totm aug 2023 What funny/interesting thing happened in your life today?

[Selective Genius]

I work in a bank, and after 2 years of Contractual service, i was finally confirmed as a permanent employee of my bank. Now, usually on confirmation, a candidate gets a light posting - a loan processing officer or an accountant, where he can learn more about the branch and its internal workings without any stress.

Guess what I got? The BRANCH MANAGER post. This is the post with the highest responsibility, and its unheard of for a freshly confirmed officer to get this post. The pressure would be immense, and the branch that i have been allotted is in the middle of hecking nowhere... It's where dreams and hopes go to die..

Still, i am happy. Struggle is the definition of a man, and if God bestows tough times on me then i won't disappoint Him.

[GuessingEveryDay]

Flew to Utah today! I'm volunteering in a church camp that's exclusively for the deaf from around the country, so I got to fly out. Tomorrow, I'll start training with all the other counselors and next week, the kids will arrive

[DDE]

Looks like I'll be getting a free airshow with my seaside sunbathing this year. Last year Anapa seemed to be hosting an A-50 that flew in and out like clockwork. That was rather boring.

This year, I'm crossing off all the bingos. Mi-8, Mi-24, Ka-27, Su-22, Su-34, Il-38, even a Be-12...

[BA-Forums]

I got my Team Yankee starter force and painted up one of the M1A1 Abrams in a (horrible?) NATO camo. I think it looks good, but it could be better. I have a LOT more to paint.

[StrandedonEarth]

On 6/10/2024 at 6:39 AM, Ultimate Steve said:

Good luck to them! I lost one of my intrepid Lego astronauts on a rocket mission that broke up 500 feet above a corn field once, hopefully they make it out alive!

I lost our LEGOnaut and two other “volunteers” to a rocket-eating tree. Still haven’t found a proper-sized place to launch model rockets around here. Probably the best bet is to ask a farmer during fallow season…

[AlamoVampire]

PMDG in the last hour has released the 777-300ER and im beyond thrilled! It took me a bit to catch a fun av nerd reference in the price they are asking for it, and when i caught it i giggled. Its nerdy and im absolutely here for it! Id say what it is but im not sure if the forum allows it but the reference/in joke in its price has a shadow in this post. 

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ok wow it seriously does not feel like 10 hours has passed since I posted this. Well, I have an update! I just started to play around with the 777 and holy cow guys, its a BEAST and a TEMPERMENTAL one at that! But, I would like to just show off the 3 aircraft I chose (for now as I learn the 777-300ER) to be my aircraft. In interest of transparency, I wanted to let you guys know I have 18 airframes I can use. I chose 3, with 2-4 more being considered. BUT, because I am an aviation geek I wanted to show the 3 777-300ER aircraft used by PMDG for these 3 models. 

First is American Airlines N717AN

Next up is United Airlines N2251U

Last but by no means least KLM PH-BVF

all images used herein are used under fair use doctrine and from Planespotters.

I am looking forward to getting to know these fine aircraft and fly them! Oh by the way, if any of you are flight simmers and use PMDG aircraft for MSFS2020 please be aware that due to simulator limitations the 777-300ER cameras for the landing gear are not active in the simulator, perhaps down the road they will be added by either Asobo/Microsoft and or PMDG, but, currently they do not function. A real 777 pilot who has made a few videos on the PMDG 777 that is type rated in both the 777 and 787 (they share similar type ratings fun fact) stated that the cameras are real world optional equipment if memory serves. 

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Edited June 26 by AlamoVampire

[AlamoVampire]

I just experienced what could be the most astronomically implausible thing EVER! It would come to no ones surprise I am an av geek and enjoy plane spotting or that I fly (i am a licensed rc pilot) rc aircraft or that I fly flight sim or make and collect models. I have a model of a then Continental Airlines (now repainted and updated  as United Airlines, but still the SAME EXACT aircraft)  757-200 registration N14118 by a company called Skymarks. Why is this relevant?

Scrub to 17 minutes. That aircraft landing? That is a 757-200. A Continental Airlines 757-200. Its registration? N14118. The odds of seeing a video recently posted containing an hour of plane spotting from around 23 YEARS ago containing an aircraft of which I have its model counterpart is so astronomically implausible I have better odds of going to vegas and turning a single dollar into a billion dollars with out losing or pushing a single hand of black jack in consecutive hands starting with $1.00. I am beyond floored to have this happen. Yes I took pictures of the video of the aircraft in full and its registration number, and of the model and its registration number AND of the two together. I think I need to buy a lottery ticket tonight.

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[AlamoVampire]

I just did my first formal 777-300er flight!! A simple ferry flight to KDFW and wow is this aircraft exciting, confusing, frustrating and familiar all at once! It takes soo soo much more work to prep the aircraft for flight and then so much work enroute with it requiring checklists being completed. I love it! The flight was over in a flash.  Im going to need to learn so much and rewire my self to fly it proper. <scree>
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[cubinator]

12 hours ago, AlamoVampire said:

I just did my first formal 777-300er flight!! A simple ferry flight to KDFW and wow is this aircraft exciting, confusing, frustrating and familiar all at once! It takes soo soo much more work to prep the aircraft for flight and then so much work enroute with it requiring checklists being completed. I love it! The flight was over in a flash.  Im going to need to learn so much and rewire my self to fly it proper. <scree>
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I just went and found an adequate controller so I'll probably be getting more into MSFS soon. (i.e. once the update finishes in a couple days)

 

In the meantime, I have been getting some microscopy equipment - I have a microscope, but didn't have blank slides and cover slips up until a few days ago when I got those, and today I got pipettes and some plastic vials for samples. Now I'm ready to go scoop up some lake water and see what's living in it!

Edited June 28 by cubinator

[Vanamonde]

From NASA's picture of the day archive.

[AlamoVampire]

I was watching a trip report video from a channel called Onboard HD and this video was of his flight from PHNL in Hawaii to KLAX and on final approach to KLAX i saw something that made me both laugh and say to myself what a waste of money. It was SoFi stadium in the LA area. It has digital advertising on its ROOF facing skyward. Only half the folks flying over it at BEST will see it on each flight. I dont know about most folk but unless you enjoy looking out the window in flight youre unlikely to see it, even less so if on the wrong side of the flight…

Why waste the money?

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[DDE]

2 hours ago, AlamoVampire said:

It has digital advertising on its ROOF facing skyward. Only half the folks flying over it at BEST will see it on each flight. I dont know about most folk but unless you enjoy looking out the window in flight youre unlikely to see it, even less so if on the wrong side of the flight…

Why waste the money?

I guess it looks good in the PowerPoint they showed to their bosses. That's not a factor to be underestimated.

[Kerb24]

Me and my family went on a trip to Niagara Falls! (Technically this happened yesterday, but I was unable to create a post at the time.)

Picture of Horseshoe Falls I took. More pictures in spoiler:

Spoiler

I was strangely committed to getting a photo of a road sign with Niagara Falls listed.

American Falls, with Bridal Veil Falls mostly obscured.

Horseshoe Falls from a different angle.

We also went on the "Maid of the Mist" boat tour.

 

[domenprevc]

nothing special dreaming about vacation

[AlamoVampire]

Doing a cross country flight in msfs on the pmdg777-300er. Ive been a simmer for nigh on 30+ years and a licensed rc pilot since the late 1990’s and I am very proficient with the PMDG 737-700/800 series aircraft. But tonight? 90 minutes into a near 5 hour flight LA to JFK? The complexity and realism in this aircraft (it functions to 99% the EXACT SAME ((fuses not functional and some systems to come down the road)) as its real would counterpart) just absolutely HUMBLED me over something mind blowingly SIMPLE! A simple input error in my CDU … this thing and that exact page in the stupid thing too lol.

left side: RESERVES 10.0

This page sent me into a panic. All because I borked THAT SINGLE ENTRY!!! In mine I had my reserves set way way too high. I uplifted about 98,000 pounds into my tanks. Im expected to burn about 79,000 pounds leaving me about 19,000 pounds in reserve. I screwed my entry up by having my reserves fractionally too high at 60. I didnt notice my glitch until:

count right 3 screens from image left (ignore the little one that looks like screen 1 on left, its a back up, just count the larger screens) and take note (btw not my image but same issue i was having) that amber warning message. I spent a solid 100nm chasing numbers from 1 screen, 1 page to another across my CDU, my flight plan and my phone. Then after adding in fuel via a menu on the cdu to deleting fuel the same way I broke and googled it. Im an idiot that got rushed and made an error. On a real flight my FO would have caught it before push back. I need my reserves to equal at least what my flight plan says i should have after expected flight and taxi burns consume whats uplifted to be equal or greater than what id require for diversion after reaching the target airport. Namely that 19,000 pounds needs to be able to get me to Philadelphia with fuel left over should JFK become unsuitable or for any inflight emergency. My error panicked me. Then after reading the reports of others and real would pilots i checked my perf init and redid my math to see that yup im a derpy dope. Preflights and double checks and your checklist will save you! 
 

Remember: "Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.” I rushed. I screwed up. Now you get to both laugh at my error and learn from it. Apply it to everything!

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Edited July 2 by AlamoVampire

[DDE]

Second half of vacation marred by an upswell that made the sea cold, followed by some sort of a gastric problem that downed me on the last day. Other than that, splendid.

[LHACK4142]

8 hours ago, AlamoVampire said:

 "Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.”

One of my favorite quotes/aphorisms!  It applies to so much.

Edited July 2 by LHACK4142

[AstroWolfie]

I finally finished my Space Wolf!

pics later.

[DDE]

40 minutes ago, AstroWolfie said:

I finally finished my Space Wolf!

Mead at the ready.

[SunlitZelkova]

I’ve realized I don’t enjoy my project of researching modern orders of battle of militaries anymore.

I’ve been this a lot lately. Examining hobbies, subjects I’m interested in, entities I follow on social media, etc., and realizing I’m either super interested in it or it doesn’t bring me joy. And in the case of the latter I then stop.

It feels really good!

As someone in their 20s, I think it’s important to take a look at yourself every several years and think about who you are and what you love. Make sure you truly enjoy it in the moment, and are not just carrying on a routine. At least for me, routines might as well be chores. Chores just create stress.

I’m taking what I do in my leisure time very seriously because I’ll be heading to university later this year. In the past I spent a lot of time doing random stuff and then getting bored, being left with a feeling of deep unsatisfaction. I don’t want to feel that there if I’m entering into an intense regime of studying and will only have maybe several hours to relax on the weekend.

[Nuke]

finally bit the bullet and got an imgur. i can now post memes that have been collecting on my desktop such as this.

Radioactive death hamster. aka oppenhamster.

[SunlitZelkova]

TIL that even in the midst of rising Cold War tensions in the late 1940s, ZIS received a license to build GM's Old Look bus and their engines. It was designated ZIS-154 and had reliability issues.

Edited July 8 by SunlitZelkova

[AlamoVampire]

Guys im doing my first transatlantic flight! KJFK to EGLL or if you prefer London Heathrow! Gonna be a long one! 5 hours 57 minutes!

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update: just settled into cruise airspace and did my cross checks because its a long way to go. Anyway on my nav display i have the DATA feature on. It just shows me when I will reach a given point and distance remaining to said point. So i see: ELSIR 0437.Z 646NM except they are written with elsir above 0437.9Z above 646NM as a small column on the upper right corner of the nav display. Anyway as my last cross check for the next hour or so i cross ref between the nav display and my legs display on the FMC/CDU and my brain broke. I saw the CDU say 646NM (563NM now) and read 437.9Z as the range and not time. I thought for a moment my CDU froze. Then i saw it tick down to 645NM then 644NM and re-re-crosschecked to see i misread and both displays concurred. ELSIR is 547NM out which is 1 of 2 step climbs, FL370 to FL380 at ELSIR now 541NM and my next will be to FL390 at GISTI some 1937NM away at 0743Z. EGLL 2488NM out.

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ELSIR now 525NM away lol

UG stupid forum killed my edit… ok 1 correction. Ive yet to reach oceanic airspace, im over Newfoundlands east cost. So update:

ive been watching TCAS and see 2 aircraft near me closer than 40nm. 1 is United Airlines Flight 940 a 767-300ER the other is British Airways Flight 49N a 787-10. Both departed Newark around when i left JFK. Guess i have company over the ocean. Oh for fun: ELSIR IS 262NM

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ELSIR has come, ELSIR has gone. I am FL380 now with about 1375 nm till GISTI and my step up to FL390 but first, going OCEANIC as I hit submit! 

233907072024 we are OCEANIC!

im alone out here over the ocean. My fellow aircraft took different tracks than mine. My next waypoint 5330N is N53°00.0 W030°00.0 and its a transition from the CZQX Gander Oceanic FIR to the EGGX Shanwick Oceanic FIR where I transition from North American ATC to European ATC with my first controller at Shanwick in Northern England. Its also the middle of my flight give or take. GISTI is 850 NM away to FL390. Airtime so far: 2h58m

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sunrise over the Atlantic even in a sim is beautiful. At 0611Z i will reach EGGX Shanwick Oceanic FIR. I will be halfway across the Atlantic. GISTI is closing in at just over 550NM where I climb to final cruise altitude FL390. Its quiet over the ocean. Just me, my 2 GE90-115BLs churning away behind me. Partly cloudy over the Atlantic. Bingo 5330N halfway! GISTI now 538NM out. EGLL is 1095nm away. ETA 0836Z

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the blue skies above, puffy white clouds below and the blue of the Atlantic below that. Ireland is ahead of me with London Heathrow still over 600nm away. The end of the flight nears with top of descent coming just beyond Ireland. Its been a long lonely flight, but rewarding. Thank you friends for joining me on this, my first transatlantic flight in MSFS2020, a first in simming for me and a flight I hope one day to experience real world. My last update will come post landing.

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update in new post.

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Edited July 8 by AlamoVampire

[SunlitZelkova]

5 hours ago, AlamoVampire said:

Guys im doing my first transatlantic flight! KJFK to EGLL or if you prefer London Heathrow! Gonna be a long one! 5 hours 57 minutes!

Nice!

If they made simulators with Stratocruisers I’d love to do Pan Am San Francisco to Tokyo via Anchorage. Perhaps I’ll get around to flight sims someday.

[AlamoVampire]

@SunlitZelkova they do make a model 307 stratoliner fwiw. Idk if its any good or not tho. 
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