rmorris870
F-106 Qualified
Currently: Offline
Posts: 8
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Joined: May 2009
Retired: USAF
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Post by rmorris870 on May 11, 2009 5:56:54 GMT 9
Remember how the hangar door ways for people had that printed on them in big red letters? 'Warning: Pitot Tube.'
I always wondered if anyone ever actually walked in at night with no lights and was really stabbed. :nono --Richard.
(even today I alway remember that sign when ever a hangar door.)
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Post by daoleguy A.J. Hoehn (deceased) on May 11, 2009 7:01:41 GMT 9
Never heard of someone stabbed. Have heard of people burned or burning a coat when someone left pitot heat on. Most injuries I saw on fighters were folks walking into aircraft areas at eye level. Go figure.
AJ
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Post by Jeff Shannon on May 11, 2009 7:19:00 GMT 9
I don't recall ever seeing a pitot cover with out a burn/melt spot on them, especially on the F-16 they were always turning on the heat and forgetting to take the cover off.
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Post by dude on May 11, 2009 10:37:58 GMT 9
 Had a TSGT that would hang his gloves one at a time on the tube to warm them. We had a bigger problem with people leaving the anti-ice on and cracking the windshields. Heard they made great end tables.
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Post by Jeff Shannon on May 11, 2009 11:01:39 GMT 9
Had a TSGT that would hang his gloves one at a time on the tube to warm them. We had a bigger problem with people leaving the anti-ice on and cracking the windshields. Heard they made great end tables. Many years ago I use to have a center windshield from an F-4. Great coffee, conversation piece, however sometime during one of my moves in the 1980's the movers liked it better than me because it came up missing  I do remember it was heavy! |
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Jim Scanlon (deceased)
Senior Staff 
FORUM CHAPLAIN
Commander South Texas outpost of the County Sligo Squadron
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Post by Jim Scanlon (deceased) on May 11, 2009 12:07:27 GMT 9
 I don't remember signs on hanger doors warning of pitot tubes, but I remember people running in to them. Some birds had them on the side of the nose and they were a bother when you were trying to work in one of the near by panels. Some had them on the wing tip and you were constantly running in to them while walking, or running around the plane. One incident that I was involved with was on a C47. We had taken 004 from Sioux City to LAX for an autopilot mod at North American's facility. Don't have any idea why North American was doing a mod on a Douglas plane. We landed at LAX and the pilots went there way, the senior flight mechanic went to visit relatives in LA and I went to my aunt's in Hollywood. Three days later we were all to report to the plane. Well, it wasn't done, so we had one more day. Finally got the autopilot finished and Tony and I did the preflight and made sure everything was copacetic. The pilots showed up and we did a walk around with one of them. Climbed aboard and I had a set of gear pins in my hand that the pilot handed me. Got the props spinning and taxied to the end of the runway. Run up, mag check, oil and fuel pressures good, cylinder head temps good. Cleared for take-off and off we went. Tony was standing behind the center console to raise the gear and I was behind him to raise the flaps. Down the runway we went, headed for the Pacific. The pilot let out an expletive, pulled back on the throttles and we turned off at the first taxiway. The pilot asked me if I would go out and see if the pitot tube cover was still on. Tony opened the door and I put the steps on and went under the wing to take a look see. Yep, right there between the churning engines was a bright red board with two canvas covers attached. I reached up and pulled them off, went back under the wing, up the steps, pulled the steps and stowed them, closed the door and off we went to the runway for our second takeoff attempt. The second one went much better, seeing the pilots could tell how fast we were going. The reason for the board was to pull the cover off if it wasn't removed. Didn't work this time and we were all a bit embarrassed. The pilot never pulled it, Tony never checked to see if it was aboard and I had the gear pins. We all had a good laugh over it, but probably not near as big a laugh as the guys in the LAX tower. :god_bless_usa
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Post by dude on May 11, 2009 12:41:23 GMT 9
Had a TSGT that would hang his gloves one at a time on the tube to warm them. We had a bigger problem with people leaving the anti-ice on and cracking the windshields. Heard they made great end tables. Many years ago I use to have a center windshield from an F-4. Great coffee, conversation piece, however sometime during one of my moves in the 1980's the movers liked it better than me because it came up missing I do remember it was heavy! That would have been a lot of plexi. We supposedly also had a pilot that made off with a T-33 canopy and turned it into a baby bath. Must have been a big kid. |
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Post by dude on May 11, 2009 12:42:44 GMT 9
I don't remember signs on hanger doors warning of pitot tubes, but I remember people running in to them. Some birds had them on the side of the nose and they were a bother when you were trying to work in one of the near by panels. Some had them on the wing tip and you were constantly running in to them while walking, or running around the plane. One incident that I was involved with was on a C47. We had taken 004 from Sioux City to LAX for an autopilot mod at North American's facility. Don't have any idea why North American was doing a mod on a Douglas plane. We landed at LAX and the pilots went there way, the senior flight mechanic went to visit relatives in LA and I went to my aunt's in Hollywood. Three days later we were all to report to the plane. Well, it wasn't done, so we had one more day. Finally got the autopilot finished and Tony and I did the preflight and made sure everything was copacetic. The pilots showed up and we did a walk around with one of them. Climbed aboard and I had a set of gear pins in my hand that the pilot handed me. Got the props spinning and taxied to the end of the runway. Run up, mag check, oil and fuel pressures good, cylinder head temps good. Cleared for take-off and off we went. Tony was standing behind the center console to raise the gear and I was behind him to raise the flaps. Down the runway we went, headed for the Pacific. The pilot let out an expletive, pulled back on the throttles and we turned off at the first taxiway. The pilot asked me if I would go out and see if the pitot tube cover was still on. Tony opened the door and I put the steps on and went under the wing to take a look see. Yep, right there between the churning engines was a bright red board with two canvas covers attached. I reached up and pulled them off, went back under the wing, up the steps, pulled the steps and stowed them, closed the door and off we went to the runway for our second takeoff attempt. The second one went much better, seeing the pilots could tell how fast we were going. The reason for the board was to pull the cover off if it wasn't removed. Didn't work this time and we were all a bit embarrassed. The pilot never pulled it, Tony never checked to see if it was aboard and I had the gear pins. We all had a good laugh over it, but probably not near as big a laugh as the guys in the LAX tower.  Didn't we recently lose a B-2 because of a pitot problem? |
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Post by falconkeeper on Jun 17, 2009 6:45:10 GMT 9
I heard the tail of a missile shop that had a Bomarc pitot tube just inside the door, just above head level for most people. One day, a tall airman came in, did not notice the tube and it put a permanent crease in his scalp. The NCOIC reached up and pulled the strip of scalp and hair from out of the tube. OUCH
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Post by jimpadgett on Jun 17, 2009 21:26:06 GMT 9
I still bear a scar between the eyes from walking into a wing tip. Didn't pay to hurry around this aircraft.
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Post by dude on Jun 21, 2009 22:43:37 GMT 9
It only took one engagement with the corner of a bay door on my back to wake me up back there. Many times you'ld see an MA-1 troop ducking under the aircraft between the computer and the radar compartments, especially if there was an FDT on the nose. I remember there was a blade antenna in that area that always seemed to have my name on it. The one thing that scared the h--- out of me was a couple times when I was too far forward when I ducked under the aircraft going from the radar to the computer compartment while the radar was transmitting. When the antenna swept over I'd get this "ZING" in one earprotector cup that would trace a hotspot across the back of my neck over to over the other cup.
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Post by jimpadgett on Jun 22, 2009 10:34:45 GMT 9
We had a couple of Brit F-4s form up on the wing tip of an E-3A while it was radiating and were promptly asked if they had all the normal kids that they wanted. After asking why they promptly broke off.
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Had a TSGT that would hang his gloves one at a time on the tube to warm them. 
I do remember it was heavy!
