N123JF: Flying at Night with Doc Fowler

There's nothing quite like night from a cockpit,

    "November 1-2-3 Juliet Fox, do you have information Lima?"
    "Juliet Fox, affirmative Lima."

accelerating toward an unseen point, V2, beyond stopping,

    "3 Juliet Fox, taxi into position and hold."
    "Juliet Fox, position and hold."

turbochargers screaming harmony (Lycoming TIO-541-E1C4),

    "King Air 2-4 Tango, contact Ground 1-2-1-niner.  Good day."
    "Good day."

watching needles climb and settle half a needle's width
away from red lines, and that is, manifold pressure 41 inches,
2900 RPM, right on the money, fuel and oil pressures in the green,

    "1-2-3 Juliet Fox, cleared for take-off, make right hand turn out."
    "Juliet Fox, rolling, right hand turn out."

temperatures climbing, lift, gravity, thrust and drag doing battle,

    "Little Rock tower, 4-6 Yankee Echo, downwind, runway 2-2."
    "Yankee Echo, extend downwind, follow 737 on short final, caution wake turbulence."
    "Yankee Echo, extending downwind."

then airborne, the temporary victory, gear up and locked, throttles coming back,
fuel boost off, climbing, banking right, seeing strobes at 2 O'clock,

    "1-2-3 Juliet Fox, you have traffic 2 O'clock, descending from two thousand."
    "Juliet Fox has traffic in sight."
    "Juliet Fox contact Departure 1-2-5-6-5. Good day."
    "1-2-5-6-5.  Good day, sir."

leveling off at 4,500 feet for the short hop, engaging the autopilot, watching instruments,
the perfect stars, the paltry lights of humanity, the Stygian separation,
indicated airspeed 207 knots, the music of Morse code
(Hot...Springs...V-O-R); over Benton, now,
glow of Hot Springs on the horizon,

    "Hot Springs traffic, Duke 1-2-3 Juliet Fox, ten mile final, Runway 2-3."

scattered light carved by the black lakes' void, Hamilton, Catherine,
mixture and props forward, slowing, descending;

    "Hot Springs traffic, Duke 1-2-3 Juliet Fox, five mile final, Runway 2-3."

now key the mic three times, and runway lights come on outlining a rectangular abyss,
like flying into a video game, boost pumps on, flaps at approach, gear down,
(three green), throttles coming back, slowing, descending,

    "Hot Springs traffic, Duke 1-2-3 Juliet Fox, short final, Runway 2-3."

slowing, sinking, over the threshold, throttles all the way back, sinking, sinking,
flare it out, back with the yoke, back, back, back...down and rolling out, hold the nose off,
let it down easy, touch the brakes, touch them, get on them and make that first turnoff.

    "Hot Springs traffic, Duke 1-2-3 Juliet Fox, clear of active."



(1983)