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Ztex
Joined: 28 Aug 2007
Posts: 308
Location: DFW - GKY
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 Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2009 4:35 pm Post subject: |
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Well...I must be doing something wrong.
Today I was cruising across the ramp, on the designated vehicle traffic lane, going to see the Collings Foundation B-24. I stopped briefly to snap a picture of a corporate jet on the ramp. The guy in the jset waved to me from the window..>I think he was trying to talk to me but with a 40 MPH wind and his APU running I couldn't hear him....I waved back and smiled, then rolled to where I could take the B-24 photo. Then I turned around and headed for the exit gate and I was stopped by and FBO employee and was told that the guys in the corporate jet were reporting me to the TSA! WOW...
I told the FBO guy, basically who I was and he said "yeah I know"...I told him I was visiting the Collings guys. He said he just wanted to let me know. I went to the FBO and sat down with an acquaintance (the Collings P-51 pilot). As I was talking with this guy an airport employee came in and told me they needed my name, phone and D/L number...I happily complied...they knew who I was and made apologies...I told them I had permission from the airport manager, Bob and they told me that Bob told them to come and get my info...
About half an hour later, after I finished my visit with the pilot, I went to the airport office and talked with the secretary...she commented on the changing times and the TSA being more and more restrictive...etc.
I told here of my arraignment with Bob and my relationship with the airport for the last 25 years...etc. She said, sorry but things change....blah blah blah.
I don't know what will happen next. But I know that I will stay away from the airport. Sad day..
Opinion follows....
Some holier than thou corporate pilot decided that he didn't like me photographing his airplane on a public airport and used the heavy hand of the government to slap me around under some pretense of security. There are many folks from outside the US ( east of Africa, west of Thailand) that are students at the field...and some guy picks on a fat white old guy?
The airport was always very friendly towards me until they had some sort of threat from a over active customer...the FBO guy made some comment that because of Congressional pressure on corporate jet travel, the Jet crowd is a bit jumpy...not wanting to be noticed....or look bad...
I lay today's incident at the feet of government....Over reaching and overbearing in more and more aspects of our lives. They are attempting to kill aviation whether they know it or not.
And they said the at the terrorists would not change our way of life, that they would never win...they are winning
I'm mad as hell....
rant off...
Zane
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There I was at 20,000 ft, upside down and out of ammunition. |
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Connor Shepard
Joined: 21 Aug 2008
Posts: 30
Location: York, SC, USA
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| Posted: Sat May 16, 2009 7:01 pm Post subject: |
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| My local international airport is Charlotte. They have a very nice overlook area that can be accessed for free. It is on a small hill that overlooks the threshold and touchdown zone of Runway 18C (formerly 18R). I remember going there on a field trip in 2nd grade. I thought that it was destroyed in the building of the new 9,000 foot runway 36L/18R, which opens in December 2009, but turns out it wasn't. I went there a few weeks ago and a cop did come though the parking lot and questioned a man about his license plate sticker but that is all. On an odd note the overlook once had a problem with gay "cruising" in the parking lot but apparently it is no longer a problem. The news story is here. The Carolinas Aviation Museum owns a small photography area with a radio scanner, overlooking the threshold of runway 18L, but you must pay a museum admission fee to get to it. I was also at my local GA airport, KUZA, spotting. There is no designated overlook so you must pull over to the side of the road. There is a good spot. It is fairly busy. As I was shooting a RHPD officer drove by and went on around the curve. Less than a minute later he came back in the opposite direction. He looked at me, I smiled and waved, he waved back, kept going and that was it. The Chester Airport (KDCM) just to the south is the base of Skydive Carolina. They have a large base area and hangar. There are only a few planes but plenty of opportunities for action shots with no trouble from the cops. I guess I have been lucky so far. |
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