Plane Answers: Airliners passing closely (with video) and how are tailwinds figured inflight?

by Kent Wien on

Welcome to Gadling’s feature, Plane Answers, where our resident airline pilot, Kent Wien, answers your questions about everything from takeoff to touchdown and beyond. Have a question of your own? Ask away!

Tim asks:

Kent,

Recently we (my wife and I) were going from PVD to TPA and while gazing out the window on a bright sunny day, we were amazed to notice a large amount (8-10) planes passing by us heading north. These planes “seemed” very close to our plane as I could clearly make out all of the markings on each one. Is this normal practice for the airlines?

Hi Tim,

I had a similar experience recently. Since I normally fly internationally, we don’t see quite as much traffic as you can pass on a domestic flight.

While flying from Dallas to Boston the other day, I decided to take some video during cruise of the numerous aircraft that we flew over or under. It makes for some nice scenes. At one point, we even pass under a pair of B-52’s.

You’re right in noticing that this seems to be more common. Since January 20th, 2005, the FAA has allowed aircraft to be flown at altitudes in 1,000 foot increments. Prior to that, flights above 18,000 feet were separated by 2,000 feet.

You might think this wouldn’t be as safe, but in fact, the opposite is true. Since opening up twice the amount of flight levels available to airplanes, the airspace is effectively doubled, giving controllers more room to operate flights around weather and to provide more direct flights.
Callum asks:

First off, thank you so much for taking the time to answer all these questions. I only recently found the list and I enjoyed reading your answers immensely.

My question is how does the in flight system that displays speed, location, heading etc. know what the tailwind speed is?

I imagine it’s easy to calculate your forward velocity through the air with some kind of windmill like device on the front of the aircraft. If this velocity is comprised of forward motion created by engine thrust and wind speed (positive or negative) how do the plane’s systems calculate each component?

(I bet I’m over thinking it and you’ll have a really simple, obvious answer :) )

Thanks!

Hi Callum,

You’re close. Almost all airplanes have a pitot tube that senses the airplane’s airspeed. Airliners also have GPS and/or ‘laser ring’ gyros that spin fast enough to sense any movement of the airplane. When the airspeed and heading is compared to the GPS or gyros, the relative wind speed can be displayed. We can see this on our map display at a glance, which is handy in the last few hundred feet before landing to get a preview of the crosswind we’ll likely have at touchdown.

I managed to take a quick picture of the highest winds I’ve run across at altitude, which was during a smooth ride, despite the fuzzy picture:

Do you have a question about something related to the pointy end of an airplane? Ask Kent and he’ll try to use it for next Monday’s Plane Answers. Check out his other blog, Cockpit Chronicles and travel along with him at work.

Cuba Libre: Baracoa

by Brenda Yun on

Baracoa was the site of devastating Hurricane Ike just 7 months ago. To even imagine the degree of damage to Baracoa’s coastline, you might take a look at this video from the Associated Press:

If you are paying a visit to this gorgeous little fishing village on the northwestern coast of Cuba, there are still opportunities to lend a hand in rebuilding projects and the like. As long as you’re staying for longer than a day (as I did, which is just not enough time), you should have plenty of time to help in one way or other, as there is not a whole lot to speak of with regard to activities in Baracoa.

This place is all about the outdoors and relaxation. With the enormous plateau called El Yunque, the UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site of Parque Nacional Alejandro de Humboldt, and beautiful Playa Maguana, there’s plenty of exploration and nature for every type of traveler.Getting to Baracoa
This town is one of the most remote parts of Cuba. With just one daily flight from Havana, and one daily bus from Santiago de Cuba, visitors really have to want to get there and must be patient with travel time. I took the bus from Santiago and the ride was lengthy. We passed through the famous city of Guantanamo (though the U.S. sanctioned part of Guantanamo is farther toward the coast). The last half of the ride to Baracoa winds its way along La Farola, which is a two-lane byway that cuts its way up, around, and down the Sierra Maestra mountain range. When you finally make it to Baracoa, it’s like being dropped on a perfect cloud.

Sightseeing by bici-taxi
Baracoa was at the tail end of their Culture Week and transitioning into its biggest celebration of the year: Carnaval, which would lead straight into Holy Week (better known as Semana Santa). I decided to hire a bici-taxi to take me around the town and show me the most important sights around town. I visited the two museums in town, Museo Matachin and Museo Arqueologico, neither of which were really worth the $2 entry fees. The best part of my tour was interacting with my guide, Edar. He insisted that he had never met a nicer tourist than me, and I think he was genuinely serious about his compliment which made me really happy.

Edar lives in a neighboring town about 20 minutes from Baracoa and runs a farm with his family. He works as a bici-taxi driver to earn extra money to feed his 8 year-old son. My experiences interacting with local Cubanos is that they are extremely curious about our lifestyle here in America. They want to understand how democracy and society works. They are also desperately searching for happiness amid financial woes and (in Baracoa’s case) natural disaster.

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Baracoa by foot
After my bici-taxi tour, I did a bit of sightseeing by foot. I visited the Hotel El Castillo, which is an old colonial castle that was converted into a hotel. From there, you can see a nice view of the Bahia de Miel (Honey Bay). I highly suggest walking along the Malecon, too. Because Culture Week was in progress and other festivities were right around the corner, there were tons of food booths and kiddie rides set up along the promenade. I made small talk with the vendors in a peso pizza booth, who told me they follow the traveling Carnaval. The next stops would be Camaguey and Santiago de Cuba. I asked them why pizza was such a popular food in Cuba, and they said it’s cheap and it’s tasty. At least with pizza, Cuba and America can agree.

Moped excursion to Playa Maguana
I was so tired from travel that I couldn’t wake up from my after dinner nap and slept through the whole evening. I had planned on going out, as Baracoa (though small) is well-known for its raucous nightlife. Amid dreams, I could here reggaeton being played from the Malecon, but just couldn’t get my body moving.

Instead, I woke up early and decided to rent a moped and drive myself to Playa Maguana, about 15 miles west of Baracoa. This was a scenic drive the whole way. I had grown used to men whistling at me as I passed by, but they were even more curious here, craning their necks and squinting their eyes at me (probably thinking, “Is that a girl and is she Asian?”) as I whizzed by.

I spent two hours at Playa Maguana, a beautiful and secluded beach with just one beachside restaurant and one hotel called Villa Maguana nearby. Save for four other tanning tourists, I had a long stretch of beach to myself, and swam in the ocean with my goggles (though there were no fish).

Too soon after feeling completely relaxed, I had to head back to Baracoa to catch my bus and return to civilization. I was able to slowly take in the gorgeous Cuban countryside. There were kids playing the Rio Toa, men working hard to transport cultivated crops by oxcart, music playing from several houses, and of course signs to show how the Revolution was still very much alive. There is huge unrealized eco-tourism potential right through Baracoa’s backdoor. If/when Cuba opens up, Baracoa will be a much different place.

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Hurricane recovery is both quick and slow along Baracoa’s Malecon

Too soon was it time for me to leave. Edar gave me a ride to the bus terminal to see me off and waited for thirty minutes until the bus finally departed just to wave goodbye. We had exchanged addresses and I’ve promised to write to him, which I will. As I peered out the bus window at the houses facing the sea, I wondered how different this town would be in five years.

For a complete listing of my Cuba Libre posts, please click HERE or skip straight to the good stuff —

Don’t take air travel for granted

by Mike Barish on

Watch more SpikedHumor videos on AOL Video

At the rate that humans are creating new and more dynamic technologies, it’s easy to begin to take things for granted. I mean, space shuttle launches used to be front page, stop what you’re doing and find a TV news. Now, most people don’t even know when a trip to the International Space Station takes place. And that assumes that people even know that we have an International Space Station. Where people live. In space. Away from Earth.

Well, comedian Louis CK paid a visit to Late Night with Conan O’Brien and helped us regain the proper perspective. Long one of my favorite comedians, Louis summarized what I have been thinking for a quite some time: Pay attention to how amazing the world is and stop bitching about everything! You can travel the world in a flying tube in a matter of hours. You can leave Sydney at 11:00AM Monday and arrive, more that 20 hours later, in New York at 5:00PM the same Monday! I just did that! It was amazing. And I watched TV in the flying tube while I did it.

So, the next time that you find yourself complaining about a flight delay or a seat that doesn’t recline, watch this video and take a deep breath. The world is an amazing place. You just have to pull your head out of your ass to realize it.

Africa is calling: students can win trip in video competition

by Alison Brick on

Students, listen up! Want to win a volunteer service trip to Africa?

Alicia Keys’ charity “Keep a Child Alive” and STA Travel are sending two people in January 2010. If you’re interested, you’ll want to apply by submitting a 60-second video that encourages people to text “ALIVE” to 90999. With every text, $5 gets donated to AIDS treatment for children and families in Africa.

Apply by May 1, 2009. First upload your video to YouTube, then finish the application by uploading it to www.statravelers.com/kca_psa_entries. What types of videos are they they looking for? “Creative, imaginative, innovative, and upbeat.”

To enter, you must be a full- or part-time student of an accredited college or high school, and be registered at KCACollege.com and belong to your local chapter. You must also be 18 years-old by 1/1/10.

The two Grand Prize winners will each get a free round-trip air ticket to work with Keep a Child Alive for one week in January 2010. The winning videos will also be aired on KCA TV (YouTube), on www.KCACollege.com, and at KCA events throughout the next year.

Keep a Child Alive is a charity dedicated to providing life-saving anti-retroviral treatment, care, and support services to children and their families with HIV/AIDS in Africa and the developing world by directly engaging the global public in the fight against AIDS.

The winners of last year’s competition just traveled to South Africa this past January. You can follow photos and videos that previous winners (journeywithtinamarie, SaddlerB, Eila401am) took from the trip, and you’ll soon be able to follow their blogs on STATravelers.com.

Ireland the Beautiful: an armchair travel experience

by Jamie Rhein on

My strongest memories of my trip to Ireland involves hitch-hiking from Galway to Clifden and walking past peat bogs edged with stone walls along the way. This video by bigbeninjax captures the essence of that trip by weaving together images of landscape, buildings and people. From the wide vista angles to intimate close-ups, a few minutes of viewing, offer a trip to Ireland from the comfort of where ever you’re watching.

There is text throughout that sets the tone of transitions from one place and one theme to another. Halfway through, there’s a kaleidoscope effect that works quite well, as does the music’s mesmerizing effect. For people wondering what to do with those journey of a lifetime shots, here’s one way. Pay attention to the timing of each shot. It’s about right for giving the viewer time to absorb one before moving on to another.