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For a long time I wanted to learn to fly but for many reasons (lack of funds mainly) I never managed it. I did have a sample lesson for my 70th birthday, but again, I couldn't justify the expenditure to go further.
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I could fly before I could drive. As a kid, I was able to recognize jets by their sound only. I wanted to be a fighter pilot, got the exam (not wanting to prise myself, but honestly was not a piece of cake, cleary a highlight of my life), got rejected a week later due to bad eyesight. For reasons, I had to do the medical check after the two sports-and-maths-and-psycho tests, because usually you start by checking if everything is OK and only go the hassle of the tests if you are apt. To precise, bad eyesight = I have exceptionally good eyesight, but was diagnosed with a probability to loose some of it on my right eye over the course of the 13 years training & service, which was sufficient for kicking me out of the program. The doc said "0,05% that it happens, but there are another 7000 furious waiting in the line behind you who are almost as good as you and with better condition, so why should we give you a chance ?". This was so abrupt that I completely cut with aviation from that on. But in my deep inside, I love it. And the Rafale is the best fighter in the world.  I
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I was a big fan of aviation in my teens up to my mid 30s.
I did 3 static line parachute jumps in my teens and later a glider flight as well as started flying lessons stopping when it became obvious how expensive it would be to maintain a license.
So I channeled my enthusiasm into hundreds of hours in flightsims, the 747 being my favourite aircraft to fly with the Kai Tak approach (PMDG 747).
One of the first projects I set myself in .NET back in around 2006 was to write a voice recognition application so that I could give commands to a virtual co-pilot to lower the landing gear, flaps etc.
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
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My favourite part of flying is when the plane stops at the terminal and I can get off.
Within you lies the power for good - Use it!
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Some of my earliest memories are of my Grandfather taking my brother and I for ice cream near the Memphis airport so we could watch the planes takeoff and land.  His love for aviation stemmed from over 20 years overseeing the maintenance shops at Warner Robins AFB, GA. Many years later, after his retirement, he would take us to the regional air shows. Great times!
One of his favorite stories was about going down to a local garage owned by one of his friends. When he walked up, he saw two feet sticking out from under a Caddy. Assuming it was his friend the mechanic, he lightly kicked them to get his attention. 'Hey Red, it's Jack...' The guy rolled out, stuck out his hand and said 'Paul Tibbets. Nice to meet you Jack.'
"Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse
"Hope is contagious"
modified 46 mins ago.
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I think I heard a comedian put it best... I love flying, but I'm the sort of person who forgets their car keys. This makes me the sort of person you don't want flying a plane. If I had way more disposable income/time I would near definitely try to get a license anyway though. I've thought about an ultra-light... Basically a go-cart with a parachute and a really huge fan. You can fly those here without licensure.
I got into R/C flight back when batteries/electric were a fringe cutting edge thing and everything was still this sort of special diesel. The electric stuff is just way easier to deal with now and I'd guess more popular (have not done for awhile). A 1/6th scale B-52 with all the engines going on diesel is just an awesome thing to behold.
The bigger draw for me there is maybe the overlap with history buffs and the folks into it tend to be much older. I tend to get on better with folks who have some years on me.
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Wordle 1,093 3/6*
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"I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
"Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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In a closed society where everybody's guilty, the only crime is getting caught. In a world of thieves, the only final sin is stupidity. - Hunter S Thompson - RIP
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Ok, I have had my coffee, so you can all come out now!
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Wordle 1,093 3/6
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Jeremy Falcon
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Quote: The so-called Dutch roll, said to have been named after an ice-skating technique attributed to the Netherlands
according to a BBC article.
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Interesting.
Because I was under the impression that ice skating is prevalent in Alpine countries. And Netherlands is not one of them.
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I even see some of the figures playing a game of curling 
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A TV report said that a Dutch Roll is a side to side motion caused by application of the pedals that cause the nose of the plane to move in a figure 8 pattern horizontally. They said the passengers might not notice this type of motion but it would freak out the pilots if they were not actively controlling the pedals.
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So what is Dutch about that? (I guess that is what the OP really was curious about.)
Religious freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make five.
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Shruggs: and Google says:
What is a "Dutch roll"? "Dutch roll" is a name given to the combination of a yawing motion when the tail slides and the plane rocks from wingtip to wingtip. It is said to mimic the movement of a Dutch ice skater.
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I take issue with the word "roll". I think it should be called the Dutch Yaw, because from what the (terribly uninformative) youtube / newscast(er) described, I believe it was a yaw and in no way a roll.
If I hear a jet-liner rolled I'm thinking serious stuff. But this was a yaw, like turning to the right and back to the left.
You think maybe they were trying to sensationalize the story a bit?
No, no, not the news. 
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The way I heard the explanation of the Dutch Roll is that it also involves the ailerons, so yes, there is a roll component to the motion.
The difficult we do right away...
...the impossible takes slightly longer.
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 raddevus wrote: I take issue with the word "roll". I think it should be called the Dutch Yaw, because from what the (terribly uninformative) youtube / newscast(er) described, I believe it was a yaw and in no way a roll.
If I hear a jet-liner rolled I'm thinking serious stuff. But this was a yaw, like turning to the right and back to the left.
You think maybe they were trying to sensationalize the story a bit?
No, no, not the news. 
A Dutch Roll is actually a roll that occurs as a result of a yaw. If you're flying an airplane that has swept wings, and yaw is induced, then it can happen. I've never heard of it being a danger to the flight of an airliner.
When a yaw does occur, it causes the plane to roll as though you were controlling the ailerons. A yaw can change the rate of airflow over each wing differently. Hence, the wing that encounters an increased airflow generates more lift. The wing with a lower airflow produces less lift. Thus, a roll occurs.
And yes, the news of this event is WAY overhyped. 
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The are some phrases in English that use "Dutch" in a derogatory manner, e.g. "Double Dutch" meaning "nonsense". I expect that "Dutch Roll" is more of the same - using a yaw to initiate a roll being just the bass-ackward kind of thing that a Dutchman would do.
Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.
-- 6079 Smith W.
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