Originally Posted by
GreatChecko
I think we would all love to be a Captain Denny, but it seems to me like he spends a bunch of time outside the cockpit, which may or may not be possible depending on the time available between flights. I will keep those things in the back of my mind, though.
I think Captain Denny (his last name is Flannagan) is an example of "above and beyond" and not something I'd expect from every pilot. I remember,back when TWA was still flying, there was a retired pilot who lived near LAX. He loved everything about the airline so much that, even after retirement, he'd come down in full uniform and circulate around the gates, chatting with the passengers while they lined up to board. Though it was nice, and I always looked forward to seeing him, this is customer dedication well beyond what I'd expect. I know that now, when you're out of the cockpit, the FAs have to form a phalanx to protect you from us but I have, from time to time, encountered the captain or FO (usually pre-flight) and it's always nice when they say, "hello." Last night, I flew LAX to SFO and was first to board. As I came on, the captain said hi and then joked, "We're going to San Francisco, right?" The little joke and, particularly, the interaction with the pilot made the flying experience a little more pleasant.
As for turbulence, I'm sure you didn't mean to use the acronym, CAT, however, it is short for Clear Air Turbulence. If we knew where that was, we would most certainly tell you. It occurs in clear, usually turbulence free air and is quite surprising. Those encounters will usually occur exactly how you described it and there really is no other way to approach them.
I did mean to use CAT. CAT is unexpected, turbulence you'll usually know about from ATC or other aircraft. If a pilot is uncommunicative, I don't know whether it's CAT, which, generally, will be short-lived, or the beginning of a long bout of moderate turbulence.