Six-Right surprise

The Burke Lakefront tower controller’s voice was crisp and authoritative. I loved that professionalism, and my ability to be part of a brotherhood where the rules were clear, communication precise, and expectations high. I acknowledged the clearance with my own crisp “Two-Niner Fox” and reduced power, lowered the flaps, and went through my prelanding checklist.

Few things are more invigorating than a clear fall afternoon and being able to fly. I had departed Cuyahoga County Airport (CGF) in Ohio after doing a few touch-and-go landings there. Cuyahoga is a busy airport and has a lot of corporate traffic. They were doing repairs to the main runway for a few weeks, so I was using the taxiway to take off and land, which required a great deal of precision.

Having recently soloed, every flight alone was an experience, every landing a success, and every moment aloft a paean to an inexpressible sense of freedom and the joy of a perspective that few get to have.

The flight to Burke Lakefront Airport (BKL) was only a few minutes, as the fields are close together. Burke is along the north shore of Cleveland and was a great place to practice touch-and-go landings as there were always crosswinds. I wanted to increase my level of professionalism and become proficient at crosswind landings. Today was a perfect day for it. Maybe a 20-degree crosswind at eight to 10 knots. A great combination, strong enough to be challenging, but below the threshold of dangerous. With northeasterly winds, my patterns would be over the lake, which is beautiful, and gives a great view of the city.

Crosswind landings are an essential skill if you want to do any cross-country excursions in an airplane. While airports are aligned with the prevailing winds in their location, rarely are the winds exactly down the runway. It’s a great test of airmanship, and requires constant adjustments of ailerons, rudder, and elevators.

Here the crosswinds were kind, my feeling of aircraft control was excellent, and my descent was smooth.

One of the difficulties of learning any new skill is getting the picture of everything that is going on: you are attuned to changes, oblivious to distractions, and feeling in control. The hard part is not obsessively focusing on one or two things at the expense of others. It’s easy to focus on the immediate issue—speed, rate of descent, alignment with the runway—while letting other things move to the background.

Anyone who has ever played football knows that feeling of getting the picture amid noise, contact, mistakes, and following what the play is designed to do. It takes a while, and it isn’t always there. Quarterbacks know it best, as they have to be aware of their blocking while scanning the field and looking off defensive backs while simultaneously avoiding potential tacklers. Crossing the runway threshold, I was at a great altitude, and into ground effect everything was perfect. I chopped the throttle, heard the left wheel chirp, lowered the airplane, and immediately felt it rolling smoothly down the middle of the runway. Flaps up, I added power and right rudder to counteract propeller torque and we were smoothly back into our natural element.

I was exultant and mentally slapping myself on my back for a great crosswind landing, hoping the controller was watching and nodding at the professionalism.

The radio crackled with an angry tone. “Cessna One-Niner-Two-Niner Foxtrot you were cleared touch and go on Runway Six Right, not the taxiway!”

My cheeks flushed, my ears burned, and my heretofore feeling of professionalism shriveled into a tight ball of extreme embarrassment. I had been so focused on the details of a crosswind landing that I had carried the sight picture of my taxiway landings at Cuyahoga County into my approach at Burke. The taxiways looked the same. I was using my memory of the correct approach picture at one airport since the taxiway looked like what I was used to landing on.

I really wanted to shrink down, disappear into the airplane, and slink away—if an airplane could slink. But in the aviation business there is nowhere to hide, and I could well be written up to the FAA which would put a long delay into any flying ambitions I had. That also could have been really dangerous if there were another aircraft on the taxiway, or taxiing to it. I was lucky; no one else was active at that time.

Still, I wondered if there weren’t a few snickering pilots listening on the frequency. Fortunately, an aircraft call sign is not a clue to your identity without some detective work.

“Two-Niner-Fox, I, I...Uh, yeah. I’ve been practicing at Cuyahoga County and they’re using the taxiway, so it just looked right. My apologies...I’m still learning.”

“That’s obvious. Cessna Two-Niner-Fox cleared touch and go on Runway Six Right, and this time let’s see you do it as well as you did last time except on the runway.”

There followed one of the tightest and most precisely executed crosswind, downwind, and base-to final approaches ever seen. I greased it on one wheel again—but on the runway—and was ready to hightail it back to Cuyahoga County.

“Two-Niner -Fox, well done, and on the runway this time. We’ll see you next time.”

“Two-Niner-Fox, thank you sir.”

I couldn’t wait to land back at Cuyahoga County—on the taxiway—and find a nearby bar to lessen my shame for a while. Still, shame is a good teacher, and the lesson of situational awareness was brought home in a real and striking way, never to be forgotten. There’s always one more thing to be aware of, and one more thing you may not be thinking about if you are too focused on the immediate task—or the immediate reward.

Doug Magill is an instrument-rated pilot with more than 1,000 hours and 230 instrument hours. He is a consultant, freelance writer, and voice-over talent and can be reached at [email protected].