't know whats going on.

N37077

Previous aircraft slow vacating and a go-around executed. Happens every day at Heathrow, O'Hare...etc...

777-DCA

Nothing really scarry for me, but a little uncomfortable (although I know we were always safe):

Flying into Boston with heavy fog (CAT II landing), the tower controller said, "United XXX, it's okay if you go under the glideslope at XXX, you will pick it up again at XXX."

Wireless

Coming home from LAX last night, I got to hear SFO go into a total ground stop as we zigzagged across the bay (trying to bleed time to allow them to clear the runway). We didn't get clearance to land until after the San Mateo bridge...

What happened? UA189 bound for RNO lost an engine cowling on takeoff. A319.

That was fun to listen to, and luckily it wasn't dangerous.

Channel 9 > *

cblaisd

There's a recent related thread here too