Hello again everyone this is Michael Bailey, I hope all has been well with everyone. I have been very busy flying the line at AirTran Airways. I woke up early this morning to catch a flight out of JAX to ATL to start a 4 day trip. I checked in for my trip at 7 a.m. and was about 45 minutes early. After chatting with folks around the crew room, I picked up my JEPPESEN Revision and flight bag and went to get some breakfast before heading out to preflight the Boeing 717 we have been assigned to fly.
There was just a little light rain in Atlanta this morning, no problem for us. My first leg today was from ATL to Ft. Meyers (RSW) Florida. Flying was smooth at FL330 and the weather in RSW was awesome, 82 degrees and clear skies. We had the plane fueled and loaded with passengers in 35 minutes and headed back to ATL. By the time we got back to ATL the rain and wind had picked up just a little bit but still no delays. One of the benefits of starting early in ATL is avoiding the afternoon delays during bad weather, especially now that the afternoon thunderstorm season is upon us.
I flew the leg to ATL so, of course, it was a silky smooth landing when we got there. (Kidding) We had about an hour and twenty-five minutes and had to change aircraft before heading to RIC. It was a smooth flight but we were in the clouds the entire time at FL350. Hey, at least I logged some IFR time. We got to RIC about 10 minutes early and headed to the hotel. I have a 0627 show time to head to MCO tomorrow and end up in PHL. I'm living the dream!!
I would like to add something important that I learned as a flight instructor, but still guard against every day. It is easy as a pilot, whether it be a student pilot or an airline pilot, to become complacent. We become complacent because what we do is very repetitive and we feel we smart enough to do important things from memory. Airline pilot’s use a checklist! Every airplane that you fly will have a checklist so it is important that you pull it out and use it. Don't just go through the motions and just read it, but verify that those items are complete. All it takes is one small mistake to create big problems for you and your passengers.
Until next time, be safe.
