So Much More To Meby Split ScimitarChaptersNo One To See, No One To HearDo You Think The Coast Is Clear?Where I Set My SightsI Don’t Need My Name In LightsNo, Not MeI Like The Quiet, I Like The CalmJust Fine Rehearsing On My OwnNot Just ShyNo One To See, No One To Hear*text* “Hi Max, this is Fluttershy. Um, I hope it isn’t too much trouble, but I have something to ask you.” “Hi Fluttershy,” I respond, “nice to talk to you. How can I be of help?” “Hi Max. Um, I have a group that heard about your services, and I was wondering if we could fly with you, if that’s okay?” “Absolutely! Please send me trip info.” “Ok. I will get that to you as soon as I can. Thank you so much!” “You’re welcome! I look forward to working with you.” Today is a day I tend to dread but one that has to be done. I hate taking my weight and blood pressure because of excessive fat shaming that never really left. Here’s the moment of truth. “Weight: 148.” Not bad. Only a few more than listed on my pilot certificate and medical, which indicate 142; and more than on my drivers license, which indicates 135. Now onto the number I truly dread. “138/75.” “Ugh. My systolic is still high AF. At least it’s not as high as it used to be.” A few minutes later, I take a good look at my garage. With an expedition that will surely involve some trekking, I pull some off-roaders out of my garage. I could send a Wrangler squad, but they’re studying birds, bees and flowers, not reptiles. Unfortunately, the same logic also applies to sending a G-Class platoon. Just in case they advance book, I ask, “Hi Fluttershy, just curious, do you have any vehicle rentals covered? I can provide them if you’d like.” Today, I make a run to the grocery store after cleaning out the fridge of expired food, leftovers forgotten, and some regrettable impulse buys resultant of grocery shopping on an empty stomach. 20 minutes after restocking my fridge, I pour myself a drink before settling in for a nice dinner of ice soup. Just after 19:10, I finish dinner and start both the dishwasher and the washing machine. As I finish my daily gallon of water (it’s a desert thing), I start laundry and hope for a reply soon. I imagine she’s already asleep, so let’s hope I get a response before they need to leave in order to meet the minimum 4 hours notice. Early the next morning, I wake up to find another text from Fluttershy, received at about 1 am. “Hi Max, my group needs shuttling from Seattle to the four major Hawaiian islands: Oahu, Maui, Kauai, and Hawaii. Also, my parents would like to join us across the ocean. They will be on vacation, but I’m not sure which island.” “I can do that! When is your estimated departure date?” “Next week, probably Friday, the 23rd.” “Sounds good. Please keep me updated on any changes to the itinerary. Also, please ask if you will be renting vehicles or I can provide some as well. Thank you.” A few seconds later, a response comes, “We would like to rent vehicles from you, and tentatively, our first island will be the Big Island.” “Will there be any other pickup locations?” “No. All of us will be leaving from Seattle.” “Which airport will be easiest for you?” “Seattle-Tacoma will be fine.” “Okay! Tell your party members not to park at the garage. Your flight will be out of this address: *Signature Flight Support - SEA*” I follow with a second text, “which island will your parents be visiting?” “They haven’t decided yet.” “Okay. How big is your group? So I know how many cars to bring.” “There will be 8 of us exploring.” “Thank you Fluttershy! I look forward to seeing you again!” “Me too! 😊” With a tentative departure date of Friday the 23rd, I have 3 days to get ready. A nice wholesome breakfast of 2 bananas, a mango, and an egg with turkey sausage precede my flight planning. Assuming our first stop is the Big Island, this should be a ~~breezy~~ breeze. As it’s the end of February, this marks Rosalina’s transition to Maui. Since she makes quarterly trips to each office, she spends 4 months on each island overseeing their operations and filling in as a pilot should the need arise: Maui from March-June Kauai from July-October Big Island from November-February “Hey,” I text my wife, “Are you bringing more than your usual? Fluttershy chartered me for the end of the month, and lucky for us, she’s going to the Big Island.” “No. I don’t think I’ll be bringing more than my usual.” “Okay. Well, if you want to, I can stay a while with you. Fluttershy’s charter is for a group of hers. They’re studying the local ecosystems on each island.” “Oh cool.” “See you soon?” “Yes.” With that, I do something a little unorthodox and pack 3 Audi Q5’s for Fluttershy’s Expedition, one of which is for her parents. As for me, I do the playful thing and pack RDKL 5, one of my many Lamborghini Aventador, one of my earlier models of the type. Now it’s onto an airplane. A group of 8, plus Fluttershy’s parents leaves us at 10 tentatively. Not that I’ll have an issue with capacity, but given that we have 4 cars in tow, I need something with range and payload. Well, I’ve got nothing else more to do here, so I guess I can be in Seattle a day early. “Seattle Center, Airbus 202HA level at FL360.” “Airbus 202HA, descend via the HAWKZ Seven arrival, expect hold at KNGDM, WRUSL, or Battle Ground.” “202HA, Roger.” “Arrival brief, HAWKZ Seven into Seattle-Tacoma; Klamath Falls transition. From Klamath Falls (LMT), track 334° at or above FL240 to KNGDM, WRUSL and Battle Ground (BTG). Then track 334° to cross PTERA at or above FL220, then track 336° to KRIEG, then on track 343° to cross HAWKZ at or above 12,000 at 270 knots. Standby for north or south flow. Descend at Mach number until we reach 280 knots, then maintain 280 knots indicated (KIAS) until slowed by the STAR, which would be… HAWKZ’s 270 knot limit.” “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Information Hotel. 2048Z. Wind 100 at 16. Visibility 9. Scattered 4,100, broken 5,500, overcast 11,000. Temperature 8, dewpoint 2, altimeter 30.10. ILS runway 16R and ILS runway 16L in use. Landing and departing runway 16R and runway 16L. Notices to Airmen: numerous cranes unlighted and lighted, flagged and unflagged in various quadrants. Taxiway T closed between C and P. Advisory: all VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. All aircraft read back hold short instructions. Advise controller on initial contact, you have information Hotel.” “Information H copied, south flow into SeaTac. South flow via HAWKZ Seven: from HAWKZ, track 023° to LIINE, then track 022° to PIKEZ between 12,000 and 15,000, cross at 250 knots. Then track 001° to COFAY, then track 351° to BREVE between 10,000 and 11,000, maintain 250 knots. Then track 350° to NETTZ at or above 8,000, cross at 230 knots. Then track 344° to KWEST at or above 7,000, thence to VASHN, cross at 6,000, maintain 210 knots. From VASHN, track 344°, expect radar vectors to the RNAV (RNP), ILS, or visual approach as directed by ATC. Arrival brief complete.” “Airbus N202HA, Seattle Center. Hold as published at Battle Ground, FL220. Report established in the hold.” “Hold as published at Battle Ground, FL220, will report established, 202HA.” As I reprogram the autopilot for the hold, I get a text from Fluttershy. “Hi Max. Um, would you mind coming here a day or two early? I need your help with some things.” “I’m actually on my way to Seattle now!” “Oh, wonderful! Thank you Max!” “Of course, Fluttershy! I’ll text you when I land.” “Okay.” A few minutes later, as I shallowly intercept BTG at 22,000, I have to comply with hold speed limits, which for me is 265 knots. Setting that on autothrottle, I reach Battle Ground just as I receive further instructions. “N202HA, descend in the hold, maintain 10,000.” “Down to 10,000 in the hold, 202HA.” I set the autopilot and monitor for any anomalies. In no time at all, as I complete one circuit in the hold, I report, “Seattle Center, Airbus 202HA established in the hold at Battle Ground, FL182 descending in the hold to 10,000.” “N202HA, Roger. Portland altimeter 29.89. As there is flow into Seattle-Tacoma, can you accept a potential diversion to either Boeing or Paine?” “Affirm, 29.89 at Portland, 202HA.” “N202HA, roger. I’ll add that to your flight plan.” A few minutes later, we reach 10,000, which signals me to start my descent checklist. -Weather: checked. Will check again closer to approach. -Arrival procedure, briefed. -Lights: landing, wing pulse, taxi lights on below 10,000. -Speeds: approach at 145, Vref 140, touchdown at 135. (All speeds 5 knots high in case of windshear or excessive crosswind component.) -Spoilers: armed. Descent checklist complete. “Airbus 202HA, upon reaching 10,000, EFC 10 minutes.” “10 minutes at 10,000, will report established, 202HA.” A few minutes later, as I check on the cabin pressure, I get another text from Fluttershy. “Hi Max, I won’t be home until later tonight. Do you want to have dinner somewhere?” “Um, I’m not sure yet. I’m not hungry right now, and I’m stuck in a hold because of traffic. Hopefully I can get on the ground soon. I’ll let you know.” Right after I send the text, I report, “Seattle, Airbus 202HA level at 10,000.” “Airbus N202HA, roger. Continue on the HAWKZ Seven, thanks for holding.” “Continuing on the HAWKZ Seven, Airbus 202HA.” Set speed 250 or below. “N202HA, contact Seattle Center on 125.6.” “125.6, Airbus 202HA.” “Seattle Center, Airbus N202HA, level at 10,000, HAWKZ Seven.” “N202HA, Seattle Center, Roger. Can you accept the RNAV RNP approach for 16C?” “Affirm, 202HA.” “Airbus N202HA, descend via the HAWKZ Seven to VASHN, cleared RNAV RNP Z runway 16C approach, VASHN transition. Maintain 180 knots or less passing SEGAW.” “HAWKZ Seven to VASHN, 180 or less passing SEGAW, cleared RNAV RNP Z runway 16C approach, Airbus 202HA.” “Approach brief: RNAV RNP Z RWY 16C into Seattle-Tacoma International. Primary navaid WAAS enabled GPS, free of anomalies. Approach track inbound 164°, 9,426’ of runway available. Touchdown zone elevation 430’, airport elevation 433’. VASHN transition: from VASHN, crossing at 210 knots, track 344°, descend and maintain 5,000 to RAYUU, then descending right turn to SEGAW at 3,700, cross at or below 210 knots, but we have a 180 knot speed restriction; then descending right turn to PINTR at 3,200’, continuing the descending right turn to EPUDE at 2,200. From EPUDE, track 164°, if we don’t have a glideslope or glide path, descend and maintain 1,900 to cross SODOE, our final approach fix and glideslope intercept. Thence, follow glideslope to RNP 0.12 DA of 758.’ If, at intersection of glideslope at 758’, the environment or appropriate lighting is in sight, descend to 530’, normal maneuvers and normal descent to land, otherwise go missed. Missed approach procedure, climb to cross ZIVDI at or below 2,000, then track 163° to 5,000 direct MILLT and hold, climbing in the hold as necessary. Approach brief complete.” “Airbus 202HA, contact Seattle approach on 133.65.” “33.65, Airbus 202HA.” “Seattle Approach, Airbus 202HA, HAWKZ Seven to VASHN, RNAV RNP 16C.” “Airbus 202HA, Seattle Approach, Roger.” Below 230 knots, set flaps 1. Approaching VASHN, 210 knots or less. “Airbus 202HA, 1 mile from VASHN, contact Seattle tower now on 119.9.” “Over to Seattle tower, thanks for the help, Airbus 202HA.” “Seattle-Tacoma international Airport, information Juliet. Wind 150 at 12. Visibility 10. Sky clear below 12,000. Temperature 10, dewpoint 1, altimeter 29.90. ILS runway 16L and ILS runway 16C in use. Landing and departing runway 16L and runway 16C. Notices to Airmen: numerous cranes unlighted and lighted, flagged and unflagged in various quadrants. Taxiway T closed between taxiway C and taxiway P. Advisory: all VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. All aircraft read back hold short instructions. Advise controller on initial contact, you have information Juliet.” “Seattle tower, Airbus 202HA, at VASHN, RNAV RNP Z 16C.” Reduce speed to 180. “Airbus 202HA, Seattle tower. Confirm you have Juliet?” “Affirm, 202HA.” Set flaps 2. “N2HA, roger. Number 2 for landing behind an Alaska 737, report them in sight.” “In sight, 2HA.” “N202HA, roger. Caution Airbus A320 landing parallel 16L, number 2, runway 16C, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land 16C, number 2, Airbus 202HA.” Level at 5,000’, to RAYUU, below 210 knots. Passing RAYUU, 180 knots or less to SEGAW at 3,700. At SEGAW, lower landing gear. At PINTR, set flaps 3. Speed now to 160 knots. Vref 140 knots. Crossing EPUDE, set flaps full. “Alaska 1, exit at N, where’re you parking?” “C9.” “Alaska 1, cross runway 16L no delay, Ground .7.” Rolling out of the curved portion of the approach, final descent/before landing checklist. -Landing Gear, down. -Flaps, full. -Speeds: Vref 140 knots, short final 135, touchdown at 128. -Spoilers: armed. -Auto brakes: set to medium. -Nosewheel steering and antiskid switch: on. Final descent/before landing checklist complete. Capturing the glide slope, follow it down to minimums of 758’. 1000. 100. 50. 40. 30. 20. 10. Touchdown. Spoilers up, brakes on. 2 in reverse. 45 knots. Disengage reverse thrust. “N2HA, continue all the way to the end, right Q, ground .7.” “Q exit, ground .7, Airbus 202HA.” “Seattle ground, Airbus 202HA, taxi Signature.” “Airbus 202HA, Seattle ground. Taxi Signature via Q.” “Signature via Q, Airbus 202HA.” A big aircraft in the extremely limited space available, I order fuel and pay a not-unusually exorbitant fee, since I’m overnighting an airliner at SeaTac. Nevertheless, after I back out RDKL 5, I get a ramp pass before calling Fluttershy. “Hello?” “Hi Fluttershy, it’s Max. I just landed, so where can we meet?” “Um, I’m at work right now. Can we meet at 1:00?” “No problem. Just let me know when you’re available.” “Okay.” “Talk soon!” “Bye Max.” “Bye.” Sounds like I’m pretty early, so I head for my house in Mercer Island and unwind slightly. Of course, even though I only added about 20 minutes of flight time, it is still kind of stressful having to adapt to a change in flight plan. Nevertheless, all in a day’s work. About an hour later, after I get my daily walk in via treadmill, I have a drink and head out for a small meal when Fluttershy finally gets back to me. “I’m on my lunch break now, so where would you like to meet me?” “Where do you work?” “I work at the animal shelter in Snoqualmie.” “Snoqualmie city or Pass?” “The city.” “Ok! I’ll meet you at work!” “Okay. There’s a nice Indian place I always go to. Pinkie Pie recommended it when she visited me a while back!” “That sounds really good!“ “Perfect! Here’s my address.” Thanks to CarPlay, I enter it in maps and it immediately syncs, and as soon as I get maps up on display, I give it a loud run through 1st, backfiring through 2nd and 3rd. I-90 gives me no trouble, but once the last of the lanes for Seattle metro traffic close, and the highway becomes two lanes, I settle in with a nice cruise of 72 for the 45 minute drive to Snoqualmie. Do You Think The Coast Is Clear?“Hi, how can I help you?” The receptionist greets upon my entry. “Is Fluttershy available right now?” “I think so. Can I have your name?” “Max.” “I’ll be right back!” “Thank you!” Not 15 seconds later, the receptionist comes back out and tells me, “She’s taking a phone call right now. She’ll be right out.” “Perfect! Thank you.” “You’re welcome!” As I wait for Fluttershy to show up, I take a look at the lobby, making note of all the pictures that are very obviously meant to promote adoption. I’m surprised the shelter doesn’t have any “adopt, don’t shop” paraphernalia, but I guess it’s not as much of an issue here? “What is wrong with you?! The answer is NO!” Fluttershy shouts into her phone walking through the door before hanging up. “Hi Max.” A few seconds later, she double takes, her face drops, and she lets out a surprised, “oh!” “Hi Fluttershy.” “Change of plan. I now have to run home.” “I’ll go where you need. I don’t have anything else to do.” I respond as I follow her out the front door. “Did you drive here?” “Yeah.” “Come with me to my house. We’ll talk about it.” “Okay.” When I pull in to her driveway behind her, she parks her BMW i3 in the garage and plugs it in. I park right in front of her main entrance and wait for her. “Sorry Max!” She says as she gives me a light hug. “My lunch break is gonna have to be a quick one. I have a report of an abandonment.” “Uh oh. Well, do what you need to do.” “Here then, you drive so I can search.” “Didn’t you just plug in?” “Yes.” “Okay then.” After she hands me the keys, I unplug the car. When I start it, the range indicates 62, so I wait for Fluttershy to climb in before I back out. She hits her home link button to close the garage before she pulls out her phone and makes a call. “Hi Fluttershy.” The receptionist answers. “Hi Paisley, do you have the location of the abandoned animals?” “Yeah. It’s in Bandera, near the airfield.” “Okay, thanks. Hopefully we can get them quickly.” “I hope so. Good luck.” “Thanks. Bye.” “Oh, I hope that whatever animal it is is okay.” She then adds nervously. “Have you by chance had any um, losses?” “Yes.” She responds hesitantly. “I have lost a few when they reach the shelter.” “I’m sorry about that.” “It’s always sad when it happens, but working to prevent them is exactly why I joined this shelter in the first place.” “Mad respect to you. Do you work with local vets?” “Yes, since we recommend them especially when one does get adopted.” “How many animals do you euthanize a month?” “Actually, I’m proud to say that in our entire history, we’ve only euthanized 2.” “Wow. That’s pretty incredible.” “I’m very glad we have a good adoption record.” After a few minutes of exploring the town, I make out a disused gravel strip that looks like it could’ve been an airfield. A few minutes later, after examining the area, I decide to get out and explore on foot. After securing the car, I trek onto the gravel strip and check around some bushes and grass. Not too long after, I spot a truck sporting a familiar green and white along with a uniformed animal control officer. “You looking for an abandoned animal? I just found them. A puppy and a kitten.” “I got the same call down at the local shelter. A friend and I have been looking too.” “Alrighty. Let’s get them back.” The officer responds just as Fluttershy catches up. “Found them. A dog and a cat.” I tell her. “Let’s get to the shelter.” When the two of us return to the car, the officer meets us and heads back to the shelter, us following close behind. Fluttershy, nervous as she should be, slightly trembles as we reach the shelter. She then takes the kitten in her arms, while the puppy is at least breathing stably but still very tired. “How are they?” “Well, the poor puppy is on the last of its adrenaline. Miss Kitty is still trembling; she’s really cold.” “Kind of surprising, since it wasn’t that cold out today.” “No, but who knows how long they’ve been out there. The past few nights have been pretty frigid.” “True.” Deciding to pick up the puppy and resting it in my lap, I sit down next to Fluttershy and gently pet the poor thing. “I hope they make it.” She says nervously. “I think they will. There were no signs of injury or abuse.” “That’s good. I just can’t understand who would want to just dump them on the side of the road like that. We weren’t that far away. We could’ve taken them in.” “Your guess is as good as mine.” She sighs in response, “I’m so glad we found them when we did. No animal deserves to go through that kind of thing, at any level.” “I’m with you on that.” When the kitten finally stops shivering, I say, “She stopped shivering. That’s a good sign.” “Mhm.” She responds excitedly brushing her fur back so she can get a look at her muzzle. A few moments later, Paisley comes back and checks on us. With her are a couple of volunteers who ask if they can hold the rescues. I happily hand the dog over to one of the volunteers, telling them “it’s passed out. Been running on adrenaline for quite a while.” “Aww.” They respond. After Fluttershy hands the cat over, she heads for the washbasin and has me wash my hands too. “So, what do you do now?” “Well, we have to check and see if they have any diseases, so once they readjust, we’ll take them to the vet.” “Where’s the closest one?” “There’s one near my house. Hopefully they’ll readjust easily.” “Yeah. I’ll be right back. Gotta go to the bathroom.” When I return, Fluttershy is already combing them over to see if they have any records. The cat though seems to take a particular interest in me. After it comes over to sniff me out, I offer my hand. After a few inhalations, she rubs herself up against me, and I decide to pet her, responding with initial skepticism, but eventually, she comes to accept me and lets me hold her, though she fidgets around until she gets comfortable. The dog is equally attentive, and somewhat excited to interact with Fluttershy. “So?” I ask as the cat admires its position sitting in my arms. “They both look healthy, and from the looks of things, they don’t have any records, which is surprising. Let’s take them to the vet.” “Alright.” I respond as I head for the main door. When I push the main door open, “Miss Kitty” jumps out of my arms. However, she stays at my side and waits for me. As Fluttershy follows behind with the dog, one of the volunteers then calls her and asks if he can tag along. “Paisley, who’s coming in next?” “The volunteer schedule is open. We’ll be the only ones here for some time.” “Okay. Well, you know the drill.” “Yes I do. See you later!” “Bye, Paisley.” She says as I open the door, Miss Kitty prancing straight for Fluttershy’s car. When I open the doors, our volunteer climbs into the back seat. Fluttershy then gets seated with the dog. When I get seated, Miss Kitty, previously sitting on the dash, right in my driving view, then climbs down and sits in my lap before I can put my belt on. “Okay then?” I chuckle as both passengers laugh. “I can’t move until my seatbelt is on, Miss Kitty.” No movement, so I belt up as best I can, trying not to pinch or pin her in any way. Nevertheless, once the car is started, Fluttershy programs the sat nav for me. “Thank you.” I tell her as I put the car in gear. After a few twists and turns navigating around, we pass Fluttershy’s house on the way to the vet. When I park the car and open the door, Miss Kitty jumps out and starts prancing towards the entrance. “Hi Fluttershy.” The receptionist greets. “Hi Catherine. I’ve got two here with no records, so I’ll need to make sure they get in the system.” “Let me see if Dr. Fauna is available.” After she leaves, Miss Kitty walks over to our other volunteer and taps his leg, meowing. He then crouches down and pets her, eventually picking her up after she paws at him. The doctor then emerges from the main door, greeting Fluttershy and examining our two rescues. We then follow her back to her exam room and she begins with the dog. Miss Kitty then grooms herself as I watch. Inspecting it for a microchip, she finds none and does what I assume are her usual inspections of eyes, ears, mouth, and fur. “Well, no chip, but he’s surprisingly healthy. Any idea how long they were left in the open?” “No idea on either one.” I respond. “Animal control said they were lying next to a stop sign.” “Well, they ought to have a bath and groomed. I didn’t spot any fleas or ticks, but a deep comb is still in order.” “That’s great news.” Fluttershy responds. “Once we get them set up, let’s hope that we can find them a good home.” She then says to me. “Absolutely.” Plagued with another stomachache, I head for the bathroom as she begins the chipping process. When I get back, a new set of immunization records are prepared and presented to me to hold before she repeats the process with Miss Kitty. “Alright,” I whisper, “you’re one step closer to a new home!” Fluttershy then interacts with the dog while I watch Miss Kitty get chipped. “What could we call her?” I ask in regards to the dog. In response, she barks excitedly. I chuckle at myself and decide on “Princess.” “Alright, both animals are chipped and have records available. Let me just print the immunization cards off for the records of you and the future owners. Be right back!” When she leaves, I decide to play with Princess. To my complete non-surprise, I pet her a few times but she immediately leaves me to play with Fluttershy and Miss Kitty. 20 minutes later, both animals are officially recognized and ready to head to the shelter. Quickly and easily, we return to the shelter and put their records on file. Paisley then clocks out and wishes us well before leaving for the evening. Though there are a few people still here, Fluttershy takes care of them, with a different dog (not Princess) even getting adopted at the end of the day. Normally, the shelter closes at 17:30, but thanks to the extensive adoption process and glee that crosses Fluttershy upon seeing one of her dear animals get adopted, none of us leave until well after 18:00. “I’m sorry things changed so quickly.” Fluttershy says after I plug her car in back at home. “All Good. I’m just happy that Princess and Miss Kitty are in good hands.” “Me too.” “It’s nice to see you working somewhere that matches your values almost to a T.” “Yes indeed.” “Let’s hope we have similar luck and/or success for this upcoming trip of yours.” “Me too. Thank you so much for taking us.” “Absolutely!” “I look forward to this trip, especially my parents.” “That’s nice. Where will they be vacationing?” “I’m not sure, actually. They did say they wanted to go to Hawaii, but they didn’t tell me much else.” “Hmm. Kind of makes me wonder. If they don’t have any reservations, I have houses on every island, but Molokai and Lanai aren’t available, as they’re rented out.” “Okay. Like I said, I don’t know what their plans are. We’ll need to talk.” “No problem. Just so I know where to go after your group gets dropped off in Kona.” “Mhmm. Are you hungry?” “Not really, but now’s as good a time as ever to get or make food.” “Oh, well, um, I have food here, so if you want to cook, we can.” “Eh, well. Better than my idea. Go jump start a heart attack with some barbecue or something.” “Max! Don’t say that!” “Sorry it’s abrasive, but I can’t apologize for being abrasive.” “I know you don’t mean it, but sometimes things like that really scare me.” “I’m aware, which is why I said it. It truly is a miracle you decided to be my friend.” “Max, I wouldn’t not want to be your friend just because you’re abrasive. I’m friends with you because of who you are.” “An abrasive, self-loathing, entitled, first world millennial?” “No! You’re a very kind and generous person who doesn’t hesitate to help his friends whenever possible. You also demonstrate an unparalleled level of compassion and knowledge of situations that most would normally freak out over.” “Shucks, I’m flattered. But you give me too much credit.” “Really? That’s not what Applejack told me when you showed up to help out on the farm. That’s not what Rainbow Dash told me after you hosted the Blue Angels. That’s not what Twilight told me when you took her from Indianapolis to Anchorage. That’s not what Pinkie Pie told me when you came to one of her parties.” “My schedule happened to be open. If I had said no to any of them, I would’ve just been spending those trips waiting for the next one.” “Don’t deny it Max. You have friends who care about you and support you.” “Which speaks volumes about the people I’ve come to know.” “Welcome to the herd! I mean, your new friend group.” “Thanks.” I chuckle. “Now, about dinner.” “I have food. Let’s just cook tonight.” “I have some things at my house too. You want me to get them?” “Where do you live?” “Victorville, California.” “I mean here in Washington, silly!” She laughs. “Mercer.” I respond with playful innocence at her laugh. “Oh, that’s okay. I don’t want you to have to travel all the way over there just to come back again.” “It’s no big deal.” “Okay then, if you want to.” “Be back soon!” I say as I check to make sure my keys are on my person. When I return to her house, I’m met with a decidedly veggie-meat smell permeating my nostrils. I get to the kitchen and sure enough, Fluttershy is preparing Beyond burgers. “I thought I recognized that smell.” I quip as I return with a bottle of sparkling water. After about 20 minutes, she pulls out two buns from her toaster and asks if lettuce and tomato are okay. No problem on my part, I head outside for a quick e-cigarette as Fluttershy finishes prep on our dinner. After I run the stick dry, I return to the kitchen and toss the dead e-cig into her trash bin. Immediately she calls, “Max? It’s ready!” I stick my head across to her dining table and find my plate right across from hers. After I pour a glass of sparkling water, I ask if she wants something to drink. She declines on account of having a glass of OJ for herself. I sit down and dig in as she does, sighing contentedly as Fluttershy also enjoys her burger. We don’t talk at all while eating, so after we finish our meals, I say, “Well, that was very good. Thank you for dinner, Fluttershy!” “Oh, you’re welcome!” She blushes. “Thank you for joining me today.” “I’m glad I could aid in a rescue. I hate to be so abrupt, but before we ate, we were talking about your trip.” “Oh! Yes, yes. Where were we?” “Um, I think it was on what you were doing.” “Okay. Um, I plan on being on each island for at least a few days each. That will depend on how our local docent wants to show us.” “No worries. I trust your company will be kind to my cars. Do you have lodging arrangements?” “Yes.” “Okay. We’re leaving tomorrow, so what time is good for everyone?” “Um, I told them our flight is at 10:00.” “That’s fine. Did you send them the address for Signature Flight Support at SeaTac?” “I’m not sure if anyone has seen it, but I did send it to them.” “Okay. Signature’s parking lot is pretty small, so take that into consideration. Shouldn’t be too much of a problem though. Even so, I imagine I’ll get to meet everyone tomorrow morning.” “Um, yes.” She responds more sort of following along than with certainty. “You, 7 others, plus your parents?” “Yes.” She responds with certainty this time. “Alright then.” “Are you going to get ready for bed?” “Well, yes. But I’m in no hurry. I just left my bag at my house, so I’ll be spending the night in Mercer.” “Oh. Um, that’s okay. I can head to bed early then.” “If you want to turn in early, by all means.” “Okay.” With that, we both rise from the table, I place my plate in the sink, and after giving both a quick rinse, she loads the dishwasher and starts a cycle on a time delay so that she can put them away when she wakes up tomorrow. “Alright.” I say after checking to make sure I have everything, “Thank you again for dinner. I’ll see you tomorrow morning at Signature then?” “Sure.“ “Alright, alright, alright. Good night, Fluttershy.” Sending a beaming smile my way, I head out, tittering as I fire up my car, hoping I don’t scare Fluttershy or anyone else. Gently then, I head out of North Bend and punch it onto I-90, reaching Mercer Island just before the stroke of 21:00. Where I Set My SightsAn alarm set for 6:45 is beaten by 40 minutes. Into the shower, I spare enough time to review the flight plan before submitting it with plenty of time to spare. KSEA HAROB6.HQM LATAY SEDAR A331 ZEMOM AUNTI BITTA ONOHI.KAYAK6 PHKO In no time at all, I head to SeaTac to preflight. Thankfully, the ground power unit is plugged in, so I don’t have to turn on the APU or wait for someone to plug it in. Exterior lights check, no known anomalies demanding immediate attention or otherwise rendering the aircraft unairworthy. Check all surfaces for ice, insect nests, and the like. No issues there, I eventually put my flashlight away as the slowly rising sun starts to shine on the aircraft. A couple spots of water appear, but I’m not concerned about them, as they’re in areas protected by preventative icing equipment. Control surfaces appear free, since I can’t actually check them by hand like I would with a light GA aircraft. Doors L1, L2, and R1 are open during the inspection, but the latter two are only to air the cabin out. A quick run up the aisle to arm the other doors, ending with L2 and R1’s arming then is my signal to head back into the building. I decide to clean up a little bit by brushing my teeth, rinsing my face, and even bothering with a little bit of mouthwash just to keep from offending. After I head to the front of the building, I wait for my passengers to arrive. As soon as our first passenger, Fluttershy, arrives, I take her bag and back out each SUV so that I can load bags in accordance with travel groups. Two Q5’s should hold bags for four people each, but in hindsight, I should’ve used 4Runners or Tacomas, the latter especially would work nicely, seeing as they’re a Seattle-based group, operating a group of Tacomas, and we’re flying out of SeaTac, Seattle–Tacoma? Anyone, anyone? Just me? Okay. Nevertheless, when Fluttershy places her bag in the boot, we both head to the terminal and wait for the next passengers to show up. The next passengers to arrive actually both show up right behind each other. Fluttershy greets them ahead of me. The first passenger to make his way towards the terminal, at risk of sounding like a bully, does look like someone who was a nerd in his school days, complete with tape on his glasses. “Microchips, this is Max, our pilot.” “Hello.” I respond offering my hand. “Hi there.” Microchips responds with a shake. “Microchips. I am exactly as I look. I’m in charge of data collection for this expedition.” “Welcome! Glad you’re with us.” I add as we walk into the terminal. “I’ll go get Sandalwood.” Fluttershy says, leaving me to escort Microchips onto the ramp. “So, uh… what kind of aircraft are we on?” “We are on an Airbus A321neo.” “Ooh. A quiet ride they are.” “Indeed, and we’re in luck, more or less. This ship flew for Hawaiian. In fact, this is Hawaiian’s first neo.” “Cool!” “Maile? What’s Maile?” “Maile is a vine that is traditionally used in lei making.” “Oh, okay! My buddy Sandalwood would know about that. He actually followed me here. He works with understanding the interactions that make ecosystems ecosystems.” “Oh wow, that’s really cool.” I respond as we reach the parked Q5’s. “Do you care who you ride with?” “Not really.” “Okay. Well, Fluttershy’s baggage is in this car,” I say pointing towards the appropriate car, “so if you wanted to ride with her, I could just put yours in, see?” “Sure. Um, I’ll go ahead and start the other car then. I’m sure Sandalwood and I will at least want to ride together.” “No problem.” I say loading his bag onboard and following him up the air stair. “Open seating, please sit anywhere. Fluttershy hasn’t marked her territory yet, so you’re the first one on.” “Thank you.” “I’ll be back soon.” I say as I head back to the terminal to receive the other passenger. “Whoa dude!” A very hippieish man greets me, “smooth stripes, man!” In reference to the uniform I’m wearing. “Split Scimitar, but I just go by Max.” “Rad! I’m Sandalwood.” “Pleasure. I hear you’re one of our ecosystem specialists.” “I am. I’ve always been interested in how plants and animals react together as part of the big picture. Gotta understand nature to be one with nature, ya feel me?” “I feel ya! Is this all your baggage?” I ask pointing towards his single suitcase, the smallest of the 3 I’ve seen today. “It is. I pride myself on packing light.” “Same here.” “Well, I also do plan on picking up some souvenir t-shirts.” “Very nice.” I say as we head onto the ramp. “Before I show you aboard, can I assume you want to ride with Microchips?” “Yeah, dude. Gotta journey with my best bud!” “No problem. Do you want to ride with Fluttershy?” “Sure.” “Alrighty then, that puts 3 of 4 in one car.” I say as I play a little bit of Tetris, glad his suitcase is smaller than the others. By the time I reach Sandalwood in the cabin, he’s already seated next to Microchips. Checking in with a thumbs-up, I head back to the terminal and find Fluttershy talking with two others. “Good morning!” I greet the three of them with a chipper tone. “Hi Max,” Fluttershy answers for the three of us. “Sorry, we were just catching up.” “No worries. Our target departure is 10:00.” “Max, meet Rose Heart and Roseluck.” Roseluck speaks first. “Hi. Roseluck. I’m a florist.” Rose Heart then responds in kind, “Hi. Rose Heart. I’m not a florist.” Surprised by their copycat responses, I feign shock, which makes all three of them laugh. “I love flora.” Roseluck adds. “Arrangements are my specialty.” ”Nice. I love airplanes. Airliners are my specialty.” “I also like flora, but tulips are more my thing.” Rose Heart says. “Really?” “Yes, they’re more colorful.” “Sure. I can understand that.” “Can we board?” Roseluck then asks. “Absolutely! I’m in no rush, since we have plenty of time before our target.” “Let’s go then!” Rose Heart responds as I take the two of them airside. “Alright, you two are set here.” I say after loading their suitcases. “Follow me onboard.” When all three of us get into the cabin, I say, “welcome aboard. Open seating here, please find a seat and get comfortable, we’ll be on our way shortly.” Just as I walk in, Fluttershy points three more passengers in my direction. “Hello.” I cordially greet them, “I’m Split Scimitar, but I just go by Max.” “Hi there! I’m Dr. Fauna. I serve as Fluttershy’s plant-based counterpart.” “Are you vegetarian?” “No, I’m not. Why ask?” “I was just wondering if your diet was entirely plant based.” “Oh! Ha ha ha.” She chuckles lightly, seeming to appreciate the joke. The next person to speak up is one “Wallflower Blush,” the leader of the plant squad. Following her is a friend of the group’s, Derpy, or Muffins, who is here to offer any help she can. Leaving only Mr. and Mrs. Shy, I show the three of them to the ramp and head back to the terminal to get our last passengers. Fluttershy is waiting impatiently for the last passengers, introducing me to her parents, Mrs. Posey Shy and Mr. Nimbus Breeze, before she calls our last passenger, even though we have eight of us here already. “Was an extra passenger invited?” I ask. Blushing profusely, she admits, “yes, I did. Sorry.” “No problem at all. I was just curious. Who is the technical extra?” “Rose Heart. She’s not joining us, but Roseluck wanted her to come with us.” “Why didn’t you tell me?” “Sorry! She was just a last-minute addition.” “All good, no trouble. She just has to remember she has to find her way home, unless she is traveling home with us.” “I don’t think so.” “I guess we’ll have to ask.” As I walk Fluttershy’s parents to the plane, I take their bags and make some small talk, “How are we doing today?” “Not bad.” Mrs. Shy responds. “I’m just so happy we can travel to Hawaii with Fluttershy.” “Are you part of their expedition?” “Oh, no, no. I mean we get to travel together.” “Oh! Sure. I’m glad to be able to take you.’” “Now, Max, sir,” Mr. Shy prods, “what are we flying?” “We are on an Airbus A321neo.” “Very nice.” “I used to fly on the P-8 Poseidon with NOAA.” “You were a hurricane hunter?” “Indeed I was.” “Wow! Impressive. If I had known, I would’ve used one for this trip. Could even do a two-crew leg if you wanted to.” “Oh, that’s alright. I was a weather specialist. I didn’t do any actual flying.” “Oh, well, even so, it may have been a nice trip down memory lane.” “Maybe, but if you wanted to do that, you’d need to outfit with all matter of weather radar and equipment.” “Fair enough.” I laugh. “This is your provided rental car, an Audi SQ5. I hope you’ll enjoy it. Oh, and on which island or islands will you be vacationing?” “We’ll just move around with them.” Mrs. Shy responds. “I want to spend some time on each island.” “Okay! No worries.” I say as I close their boot and lead them to the stairs. Once in the cabin, I make sure they get seated before I say, “welcome aboard, please do get comfortable. We’re just waiting on one more, and we’ll be underway.” Last but certainly not least is Tree Hugger, our other ecosystem and animal behavior specialist, working alongside Sandalwood in the former, and focusing more on the latter. She’s not much of a conversationalist, per Fluttershy, so after I bring them airside, I ask to unplug ground power, load up, turn on the APU, and get the aircraft running under its own power. After I retract the air stair, I close the main door, lock and arm all 8 exits, and since everyone is seated in the first class cabin, decide to close the first class curtain. “Alright,” I begin on the horn, “all doors locked, armed and checked, ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard this morning’s flight. Heading down to Kailua-Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii, approximately 5 hours, 55 minutes en route. Weather in Kona is pretty warm, with a temperature of 79°, expected to reach 83°. Winds are looking rather traditional with a slightly northeasterly flow. Overall, a pretty good day down there. Please direct your attention to the monitors in front of you for an important demonstration of the safety features of this Airbus A321neo aircraft.” After I let the video play, I check all the cockpit instrumentation and check for any anomalies. None so far, and everything is normal, with an OAT of only 16°. “If there are any questions, please direct them to me. All drinks are located in the forward galley. Once again, 5 hours 55 minutes to Kailua-Kona, so please sit back, relax, and enjoy this morning’s flight. Welcome aboard.” On Signature’s Unicom, I get a page. “N202HA, how do you read?” “N202HA, loud and clear.” “N202HA, advise when ready. I’ll call your startup.” “Go ahead and tow us. All seated.” “Roger.” The tug then pushes us back with the assistance of a wing walker. I check over my left while the wing walker checks the right. We’re probably mated for no less than a minute before they disconnect. “Startup your discretion.” “Roger, thanks for the help today, N202HA.” “No problem, have a great flight!” CPDLC: KUSA. LOGON TO: KSEA. TAIL NO: N202HA LOGON: SENDING… ~~ LOGON: ACCEPTED ATC COMM ESTABLISHED ACT CTR: KSEA >ATC INDEX >>CLEARANCE Request >SEND SENDING… Status: OPEN… ~~ Status: RESPONSE RCVD. Request clearance. -Response 1752Z- Display: <UPLINK Cleared Route Clearance: Free Text: HAROB6.HQM. Free Text: CLIMB VIA SID. Free Text: CROSS HAROB AT OR ABV 12,000, DPFRQ 120.400. Free Text: SQUAWK 5751 CONTACT GRND WITH ATIS. “Oh great.” I mumble to myself. “I have to look at the entire route.” LOAD> MOD RTE ORIG: KSEA DEST: PHKO CO ROUTE: - TAIL NO: N202HA RUNWAY: - VIA/TO: DIRECT/HQM DIRECT/LATAY DIRECT/SEDAR A331/ZANNG A331/ZAGER A331/ZINNO A331/ZEMOM DIRECT/AUNTI DIRECT/BITTA DIRECT/ONOHI ONOHI.VECKI9/PHKO Accept SEND> DEP/ARR INDEX <DEP HAROB6 Sids: HAROB6<SEL> Trans: HQM<SEL> Runway: <SEL>16L <EXEC> Initiate engine start procedure. 2 alight and stable. Set flaps 2 for takeoff. “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, information Lima. 1754Z. Wind 160 at 13. Visibility 10. Sky condition: few 4,000, overcast 5,400, scattered 8,000. Temperature 3, dew point 1. Altimeter 29.91. ILS runway 16L and ILS runway 16C in use. Landing and departing runway 16L and runway 16C. Notices to Airmen: Runway 16R/34L closed. Advisory: numerous cranes lighted and flagged in various quadrants. Flow control in effect. Advise on initial contact, you have information Lima.” “Seattle Ground, Mālama 'Āina 4, Signature, Lima, ready to taxi.” “Mālama ‘Āina 4, Seattle Ground. Runway 16C, taxi via Q, hold short runway 34C.” “Q short of 34C, Mālama 'Āina 4.” Using a gentle addition of power, I head for runway 34C, and am just about to put the brakes on, when further instructions arrive. “Mālama 'Āina 4, can you accept a back-taxi on runway 34C?” “Affirm, Mālama 'Āina 4.” “Roger, Mālama 'Āina 4, cleared onto runway 34C, exit at… D.” “Cleared onto runway 34C, D exit, Mālama 'Āina 4.” All lights on and ready to hustle across the active runway, I line up, check centerline, and do a fast taxi across the runway. “Southwest 4224, behind the SkyWest Embraer, runway 16L, taxi via B.” “16L, B, behind Alaska SkyWest, 4224. To the Hawaiian on 34C, Rotate!” “What does “Mālama 'Āina” mean?” Another voice keys on frequency. “It’s Hawaiian for “take care of the land, and it’ll take care of you.” My clients are part of a group exploring sustainability practices on the Hawaiian islands.” I respond. “Good stuff. Which island?” “Big Island. Kailua-Kona.” “Bravo Zulu. Good luck to your passengers!” “Thank you, appreciate it.” “Mālama 'Āina 4, right D, cleared onto runway 34R, left C, runway 16C, line up and wait.” “Alright, D, cleared onto 34R, C, line up and wait 16C, Mālama 'Āina 4.” Quickly getting turned around in the narrow window of neither runway with an aircraft in its immediate vicinity, I scramble to 16C and configure the aircraft for takeoff, changing the FMS for a departure off 16C rather than 16L.” “Delta 182, traffic departing prior to your arrival on the parallel runway an Airbus A321. Runway 16L, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land 16L, Delta 182.” “Mālama 'Āina 4, runway 16C, cleared for takeoff. Fly the HAROB Six.” “16C, cleared for takeoff, Mālama 'Āina 4.” 80 knots. V1 Rotate. V2 Positive rate, gear up. Flaps up. “Mālama 'Āina 4, contact departure, Aloha!” “Over to Departure, Mahalo and Aloha!” I Don’t Need My Name In LightsThankful for a lower than usual headwind, we end up touching down in Kailua-Kona almost 20 minutes early, so once we get parked, I check fuel loads and run fuel numbers. Though I have enough to get to Maui, I order a couple hundred gallons mostly out of courtesy. Fortunately for us, we get our ramp approvals without problem. After the four cars cross to the land side, I consult with each of the drivers just to see what their plans are. I undoubtedly trust them, but it is nice to know where they’re going. Soon after I let them go, I send a text to Rosalina. “Landed. You at home or work?” Not expecting an immediate reply, I head for one of my properties on the island. Naturally, I get settled and find myself bored quite quickly. The natural instinct for me then is of course go for a drive or something, but I also know that within the next… few hours, I need to meet my wife so we can begin the paperwork. About 40 minutes later, I get a reply. “Sorry. Was doing a check flight. Come to the office, we’ll do everything after we close.” “No problem. You want/need anything?” “No, I’m okay. Thank you.” “No problem. Be there soon.” When I arrive, the only cars left in the lot are Rosalina’s and who I assume are the maintenance staff. Nevertheless, I head in and find Rosalina on the computer, inputting times into spreadsheets for what I can only assume are for the aircraft logbooks. “Hello.” She responds without turning her head. “Hi.” I respond in kind. “How was the journey over?” “Not bad actually. SeaTac’s still in runway construction, but at least they can do simultaneous close parallel now.” “They finally get the spacing right?” “Yeah.” “Glad they’re making progress.” “Is what I said.” A few minutes of further data entry precede a cheerful but seemingly forced, “Okay!” “Everything we need is right here. Nothing unusual: crossing t’s, dotting i’s, initialing, signature-ing, and then finalizing. Unfortunately, there are a lot of steps beyond just that, but we’ll have to take it One Step At A Time.” “Naturally. So, where do I start?” “Well, I have most of the papers ready. What I need from you however is your share of the paperwork filled out.” “What reasoning are you going to file?” “Irretrievable breakdown due to extramarital affair still sound good?” “I suppose.” “You aren’t actually, are you?” Rendered speechless, I go paler than a bucket as I tell her “no.” “Be honest with me. I won’t hold it against you.” “I didn’t, I haven’t, and I’m not.” “Very well. If you were however, the burden of proof is on me as the petitioner, but I trust you on that.” “Okay. Um, is there anything that needs to be divvied up?” “Well, we ought to go through our things and find out if and what needs to be contested as it were.” “Well, let’s start with the obvious. The three houses.” “Will it bother you if you keep them under your name?” “No. I must ask, why not take them?” “I would not ask that of you. You gave me the opportunity to have them when I first began here. I would not feel right just taking them from you.” “You’re so kind, I almost wish we didn’t have to do this.” “I will not lie, I kind of feel the same way, but do know that this is for both our betterment. Nothing will change between us, except our marital status.” “I understand, but I still can’t help but feel some guilt about this. It was my idea for us to get married, so I guess in a really roundabout way, ‘I’m sorry I have to put you through all this.’” “Don’t apologize. Yes, this is inconvenient. Yes, I knew what I was getting into. Yes, this is not what I had envisioned when I pictured marrying the man I love. But despite that, I want you to know that no matter what happens, you are one of the best things that ever happened to me.” Holding back a tear or two, I sigh and respond, “I’m speechless. If I had any less machismo in me right now, I’d be in tears” with a chuckle. Rosalina blushes as she takes out the papers. Handing me the first set, already tabbed out for initials and signatures, I sign and initial as necessary, making sure to read the fine print just for my sake. By the time we finish, it sure didn’t feel like a long time, but having carefully reviewed all the papers and making sure everything is in agreement, we both decide to head for dinner. However, upon failing to reach an agreement for what to eat, we decide to eat at home instead. Next morning, I beat Rosalina awake, since I’m still on Pacific time, but thanks to a long shower, I meet her making breakfast. I greet her with a kiss as I look for fruit. My first choice is an apple, followed by a banana, seeing as how I’m quite potassium deficient, which I guess is more or less what causes my high blood pressure. That and the obvious. “Are you going into the office today?” “Yes. There’s always some work to be done.” “Do you not have an office manager?” “I am the office manager. I only outsource the accounting.” “Ok then. Well, whenever you want to hop to The Valley Isle, I’m here.” “Okay. We can get Grandma’s Coffee House.” “Ooh. That does sound good. And Leoda’s or Paia Fish Market.” “Sounds like we have a plan.” She says as she smiles brightly at me. After I decide to drive her, she grabs her spare garage door opener and climbs in as I fire the thing up. When we reach the office, she unlocks the door, turns on all the lights, then she sits down at the computer. I make do in the other office, glad we’re the first ones here. Booting up the considerably slower computer, I check the files on it and find much of the same kind of stuff I would expect to see on Rosalina’s computer, albeit from the years prior. In fact, some deeper digging reveals the oldest files on this computer date back to only a few years before Rosalina began here. Quickly closing everything and back to minding my own business, I decide to check some emails. Nothing aside from the usual promo/sale and one or two that I actually have to respond to. Just then, the first pilot of the day shows up. A quick handshake for pleasantries with me, and he heads for his first preflight. A few minutes later, the dispatcher shows up and logs in. I recognize her from the Maui office, and we do a bit of catching up. When the pilot returns, he consults Rosalina about some maintenance items, and after she redirects him to me, even though I have no helicopter experience, I try and help out anyway. “What’s up?” “Our beacon light is inoperative.” “Do you have any other types of anti collision lights?” “No?” “Strobes?” “This one doesn’t?” “Well, turn the lights on.” After he does as told, I watch him check all the switches, and barely making out the sound of an electrical pulse consistent with strobe lights, I check around and find the lower beacon functional. “Your belly beacon is operative.” “That’s the problem. One is operative, the other is inoperative. Does that mean it still counts or does that mean we use strobes only?” “Well, that’s a problem for me because if any one is inop, I squawk it anyway and use the strobes. Since you have two beacon lights, and one of them is operative, I’d just use both beacon and strobes.” “I’ll probably just do that, but I imagine we’ll get a day VFR restriction.” “At the least, I imagine. Unfortunately, Rosalina is sending you to the wrong person. I’m all airplane, I have no rotorcraft experience.” “Fair enough. I appreciate the input.” “No problem. Just squawk it as “upper beacon inoperative” or something like that.” “I figured. Thanks again.” “No problem.” Just as I return to the building, six people walk in. “Good morning!” The receptionist greets all of them. “How can I help you?” “We’re the party of 6 under the name “Dennis.”” “One second, let me verify your reservation.” I quickly return to the office and resume my inactivity, only interrupted by Rosalina coming in and asking, “Can you run to Costco and get some more TP?” “Yeah. Anything else? Pizza, sandwich, chicken bake?” “Maybe later?” “No problem.” “You wanna use my car?” “Nah. I can fit it in the Lambo.” “That’ll be funny to see.” “Pretty first-world right?” “Yeah.” “Hey, we’re all human.” I say as she leaves. No trouble at all, I head to Costco and go straight for the TP. After debating over which type to get, I make a decision and also pick up a hot turkey sandwich too. Knowing it won’t fit in the boot, I stuff the big pack in the passenger seat, trying to leave room to see the mirror. With the sandwich in hand, I eventually plunk that in the passenger seat and fire it up. After getting quite a few looks driving a Lamborghini Aventador with a giant pack of toilet paper in the passenger seat, I give a nice shout in first as I head back to the office. After I walk in, I put the pack in the supply closet and put my sandwich in the break room fridge. Before I return to my computer, I grab a bottle of water to get me through the mid-morning. By 10:30, I get bored, since Rosalina doesn’t give me any tasks to do. In the end, I ask if I can go home, which she grants, but not before asking me to make sure to pick her up for lunch. When I return home, I take advantage of her smart fridge to peek in and add to the digital list. Soon after, I toast a couple slices of bread, realizing that I forgot to grab my turkey sandwich. “I forgot a hot turkey sandwich in the fridge. Can you grab it when I pick you up?” “Sure.” “Thank you!” Since I have about an hour and a half, I watch some Netflix but give up after a few episodes because of issues with the HD. Fortunately, seeing a nice time period where I can gradually make my way up, I decide to pleasure cruise, maintaining a speed of no more than 60, which is mildly annoying, but I quickly get used to it. When I arrive, Rosalina is just out the door with my sandwich in hand. She then gets in and tells me, “Tommy Bahama good?” “Why not?” I say as I put the car in gear. Fortunately for us, a clear path by police radar allows me to put my foot down. Whether Rosalina is in in the car as a reason for me to do it now is more or less irrelevant, considering that she trusts me pretty well. That said, I am surprised she has trusted me this much in the years that we’ve been married, and in fact all the way back to even before we started dating. Even so, I like to think it’s because she knows I’m not so macho as to try anything outside my skill and comfort levels. I also know she’s real quick and yet incredibly kind about pulling me back if I start to descend into T-rage. Nevertheless, when we sit down for lunch, I keep things simple and order a water and the local catch, which varies depending on the time of year as it is of good ethical practices to respect the kai (sea). Rosalina takes the other local catch on the menu and keeping with our tradition of halfsies, we each eat half one plate and switch for the other half. Sometimes, it’s the little things. When we return to the office, all the helicopters are gone on tours and two parties are waiting, having arrived rather early. I then decide to run to the house I’m staying and move to Rosalina’s house, since she does in fact want me to stay with her. Quickly getting comfortable, I race back to the office, where Rosalina, to my surprise, is waiting for me at the front door. “I finished early. There is absolutely nothing else for me to do.” “Okay then. What do you want to do now?” “Well, I know I usually wait until the last day of the month, but let’s head to Maui.” “Alrighty then.” PHKO AMERY4.ROWIN V1 HARPO.CAMPS3 PHOG “Do you want to leave now?” “Sure. When does Da Kitchen close?” “21:00.” “I’m feeling a little loco. You?” I concur and with a big hearty “Ha” and punch the throttle when we reach Queen Ka’ahumanu highway. After Rosalina does the rest of the housekeeping, the both of us clean sweep as we normally do, seeing as the house will be unoccupied for the next nine months, before we pack up everything that needs to come with us and head for the airport. “Kona Clearance, Galaxy 7, IFR to Maui.” “Galaxy 7, cleared to Kahului–Maui airport via as filed. Maintain 10,000, expect 14,000 passing AMERY. HCF Departure 126.0, squawk 7210.” “Cleared to Kahului–Maui via as filed, maintain 10,000, expect 14,000 past AMERY. HCF 126.0, squawk 7210, Galaxy 7.” “Galaxy 7, readback correct. Ground .9.” Engine start. “Ellison Onizuka International Airport ATIS information Uniform, 0328Z, wind 040 at 4, visibility 10. Sky clear below 12,000. Temperature 23°C, dewpoint 18°C, altimeter 29.93. Visual runway 35 in use. Landing and departing runway 35. All VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. Readback of all runway hold short instructions required. Advise on initial contact, you have information Uniform.” 2 alight and stable, Rosalina on the radios. “Nose wheel steering and ABS: verify on.” “Thank you.” “Kona Ground, Galaxy 7, Air Service, U, taxi.” “Galaxy 7, Kona Ground. Runway 35, taxi via Ramp L A.” “Ramp L A, runway 35, Galaxy 7.” “Straight ahead onto the south ramp entryway, then straight ahead into A, hold short runway 35.” “Thank you. Taxi check.” “Flaps: set to 2 for takeoff. Trim: set for takeoff. Taxi check complete.” ”Before takeoff check?” “Trims: set. Flaps: set. Auto brakes: RTO. Before takeoff complete.” “Thank you.” “Kona tower, Galaxy 7, short 35, ready for departure.” “Galaxy 7, Kona tower. Runway 35, line up and wait, pending IFR release.” “Line up and wait 35, Galaxy 7.” About 15 seconds later, tower calls back, “Galaxy 7, runway 35, cleared for takeoff, fly the AMERY Four.” “Cleared for takeoff 35, AMERY Four, Galaxy 7.” 80 knots. V1 Rotate. V2 Positive rate, gear up. Flaps up. “Galaxy 7, contact departure.” “Galaxy 7, runway 2, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land runway 2, Galaxy 7.” 100. 50. 40. 30. 20. 10. Touchdown. Spoilers up, brakes on, 2 in reverse. 50 knots, disengage reverse thrust. “Galaxy 7, if able, left G, taxi Sunshine via G A B, hold short runway 2.” “Left G, G A B, short of 2, Galaxy 7.” “Hawaiian 540, runway 2, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land, Hawaiian 540.” “Galaxy 7, behind the Hawaiian 717, cross runway 2, taxi straight ahead to Sunshine.” “Cross Runway 2 behind the dinosaur, straight ahead to Sunshine, Galaxy 7.” After they get a pretty smooth touchdown, I blip the throttles to get us going, and parking with the helicopters in consideration, I shut down quickly to decongest the ramp, to which the lineman gives me the lead for the ground power so I can plug us in. After we leave the airport, we head for Da Kitchen and find ourselves in good company, running into an old friend currently with Hawaiian. In fact, thanks to fate, he was piloting the 717 we had to wait for. After catching up on some company stuff, specifically on things related to the 787, he heads out just as we place our drink orders. A good meal having split one of their signature loco moco, I cover the bill and make the drive to Lahaina. After I park and head inside, I receive a text from Rarity. “Darling, can we talk?” “What’s up?” A few minutes after I send the text, Rosalina unpacks her small bag and takes mine just as my phone rings. “Hello?” “Hello darling! Is now a bad time?” “Uh, no. What’s up?” “I have some exciting news!” “Oh?” “I found a space for my new boutique in Manhattan!” “Oh wow! That’s incredible! Congratulations!” “Thank you! I’m looking forward to it! Can you make sure that you have a weekend free so you can come to the grand opening?” “Of course! Do you have a date set?” “Oh heavens no! I just closed escrow yesterday.” “Well, you sound awfully optimistic then.” “Why must you be such a downer?” “I have trust issues, you know that.” “That’s still no excuse for you to rain on my parade.” “I’m sorry I’m not as excited as you are, and I know this is a big step for you, and I’m happy for you. I just don’t like engaging in any grand celebrations about something just because the process has been kicked off. I don’t breathe until clear.” “Oh alright. But you will be there, right??” “Absolutely.” “You are such a star, darling!” She squeals excitedly. “I will get you dates as soon as I can!” “Please do!” “I’ll talk later, darling! Toodles!” “Cya!” “What’s the news?” Rosalina asks stepping out of her bedroom. “Rarity’s gonna be opening a new boutique in Manhattan!” “Wow! Congrats to her!” “I know! I’m happy for her. Hopefully I’ll get dates soon.” “I’d love to join also! It’ll be nice to head back to New York again.” “Definitely. You think Mario, Luigi and fam would be able to join us?” “I hope so.” While I wait to see when they need to move to the next island, I guess I’m stuck in Hawaii. Yay. Author's Note Simultaneous close parallel (SCP) is a program in use predominantly at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) where two aircraft fly side by side maintaining visual separation and touch down on parallel runways (often at the exact same time). SFO has 2 sets of parallel runways, arranged in a # formation. They can space their traffic in a departure-arrival-departure-arrival sequence, whereby domestic (and some light international) departures depart off the north/south runways while international flights (or heavy domestic) use the east/west runways exclusively (all flights generally land east/west - weather permitting). The system is incredibly intricate and requires a “special Pilot-in-Command (PIC)” endorsement from the airlines to be able to act as a Captain for flights into and out of San Francisco. Seattle–Tacoma International Airport “SeaTac” (SEA) has 3 parallel runways, but two of the runways are too close together to allow for SCP or even close parallel (CP). It is in their future growth plan to fix the runway spacing to allow for that, but because they cannot operate with CP or SCP, traffic into and out of SeaTac is a huge bottleneck. While there is no scheduled date to introduce it, Seattle’s rapid, exponential growth has been begging for it. Having fallen victim to flight cancellations because of such construction projects, it’s only appropriate that SeaTac be CP/SCP capable. No, Not MeA few days after I hop back to Kailua-Kona, I get a response. “We’re ready to head back now. Sorry I didn’t respond. No service in our work area.” “No worries. Same place at the airport.” When they arrive, I drive them all through and park them. To my surprise, they’re not all that dirty. Nevertheless, I don’t ask too many questions and quickly brief them so we can get to Maui in a timely fashion. Thanks to me keeping the throttles full (how wasteful of me), we reach Maui in less than 20 minutes, to the admiration of a 717 who followed us on the same route. When they leave to do their exploring, I head back to Lahaina and spend my afternoon at Front Street, since that’s where I seem to enjoy myself the most, next to being in Kahului, but that’s neither here nor there. After a few hours lounging under the shade of a tree, I decide to head to Kahului and text Rosalina, “you want anything from anywhere in Kahului?” “No thanks, I don’t need anything.” “K cool. Thought I’d ask.” Leaving me with no reason to head to the isthmus, I grab a small snack at Leoda’s and hang out in Oluwalu, wary of the people who are taking pictures of the car. I guess it’s a surprise to see a Lamborghini in Hawaii. After dinner, I talk to Rosalina. “By the looks of it, anywhere from two to three days on each island is it. Though, I imagine it can still change depending on their research.” “Sure. I imagine if they’re getting even a sneak peek, that they should spend at least that amount of time. These islands are pretty complex.” “Exactly. Since I can’t really predict when they’ll be ready to go, the only thing I can do is stay. And as much as I love being here, because of you, you know just as much as I do that if I stay here too long, bad things start to happen.” “Like what?” “Oh, like how I tend to eat most of my body weight in my favorite things to eat here.” “Fair enough.” “And to think I always wanted to call this place home.” “Well, I can’t speak for you, but I think it’s a good thing we didn’t end up living together.” “I agree. That being said, I do kind of feel bad that that was the way it had to be.” “Don’t be. Even in our early days, I can’t say that I didn’t enjoy living here alone.” “That seems rather contrary to the Rosalina I met.” “Yes, but also consider that I hold those views because I firmly believe that my parents’ marriage was the only one I knew that lasted and endured for so long.” “Hmm, of course.” “Oh, by the way, speaking of home, there are some things that I do want from you.” “Oh?” “Yes. I know this may be difficult for you, but I do want something of yours.” “What?” “I think you may able to tell when I say “your love. Your passion.” “You don’t mean?” “I want all your Focus RS’s.” “Really?” “Yes.” “Okay. Is there anything else you want?” “No. That’s it. Just those.” “Okay. When do you want them?” “When we finalize the divorce.” “Very well.” Next morning, I leave the house with Rosalina and in fact follow her all the way to Kahului. This time though, I decide to explore Kahului. Both malls I’m familiar with, but I decide to spend an hour at each. When I finish at each mall, I decide to head to Kihei and walk on those shores. To my surprise, Kihei is surprisingly sparse this afternoon. Fortunately for me, I can go barefoot here, so after I oblige myself for about an hour, I admire the afternoon sun making its way westward before I slowly make my way back to Lahaina. “Hello?” I answer my phone immediately. “Hey, where are you?” “Kihei.” “You want me to meet you there?” “I was just about to head back, but if you want to, you can come down here.” “You hungry?” “Not really.” “Hmm. You haven’t been very hungry much recently. Remember when we first started dating, you would eat a lot.” “Yeah, and times change I guess. And it’s not even related to what’s happening.” “I hope you’re right. I hate seeing you like this.” “Why? I’ve put some weight on last I checked.” “I’m glad, but it pains me to see you so all over the place.” “Just part of the process, you know.” “I know.” “I’ll meet you down there.” “Okay. I’m at Cinnamon Roll Place.” “Ok thanks. Bye.” Waiting for her, I lean up against a tree and sink my toes into the sand. I tell you, that feeling of sinking your toes into nature is truly unmatched. Well, next to flying an airplane, but that one’s just for me. Nevertheless, Rosalina finds me on the beach only a block away from where I’m parked. Tapping me on the shoulder and coaxing her hand into mine, we lock fingers and she clutches my arm. “How long have you been there?” “I’ve been here since 16:00. But standing under this tree? Probably about 10 minutes.” “Oh, okay.” “You know how I like to sink my feet into sand, or the garden in the backyard. That’s what I did before I left home.” “Hmm.” “Did you eat anything since breakfast?” “Just some of the leftover soup.” “Wanna just split a cinnamon bun?” “I was just going to ask you.” “Nice to know we still get each other.” “That will never change.” She says smiling warmly and resting her head on my shoulder. With all the touchy-feely things she and I do from time to time, it is a wonder why she wants a divorce. Next morning, Rosalina is gone before I wake up, but a time check reveals that I’m awake at my normal time. A text! “Hey. Had an early bird charter, and they requested me to fly them.” “Sweet! Have fun!” I respond as I decide to be adventurous and take the Lambo on the Hana Highway. Quickly rushing through Kahului to beat the rush, I stop in Paia to mark the start. Across 64.4 miles of heavily winding roads, marked with 620 hairpin turns and 59 one-lane bridges, my record to traverse the highway is just under 2 hours, which in of itself a miracle, since usually it takes no less than 2 hours for even the highest level of motoring. Since it is the beginning of March, traffic as I should expect will likely be relatively high, but we’re right in between the period of holiday traffic and early summer holiday makers, I can’t expect a record to be broken. To a tune Rainbow Dash would probably whistle to herself under similar conditions, I set off from Paia at exactly 14 minutes to 10. Through the first few dozen hairpins, most of the traffic that I have to brake for is headed for one of the many falls or attractions off the road that probably shouldn’t be explored if they’re in rentals, but I won’t rat anybody out. I, however, know better, considering what I’m driving. Just as I reach the halfway point, I’ve evolved beyond using the A/C and letting the salt in my skin and the wind in my hair say “hey, heave ho” in the turns. After the first few hundred turns, I think about stopping, but knowing I’m in it for the transit time, I push on and decide to keep my foot down. Naturally, I decide to shut the radio off, since it’s no longer really needed. The only note I need now is the exhaust. Come the tightest group of hairpins and one-lane bridges, I keep my foot down, thankful that I don’t need to worry about encountering a potential yielding situation. However, when I pass a local knowledge mile marker, the traffic seems to increase, enough for me to say something but not so much that it’s all that obvious. Knowing this increase will cut into my record attempt, I throttle back and let the sound of the engine at high rpm with the throttle closed growl, hopefully attracting the attention of the motorists ahead of me. The few that seem to respond to my engine noise acknowledge my presence behind them by paying no mind and admiring the scenery ahead of them. I have nothing against that, and in fact encourage it, so maybe something will open up, but if it doesn’t, I can make up for lost time. Since they’ve at least acknowledged me, I don’t need to leave the car in a low gear, so I reengage automatic mode and save the 70 MPH triple-tap downshift for when the road opens. Taking a quick ‘NASCAR tire warming’ swerve to peek at the traffic ahead, I count 4 Jeeps and a Sienna (?) ahead. From the looks of things, at least 2 of the Jeeps are traveling together, so when another waterfall turnoff appears, one disappears. The remaining vehicles do kind of pick up the pace but I see no opportunity or reason to overtake. Granted, I don’t use the road often, and it is very pretty, so I guess it’s worth the slack in pace. As I check Maps to verify where I am, despite my relatively limited cell coverage, the opportunity knocks. I don’t send anyone to get it, so as soon as able, I pick up some speed and as soon as I see the opportunity by scanning the road ahead, I flick the down paddle three times and wait for the clutch to reengage. The howl of the engine spoils the otherwise lush and quiet forestal area as I pick up speed entering what I assume are the final hundred or so hairpins. In no time, I reach the town of Hana, where upon reaching the town, I make the car as quiet as I can by resuming automatic shifting. Obviously, this car has garnered a lot of attention in both Kahului and Lahaina, but in Hana, wow is it on a whole new level of attention-grab. And I haven’t even reached the town center yet. Heading straight for Hana airport, I check in with a local FBO and inquire about aircraft rentals, since I am an official customer in their system. Records show that I am on file, so I could rent if I ever wanted to. You know, if any of my jets get boring. I find parking in town center and am immediately ogled by a few pre-pubescent teenagers, or at least that what they looked and sounded like upon seeing them. Taking all the pictures they can, I lock the car and only hope no one will spit on or key the car. Parking in front of the Hana Cultural Center, I go for a walk in the little town. Only a few blocks corner to corner, I can take my sweet time here, seeing as I don’t have to be back in Kahului for another few hours. Enjoying a walk in the town of Hana, I pop in for a drink at one of the local restaurants before slowly making my way back to the car. Unlike Lahaina, when I get to the car this time, no one is standing around it. I do a quick walk-around to make sure no one has vandalized the car, and quickly getting in, I start it up and check the fuel level. I should probably get some petrol while I’m here. Only heading about a half mile out of the way, I join only a Jeep taking on fuel. The driver I’m pretty sure has gone inside, confirmed when he emerges with a receipt and tops off. Getting in the car before he has a chance to look at me, I wait for the tank to fill before the Jeep starts up, thankful that we’re both facing the same way. When my pump stops, I round to the nearest whole dollar and head out, knowing that the Hana highway the other way is the fastest road, and the one that’s actually paved. In no time at all, I return to Kahului and find Rosalina in her office inputting the last sets of data for the airframe maintenance logs. “Hi again.” She says not looking up from her work. “Hello. I’m probably hopping to Oahu soon, so I’ll just wait for you and we can head back together. I haven’t heard anything from Fluttershy yet though.” “That’s fine. I’m actually glad you’re here. If you’re leaving tonight, then let’s go to Da Kitchen again.” “I’m all for it. We’ve been married for how long now and whenever we’re on Maui, how many times do we go on average?” “Two or three?” She asks in response. “Seems about right. No reason to stop the tradition though, even after the big day.” “Of course not.” Not surprisingly, we’re the last ones out of the office, so we shut everything down and lock up before we head for dinner. As Rosalina and I split an order of fried Spam Musubi, a text comes in. “I’ll bet that’s the “ready to transfer” message.” I say as I pull out my phone. “Hey Max, we just got back. We’ll leave early tomorrow for Oahu.” “Any estimates on early?” “How early would you like to leave?” “No preferences. Just want to be reasonable so you have the whole day.” “Okay. Let me talk to the rest of the group, and I’ll get back to you.” “Okay,” I tell Rosalina. “She said early tomorrow morning, but I’ll get an exact estimate later.” “That’s fine. It’ll just be back to normal I guess.” “How do you do it? It’s like your routine never really changes. Wake up, go to office, occasionally do a flight or two, then go home. The largest degree of variation you have is where you eat for dinner.” “I can’t really say.” She responds with an air of pondering. “The best thing I can tell you is that when I interviewed, they basically took me in and in the professional sense ‘raised me as their own.’ I’m sure they wanted me to succeed them because he knew that I wanted this job and would take care of it very well. I suppose that’s what motivates me to keep doing it. I’m making the founders proud.” “I can’t argue.” I say, my face betraying a look of admiration. I Like The Quiet, I Like The Calm“Hello?” I answer just shy of midnight. “Hi Max? Sorry to bother you.” “Oh, it’s fine. No worries. Are you ready to head to Oahu?” “Yes.” “Okay! I’ll send you an address, meet there.” “Okay. Thank you Max.” “No problem. We’ll see you soon.” “Alright, Bye.” “Rosalina, Fluttershy just called. They’re ready to go, so can we use the Sunshine ramp?” “Of course. No need to ask me. Just make sure the gate’s closed when you leave.” “Okay.” I say as I send Fluttershy the address for Sunshine. “You know, I never really like this part.” She says as I finish packing. “Which part?” “You leaving.” Blindsided by her response, I sigh and can only say, “I know. It’s always painful for me too, but if our marriage worked for all these years like this, and neither of us ever really decided to speak up, maybe it was a good thing. I mean, I wished I had been able to live with you, but we always knew that we liked our distance from each other. But you know what? That made the time we had together that much more special.” “Indeed it did.” “I’ll be back soon.” I say after we share one more kiss. “Bye.” She says as I walk out the front door. When the gate to the driveway closes behind me, I quietly exit Lahaina and make for Kahului, the sound of the Lamborghini V12 roaring amidst the sky at morning civil twilight a rather nice one. I beat the group by only a few minutes, so when I let them all in and secure the fence, I load the airplane and get us going quickly. There’s a small 45-minute slot between arrivals at HNL, and I’d like to sneak in it. Once we land on my favorite island, and ironically the only island that Sunshine doesn’t serve, I can relax a bit, because not only are there the most things to do here, I can drive my car comfortably because Honolulu, meaning I can comfortably drive it in a city without fear of over-idolization. When the group leaves me behind, I head for downtown Honolulu with Fluttershy’s parents close behind. They end up leaving me behind though when I leave the city and head for one of my many houses in Honolulu. This particular house is the one that Mario and Luigi’s kids lived in when they were studying at The University of Hawai’i Mānoa. When I step in and get comfortable, I finish the e-cigarettes I have with me to try and take an edge off. I don’t know if it’s because of seeing Rosalina or the fact that I know I have to give her my Focus RS collection, my all-time most-prized love and passion, and dream car above every other car in my garage. In hindsight, I should’ve expected it, since she knew from the time we began dating that that car holds a special place in my heart, so it really shouldn’t surprise me that she would want them. And it’s not even an issue of her wanting to hurt me. While does want to leverage the divorce by using what’s close to me, I seem to have a knack for getting hurt by what’s the most near and dear to my heart. When my cigarettes run dry, I pop on the tv here and check for any interesting games. Only sports at this time of the year are spring training, NBA, and NHL, and most of my teams playing are on local blackout. Oh well, I guess I can rent an exotic car here. You know, like a person who owns an airline and ships his own cars to wherever would. Seeing as how I’m here by sunrise, I elect to stay in the city for a little while and leave during the heart of morning rush. The question is, where do I go? North shore? Ko Olina? Kailua? Actually, the better question is, where do I start? Not thinking too much of it, I let the roads take me, and by some surprise, I end up on H-2 towards Wahiawa. One thing to note is that while Hawaii has Interstate routes, they obviously don’t go outside the state, but the roads link the military bases. H-1 takes care of the traffic from Hickham to Kalaeloa, or Barbers Point. H-2 links Hickham and Wheeler AAF (Army AirField). H-3 links Hickham to Kaneohe Bay MCAS (Marine Corps Air Station). H-201 doesn’t actually link bases at each end, but rather serves as an H-1 bypass and freeway-grade road access nearby to the Tripler Army Hospital. I leave H-2 behind at Wheeler (the northern terminus) and note a training sortie in progress, evidenced by the extensive ops active at the moment just observing the runway threshold. Silently saluting our service members as they work hard at their job, I end up in Wahiawa town, enjoying a nice walk after parking at the local shopping center. I’m not in town for long though as I boom up the road just another mile or so and park at the island’s largest tourist trap, the Dole Plantation. Parking a Lamborghini in a place where a lot of families enjoy time with their kids, I nervously park close to all the buses, since there is a space available. Having been here dozens of times, I order some breakfast and take advantage of a Kama’aina discount, since I am a resident of Hawaii. When I finish my food and check out the queue times for the train and the maze, I ponder at what could happen over time once our marriage dissolves. I mean, sure we’re not going to stop seeing each other, and in no way do either of us want to make a big deal out of it, but I can’t help but notice the lack of any tangible ill will on either of our parts, well except for Rosalina wanting my Focus RS collection. Nevertheless, I quickly abandon that train of thought as I head for the north shore. These beaches are nice, and largely less crowded than Waikiki at least by comparison, and today’s no exception. As nice as the water does look, I’ll settle for a pleasure cruise this time. A fuel stop in La’ie results in an encounter with some students that are ostensibly LDS, which makes sense, since BYU has a campus here. No trouble aside from having to go inside to pay, I make my way to Kailua with no other goal in mind other than to pass the time. Late in the evening, well past evening rush, I return to the city and join the nightlife scene, the warm tropical air mixing with urban excitement and relative bustle, mostly in the neighborhood of Kalakaua and Waikiki for obvious reasons. Just to fulfill a childhood fantasy, I keep the engine in a low gear to attract as much attention as possible, only to be blown out of the water when 2 Mustang GT pass me. In no time, I return home after grabbing a quick dinner of ABC Store Spam Musubi and some POG. No messages or emails come in before 22:00, which is when I fall asleep. Next morning, I take my sweet time and buy some groceries just to minimize my meals out, but since it’s early, I decide to head to my favorite Koa Pancake House just outside Ko Olina. Knowing I have a friend or two that may be staying at Aulani, I stay away from the area. Even so, I take a drive near the area just to check out what’s around outside the resort. Nothing really fit for a single person, since most of the activities here are family-oriented, as they should be, I make my way back to the city, grabbing some Teddy’s Burgers for lunch and planning on making my own dinner. That night, Fluttershy gives me a call. “Hello?” “Hi Max, Fluttershy here. Um, it looks like we’ll have to head to Kauai early. Due to military activity, we’ve reached the extent of our abilities here on Oahu.” “No worries. You still have the location we left?” “I do.” “Cool. We’ll meet there!” “Thank you Max!” “No problem, see ya soon!” The groceries I bought will just have to travel with me, so after I take out the trash and make for the airport, I end up being the second one there. “How long have you been here?” “Only a couple minutes. We got out of the city just in time.” “Why? Evening rush is over.” “There are sobriety checkpoints in the city.” “Great. Let’s get going then. Sorry you couldn’t accomplish everything here.” “It’s okay. Our docents warned us beforehand.” “Alrighty.” “Mālama ‘Āina 2, runway 3, cleared to land. Be advised, wind shear has been reported on final.” “We’ve encountered some on the way down, Mālama ‘Āina 2, cleared to land runway 3.” 50. 40. 30. 10. “Power!” TOUCHDOWN! Suddenly, a loud and high pitched scream comes from the cabin. I can tell it’s pretty loud, because I can hear it through my noise cancelling headset. Spoilers up, brakes on, 2 in reverse. Short runway, short field landing. “Mālama ‘Āina 2, left B, taxi Sunshine via B, remain this frequency.” “Left B to Sunshine, stay with you, Mālama ‘Āina 2.” Parked, shut down, offload. “Sorry about that everyone. It was a pretty windy approach, and this is the shortest runway we’ll use on this entire trip. It’s pretty standard practice to land firmly like that, and with the wind swirling in all directions, and having it shift like that right before touchdown, not much I can do there.” “Sorry, everyone.” Fluttershy says adding to my apology. “I didn’t expect us to land that hard.” Everyone is a good sport about it though and quickly understands why we had a rough approach when we move the cars out. It seems like every few moments, the wind changes. Speaking from my standpoint, it feels more windy than usual, even for Kauai. Nevertheless, when the group leaves me behind, I make a note that Fluttershy’s parents will spend the rest of their vacation on Oahu, so I don’t have to go back for them. Fortunately for them, I have a house they can stay in, so I send them that address and the passcodes for the front door and the main entry gate. Glad I could help them with their vacation, I wish them well knowing we’ll be leaving them behind in a couple days’ time. Unfortunately for me, because I spend most of my time on either Oahu or Maui, I have to find ways to stay entertained here. I can explore Hanalei and Princeville, or stay in Lihue and Kapa’a, but either way, it’s gonna be difficult to not be bored, especially because Rosalina’s not here, since I would spend most of the day with her and possibly joining her on flights. Nevertheless, I’m bored of cruising in a Lamborghini, since I’ve been doing it for the last 5 days in a row. Let’s also be honest here: the only reason a good amount of time has passed is because Rosalina and I had to extensively review the paperwork and begin the proceedings. Life is easy for the both of us, as we’re both residents of Hawaii, and I’m a resident of Honolulu county. Notwithstanding anything outstanding, such as divisions of property or splitting ownership on other things, everything is settled and all we have to do is find a date to finalize the divorce in court. I know I sound pretty repetitive and it definitely is because I’ve just been lounging around in Hawaii waiting for the next leg of the trip. I’ve spent the whole day at home. The food I have with me is supposed to last a few days at the most, so I’m holding off on eating it. Even so, I find some places I like to go to plan some meals out, since the last time I spent more than a day or so here was a few years ago, otherwise, Rosalina has always sent me away so I don’t bore myself to death or eat too much. Nevertheless, I soon fall asleep to the TV playing Man v. Food. Just Fine Rehearsing On My OwnNext morning, I wake up just shy of 10:00, having slept for almost 11 hours. The reason why I couldn’t tell you, but I think it has something to do with a wicked dream I had last night. I guess I should talk about it. Nothing more than a classic teeth falling out and hearing voices, all but one of whom materialize into physical life forms, human life forms. When the materialized voices start taunting me with, “diabetic,” “heart attack,” “stroke,” and “fatty,” I have a brief trauma flashback but snap out of it rather quickly. Though it’s kind of obvious as to why they’re saying that, I still wonder why it bothers me, even though I’ve lost almost half my body weight since the last time I was called out for my weight. Not like it matters I guess. Most of the people who did call me out are either out of my life or no longer a part of it. In any case, the voice forms fade away and the room becomes a white null and void. No end in sight, but I’ll betcha if I had Pinkie Pie’s superhuman ability to find invisible walls, I would still go insane from the never-ending void. Suddenly, from behind me, a voice shouts, “Yo Max, I got a message for you!” When I turn my head around, the voice that called my name pulls a lever and activates a trap door. When the floor gives out, I shout “Hey!” and fall in. “You’re a conspirator to murder if you support your namesake!” Not that long of a dream sequence in retrospect, but it was enough to raise some questions aside from the obvious “why?” I won’t think much of it. In fact, I’ll probably forget it happened in a day’s time. Besides, I have more pressing real-world issues than worrying about who fat-shamed me way back when. Nevertheless, with cabin fever from approaching 36 hours indoors, and island fever from merely doing a poor job of entertaining myself on each island, settling in, I head into Līhu'e for a walk. If it keeps me from holing up indoors, I guess. After exploring the local Walmart, I decide to venture up the highway towards Princeville, since pleasure cruising is what I do best, and so I can keep my petrol load down. Ideally I’ll return to the plane with about 90 miles of range, and I hope the Q5’s I loaned are similarly returned. Passing Kapa’a, where most of my friends who like Kauai stay, I leave a nice loud exhaust note by punching the throttle to beat the traffic light where a lot of cars are lined up as I head for the north side of the island. Arriving sooner than I thought thanks to a lead foot, I find a relatively close yet secluded place to park, but when I see the condition of the lot, I quickly abandon my intentions and find much closer parking by one of the beaches. I can sink my toes in the sand if I want to like when I was on Maui, but only here on Kauai do I wish I brought my beach clothes. Oh well. Settling for getting my feet wet, I check the time and decide to head back to Līhu’e, when guess who should show up? Right on cue, three Audi Q5’s with three different state license plates, roll in and park. Confirming my suspicions (if the license plates didn’t already) are the obscured figures of Fluttershy and crew, plus their docent, who shows up behind them in a much less luxurious JL Wrangler. This one is a 2-door however, and is a Sport, the base model, but for seemingly obvious reasons, it doesn’t have the stock wheels, for good reason; well, except the spare, but judging by the size of the other four, the fifth simply wouldn’t fit anyway. Fluttershy gasps upon seeing me and shouts, “Max!” “Sweet ride.” I say to their docent. “Thanks man. Same to you!” “Well, thank you. You gonna “Jurassic Park” yours?” “Been thinking about it, but I don’t think so.” “Not to sway your opinion, but if you live here, this is one of the most appropriate places to have one.” “Touché.” “Split Scimitar,” I respond extending my hand, “I just go by Max.” “Max?” He responds shaking my hand. “John Michael. But just Michael’s fine.” “Well, alright Michael. I get called Michael all the time.” “The other “M” name?” “Yeah! How’d you know?” “I’ve been called every M name short of Methuselah. Matt/Matthew, Marion, Mike, etc.” “Same! Matt and Michael are usually what I’ll respond to!” We both share a laugh as Fluttershy greets the two of us. “Hey Max! I see you met J.M.” “Aye, I did. Fancy running into you here.” “I know!” “Where’d you just come from?” “Haena. Spent today here, then tomorrow we’ll hit up Waimea Canyon and the area around Barking Sands.” “Oh cool! How long you plan on staying here?” “Oh, a few hours. We’re actually pretty much done for the day, so we’ll meet up tomorrow.” “Where’s home, If ya don’t mind me asking?” “Princeville. Right by the Queen’s Bath.” “Oh, yeah, yeah! I’m familiar.” “They’re so beautiful. We were gonna go over there, but The Tide Is High.” “Ooh, yeah I feel ya on that one. Such a shame.” “I know. But that’s why we’re here.” “Well, don’t let me stand in your way.” I say as we all head down and set up camp. Since I’m not gonna get wet, I make some small talk with Michael. “What is the purpose of studying each island individually? I mean, I’ve spent a lot of time here, enough to know that each island has its unique little quirks and idiosyncrasies, but how could sustainability efforts be differentiated? In other words, what might be done differently here on Kauai than say Oahu or Maui?” “Actually, there’s not a whole lot that differentiates one island from another. Mostly it’s just working with local business and the resorts to curb waste generation, offset or exceed inputs, so to speak; but unfortunately, one of our biggest variables is tourist traffic.” “Well, not much to do there. That will remain a constant.” “Yeah, not much doing there.” “What have you been studying?” “Native species, invasive species, flora, fauna, the environment…” “The Classic Flora, Fauna, Merryweather.” “Pretty much. It’s relatively simple stuff. They’re a volunteer group at heart, so we haven’t done anything too intense.” “Have you been helping them on every island?” “I met them in Oahu, but another colleague of mine handled them at the lower two.” “Oh cool.” As we continue talking about their trip, they soon return. “Where are you all staying?” “Kilauea.” “Cool. I’m staying at my wife’s house in Lihue, so we’re not too far. Sorry Michael.” He only chuckles. Later that night, I get a knock at my door. “Hi Fluttershy. What’s up?” “Can I come in?” “Yes, of course. “How can I help you?” “Um, I made a mistake in booking, and as a result, we have one less night than we planned. Can we, um, spend the night after tomorrow with you?” “Of course! You’ll be cramped for space though.” “That should be okay.” “Thank you for coming in, though you could’ve easily texted me.” “Actually, I’m here so I can get an idea of how cramped it’ll be.” “Sure. And hey, it works out nicely because we’ll all be in the same place before we head back to the mainland.” “Mhmm. Do you mind if I take a peek around?” “No problem. Just stay out of the dressers. Rosalina keeps clothes here.” “Of course.” With two nights to go, I decide to shadow them up to the area near Barking Sands, but well after they’ve left the beaten path. This is a pretty nice area, and in spite of the obvious outdoorsy feel of Kauai, I could come here just to hang here. Now that we’re approaching less than 48 hours to wheels up, I take a look at the weather models and get some predictions for the journey back to Seattle. While I don’t expect anything too major to make the return trip unbearable, I also know that it is still a bit on the early side to rely on the currently disseminated information. Plugging in my planned route, I expect no abnormalities along the route. Because it’s SeaTac, I can pretty much guarantee that there will be flow control, and that no matter what happens, especially as SeaTac wraps up their construction projects, I hope they can do their operations in the same fashion as San Francisco. That night, I go out to Duke’s for a taste of the local fish, since it’s been a tradition of Rosalina’s and mine to have it at least once before I leave. One of many we have for the Hawaiian islands, I guess it just shows how unpredictable divorce is. Any couple no matter how intimate or comfortable is still just as susceptible as any other. There is no definitive formula. Wistfully, I ponder ways to cope with the process, since that rather than the actual event itself is what eats away at me. Hoping to find ways without eating into the schedules of my other friends, I move that thought to the back burner as I fall asleep before 22:00 again. Going for a morning walk with only my weather briefing in hand, I review all the models but specifically check PIREPs. It is springtime so the possibility of a phantom storm cell or system is real, but my main cause for concern is what could await us in Seattle. Winter came late this year up there, so it can be either CAVU, or San Francisco. (Rainier, please be out to play.) When I finish with my weather outlook, I satisfy an e-cigarette craving in lieu of lunch, because apparently smoking or even e-smoking suppresses hunger, but at what cost? For most, a rise in blood pressure. But hey, mine is only high because of what’s to come. Surely smoking can’t raise it any higher. Since I’m expecting company tonight, I need to warm up the house. Of course, being located in this region, I don’t mean that literally. Nevertheless, by the time I actually finish spiffing the house, I get the text that the Q5 brigade is here just as I see the sunlight reflections through the blinds. Quickly cleaning up evidence of my domestic work, I get the door after a few quaint knocks. As I pat down the wrinkles in my shirt and clean up my act, I open the door to Fluttershy and Wallflower as the frontwomen of the group, with the others coming in right behind them. “Thank you for doing this.” Fluttershy says as she gives me a hug. “Totally rad man! Appreciate the help.” Sandalwood says to back her up. “Of course! Happy to help!” I respond. “Please get settled and comfortable. ‘O ka‘u hale ka hale. Mi casa es su casa!” As everyone decides to pick out a bedroom, I run to the master and close the door before I ask around to see if everybody’s eaten. Kind of a bad question in hindsight, as it’s already 20:30, and a consensus of Yes is a slight relief to me, so I don’t feel so burdened on feeding them. After I call in a fuel order, since I completely forgot to when I landed, I then ask around again once almost everybody is in the room. “Are any of you bound by work schedules? If we need to, we can leave as early as midnight. Otherwise, I can leave our departure to you.” “I’m off work tomorrow, so I can be flexible.” Microchips responds. “So can I.” Adds Wallflower. “Well, let me ask you this: what time would you like to land in Seattle?” “What’s the time difference?” “Uh, counting time zones, add 9 hours. So if we left at midnight, we’d land at about 9 am.” “I don’t know about any of you,” Dr. Fauna chimes in, “but I’d like to not negotiate Seattle rush hour, so can we plan on that?” “Absolutely. That means our window is closed between… 7 and 9 am Pacific?” “Plus or minus an hour.” “Well, I figure it’ll take about an hour to unload and deplane, so we can figure that in.” “There’s no rush. We can leave whenever you like.” “Max,” Fluttershy then chimes in, “do you have a preference for departure?” “In any case, I’ll get a sunrise either way. Unless you want to leave at like 8 am. Red eye or early morning, doesn’t really matter.” “But do you have a preference?” “If I had to choose? Probably late red eyes, meaning departure between 11 and 2, depending on the local time at my destination.” “Anyone wanna leave at midnight then?” Fluttershy asks. “If you’re comfortable sleeping on the plane, we can head for the airport right now.” With no objections, we pack up all our things and head for Lihue Airport. Not Just ShyThanks to everybody helping out, we get loaded with an hour to play with. I use the time to zone in and take one last look at weather models. With ground power plugged in, I start my preflight inspection by checking all the lights. Microchips takes a liking to the cockpit and asks if he can sit in the right seat. I approve as long he doesn’t touch anything for obvious reasons. When my exterior check is done, I check to make sure everyone is settled before I make my final prep for departure. The area is cleared, the stairs are retracted, and the boarding door is closed. With no one making any additional efforts other than getting comfortable in the first class seats, I get on the horn and say, “Alright, I know all of you want to head straight to sleep, and from all the island hopping you may know the safety features of this aircraft inside and out, but I am required by law to brief you every time, so please do direct your attention to the monitors for the following demonstration.” Once I queue the video, I prep the cockpit for startup and clear the area again. When the video finishes, I get back on the horn and finish my spiel with, “We’re expecting about 5 hours and 35 minutes enroute to Seattle. Weather in the Emerald City is expected to be about 57° with calm winds and a marine layer when we land. Expected high is gonna be about 71° and there’s a good chance for some sun later in the day. Once again, 5 hours 35 minutes, thanks for choosing to fly with me, welcome aboard.” With that, I turn off the cabin lights and Initiate engine start procedure. 2 alight and stable. Let’s move up the ramp so we can avoid blasting things. “Līhu’e traffic, Mālama ‘Āina 1, out of Sunshine, taxiing SE, correction, SW on A to runway 3, Līhu’e.” “Lihue Airport, Lihue, HI. Automated weather observation: 1012Z. Wind 020 at 13. Visibility 10. Sky condition few 4,200, few 6,800, scattered 7,200, few 9,200. Temperature 23 Celsius. Dewpoint 19 Celsius. Altimeter 29.91. Remarks: density altitude 1,200.” Taxi checklist/run up checklist. Combined to avoid jet blast on the ramp. Lights: beacon, nav, taxi on. Flight controls: free and correct: rudder, elevators, ailerons, spoilers all check. Flaps, set to 3. Trim, set for takeoff. FMS: programmed, will get clearance from HCF. Taxi and run-up checklists complete. When I reach the hold-short for runway 3, I announce, “Līhu’e traffic, Mālama ‘Āina 1, short of runway 3, awaiting IFR clearance.” “Honolulu Center, Mālama ‘Āina 1, IFR to Seattle-Tacoma.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, cleared to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport via Direct FRAKR, Direct ZIGIE, A331, ZAGER, A331, SEDAR, then as filed. Cross FRAKR at or below 10,000. Departure frequency will be 126.5, squawk 0126. Clearance void 30 minutes from now.” “Cleared to SeaTac via direct FRAKR, Direct ZIGIE, A331, ZAGER, A331, SEDAR, LATAY, HAWKZ Seven Arrival. Cross FRAKR at or below 10,000. Honolulu Center 126.5, squawk 0126, void in 30 minutes, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, readback correct.” “Talk to you soon!” Since we’re stopped, I decide to check on all of our passengers. A quick peek and walk up the first class cabin, I close the curtain, and head back. A runway check and review of the departure procedure precedes my last call on frequency, “Līhu’e traffic, Mālama ‘Āina 1, departing runway 3 to Seattle. Aloha ahiahi.” Short field procedure. Hug the edge of the runway to maximize all 6,500’. Brakes set. Throttles spool up. Temps, pressures check. Advance to takeoff power. Throttles set, release brakes, rolling. 80 knots. V1 Rotate. V2 Positive rate, gear up. 500 feet, heading 125. Autopilot engage. Flaps up. “Honolulu, Mālama ‘Āina 1, off Līhu’e, 2,800 climbing 10,000, turning heading 125.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Honolulu Departure. Radar contact 3 miles East Lihue airport. Proceed direct ZIGIE, climb and maintain 10,000.” “Position checks, direct ZIGIE, 10,000, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” As the FMS controls the autopilot, I monitor the airplane as we climb up to our cruising altitude of FL350. When we reach cruising, I check my watch against the airplane’s GPS clock. Not that there’s a discrepancy, but the wrist device does a local time conversion without the extra brainwork. That said, that point is completely invalidated even with the advent of onboard WiFi that can work over water. At our halfway reporting point, I finally break and head for the lavatory. I turn up the radio in case we get paged. Hoping we don’t, I take care of business and head back to the cockpit just as a ping from SELCAL comes in. “Oakland, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” I page as I readjust the volume. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Oakland. Just wanted to let you know that you’re the only one traveling on A331 at this time. Weather reports would be appreciated.” “Roger, right now, at 5 miles east of ZAGER, negligible turbulence, inflight visibility greater than 50 miles, no clouds within a 15 NM radius. Temperature at altitude, Flight Level 350, minus 40. Remarks: perfectly moonlight ocean night.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger.” A few minutes later, I head for the galley to grab a drink. Finding the lights, I switch them to the lowest setting, which adjusts the mood lighting from purple to a mellow but still deep and bold blue, pretty much matching the shirts of the cabin crew of the airline this plane used to fly for. On the ceiling, bold fiery orange mood lighting very obviously meant to emulate lava slowly comes to life, and to my surprise not able to wake our sleeping pax. I grab a can of Diet Coke since I can’t be bothered to find anything else, and just as I return to the cockpit, I receive a message on my LinkedIn. Hello Mr. Scimitar, My name is Torque Wrench. I am a mechanic who is currently pursuing her Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) certification. The reason for my inquiry is because of Ms. Applejack recommending me to you. Attached is my resume along with a letter of recommendation from my previous employer. Thank you for your time. Sincerely, Torque Wrench C: (xxx) xxx-xxxx E: Torque.Wrench@TownOfHopeHollow.net “A recommendation from Applejack? I have a good feeling about this one. Let’s take a look at her résumé.” The more of it I read, the more impressed I get. “I like this girl. I’d love to meet her!” Double checking our distance to our next reporting point, I pull out my iPad and attach my keyboard. Pulling up her LinkedIn message, I type out a reply, Hello Ms. Wrench, Thank you for your message. I have received your resume and eagerly reviewed it throughly. While I appreciate your very impressive resume, may I ask what kind of work you are seeking with me? I understand you are currently pursuing your Airframe/Powerplant certification, but are you inquiring about working on my automobiles, airplanes, or both? I am very impressed with your resume, please don’t misunderstand me, and I would be honored to meet you and conduct an interview. However, I would just like some clarification on what kind of mechanic work it is you seek. Please send me your schedule and we can work from there. Thank you very much, I look forward to meeting with you. Sincerely, Split Scimitar “Max” ATP - AMEL Commercial/Instrument - ASEL Complex, Tailwheel, High Performance, High Altitude Aerobatics - Advanced Complete list of type ratings available upon request. I tune Seattle’s ATIS in COM2, since at this time of year, I can expect some morning fog as I mentioned earlier. Of course, I’m not gonna be able to tell until I get closer to the coast, but I can’t assume anything. “Oakland, Mālama ‘Āina 1, position report.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Oakland, go ahead.” “Oakland, Mālama ‘Āina 1, reporting SEDAR. Next report LATAY in 20 minutes.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger.” When I finish the Diet Coke, I quickly head to the galley to dispose of it, and just as I emerge from the cockpit door, a figure is standing up at the back of the first class cabin. I take my last sip and pause in front of the cockpit door. Just as I reach for the cabin lights, the airplane encounters a small pocket of unstable air, which sends my hand straight to the cabin lights switch. Glad it’s mood lighting and not actual blinders, I quickly flip the switch back, but in the brief time the lights illuminate, they reveal Fluttershy staring at me with a very unusual look on her face. Not really thinking much of it, I toss my empty can, spiffy up the clothes I’m wearing, and return to the cockpit. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, contact Seattle Center now on 125.6.” “Over to Seattle, thanks for the help, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “My pleasure.” “Seattle Center, Mālama ‘Āina 1 level at FL350.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Seattle Center, Good morning. Possible radar return 4 to 6 miles southwest of point KS06A. Coordinates 46 degrees North, 125 degrees West.” “Standby, looks like… yes, it is us. Position checks, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger. Descend via the HAWKZ Seven Arrival landing north, expect ILS RWY 34C CAT II.” “HAWKZ Seven north flow, expect ILS 34C CAT II, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” As the FMS automatically changes the autopilot bugs in accordance with the arrival procedure, I brief the arrival anyway. “HAWKZ Seven Arrival into Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, LATAY transition, landing 34C. From LATAY, track 059° to AAYRR, MEA 12,000, then track 062° to HAWKZ, MEA 10,000. Cross HAWKZ at or above 12,000 at 270 knots. From HAWKZ, track 023° to LIINE, then track 027° to FOOTT between 10,000 and 12,000 at 250 knots. From FOOTT, track 030° to GOALZ at or above 8,000, then track 032° to SONDR, cross at 6,000 and 230 knots. Arrival brief complete.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, contact Seattle Approach on 133.65.” “33.65, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Seattle Approach, Mālama ‘Āina 1, HAWKZ Seven.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Seattle Approach, 9 miles from SONDR. Continue on the HAWKZ Seven, passing SONDR, cleared ILS RWY 34C CAT II Approach. Maintain 6,000 until established.” “HAWKZ Seven to SONDR, then cleared ILS 34C CAT II, 6,000 until established, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” Below 230 knots, set flaps 1. “Approach brief. ILS RWY 34C CAT II into Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Primary navaid I-TUC Localizer on 111.7, received and verified by our equipment. Approach course inbound 344°, 9,426’ of runway available, touchdown zone elevation 387, airport elevation 432. SONDR transition: from SONDR at 6,000, intercept the localizer and expect a glide slope interception with it to LORIE, 14.2 DME on the localizer, cross at 5,000, then follow localizer to ODBOE, 11.1 LOC DME, cross at 4,000, thence to TIFYS, 6.1 DME, cross at 2,400, our glideslope intercept. If at any point prior to TIFYS, we receive the glideslope, follow glideslope to ILS SA CAT II minima of 487’ and 1200 RVR. If we pass TIFYS without interception, go missed. As this a CAT II Approach, if we cannot verify that we have touched down on runway 34C within the first 900 feet, go missed. Missed approach procedure: climb heading 345 along Seattle radial 341 to COYLA, 4.7 DME from the Seattle VOR at or above 3,000, then continue heading 345 along Seattle Radial 341 to 5,000 direct MGNUM and hold, 12.7 DME from Seattle, at the intersection of 12.7 DME from Seattle along radial 341 and Paine (PAE) radial 164. Approach brief complete.” “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, information Kilo. 1605Z. Wind 020 at 4. Visibility minus 1/4. RVR runway 34R 1,000 feet. Fog. Sky condition overcast 100. Temperature 3, dewpoint 1. Altimeter 29.71. ILS Runway 34C And ILS Runway 34R in use. Landing and departing runway 34C and runway 34R. Notices to Airmen: runway 16R/34L closed. Taxiway T closed. Various cranes lighted and flagged in various quadrants. Advisory: all aircraft departing from general aviation parking expect holds on the ramp due to arriving traffic. All VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. Read back all runway hold short instructions. Advise on initial contact you have information Kilo.” “Seattle Approach, Mālama ‘Āina 1 has information K.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger. You’re currently number 4 for runway 34C. Reduce speed to 170 knots.” “170, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” Below 210 knots, set flaps 2. “Seattle Approach, Southwest 3534, gone missed.” “Southwest 3534, roger, fly the published missed.” “Published missed, Southwest 3534.” “And Southwest 3534, I have a specific request from tower. You ready to copy?” “Affirm, 3534.” “Southwest 3534, upon reaching the hold at MGNUM, can you do a continuous climb in hold to determine the top of the fog layer?” “We can do that, Southwest 3534.” “Southwest 3534, thank you. I appreciate that.” “No problem!” “Horizon 2250, contact Seattle tower now, 119.9.” “19.9, Horizon 2250.” “Delta 1587, maintain 170 knots.” “170, Delta 1587.” Below 200 knots, set flaps 3. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, passing SONDR, contact Seattle tower, 119.9.” “Tower at SONDR, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” With a few minutes before we reach SONDR, I tune the ATIS again. “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport information Kilo…” “Perfect, no changes.” “Seattle Tower, Mālama ‘Āina 1, K, 2 miles from SONDR, ILS 34C CAT II.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Seattle tower. Are you fully established?” “Affirm, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger. Runway 34C, number 2 behind a Delta 737, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land 34C, number 2, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Horizon 2250, exit at H, cross runway 34R no delay, B, where are you parking?” “H, cross 34R, parking at… C16.” “Roger, Horizon 2250, H B, ground .7.” “H B, contact ground, Horizon 2250.” 1000. 200. Runway lights and ALS in sight, continue on the approach. 100. Minimums! Minimums! Continue. 50. 40. 30. 20. 10. Touchdown. Shy of the thousand-foot markers. 34C verified. Spoilers up, brakes on, 2 in reverse. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, exit at F, hold short of runway 34R.” “F exit, short of 34R, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “On behalf of your Southern California based flight crew, welcome to Seattle. The local time is 9:02 am, with weather 40 degrees, fog, and very slight southerly winds. Please wait until we have come to a complete stop and the seat belt sign has been turned off. Baggage can be claimed planeside at the bottom of the exit door. Please wait until the all-clear has been given before claiming your baggage and please do not attempt to claim your bags before the all-clear has been given. As this is the termination of our flight, please do ensure you have all personal belongings with you. Certainly has been a pleasure serving you this past week, and we hope to see you again on a future flight. Thank you for choosing us for your travel needs, welcome to Seattle.” Stop at the marked hold short for 34R, short of taxiway E. After landing checklist. -Flaps, spoilers: retract. -Strobes, landing, pulse lights: off. -Transponder: Squawk VFR: 1200. -Taxi instructions: F, short of runway 34R, hold short is short of E. We’ll expect a crossing of 34R, then E to B, all the way down to Q, then cross 34R again and taxi to Signature. After landing checklist complete. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, cross runway 34R, E B Q, hold short runway 34R. Ground .7 on B.” “Cross 34R, E B Q short of 34R, ground on B, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” Merge onto taxiway E, all lights on crossing the runway, then lights in accordance with the after landing checklist. Right B, join the lineup for runway 34R. “This fog is so thick, the reported RVR seems generous.” “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, information Lima. 1652Z. Wind 010 at 5, visibility 1/4. Fog. Sky condition overcast 100. Temperature 4, dewpoint 1, altimeter 29.72. ILS Runway 34C and Runway 34R in use. Landing and departing runway 34C and runway 34R. Notices to Airmen: runway 16R/34L closed. Taxiway T closed. Various cranes lighted and flagged in various quadrants. Advisory: all aircraft departing from general aviation parking expect holds on the ramp due to arriving traffic. All VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. Read back all runway hold short instructions. Advise on initial contact you have information Lima.” “Hawaiian 21 Heavy, Seattle tower. Visibility 1/4, no reported RVR. Can you depart under these conditions?” “Standby, Hawaiian 21 Heavy.” “Seattle Ground, Mālama ‘Āina 1 on B short of G, to Signature.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Seattle Ground.“ A few moments later, the beauty of a Hawaiian A330 roars past us. I, though secretly breath-taken, let out a “whoo!” When the wake dissipates and I try and peek ahead at the next departure, I breathe a sigh of relief as the fog starts to lift, or at least, around the runways. There are now 6 aircraft ahead in the queue plus the line up and wait. Three of them are past Q, so hopefully I can sneak behind them. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, cross runway 34R behind the departing traffic, hold short runway 34C, arriving traffic.” “Cross 34R at Q, short of 34C, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” Lights on across 34R, then off in accordance with the taxi checklist short of 34C. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, cross runway 34C, Q to Signature.” “Cross 34C to Signature, Mālama ‘Āina 1, thanks for the help!” “You’re welcome! Great day!” Parked. Seatbelt sign off. Shut down. Ground power on the way. Disarm door, air stairs on the way. Once set against the door, I give the all clear to deplane then head to the back to get the cars and bags. One Q5 out, parked next to the stairs. All bags claimed, switcheroo. Rinse and repeat, all bags claimed. No discrepancies. All passengers can go home happy. “How long will you be here?” The lineman asks. “Probably about an hour or so.” “Do you need fuel?” “Yeah. 3,000 gallons. 1.5 a side.” “Got it!” “Thank you!” After I head in and pay all my fees excluding the fuel, I grab a quick drink and find Fluttershy waiting for me in the lounge. “Fluttershy? You don’t have to wait for me. I’m heading home once I’m done here.” “Oh, that’s okay. I’m waiting for a call, and I’d rather take it here.” “Oh, okay.” “Umm, Max. Thank you so much for doing this for us.” “You’re very welcome. It’s been a real pleasure.” I say extending my hand. Fluttershy however, sees my hand and shakes it, but immediately pulls me into a hug. “Thank you!” She whispers as I return the embrace. “Glad I could be of help.” I say as I relax, almost nervous to sink my head onto hers. Oddly though, when I prepare to let go, she doesn’t. I loosen my grip and see if she’ll follow, but still nothing. “You’re like a pillow, Max.” Completely broadsided by her comment, I retract in shock, which causes her to let go. “Oh, I’m sorry.” She blushes. “I didn’t mean it like that.” “No, no,” I insist, “it’s fine. It’s just been a long time since I’ve been called a pillow.” “If that was offensive, I’m so sorry I said it!” “Don’t even trip. The last person to call me a pillow was my sister. And that was when I was in middle school.” “Aww!” She smiles brightly. “Well, you are.” “Thank you, I appreciate that.” “Oh, that’s my call!” She says just as her phone vibrates in her pocket. “Aight Imma head out.” “Come back soon! I’d love to do a weekend together or something.” She shouts before she returns to her call. “I’d love that.” I call back as I head for the front desk to check out.
No One To See, No One To Hear*text* “Hi Max, this is Fluttershy. Um, I hope it isn’t too much trouble, but I have something to ask you.” “Hi Fluttershy,” I respond, “nice to talk to you. How can I be of help?” “Hi Max. Um, I have a group that heard about your services, and I was wondering if we could fly with you, if that’s okay?” “Absolutely! Please send me trip info.” “Ok. I will get that to you as soon as I can. Thank you so much!” “You’re welcome! I look forward to working with you.” Today is a day I tend to dread but one that has to be done. I hate taking my weight and blood pressure because of excessive fat shaming that never really left. Here’s the moment of truth. “Weight: 148.” Not bad. Only a few more than listed on my pilot certificate and medical, which indicate 142; and more than on my drivers license, which indicates 135. Now onto the number I truly dread. “138/75.” “Ugh. My systolic is still high AF. At least it’s not as high as it used to be.” A few minutes later, I take a good look at my garage. With an expedition that will surely involve some trekking, I pull some off-roaders out of my garage. I could send a Wrangler squad, but they’re studying birds, bees and flowers, not reptiles. Unfortunately, the same logic also applies to sending a G-Class platoon. Just in case they advance book, I ask, “Hi Fluttershy, just curious, do you have any vehicle rentals covered? I can provide them if you’d like.” Today, I make a run to the grocery store after cleaning out the fridge of expired food, leftovers forgotten, and some regrettable impulse buys resultant of grocery shopping on an empty stomach. 20 minutes after restocking my fridge, I pour myself a drink before settling in for a nice dinner of ice soup. Just after 19:10, I finish dinner and start both the dishwasher and the washing machine. As I finish my daily gallon of water (it’s a desert thing), I start laundry and hope for a reply soon. I imagine she’s already asleep, so let’s hope I get a response before they need to leave in order to meet the minimum 4 hours notice. Early the next morning, I wake up to find another text from Fluttershy, received at about 1 am. “Hi Max, my group needs shuttling from Seattle to the four major Hawaiian islands: Oahu, Maui, Kauai, and Hawaii. Also, my parents would like to join us across the ocean. They will be on vacation, but I’m not sure which island.” “I can do that! When is your estimated departure date?” “Next week, probably Friday, the 23rd.” “Sounds good. Please keep me updated on any changes to the itinerary. Also, please ask if you will be renting vehicles or I can provide some as well. Thank you.” A few seconds later, a response comes, “We would like to rent vehicles from you, and tentatively, our first island will be the Big Island.” “Will there be any other pickup locations?” “No. All of us will be leaving from Seattle.” “Which airport will be easiest for you?” “Seattle-Tacoma will be fine.” “Okay! Tell your party members not to park at the garage. Your flight will be out of this address: *Signature Flight Support - SEA*” I follow with a second text, “which island will your parents be visiting?” “They haven’t decided yet.” “Okay. How big is your group? So I know how many cars to bring.” “There will be 8 of us exploring.” “Thank you Fluttershy! I look forward to seeing you again!” “Me too! 😊” With a tentative departure date of Friday the 23rd, I have 3 days to get ready. A nice wholesome breakfast of 2 bananas, a mango, and an egg with turkey sausage precede my flight planning. Assuming our first stop is the Big Island, this should be a ~~breezy~~ breeze. As it’s the end of February, this marks Rosalina’s transition to Maui. Since she makes quarterly trips to each office, she spends 4 months on each island overseeing their operations and filling in as a pilot should the need arise: Maui from March-June Kauai from July-October Big Island from November-February “Hey,” I text my wife, “Are you bringing more than your usual? Fluttershy chartered me for the end of the month, and lucky for us, she’s going to the Big Island.” “No. I don’t think I’ll be bringing more than my usual.” “Okay. Well, if you want to, I can stay a while with you. Fluttershy’s charter is for a group of hers. They’re studying the local ecosystems on each island.” “Oh cool.” “See you soon?” “Yes.” With that, I do something a little unorthodox and pack 3 Audi Q5’s for Fluttershy’s Expedition, one of which is for her parents. As for me, I do the playful thing and pack RDKL 5, one of my many Lamborghini Aventador, one of my earlier models of the type. Now it’s onto an airplane. A group of 8, plus Fluttershy’s parents leaves us at 10 tentatively. Not that I’ll have an issue with capacity, but given that we have 4 cars in tow, I need something with range and payload. Well, I’ve got nothing else more to do here, so I guess I can be in Seattle a day early. “Seattle Center, Airbus 202HA level at FL360.” “Airbus 202HA, descend via the HAWKZ Seven arrival, expect hold at KNGDM, WRUSL, or Battle Ground.” “202HA, Roger.” “Arrival brief, HAWKZ Seven into Seattle-Tacoma; Klamath Falls transition. From Klamath Falls (LMT), track 334° at or above FL240 to KNGDM, WRUSL and Battle Ground (BTG). Then track 334° to cross PTERA at or above FL220, then track 336° to KRIEG, then on track 343° to cross HAWKZ at or above 12,000 at 270 knots. Standby for north or south flow. Descend at Mach number until we reach 280 knots, then maintain 280 knots indicated (KIAS) until slowed by the STAR, which would be… HAWKZ’s 270 knot limit.” “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Information Hotel. 2048Z. Wind 100 at 16. Visibility 9. Scattered 4,100, broken 5,500, overcast 11,000. Temperature 8, dewpoint 2, altimeter 30.10. ILS runway 16R and ILS runway 16L in use. Landing and departing runway 16R and runway 16L. Notices to Airmen: numerous cranes unlighted and lighted, flagged and unflagged in various quadrants. Taxiway T closed between C and P. Advisory: all VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. All aircraft read back hold short instructions. Advise controller on initial contact, you have information Hotel.” “Information H copied, south flow into SeaTac. South flow via HAWKZ Seven: from HAWKZ, track 023° to LIINE, then track 022° to PIKEZ between 12,000 and 15,000, cross at 250 knots. Then track 001° to COFAY, then track 351° to BREVE between 10,000 and 11,000, maintain 250 knots. Then track 350° to NETTZ at or above 8,000, cross at 230 knots. Then track 344° to KWEST at or above 7,000, thence to VASHN, cross at 6,000, maintain 210 knots. From VASHN, track 344°, expect radar vectors to the RNAV (RNP), ILS, or visual approach as directed by ATC. Arrival brief complete.” “Airbus N202HA, Seattle Center. Hold as published at Battle Ground, FL220. Report established in the hold.” “Hold as published at Battle Ground, FL220, will report established, 202HA.” As I reprogram the autopilot for the hold, I get a text from Fluttershy. “Hi Max. Um, would you mind coming here a day or two early? I need your help with some things.” “I’m actually on my way to Seattle now!” “Oh, wonderful! Thank you Max!” “Of course, Fluttershy! I’ll text you when I land.” “Okay.” A few minutes later, as I shallowly intercept BTG at 22,000, I have to comply with hold speed limits, which for me is 265 knots. Setting that on autothrottle, I reach Battle Ground just as I receive further instructions. “N202HA, descend in the hold, maintain 10,000.” “Down to 10,000 in the hold, 202HA.” I set the autopilot and monitor for any anomalies. In no time at all, as I complete one circuit in the hold, I report, “Seattle Center, Airbus 202HA established in the hold at Battle Ground, FL182 descending in the hold to 10,000.” “N202HA, Roger. Portland altimeter 29.89. As there is flow into Seattle-Tacoma, can you accept a potential diversion to either Boeing or Paine?” “Affirm, 29.89 at Portland, 202HA.” “N202HA, roger. I’ll add that to your flight plan.” A few minutes later, we reach 10,000, which signals me to start my descent checklist. -Weather: checked. Will check again closer to approach. -Arrival procedure, briefed. -Lights: landing, wing pulse, taxi lights on below 10,000. -Speeds: approach at 145, Vref 140, touchdown at 135. (All speeds 5 knots high in case of windshear or excessive crosswind component.) -Spoilers: armed. Descent checklist complete. “Airbus 202HA, upon reaching 10,000, EFC 10 minutes.” “10 minutes at 10,000, will report established, 202HA.” A few minutes later, as I check on the cabin pressure, I get another text from Fluttershy. “Hi Max, I won’t be home until later tonight. Do you want to have dinner somewhere?” “Um, I’m not sure yet. I’m not hungry right now, and I’m stuck in a hold because of traffic. Hopefully I can get on the ground soon. I’ll let you know.” Right after I send the text, I report, “Seattle, Airbus 202HA level at 10,000.” “Airbus N202HA, roger. Continue on the HAWKZ Seven, thanks for holding.” “Continuing on the HAWKZ Seven, Airbus 202HA.” Set speed 250 or below. “N202HA, contact Seattle Center on 125.6.” “125.6, Airbus 202HA.” “Seattle Center, Airbus N202HA, level at 10,000, HAWKZ Seven.” “N202HA, Seattle Center, Roger. Can you accept the RNAV RNP approach for 16C?” “Affirm, 202HA.” “Airbus N202HA, descend via the HAWKZ Seven to VASHN, cleared RNAV RNP Z runway 16C approach, VASHN transition. Maintain 180 knots or less passing SEGAW.” “HAWKZ Seven to VASHN, 180 or less passing SEGAW, cleared RNAV RNP Z runway 16C approach, Airbus 202HA.” “Approach brief: RNAV RNP Z RWY 16C into Seattle-Tacoma International. Primary navaid WAAS enabled GPS, free of anomalies. Approach track inbound 164°, 9,426’ of runway available. Touchdown zone elevation 430’, airport elevation 433’. VASHN transition: from VASHN, crossing at 210 knots, track 344°, descend and maintain 5,000 to RAYUU, then descending right turn to SEGAW at 3,700, cross at or below 210 knots, but we have a 180 knot speed restriction; then descending right turn to PINTR at 3,200’, continuing the descending right turn to EPUDE at 2,200. From EPUDE, track 164°, if we don’t have a glideslope or glide path, descend and maintain 1,900 to cross SODOE, our final approach fix and glideslope intercept. Thence, follow glideslope to RNP 0.12 DA of 758.’ If, at intersection of glideslope at 758’, the environment or appropriate lighting is in sight, descend to 530’, normal maneuvers and normal descent to land, otherwise go missed. Missed approach procedure, climb to cross ZIVDI at or below 2,000, then track 163° to 5,000 direct MILLT and hold, climbing in the hold as necessary. Approach brief complete.” “Airbus 202HA, contact Seattle approach on 133.65.” “33.65, Airbus 202HA.” “Seattle Approach, Airbus 202HA, HAWKZ Seven to VASHN, RNAV RNP 16C.” “Airbus 202HA, Seattle Approach, Roger.” Below 230 knots, set flaps 1. Approaching VASHN, 210 knots or less. “Airbus 202HA, 1 mile from VASHN, contact Seattle tower now on 119.9.” “Over to Seattle tower, thanks for the help, Airbus 202HA.” “Seattle-Tacoma international Airport, information Juliet. Wind 150 at 12. Visibility 10. Sky clear below 12,000. Temperature 10, dewpoint 1, altimeter 29.90. ILS runway 16L and ILS runway 16C in use. Landing and departing runway 16L and runway 16C. Notices to Airmen: numerous cranes unlighted and lighted, flagged and unflagged in various quadrants. Taxiway T closed between taxiway C and taxiway P. Advisory: all VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. All aircraft read back hold short instructions. Advise controller on initial contact, you have information Juliet.” “Seattle tower, Airbus 202HA, at VASHN, RNAV RNP Z 16C.” Reduce speed to 180. “Airbus 202HA, Seattle tower. Confirm you have Juliet?” “Affirm, 202HA.” Set flaps 2. “N2HA, roger. Number 2 for landing behind an Alaska 737, report them in sight.” “In sight, 2HA.” “N202HA, roger. Caution Airbus A320 landing parallel 16L, number 2, runway 16C, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land 16C, number 2, Airbus 202HA.” Level at 5,000’, to RAYUU, below 210 knots. Passing RAYUU, 180 knots or less to SEGAW at 3,700. At SEGAW, lower landing gear. At PINTR, set flaps 3. Speed now to 160 knots. Vref 140 knots. Crossing EPUDE, set flaps full. “Alaska 1, exit at N, where’re you parking?” “C9.” “Alaska 1, cross runway 16L no delay, Ground .7.” Rolling out of the curved portion of the approach, final descent/before landing checklist. -Landing Gear, down. -Flaps, full. -Speeds: Vref 140 knots, short final 135, touchdown at 128. -Spoilers: armed. -Auto brakes: set to medium. -Nosewheel steering and antiskid switch: on. Final descent/before landing checklist complete. Capturing the glide slope, follow it down to minimums of 758’. 1000. 100. 50. 40. 30. 20. 10. Touchdown. Spoilers up, brakes on. 2 in reverse. 45 knots. Disengage reverse thrust. “N2HA, continue all the way to the end, right Q, ground .7.” “Q exit, ground .7, Airbus 202HA.” “Seattle ground, Airbus 202HA, taxi Signature.” “Airbus 202HA, Seattle ground. Taxi Signature via Q.” “Signature via Q, Airbus 202HA.” A big aircraft in the extremely limited space available, I order fuel and pay a not-unusually exorbitant fee, since I’m overnighting an airliner at SeaTac. Nevertheless, after I back out RDKL 5, I get a ramp pass before calling Fluttershy. “Hello?” “Hi Fluttershy, it’s Max. I just landed, so where can we meet?” “Um, I’m at work right now. Can we meet at 1:00?” “No problem. Just let me know when you’re available.” “Okay.” “Talk soon!” “Bye Max.” “Bye.” Sounds like I’m pretty early, so I head for my house in Mercer Island and unwind slightly. Of course, even though I only added about 20 minutes of flight time, it is still kind of stressful having to adapt to a change in flight plan. Nevertheless, all in a day’s work. About an hour later, after I get my daily walk in via treadmill, I have a drink and head out for a small meal when Fluttershy finally gets back to me. “I’m on my lunch break now, so where would you like to meet me?” “Where do you work?” “I work at the animal shelter in Snoqualmie.” “Snoqualmie city or Pass?” “The city.” “Ok! I’ll meet you at work!” “Okay. There’s a nice Indian place I always go to. Pinkie Pie recommended it when she visited me a while back!” “That sounds really good!“ “Perfect! Here’s my address.” Thanks to CarPlay, I enter it in maps and it immediately syncs, and as soon as I get maps up on display, I give it a loud run through 1st, backfiring through 2nd and 3rd. I-90 gives me no trouble, but once the last of the lanes for Seattle metro traffic close, and the highway becomes two lanes, I settle in with a nice cruise of 72 for the 45 minute drive to Snoqualmie.
Do You Think The Coast Is Clear?“Hi, how can I help you?” The receptionist greets upon my entry. “Is Fluttershy available right now?” “I think so. Can I have your name?” “Max.” “I’ll be right back!” “Thank you!” Not 15 seconds later, the receptionist comes back out and tells me, “She’s taking a phone call right now. She’ll be right out.” “Perfect! Thank you.” “You’re welcome!” As I wait for Fluttershy to show up, I take a look at the lobby, making note of all the pictures that are very obviously meant to promote adoption. I’m surprised the shelter doesn’t have any “adopt, don’t shop” paraphernalia, but I guess it’s not as much of an issue here? “What is wrong with you?! The answer is NO!” Fluttershy shouts into her phone walking through the door before hanging up. “Hi Max.” A few seconds later, she double takes, her face drops, and she lets out a surprised, “oh!” “Hi Fluttershy.” “Change of plan. I now have to run home.” “I’ll go where you need. I don’t have anything else to do.” I respond as I follow her out the front door. “Did you drive here?” “Yeah.” “Come with me to my house. We’ll talk about it.” “Okay.” When I pull in to her driveway behind her, she parks her BMW i3 in the garage and plugs it in. I park right in front of her main entrance and wait for her. “Sorry Max!” She says as she gives me a light hug. “My lunch break is gonna have to be a quick one. I have a report of an abandonment.” “Uh oh. Well, do what you need to do.” “Here then, you drive so I can search.” “Didn’t you just plug in?” “Yes.” “Okay then.” After she hands me the keys, I unplug the car. When I start it, the range indicates 62, so I wait for Fluttershy to climb in before I back out. She hits her home link button to close the garage before she pulls out her phone and makes a call. “Hi Fluttershy.” The receptionist answers. “Hi Paisley, do you have the location of the abandoned animals?” “Yeah. It’s in Bandera, near the airfield.” “Okay, thanks. Hopefully we can get them quickly.” “I hope so. Good luck.” “Thanks. Bye.” “Oh, I hope that whatever animal it is is okay.” She then adds nervously. “Have you by chance had any um, losses?” “Yes.” She responds hesitantly. “I have lost a few when they reach the shelter.” “I’m sorry about that.” “It’s always sad when it happens, but working to prevent them is exactly why I joined this shelter in the first place.” “Mad respect to you. Do you work with local vets?” “Yes, since we recommend them especially when one does get adopted.” “How many animals do you euthanize a month?” “Actually, I’m proud to say that in our entire history, we’ve only euthanized 2.” “Wow. That’s pretty incredible.” “I’m very glad we have a good adoption record.” After a few minutes of exploring the town, I make out a disused gravel strip that looks like it could’ve been an airfield. A few minutes later, after examining the area, I decide to get out and explore on foot. After securing the car, I trek onto the gravel strip and check around some bushes and grass. Not too long after, I spot a truck sporting a familiar green and white along with a uniformed animal control officer. “You looking for an abandoned animal? I just found them. A puppy and a kitten.” “I got the same call down at the local shelter. A friend and I have been looking too.” “Alrighty. Let’s get them back.” The officer responds just as Fluttershy catches up. “Found them. A dog and a cat.” I tell her. “Let’s get to the shelter.” When the two of us return to the car, the officer meets us and heads back to the shelter, us following close behind. Fluttershy, nervous as she should be, slightly trembles as we reach the shelter. She then takes the kitten in her arms, while the puppy is at least breathing stably but still very tired. “How are they?” “Well, the poor puppy is on the last of its adrenaline. Miss Kitty is still trembling; she’s really cold.” “Kind of surprising, since it wasn’t that cold out today.” “No, but who knows how long they’ve been out there. The past few nights have been pretty frigid.” “True.” Deciding to pick up the puppy and resting it in my lap, I sit down next to Fluttershy and gently pet the poor thing. “I hope they make it.” She says nervously. “I think they will. There were no signs of injury or abuse.” “That’s good. I just can’t understand who would want to just dump them on the side of the road like that. We weren’t that far away. We could’ve taken them in.” “Your guess is as good as mine.” She sighs in response, “I’m so glad we found them when we did. No animal deserves to go through that kind of thing, at any level.” “I’m with you on that.” When the kitten finally stops shivering, I say, “She stopped shivering. That’s a good sign.” “Mhm.” She responds excitedly brushing her fur back so she can get a look at her muzzle. A few moments later, Paisley comes back and checks on us. With her are a couple of volunteers who ask if they can hold the rescues. I happily hand the dog over to one of the volunteers, telling them “it’s passed out. Been running on adrenaline for quite a while.” “Aww.” They respond. After Fluttershy hands the cat over, she heads for the washbasin and has me wash my hands too. “So, what do you do now?” “Well, we have to check and see if they have any diseases, so once they readjust, we’ll take them to the vet.” “Where’s the closest one?” “There’s one near my house. Hopefully they’ll readjust easily.” “Yeah. I’ll be right back. Gotta go to the bathroom.” When I return, Fluttershy is already combing them over to see if they have any records. The cat though seems to take a particular interest in me. After it comes over to sniff me out, I offer my hand. After a few inhalations, she rubs herself up against me, and I decide to pet her, responding with initial skepticism, but eventually, she comes to accept me and lets me hold her, though she fidgets around until she gets comfortable. The dog is equally attentive, and somewhat excited to interact with Fluttershy. “So?” I ask as the cat admires its position sitting in my arms. “They both look healthy, and from the looks of things, they don’t have any records, which is surprising. Let’s take them to the vet.” “Alright.” I respond as I head for the main door. When I push the main door open, “Miss Kitty” jumps out of my arms. However, she stays at my side and waits for me. As Fluttershy follows behind with the dog, one of the volunteers then calls her and asks if he can tag along. “Paisley, who’s coming in next?” “The volunteer schedule is open. We’ll be the only ones here for some time.” “Okay. Well, you know the drill.” “Yes I do. See you later!” “Bye, Paisley.” She says as I open the door, Miss Kitty prancing straight for Fluttershy’s car. When I open the doors, our volunteer climbs into the back seat. Fluttershy then gets seated with the dog. When I get seated, Miss Kitty, previously sitting on the dash, right in my driving view, then climbs down and sits in my lap before I can put my belt on. “Okay then?” I chuckle as both passengers laugh. “I can’t move until my seatbelt is on, Miss Kitty.” No movement, so I belt up as best I can, trying not to pinch or pin her in any way. Nevertheless, once the car is started, Fluttershy programs the sat nav for me. “Thank you.” I tell her as I put the car in gear. After a few twists and turns navigating around, we pass Fluttershy’s house on the way to the vet. When I park the car and open the door, Miss Kitty jumps out and starts prancing towards the entrance. “Hi Fluttershy.” The receptionist greets. “Hi Catherine. I’ve got two here with no records, so I’ll need to make sure they get in the system.” “Let me see if Dr. Fauna is available.” After she leaves, Miss Kitty walks over to our other volunteer and taps his leg, meowing. He then crouches down and pets her, eventually picking her up after she paws at him. The doctor then emerges from the main door, greeting Fluttershy and examining our two rescues. We then follow her back to her exam room and she begins with the dog. Miss Kitty then grooms herself as I watch. Inspecting it for a microchip, she finds none and does what I assume are her usual inspections of eyes, ears, mouth, and fur. “Well, no chip, but he’s surprisingly healthy. Any idea how long they were left in the open?” “No idea on either one.” I respond. “Animal control said they were lying next to a stop sign.” “Well, they ought to have a bath and groomed. I didn’t spot any fleas or ticks, but a deep comb is still in order.” “That’s great news.” Fluttershy responds. “Once we get them set up, let’s hope that we can find them a good home.” She then says to me. “Absolutely.” Plagued with another stomachache, I head for the bathroom as she begins the chipping process. When I get back, a new set of immunization records are prepared and presented to me to hold before she repeats the process with Miss Kitty. “Alright,” I whisper, “you’re one step closer to a new home!” Fluttershy then interacts with the dog while I watch Miss Kitty get chipped. “What could we call her?” I ask in regards to the dog. In response, she barks excitedly. I chuckle at myself and decide on “Princess.” “Alright, both animals are chipped and have records available. Let me just print the immunization cards off for the records of you and the future owners. Be right back!” When she leaves, I decide to play with Princess. To my complete non-surprise, I pet her a few times but she immediately leaves me to play with Fluttershy and Miss Kitty. 20 minutes later, both animals are officially recognized and ready to head to the shelter. Quickly and easily, we return to the shelter and put their records on file. Paisley then clocks out and wishes us well before leaving for the evening. Though there are a few people still here, Fluttershy takes care of them, with a different dog (not Princess) even getting adopted at the end of the day. Normally, the shelter closes at 17:30, but thanks to the extensive adoption process and glee that crosses Fluttershy upon seeing one of her dear animals get adopted, none of us leave until well after 18:00. “I’m sorry things changed so quickly.” Fluttershy says after I plug her car in back at home. “All Good. I’m just happy that Princess and Miss Kitty are in good hands.” “Me too.” “It’s nice to see you working somewhere that matches your values almost to a T.” “Yes indeed.” “Let’s hope we have similar luck and/or success for this upcoming trip of yours.” “Me too. Thank you so much for taking us.” “Absolutely!” “I look forward to this trip, especially my parents.” “That’s nice. Where will they be vacationing?” “I’m not sure, actually. They did say they wanted to go to Hawaii, but they didn’t tell me much else.” “Hmm. Kind of makes me wonder. If they don’t have any reservations, I have houses on every island, but Molokai and Lanai aren’t available, as they’re rented out.” “Okay. Like I said, I don’t know what their plans are. We’ll need to talk.” “No problem. Just so I know where to go after your group gets dropped off in Kona.” “Mhmm. Are you hungry?” “Not really, but now’s as good a time as ever to get or make food.” “Oh, well, um, I have food here, so if you want to cook, we can.” “Eh, well. Better than my idea. Go jump start a heart attack with some barbecue or something.” “Max! Don’t say that!” “Sorry it’s abrasive, but I can’t apologize for being abrasive.” “I know you don’t mean it, but sometimes things like that really scare me.” “I’m aware, which is why I said it. It truly is a miracle you decided to be my friend.” “Max, I wouldn’t not want to be your friend just because you’re abrasive. I’m friends with you because of who you are.” “An abrasive, self-loathing, entitled, first world millennial?” “No! You’re a very kind and generous person who doesn’t hesitate to help his friends whenever possible. You also demonstrate an unparalleled level of compassion and knowledge of situations that most would normally freak out over.” “Shucks, I’m flattered. But you give me too much credit.” “Really? That’s not what Applejack told me when you showed up to help out on the farm. That’s not what Rainbow Dash told me after you hosted the Blue Angels. That’s not what Twilight told me when you took her from Indianapolis to Anchorage. That’s not what Pinkie Pie told me when you came to one of her parties.” “My schedule happened to be open. If I had said no to any of them, I would’ve just been spending those trips waiting for the next one.” “Don’t deny it Max. You have friends who care about you and support you.” “Which speaks volumes about the people I’ve come to know.” “Welcome to the herd! I mean, your new friend group.” “Thanks.” I chuckle. “Now, about dinner.” “I have food. Let’s just cook tonight.” “I have some things at my house too. You want me to get them?” “Where do you live?” “Victorville, California.” “I mean here in Washington, silly!” She laughs. “Mercer.” I respond with playful innocence at her laugh. “Oh, that’s okay. I don’t want you to have to travel all the way over there just to come back again.” “It’s no big deal.” “Okay then, if you want to.” “Be back soon!” I say as I check to make sure my keys are on my person. When I return to her house, I’m met with a decidedly veggie-meat smell permeating my nostrils. I get to the kitchen and sure enough, Fluttershy is preparing Beyond burgers. “I thought I recognized that smell.” I quip as I return with a bottle of sparkling water. After about 20 minutes, she pulls out two buns from her toaster and asks if lettuce and tomato are okay. No problem on my part, I head outside for a quick e-cigarette as Fluttershy finishes prep on our dinner. After I run the stick dry, I return to the kitchen and toss the dead e-cig into her trash bin. Immediately she calls, “Max? It’s ready!” I stick my head across to her dining table and find my plate right across from hers. After I pour a glass of sparkling water, I ask if she wants something to drink. She declines on account of having a glass of OJ for herself. I sit down and dig in as she does, sighing contentedly as Fluttershy also enjoys her burger. We don’t talk at all while eating, so after we finish our meals, I say, “Well, that was very good. Thank you for dinner, Fluttershy!” “Oh, you’re welcome!” She blushes. “Thank you for joining me today.” “I’m glad I could aid in a rescue. I hate to be so abrupt, but before we ate, we were talking about your trip.” “Oh! Yes, yes. Where were we?” “Um, I think it was on what you were doing.” “Okay. Um, I plan on being on each island for at least a few days each. That will depend on how our local docent wants to show us.” “No worries. I trust your company will be kind to my cars. Do you have lodging arrangements?” “Yes.” “Okay. We’re leaving tomorrow, so what time is good for everyone?” “Um, I told them our flight is at 10:00.” “That’s fine. Did you send them the address for Signature Flight Support at SeaTac?” “I’m not sure if anyone has seen it, but I did send it to them.” “Okay. Signature’s parking lot is pretty small, so take that into consideration. Shouldn’t be too much of a problem though. Even so, I imagine I’ll get to meet everyone tomorrow morning.” “Um, yes.” She responds more sort of following along than with certainty. “You, 7 others, plus your parents?” “Yes.” She responds with certainty this time. “Alright then.” “Are you going to get ready for bed?” “Well, yes. But I’m in no hurry. I just left my bag at my house, so I’ll be spending the night in Mercer.” “Oh. Um, that’s okay. I can head to bed early then.” “If you want to turn in early, by all means.” “Okay.” With that, we both rise from the table, I place my plate in the sink, and after giving both a quick rinse, she loads the dishwasher and starts a cycle on a time delay so that she can put them away when she wakes up tomorrow. “Alright.” I say after checking to make sure I have everything, “Thank you again for dinner. I’ll see you tomorrow morning at Signature then?” “Sure.“ “Alright, alright, alright. Good night, Fluttershy.” Sending a beaming smile my way, I head out, tittering as I fire up my car, hoping I don’t scare Fluttershy or anyone else. Gently then, I head out of North Bend and punch it onto I-90, reaching Mercer Island just before the stroke of 21:00.
Where I Set My SightsAn alarm set for 6:45 is beaten by 40 minutes. Into the shower, I spare enough time to review the flight plan before submitting it with plenty of time to spare. KSEA HAROB6.HQM LATAY SEDAR A331 ZEMOM AUNTI BITTA ONOHI.KAYAK6 PHKO In no time at all, I head to SeaTac to preflight. Thankfully, the ground power unit is plugged in, so I don’t have to turn on the APU or wait for someone to plug it in. Exterior lights check, no known anomalies demanding immediate attention or otherwise rendering the aircraft unairworthy. Check all surfaces for ice, insect nests, and the like. No issues there, I eventually put my flashlight away as the slowly rising sun starts to shine on the aircraft. A couple spots of water appear, but I’m not concerned about them, as they’re in areas protected by preventative icing equipment. Control surfaces appear free, since I can’t actually check them by hand like I would with a light GA aircraft. Doors L1, L2, and R1 are open during the inspection, but the latter two are only to air the cabin out. A quick run up the aisle to arm the other doors, ending with L2 and R1’s arming then is my signal to head back into the building. I decide to clean up a little bit by brushing my teeth, rinsing my face, and even bothering with a little bit of mouthwash just to keep from offending. After I head to the front of the building, I wait for my passengers to arrive. As soon as our first passenger, Fluttershy, arrives, I take her bag and back out each SUV so that I can load bags in accordance with travel groups. Two Q5’s should hold bags for four people each, but in hindsight, I should’ve used 4Runners or Tacomas, the latter especially would work nicely, seeing as they’re a Seattle-based group, operating a group of Tacomas, and we’re flying out of SeaTac, Seattle–Tacoma? Anyone, anyone? Just me? Okay. Nevertheless, when Fluttershy places her bag in the boot, we both head to the terminal and wait for the next passengers to show up. The next passengers to arrive actually both show up right behind each other. Fluttershy greets them ahead of me. The first passenger to make his way towards the terminal, at risk of sounding like a bully, does look like someone who was a nerd in his school days, complete with tape on his glasses. “Microchips, this is Max, our pilot.” “Hello.” I respond offering my hand. “Hi there.” Microchips responds with a shake. “Microchips. I am exactly as I look. I’m in charge of data collection for this expedition.” “Welcome! Glad you’re with us.” I add as we walk into the terminal. “I’ll go get Sandalwood.” Fluttershy says, leaving me to escort Microchips onto the ramp. “So, uh… what kind of aircraft are we on?” “We are on an Airbus A321neo.” “Ooh. A quiet ride they are.” “Indeed, and we’re in luck, more or less. This ship flew for Hawaiian. In fact, this is Hawaiian’s first neo.” “Cool!” “Maile? What’s Maile?” “Maile is a vine that is traditionally used in lei making.” “Oh, okay! My buddy Sandalwood would know about that. He actually followed me here. He works with understanding the interactions that make ecosystems ecosystems.” “Oh wow, that’s really cool.” I respond as we reach the parked Q5’s. “Do you care who you ride with?” “Not really.” “Okay. Well, Fluttershy’s baggage is in this car,” I say pointing towards the appropriate car, “so if you wanted to ride with her, I could just put yours in, see?” “Sure. Um, I’ll go ahead and start the other car then. I’m sure Sandalwood and I will at least want to ride together.” “No problem.” I say loading his bag onboard and following him up the air stair. “Open seating, please sit anywhere. Fluttershy hasn’t marked her territory yet, so you’re the first one on.” “Thank you.” “I’ll be back soon.” I say as I head back to the terminal to receive the other passenger. “Whoa dude!” A very hippieish man greets me, “smooth stripes, man!” In reference to the uniform I’m wearing. “Split Scimitar, but I just go by Max.” “Rad! I’m Sandalwood.” “Pleasure. I hear you’re one of our ecosystem specialists.” “I am. I’ve always been interested in how plants and animals react together as part of the big picture. Gotta understand nature to be one with nature, ya feel me?” “I feel ya! Is this all your baggage?” I ask pointing towards his single suitcase, the smallest of the 3 I’ve seen today. “It is. I pride myself on packing light.” “Same here.” “Well, I also do plan on picking up some souvenir t-shirts.” “Very nice.” I say as we head onto the ramp. “Before I show you aboard, can I assume you want to ride with Microchips?” “Yeah, dude. Gotta journey with my best bud!” “No problem. Do you want to ride with Fluttershy?” “Sure.” “Alrighty then, that puts 3 of 4 in one car.” I say as I play a little bit of Tetris, glad his suitcase is smaller than the others. By the time I reach Sandalwood in the cabin, he’s already seated next to Microchips. Checking in with a thumbs-up, I head back to the terminal and find Fluttershy talking with two others. “Good morning!” I greet the three of them with a chipper tone. “Hi Max,” Fluttershy answers for the three of us. “Sorry, we were just catching up.” “No worries. Our target departure is 10:00.” “Max, meet Rose Heart and Roseluck.” Roseluck speaks first. “Hi. Roseluck. I’m a florist.” Rose Heart then responds in kind, “Hi. Rose Heart. I’m not a florist.” Surprised by their copycat responses, I feign shock, which makes all three of them laugh. “I love flora.” Roseluck adds. “Arrangements are my specialty.” ”Nice. I love airplanes. Airliners are my specialty.” “I also like flora, but tulips are more my thing.” Rose Heart says. “Really?” “Yes, they’re more colorful.” “Sure. I can understand that.” “Can we board?” Roseluck then asks. “Absolutely! I’m in no rush, since we have plenty of time before our target.” “Let’s go then!” Rose Heart responds as I take the two of them airside. “Alright, you two are set here.” I say after loading their suitcases. “Follow me onboard.” When all three of us get into the cabin, I say, “welcome aboard. Open seating here, please find a seat and get comfortable, we’ll be on our way shortly.” Just as I walk in, Fluttershy points three more passengers in my direction. “Hello.” I cordially greet them, “I’m Split Scimitar, but I just go by Max.” “Hi there! I’m Dr. Fauna. I serve as Fluttershy’s plant-based counterpart.” “Are you vegetarian?” “No, I’m not. Why ask?” “I was just wondering if your diet was entirely plant based.” “Oh! Ha ha ha.” She chuckles lightly, seeming to appreciate the joke. The next person to speak up is one “Wallflower Blush,” the leader of the plant squad. Following her is a friend of the group’s, Derpy, or Muffins, who is here to offer any help she can. Leaving only Mr. and Mrs. Shy, I show the three of them to the ramp and head back to the terminal to get our last passengers. Fluttershy is waiting impatiently for the last passengers, introducing me to her parents, Mrs. Posey Shy and Mr. Nimbus Breeze, before she calls our last passenger, even though we have eight of us here already. “Was an extra passenger invited?” I ask. Blushing profusely, she admits, “yes, I did. Sorry.” “No problem at all. I was just curious. Who is the technical extra?” “Rose Heart. She’s not joining us, but Roseluck wanted her to come with us.” “Why didn’t you tell me?” “Sorry! She was just a last-minute addition.” “All good, no trouble. She just has to remember she has to find her way home, unless she is traveling home with us.” “I don’t think so.” “I guess we’ll have to ask.” As I walk Fluttershy’s parents to the plane, I take their bags and make some small talk, “How are we doing today?” “Not bad.” Mrs. Shy responds. “I’m just so happy we can travel to Hawaii with Fluttershy.” “Are you part of their expedition?” “Oh, no, no. I mean we get to travel together.” “Oh! Sure. I’m glad to be able to take you.’” “Now, Max, sir,” Mr. Shy prods, “what are we flying?” “We are on an Airbus A321neo.” “Very nice.” “I used to fly on the P-8 Poseidon with NOAA.” “You were a hurricane hunter?” “Indeed I was.” “Wow! Impressive. If I had known, I would’ve used one for this trip. Could even do a two-crew leg if you wanted to.” “Oh, that’s alright. I was a weather specialist. I didn’t do any actual flying.” “Oh, well, even so, it may have been a nice trip down memory lane.” “Maybe, but if you wanted to do that, you’d need to outfit with all matter of weather radar and equipment.” “Fair enough.” I laugh. “This is your provided rental car, an Audi SQ5. I hope you’ll enjoy it. Oh, and on which island or islands will you be vacationing?” “We’ll just move around with them.” Mrs. Shy responds. “I want to spend some time on each island.” “Okay! No worries.” I say as I close their boot and lead them to the stairs. Once in the cabin, I make sure they get seated before I say, “welcome aboard, please do get comfortable. We’re just waiting on one more, and we’ll be underway.” Last but certainly not least is Tree Hugger, our other ecosystem and animal behavior specialist, working alongside Sandalwood in the former, and focusing more on the latter. She’s not much of a conversationalist, per Fluttershy, so after I bring them airside, I ask to unplug ground power, load up, turn on the APU, and get the aircraft running under its own power. After I retract the air stair, I close the main door, lock and arm all 8 exits, and since everyone is seated in the first class cabin, decide to close the first class curtain. “Alright,” I begin on the horn, “all doors locked, armed and checked, ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard this morning’s flight. Heading down to Kailua-Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii, approximately 5 hours, 55 minutes en route. Weather in Kona is pretty warm, with a temperature of 79°, expected to reach 83°. Winds are looking rather traditional with a slightly northeasterly flow. Overall, a pretty good day down there. Please direct your attention to the monitors in front of you for an important demonstration of the safety features of this Airbus A321neo aircraft.” After I let the video play, I check all the cockpit instrumentation and check for any anomalies. None so far, and everything is normal, with an OAT of only 16°. “If there are any questions, please direct them to me. All drinks are located in the forward galley. Once again, 5 hours 55 minutes to Kailua-Kona, so please sit back, relax, and enjoy this morning’s flight. Welcome aboard.” On Signature’s Unicom, I get a page. “N202HA, how do you read?” “N202HA, loud and clear.” “N202HA, advise when ready. I’ll call your startup.” “Go ahead and tow us. All seated.” “Roger.” The tug then pushes us back with the assistance of a wing walker. I check over my left while the wing walker checks the right. We’re probably mated for no less than a minute before they disconnect. “Startup your discretion.” “Roger, thanks for the help today, N202HA.” “No problem, have a great flight!” CPDLC: KUSA. LOGON TO: KSEA. TAIL NO: N202HA LOGON: SENDING… ~~ LOGON: ACCEPTED ATC COMM ESTABLISHED ACT CTR: KSEA >ATC INDEX >>CLEARANCE Request >SEND SENDING… Status: OPEN… ~~ Status: RESPONSE RCVD. Request clearance. -Response 1752Z- Display: <UPLINK Cleared Route Clearance: Free Text: HAROB6.HQM. Free Text: CLIMB VIA SID. Free Text: CROSS HAROB AT OR ABV 12,000, DPFRQ 120.400. Free Text: SQUAWK 5751 CONTACT GRND WITH ATIS. “Oh great.” I mumble to myself. “I have to look at the entire route.” LOAD> MOD RTE ORIG: KSEA DEST: PHKO CO ROUTE: - TAIL NO: N202HA RUNWAY: - VIA/TO: DIRECT/HQM DIRECT/LATAY DIRECT/SEDAR A331/ZANNG A331/ZAGER A331/ZINNO A331/ZEMOM DIRECT/AUNTI DIRECT/BITTA DIRECT/ONOHI ONOHI.VECKI9/PHKO Accept SEND> DEP/ARR INDEX <DEP HAROB6 Sids: HAROB6<SEL> Trans: HQM<SEL> Runway: <SEL>16L <EXEC> Initiate engine start procedure. 2 alight and stable. Set flaps 2 for takeoff. “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, information Lima. 1754Z. Wind 160 at 13. Visibility 10. Sky condition: few 4,000, overcast 5,400, scattered 8,000. Temperature 3, dew point 1. Altimeter 29.91. ILS runway 16L and ILS runway 16C in use. Landing and departing runway 16L and runway 16C. Notices to Airmen: Runway 16R/34L closed. Advisory: numerous cranes lighted and flagged in various quadrants. Flow control in effect. Advise on initial contact, you have information Lima.” “Seattle Ground, Mālama 'Āina 4, Signature, Lima, ready to taxi.” “Mālama ‘Āina 4, Seattle Ground. Runway 16C, taxi via Q, hold short runway 34C.” “Q short of 34C, Mālama 'Āina 4.” Using a gentle addition of power, I head for runway 34C, and am just about to put the brakes on, when further instructions arrive. “Mālama 'Āina 4, can you accept a back-taxi on runway 34C?” “Affirm, Mālama 'Āina 4.” “Roger, Mālama 'Āina 4, cleared onto runway 34C, exit at… D.” “Cleared onto runway 34C, D exit, Mālama 'Āina 4.” All lights on and ready to hustle across the active runway, I line up, check centerline, and do a fast taxi across the runway. “Southwest 4224, behind the SkyWest Embraer, runway 16L, taxi via B.” “16L, B, behind Alaska SkyWest, 4224. To the Hawaiian on 34C, Rotate!” “What does “Mālama 'Āina” mean?” Another voice keys on frequency. “It’s Hawaiian for “take care of the land, and it’ll take care of you.” My clients are part of a group exploring sustainability practices on the Hawaiian islands.” I respond. “Good stuff. Which island?” “Big Island. Kailua-Kona.” “Bravo Zulu. Good luck to your passengers!” “Thank you, appreciate it.” “Mālama 'Āina 4, right D, cleared onto runway 34R, left C, runway 16C, line up and wait.” “Alright, D, cleared onto 34R, C, line up and wait 16C, Mālama 'Āina 4.” Quickly getting turned around in the narrow window of neither runway with an aircraft in its immediate vicinity, I scramble to 16C and configure the aircraft for takeoff, changing the FMS for a departure off 16C rather than 16L.” “Delta 182, traffic departing prior to your arrival on the parallel runway an Airbus A321. Runway 16L, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land 16L, Delta 182.” “Mālama 'Āina 4, runway 16C, cleared for takeoff. Fly the HAROB Six.” “16C, cleared for takeoff, Mālama 'Āina 4.” 80 knots. V1 Rotate. V2 Positive rate, gear up. Flaps up. “Mālama 'Āina 4, contact departure, Aloha!” “Over to Departure, Mahalo and Aloha!”
I Don’t Need My Name In LightsThankful for a lower than usual headwind, we end up touching down in Kailua-Kona almost 20 minutes early, so once we get parked, I check fuel loads and run fuel numbers. Though I have enough to get to Maui, I order a couple hundred gallons mostly out of courtesy. Fortunately for us, we get our ramp approvals without problem. After the four cars cross to the land side, I consult with each of the drivers just to see what their plans are. I undoubtedly trust them, but it is nice to know where they’re going. Soon after I let them go, I send a text to Rosalina. “Landed. You at home or work?” Not expecting an immediate reply, I head for one of my properties on the island. Naturally, I get settled and find myself bored quite quickly. The natural instinct for me then is of course go for a drive or something, but I also know that within the next… few hours, I need to meet my wife so we can begin the paperwork. About 40 minutes later, I get a reply. “Sorry. Was doing a check flight. Come to the office, we’ll do everything after we close.” “No problem. You want/need anything?” “No, I’m okay. Thank you.” “No problem. Be there soon.” When I arrive, the only cars left in the lot are Rosalina’s and who I assume are the maintenance staff. Nevertheless, I head in and find Rosalina on the computer, inputting times into spreadsheets for what I can only assume are for the aircraft logbooks. “Hello.” She responds without turning her head. “Hi.” I respond in kind. “How was the journey over?” “Not bad actually. SeaTac’s still in runway construction, but at least they can do simultaneous close parallel now.” “They finally get the spacing right?” “Yeah.” “Glad they’re making progress.” “Is what I said.” A few minutes of further data entry precede a cheerful but seemingly forced, “Okay!” “Everything we need is right here. Nothing unusual: crossing t’s, dotting i’s, initialing, signature-ing, and then finalizing. Unfortunately, there are a lot of steps beyond just that, but we’ll have to take it One Step At A Time.” “Naturally. So, where do I start?” “Well, I have most of the papers ready. What I need from you however is your share of the paperwork filled out.” “What reasoning are you going to file?” “Irretrievable breakdown due to extramarital affair still sound good?” “I suppose.” “You aren’t actually, are you?” Rendered speechless, I go paler than a bucket as I tell her “no.” “Be honest with me. I won’t hold it against you.” “I didn’t, I haven’t, and I’m not.” “Very well. If you were however, the burden of proof is on me as the petitioner, but I trust you on that.” “Okay. Um, is there anything that needs to be divvied up?” “Well, we ought to go through our things and find out if and what needs to be contested as it were.” “Well, let’s start with the obvious. The three houses.” “Will it bother you if you keep them under your name?” “No. I must ask, why not take them?” “I would not ask that of you. You gave me the opportunity to have them when I first began here. I would not feel right just taking them from you.” “You’re so kind, I almost wish we didn’t have to do this.” “I will not lie, I kind of feel the same way, but do know that this is for both our betterment. Nothing will change between us, except our marital status.” “I understand, but I still can’t help but feel some guilt about this. It was my idea for us to get married, so I guess in a really roundabout way, ‘I’m sorry I have to put you through all this.’” “Don’t apologize. Yes, this is inconvenient. Yes, I knew what I was getting into. Yes, this is not what I had envisioned when I pictured marrying the man I love. But despite that, I want you to know that no matter what happens, you are one of the best things that ever happened to me.” Holding back a tear or two, I sigh and respond, “I’m speechless. If I had any less machismo in me right now, I’d be in tears” with a chuckle. Rosalina blushes as she takes out the papers. Handing me the first set, already tabbed out for initials and signatures, I sign and initial as necessary, making sure to read the fine print just for my sake. By the time we finish, it sure didn’t feel like a long time, but having carefully reviewed all the papers and making sure everything is in agreement, we both decide to head for dinner. However, upon failing to reach an agreement for what to eat, we decide to eat at home instead. Next morning, I beat Rosalina awake, since I’m still on Pacific time, but thanks to a long shower, I meet her making breakfast. I greet her with a kiss as I look for fruit. My first choice is an apple, followed by a banana, seeing as how I’m quite potassium deficient, which I guess is more or less what causes my high blood pressure. That and the obvious. “Are you going into the office today?” “Yes. There’s always some work to be done.” “Do you not have an office manager?” “I am the office manager. I only outsource the accounting.” “Ok then. Well, whenever you want to hop to The Valley Isle, I’m here.” “Okay. We can get Grandma’s Coffee House.” “Ooh. That does sound good. And Leoda’s or Paia Fish Market.” “Sounds like we have a plan.” She says as she smiles brightly at me. After I decide to drive her, she grabs her spare garage door opener and climbs in as I fire the thing up. When we reach the office, she unlocks the door, turns on all the lights, then she sits down at the computer. I make do in the other office, glad we’re the first ones here. Booting up the considerably slower computer, I check the files on it and find much of the same kind of stuff I would expect to see on Rosalina’s computer, albeit from the years prior. In fact, some deeper digging reveals the oldest files on this computer date back to only a few years before Rosalina began here. Quickly closing everything and back to minding my own business, I decide to check some emails. Nothing aside from the usual promo/sale and one or two that I actually have to respond to. Just then, the first pilot of the day shows up. A quick handshake for pleasantries with me, and he heads for his first preflight. A few minutes later, the dispatcher shows up and logs in. I recognize her from the Maui office, and we do a bit of catching up. When the pilot returns, he consults Rosalina about some maintenance items, and after she redirects him to me, even though I have no helicopter experience, I try and help out anyway. “What’s up?” “Our beacon light is inoperative.” “Do you have any other types of anti collision lights?” “No?” “Strobes?” “This one doesn’t?” “Well, turn the lights on.” After he does as told, I watch him check all the switches, and barely making out the sound of an electrical pulse consistent with strobe lights, I check around and find the lower beacon functional. “Your belly beacon is operative.” “That’s the problem. One is operative, the other is inoperative. Does that mean it still counts or does that mean we use strobes only?” “Well, that’s a problem for me because if any one is inop, I squawk it anyway and use the strobes. Since you have two beacon lights, and one of them is operative, I’d just use both beacon and strobes.” “I’ll probably just do that, but I imagine we’ll get a day VFR restriction.” “At the least, I imagine. Unfortunately, Rosalina is sending you to the wrong person. I’m all airplane, I have no rotorcraft experience.” “Fair enough. I appreciate the input.” “No problem. Just squawk it as “upper beacon inoperative” or something like that.” “I figured. Thanks again.” “No problem.” Just as I return to the building, six people walk in. “Good morning!” The receptionist greets all of them. “How can I help you?” “We’re the party of 6 under the name “Dennis.”” “One second, let me verify your reservation.” I quickly return to the office and resume my inactivity, only interrupted by Rosalina coming in and asking, “Can you run to Costco and get some more TP?” “Yeah. Anything else? Pizza, sandwich, chicken bake?” “Maybe later?” “No problem.” “You wanna use my car?” “Nah. I can fit it in the Lambo.” “That’ll be funny to see.” “Pretty first-world right?” “Yeah.” “Hey, we’re all human.” I say as she leaves. No trouble at all, I head to Costco and go straight for the TP. After debating over which type to get, I make a decision and also pick up a hot turkey sandwich too. Knowing it won’t fit in the boot, I stuff the big pack in the passenger seat, trying to leave room to see the mirror. With the sandwich in hand, I eventually plunk that in the passenger seat and fire it up. After getting quite a few looks driving a Lamborghini Aventador with a giant pack of toilet paper in the passenger seat, I give a nice shout in first as I head back to the office. After I walk in, I put the pack in the supply closet and put my sandwich in the break room fridge. Before I return to my computer, I grab a bottle of water to get me through the mid-morning. By 10:30, I get bored, since Rosalina doesn’t give me any tasks to do. In the end, I ask if I can go home, which she grants, but not before asking me to make sure to pick her up for lunch. When I return home, I take advantage of her smart fridge to peek in and add to the digital list. Soon after, I toast a couple slices of bread, realizing that I forgot to grab my turkey sandwich. “I forgot a hot turkey sandwich in the fridge. Can you grab it when I pick you up?” “Sure.” “Thank you!” Since I have about an hour and a half, I watch some Netflix but give up after a few episodes because of issues with the HD. Fortunately, seeing a nice time period where I can gradually make my way up, I decide to pleasure cruise, maintaining a speed of no more than 60, which is mildly annoying, but I quickly get used to it. When I arrive, Rosalina is just out the door with my sandwich in hand. She then gets in and tells me, “Tommy Bahama good?” “Why not?” I say as I put the car in gear. Fortunately for us, a clear path by police radar allows me to put my foot down. Whether Rosalina is in in the car as a reason for me to do it now is more or less irrelevant, considering that she trusts me pretty well. That said, I am surprised she has trusted me this much in the years that we’ve been married, and in fact all the way back to even before we started dating. Even so, I like to think it’s because she knows I’m not so macho as to try anything outside my skill and comfort levels. I also know she’s real quick and yet incredibly kind about pulling me back if I start to descend into T-rage. Nevertheless, when we sit down for lunch, I keep things simple and order a water and the local catch, which varies depending on the time of year as it is of good ethical practices to respect the kai (sea). Rosalina takes the other local catch on the menu and keeping with our tradition of halfsies, we each eat half one plate and switch for the other half. Sometimes, it’s the little things. When we return to the office, all the helicopters are gone on tours and two parties are waiting, having arrived rather early. I then decide to run to the house I’m staying and move to Rosalina’s house, since she does in fact want me to stay with her. Quickly getting comfortable, I race back to the office, where Rosalina, to my surprise, is waiting for me at the front door. “I finished early. There is absolutely nothing else for me to do.” “Okay then. What do you want to do now?” “Well, I know I usually wait until the last day of the month, but let’s head to Maui.” “Alrighty then.” PHKO AMERY4.ROWIN V1 HARPO.CAMPS3 PHOG “Do you want to leave now?” “Sure. When does Da Kitchen close?” “21:00.” “I’m feeling a little loco. You?” I concur and with a big hearty “Ha” and punch the throttle when we reach Queen Ka’ahumanu highway. After Rosalina does the rest of the housekeeping, the both of us clean sweep as we normally do, seeing as the house will be unoccupied for the next nine months, before we pack up everything that needs to come with us and head for the airport. “Kona Clearance, Galaxy 7, IFR to Maui.” “Galaxy 7, cleared to Kahului–Maui airport via as filed. Maintain 10,000, expect 14,000 passing AMERY. HCF Departure 126.0, squawk 7210.” “Cleared to Kahului–Maui via as filed, maintain 10,000, expect 14,000 past AMERY. HCF 126.0, squawk 7210, Galaxy 7.” “Galaxy 7, readback correct. Ground .9.” Engine start. “Ellison Onizuka International Airport ATIS information Uniform, 0328Z, wind 040 at 4, visibility 10. Sky clear below 12,000. Temperature 23°C, dewpoint 18°C, altimeter 29.93. Visual runway 35 in use. Landing and departing runway 35. All VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. Readback of all runway hold short instructions required. Advise on initial contact, you have information Uniform.” 2 alight and stable, Rosalina on the radios. “Nose wheel steering and ABS: verify on.” “Thank you.” “Kona Ground, Galaxy 7, Air Service, U, taxi.” “Galaxy 7, Kona Ground. Runway 35, taxi via Ramp L A.” “Ramp L A, runway 35, Galaxy 7.” “Straight ahead onto the south ramp entryway, then straight ahead into A, hold short runway 35.” “Thank you. Taxi check.” “Flaps: set to 2 for takeoff. Trim: set for takeoff. Taxi check complete.” ”Before takeoff check?” “Trims: set. Flaps: set. Auto brakes: RTO. Before takeoff complete.” “Thank you.” “Kona tower, Galaxy 7, short 35, ready for departure.” “Galaxy 7, Kona tower. Runway 35, line up and wait, pending IFR release.” “Line up and wait 35, Galaxy 7.” About 15 seconds later, tower calls back, “Galaxy 7, runway 35, cleared for takeoff, fly the AMERY Four.” “Cleared for takeoff 35, AMERY Four, Galaxy 7.” 80 knots. V1 Rotate. V2 Positive rate, gear up. Flaps up. “Galaxy 7, contact departure.” “Galaxy 7, runway 2, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land runway 2, Galaxy 7.” 100. 50. 40. 30. 20. 10. Touchdown. Spoilers up, brakes on, 2 in reverse. 50 knots, disengage reverse thrust. “Galaxy 7, if able, left G, taxi Sunshine via G A B, hold short runway 2.” “Left G, G A B, short of 2, Galaxy 7.” “Hawaiian 540, runway 2, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land, Hawaiian 540.” “Galaxy 7, behind the Hawaiian 717, cross runway 2, taxi straight ahead to Sunshine.” “Cross Runway 2 behind the dinosaur, straight ahead to Sunshine, Galaxy 7.” After they get a pretty smooth touchdown, I blip the throttles to get us going, and parking with the helicopters in consideration, I shut down quickly to decongest the ramp, to which the lineman gives me the lead for the ground power so I can plug us in. After we leave the airport, we head for Da Kitchen and find ourselves in good company, running into an old friend currently with Hawaiian. In fact, thanks to fate, he was piloting the 717 we had to wait for. After catching up on some company stuff, specifically on things related to the 787, he heads out just as we place our drink orders. A good meal having split one of their signature loco moco, I cover the bill and make the drive to Lahaina. After I park and head inside, I receive a text from Rarity. “Darling, can we talk?” “What’s up?” A few minutes after I send the text, Rosalina unpacks her small bag and takes mine just as my phone rings. “Hello?” “Hello darling! Is now a bad time?” “Uh, no. What’s up?” “I have some exciting news!” “Oh?” “I found a space for my new boutique in Manhattan!” “Oh wow! That’s incredible! Congratulations!” “Thank you! I’m looking forward to it! Can you make sure that you have a weekend free so you can come to the grand opening?” “Of course! Do you have a date set?” “Oh heavens no! I just closed escrow yesterday.” “Well, you sound awfully optimistic then.” “Why must you be such a downer?” “I have trust issues, you know that.” “That’s still no excuse for you to rain on my parade.” “I’m sorry I’m not as excited as you are, and I know this is a big step for you, and I’m happy for you. I just don’t like engaging in any grand celebrations about something just because the process has been kicked off. I don’t breathe until clear.” “Oh alright. But you will be there, right??” “Absolutely.” “You are such a star, darling!” She squeals excitedly. “I will get you dates as soon as I can!” “Please do!” “I’ll talk later, darling! Toodles!” “Cya!” “What’s the news?” Rosalina asks stepping out of her bedroom. “Rarity’s gonna be opening a new boutique in Manhattan!” “Wow! Congrats to her!” “I know! I’m happy for her. Hopefully I’ll get dates soon.” “I’d love to join also! It’ll be nice to head back to New York again.” “Definitely. You think Mario, Luigi and fam would be able to join us?” “I hope so.” While I wait to see when they need to move to the next island, I guess I’m stuck in Hawaii. Yay. Author's Note Simultaneous close parallel (SCP) is a program in use predominantly at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) where two aircraft fly side by side maintaining visual separation and touch down on parallel runways (often at the exact same time). SFO has 2 sets of parallel runways, arranged in a # formation. They can space their traffic in a departure-arrival-departure-arrival sequence, whereby domestic (and some light international) departures depart off the north/south runways while international flights (or heavy domestic) use the east/west runways exclusively (all flights generally land east/west - weather permitting). The system is incredibly intricate and requires a “special Pilot-in-Command (PIC)” endorsement from the airlines to be able to act as a Captain for flights into and out of San Francisco. Seattle–Tacoma International Airport “SeaTac” (SEA) has 3 parallel runways, but two of the runways are too close together to allow for SCP or even close parallel (CP). It is in their future growth plan to fix the runway spacing to allow for that, but because they cannot operate with CP or SCP, traffic into and out of SeaTac is a huge bottleneck. While there is no scheduled date to introduce it, Seattle’s rapid, exponential growth has been begging for it. Having fallen victim to flight cancellations because of such construction projects, it’s only appropriate that SeaTac be CP/SCP capable.
No, Not MeA few days after I hop back to Kailua-Kona, I get a response. “We’re ready to head back now. Sorry I didn’t respond. No service in our work area.” “No worries. Same place at the airport.” When they arrive, I drive them all through and park them. To my surprise, they’re not all that dirty. Nevertheless, I don’t ask too many questions and quickly brief them so we can get to Maui in a timely fashion. Thanks to me keeping the throttles full (how wasteful of me), we reach Maui in less than 20 minutes, to the admiration of a 717 who followed us on the same route. When they leave to do their exploring, I head back to Lahaina and spend my afternoon at Front Street, since that’s where I seem to enjoy myself the most, next to being in Kahului, but that’s neither here nor there. After a few hours lounging under the shade of a tree, I decide to head to Kahului and text Rosalina, “you want anything from anywhere in Kahului?” “No thanks, I don’t need anything.” “K cool. Thought I’d ask.” Leaving me with no reason to head to the isthmus, I grab a small snack at Leoda’s and hang out in Oluwalu, wary of the people who are taking pictures of the car. I guess it’s a surprise to see a Lamborghini in Hawaii. After dinner, I talk to Rosalina. “By the looks of it, anywhere from two to three days on each island is it. Though, I imagine it can still change depending on their research.” “Sure. I imagine if they’re getting even a sneak peek, that they should spend at least that amount of time. These islands are pretty complex.” “Exactly. Since I can’t really predict when they’ll be ready to go, the only thing I can do is stay. And as much as I love being here, because of you, you know just as much as I do that if I stay here too long, bad things start to happen.” “Like what?” “Oh, like how I tend to eat most of my body weight in my favorite things to eat here.” “Fair enough.” “And to think I always wanted to call this place home.” “Well, I can’t speak for you, but I think it’s a good thing we didn’t end up living together.” “I agree. That being said, I do kind of feel bad that that was the way it had to be.” “Don’t be. Even in our early days, I can’t say that I didn’t enjoy living here alone.” “That seems rather contrary to the Rosalina I met.” “Yes, but also consider that I hold those views because I firmly believe that my parents’ marriage was the only one I knew that lasted and endured for so long.” “Hmm, of course.” “Oh, by the way, speaking of home, there are some things that I do want from you.” “Oh?” “Yes. I know this may be difficult for you, but I do want something of yours.” “What?” “I think you may able to tell when I say “your love. Your passion.” “You don’t mean?” “I want all your Focus RS’s.” “Really?” “Yes.” “Okay. Is there anything else you want?” “No. That’s it. Just those.” “Okay. When do you want them?” “When we finalize the divorce.” “Very well.” Next morning, I leave the house with Rosalina and in fact follow her all the way to Kahului. This time though, I decide to explore Kahului. Both malls I’m familiar with, but I decide to spend an hour at each. When I finish at each mall, I decide to head to Kihei and walk on those shores. To my surprise, Kihei is surprisingly sparse this afternoon. Fortunately for me, I can go barefoot here, so after I oblige myself for about an hour, I admire the afternoon sun making its way westward before I slowly make my way back to Lahaina. “Hello?” I answer my phone immediately. “Hey, where are you?” “Kihei.” “You want me to meet you there?” “I was just about to head back, but if you want to, you can come down here.” “You hungry?” “Not really.” “Hmm. You haven’t been very hungry much recently. Remember when we first started dating, you would eat a lot.” “Yeah, and times change I guess. And it’s not even related to what’s happening.” “I hope you’re right. I hate seeing you like this.” “Why? I’ve put some weight on last I checked.” “I’m glad, but it pains me to see you so all over the place.” “Just part of the process, you know.” “I know.” “I’ll meet you down there.” “Okay. I’m at Cinnamon Roll Place.” “Ok thanks. Bye.” Waiting for her, I lean up against a tree and sink my toes into the sand. I tell you, that feeling of sinking your toes into nature is truly unmatched. Well, next to flying an airplane, but that one’s just for me. Nevertheless, Rosalina finds me on the beach only a block away from where I’m parked. Tapping me on the shoulder and coaxing her hand into mine, we lock fingers and she clutches my arm. “How long have you been there?” “I’ve been here since 16:00. But standing under this tree? Probably about 10 minutes.” “Oh, okay.” “You know how I like to sink my feet into sand, or the garden in the backyard. That’s what I did before I left home.” “Hmm.” “Did you eat anything since breakfast?” “Just some of the leftover soup.” “Wanna just split a cinnamon bun?” “I was just going to ask you.” “Nice to know we still get each other.” “That will never change.” She says smiling warmly and resting her head on my shoulder. With all the touchy-feely things she and I do from time to time, it is a wonder why she wants a divorce. Next morning, Rosalina is gone before I wake up, but a time check reveals that I’m awake at my normal time. A text! “Hey. Had an early bird charter, and they requested me to fly them.” “Sweet! Have fun!” I respond as I decide to be adventurous and take the Lambo on the Hana Highway. Quickly rushing through Kahului to beat the rush, I stop in Paia to mark the start. Across 64.4 miles of heavily winding roads, marked with 620 hairpin turns and 59 one-lane bridges, my record to traverse the highway is just under 2 hours, which in of itself a miracle, since usually it takes no less than 2 hours for even the highest level of motoring. Since it is the beginning of March, traffic as I should expect will likely be relatively high, but we’re right in between the period of holiday traffic and early summer holiday makers, I can’t expect a record to be broken. To a tune Rainbow Dash would probably whistle to herself under similar conditions, I set off from Paia at exactly 14 minutes to 10. Through the first few dozen hairpins, most of the traffic that I have to brake for is headed for one of the many falls or attractions off the road that probably shouldn’t be explored if they’re in rentals, but I won’t rat anybody out. I, however, know better, considering what I’m driving. Just as I reach the halfway point, I’ve evolved beyond using the A/C and letting the salt in my skin and the wind in my hair say “hey, heave ho” in the turns. After the first few hundred turns, I think about stopping, but knowing I’m in it for the transit time, I push on and decide to keep my foot down. Naturally, I decide to shut the radio off, since it’s no longer really needed. The only note I need now is the exhaust. Come the tightest group of hairpins and one-lane bridges, I keep my foot down, thankful that I don’t need to worry about encountering a potential yielding situation. However, when I pass a local knowledge mile marker, the traffic seems to increase, enough for me to say something but not so much that it’s all that obvious. Knowing this increase will cut into my record attempt, I throttle back and let the sound of the engine at high rpm with the throttle closed growl, hopefully attracting the attention of the motorists ahead of me. The few that seem to respond to my engine noise acknowledge my presence behind them by paying no mind and admiring the scenery ahead of them. I have nothing against that, and in fact encourage it, so maybe something will open up, but if it doesn’t, I can make up for lost time. Since they’ve at least acknowledged me, I don’t need to leave the car in a low gear, so I reengage automatic mode and save the 70 MPH triple-tap downshift for when the road opens. Taking a quick ‘NASCAR tire warming’ swerve to peek at the traffic ahead, I count 4 Jeeps and a Sienna (?) ahead. From the looks of things, at least 2 of the Jeeps are traveling together, so when another waterfall turnoff appears, one disappears. The remaining vehicles do kind of pick up the pace but I see no opportunity or reason to overtake. Granted, I don’t use the road often, and it is very pretty, so I guess it’s worth the slack in pace. As I check Maps to verify where I am, despite my relatively limited cell coverage, the opportunity knocks. I don’t send anyone to get it, so as soon as able, I pick up some speed and as soon as I see the opportunity by scanning the road ahead, I flick the down paddle three times and wait for the clutch to reengage. The howl of the engine spoils the otherwise lush and quiet forestal area as I pick up speed entering what I assume are the final hundred or so hairpins. In no time, I reach the town of Hana, where upon reaching the town, I make the car as quiet as I can by resuming automatic shifting. Obviously, this car has garnered a lot of attention in both Kahului and Lahaina, but in Hana, wow is it on a whole new level of attention-grab. And I haven’t even reached the town center yet. Heading straight for Hana airport, I check in with a local FBO and inquire about aircraft rentals, since I am an official customer in their system. Records show that I am on file, so I could rent if I ever wanted to. You know, if any of my jets get boring. I find parking in town center and am immediately ogled by a few pre-pubescent teenagers, or at least that what they looked and sounded like upon seeing them. Taking all the pictures they can, I lock the car and only hope no one will spit on or key the car. Parking in front of the Hana Cultural Center, I go for a walk in the little town. Only a few blocks corner to corner, I can take my sweet time here, seeing as I don’t have to be back in Kahului for another few hours. Enjoying a walk in the town of Hana, I pop in for a drink at one of the local restaurants before slowly making my way back to the car. Unlike Lahaina, when I get to the car this time, no one is standing around it. I do a quick walk-around to make sure no one has vandalized the car, and quickly getting in, I start it up and check the fuel level. I should probably get some petrol while I’m here. Only heading about a half mile out of the way, I join only a Jeep taking on fuel. The driver I’m pretty sure has gone inside, confirmed when he emerges with a receipt and tops off. Getting in the car before he has a chance to look at me, I wait for the tank to fill before the Jeep starts up, thankful that we’re both facing the same way. When my pump stops, I round to the nearest whole dollar and head out, knowing that the Hana highway the other way is the fastest road, and the one that’s actually paved. In no time at all, I return to Kahului and find Rosalina in her office inputting the last sets of data for the airframe maintenance logs. “Hi again.” She says not looking up from her work. “Hello. I’m probably hopping to Oahu soon, so I’ll just wait for you and we can head back together. I haven’t heard anything from Fluttershy yet though.” “That’s fine. I’m actually glad you’re here. If you’re leaving tonight, then let’s go to Da Kitchen again.” “I’m all for it. We’ve been married for how long now and whenever we’re on Maui, how many times do we go on average?” “Two or three?” She asks in response. “Seems about right. No reason to stop the tradition though, even after the big day.” “Of course not.” Not surprisingly, we’re the last ones out of the office, so we shut everything down and lock up before we head for dinner. As Rosalina and I split an order of fried Spam Musubi, a text comes in. “I’ll bet that’s the “ready to transfer” message.” I say as I pull out my phone. “Hey Max, we just got back. We’ll leave early tomorrow for Oahu.” “Any estimates on early?” “How early would you like to leave?” “No preferences. Just want to be reasonable so you have the whole day.” “Okay. Let me talk to the rest of the group, and I’ll get back to you.” “Okay,” I tell Rosalina. “She said early tomorrow morning, but I’ll get an exact estimate later.” “That’s fine. It’ll just be back to normal I guess.” “How do you do it? It’s like your routine never really changes. Wake up, go to office, occasionally do a flight or two, then go home. The largest degree of variation you have is where you eat for dinner.” “I can’t really say.” She responds with an air of pondering. “The best thing I can tell you is that when I interviewed, they basically took me in and in the professional sense ‘raised me as their own.’ I’m sure they wanted me to succeed them because he knew that I wanted this job and would take care of it very well. I suppose that’s what motivates me to keep doing it. I’m making the founders proud.” “I can’t argue.” I say, my face betraying a look of admiration.
I Like The Quiet, I Like The Calm“Hello?” I answer just shy of midnight. “Hi Max? Sorry to bother you.” “Oh, it’s fine. No worries. Are you ready to head to Oahu?” “Yes.” “Okay! I’ll send you an address, meet there.” “Okay. Thank you Max.” “No problem. We’ll see you soon.” “Alright, Bye.” “Rosalina, Fluttershy just called. They’re ready to go, so can we use the Sunshine ramp?” “Of course. No need to ask me. Just make sure the gate’s closed when you leave.” “Okay.” I say as I send Fluttershy the address for Sunshine. “You know, I never really like this part.” She says as I finish packing. “Which part?” “You leaving.” Blindsided by her response, I sigh and can only say, “I know. It’s always painful for me too, but if our marriage worked for all these years like this, and neither of us ever really decided to speak up, maybe it was a good thing. I mean, I wished I had been able to live with you, but we always knew that we liked our distance from each other. But you know what? That made the time we had together that much more special.” “Indeed it did.” “I’ll be back soon.” I say after we share one more kiss. “Bye.” She says as I walk out the front door. When the gate to the driveway closes behind me, I quietly exit Lahaina and make for Kahului, the sound of the Lamborghini V12 roaring amidst the sky at morning civil twilight a rather nice one. I beat the group by only a few minutes, so when I let them all in and secure the fence, I load the airplane and get us going quickly. There’s a small 45-minute slot between arrivals at HNL, and I’d like to sneak in it. Once we land on my favorite island, and ironically the only island that Sunshine doesn’t serve, I can relax a bit, because not only are there the most things to do here, I can drive my car comfortably because Honolulu, meaning I can comfortably drive it in a city without fear of over-idolization. When the group leaves me behind, I head for downtown Honolulu with Fluttershy’s parents close behind. They end up leaving me behind though when I leave the city and head for one of my many houses in Honolulu. This particular house is the one that Mario and Luigi’s kids lived in when they were studying at The University of Hawai’i Mānoa. When I step in and get comfortable, I finish the e-cigarettes I have with me to try and take an edge off. I don’t know if it’s because of seeing Rosalina or the fact that I know I have to give her my Focus RS collection, my all-time most-prized love and passion, and dream car above every other car in my garage. In hindsight, I should’ve expected it, since she knew from the time we began dating that that car holds a special place in my heart, so it really shouldn’t surprise me that she would want them. And it’s not even an issue of her wanting to hurt me. While does want to leverage the divorce by using what’s close to me, I seem to have a knack for getting hurt by what’s the most near and dear to my heart. When my cigarettes run dry, I pop on the tv here and check for any interesting games. Only sports at this time of the year are spring training, NBA, and NHL, and most of my teams playing are on local blackout. Oh well, I guess I can rent an exotic car here. You know, like a person who owns an airline and ships his own cars to wherever would. Seeing as how I’m here by sunrise, I elect to stay in the city for a little while and leave during the heart of morning rush. The question is, where do I go? North shore? Ko Olina? Kailua? Actually, the better question is, where do I start? Not thinking too much of it, I let the roads take me, and by some surprise, I end up on H-2 towards Wahiawa. One thing to note is that while Hawaii has Interstate routes, they obviously don’t go outside the state, but the roads link the military bases. H-1 takes care of the traffic from Hickham to Kalaeloa, or Barbers Point. H-2 links Hickham and Wheeler AAF (Army AirField). H-3 links Hickham to Kaneohe Bay MCAS (Marine Corps Air Station). H-201 doesn’t actually link bases at each end, but rather serves as an H-1 bypass and freeway-grade road access nearby to the Tripler Army Hospital. I leave H-2 behind at Wheeler (the northern terminus) and note a training sortie in progress, evidenced by the extensive ops active at the moment just observing the runway threshold. Silently saluting our service members as they work hard at their job, I end up in Wahiawa town, enjoying a nice walk after parking at the local shopping center. I’m not in town for long though as I boom up the road just another mile or so and park at the island’s largest tourist trap, the Dole Plantation. Parking a Lamborghini in a place where a lot of families enjoy time with their kids, I nervously park close to all the buses, since there is a space available. Having been here dozens of times, I order some breakfast and take advantage of a Kama’aina discount, since I am a resident of Hawaii. When I finish my food and check out the queue times for the train and the maze, I ponder at what could happen over time once our marriage dissolves. I mean, sure we’re not going to stop seeing each other, and in no way do either of us want to make a big deal out of it, but I can’t help but notice the lack of any tangible ill will on either of our parts, well except for Rosalina wanting my Focus RS collection. Nevertheless, I quickly abandon that train of thought as I head for the north shore. These beaches are nice, and largely less crowded than Waikiki at least by comparison, and today’s no exception. As nice as the water does look, I’ll settle for a pleasure cruise this time. A fuel stop in La’ie results in an encounter with some students that are ostensibly LDS, which makes sense, since BYU has a campus here. No trouble aside from having to go inside to pay, I make my way to Kailua with no other goal in mind other than to pass the time. Late in the evening, well past evening rush, I return to the city and join the nightlife scene, the warm tropical air mixing with urban excitement and relative bustle, mostly in the neighborhood of Kalakaua and Waikiki for obvious reasons. Just to fulfill a childhood fantasy, I keep the engine in a low gear to attract as much attention as possible, only to be blown out of the water when 2 Mustang GT pass me. In no time, I return home after grabbing a quick dinner of ABC Store Spam Musubi and some POG. No messages or emails come in before 22:00, which is when I fall asleep. Next morning, I take my sweet time and buy some groceries just to minimize my meals out, but since it’s early, I decide to head to my favorite Koa Pancake House just outside Ko Olina. Knowing I have a friend or two that may be staying at Aulani, I stay away from the area. Even so, I take a drive near the area just to check out what’s around outside the resort. Nothing really fit for a single person, since most of the activities here are family-oriented, as they should be, I make my way back to the city, grabbing some Teddy’s Burgers for lunch and planning on making my own dinner. That night, Fluttershy gives me a call. “Hello?” “Hi Max, Fluttershy here. Um, it looks like we’ll have to head to Kauai early. Due to military activity, we’ve reached the extent of our abilities here on Oahu.” “No worries. You still have the location we left?” “I do.” “Cool. We’ll meet there!” “Thank you Max!” “No problem, see ya soon!” The groceries I bought will just have to travel with me, so after I take out the trash and make for the airport, I end up being the second one there. “How long have you been here?” “Only a couple minutes. We got out of the city just in time.” “Why? Evening rush is over.” “There are sobriety checkpoints in the city.” “Great. Let’s get going then. Sorry you couldn’t accomplish everything here.” “It’s okay. Our docents warned us beforehand.” “Alrighty.” “Mālama ‘Āina 2, runway 3, cleared to land. Be advised, wind shear has been reported on final.” “We’ve encountered some on the way down, Mālama ‘Āina 2, cleared to land runway 3.” 50. 40. 30. 10. “Power!” TOUCHDOWN! Suddenly, a loud and high pitched scream comes from the cabin. I can tell it’s pretty loud, because I can hear it through my noise cancelling headset. Spoilers up, brakes on, 2 in reverse. Short runway, short field landing. “Mālama ‘Āina 2, left B, taxi Sunshine via B, remain this frequency.” “Left B to Sunshine, stay with you, Mālama ‘Āina 2.” Parked, shut down, offload. “Sorry about that everyone. It was a pretty windy approach, and this is the shortest runway we’ll use on this entire trip. It’s pretty standard practice to land firmly like that, and with the wind swirling in all directions, and having it shift like that right before touchdown, not much I can do there.” “Sorry, everyone.” Fluttershy says adding to my apology. “I didn’t expect us to land that hard.” Everyone is a good sport about it though and quickly understands why we had a rough approach when we move the cars out. It seems like every few moments, the wind changes. Speaking from my standpoint, it feels more windy than usual, even for Kauai. Nevertheless, when the group leaves me behind, I make a note that Fluttershy’s parents will spend the rest of their vacation on Oahu, so I don’t have to go back for them. Fortunately for them, I have a house they can stay in, so I send them that address and the passcodes for the front door and the main entry gate. Glad I could help them with their vacation, I wish them well knowing we’ll be leaving them behind in a couple days’ time. Unfortunately for me, because I spend most of my time on either Oahu or Maui, I have to find ways to stay entertained here. I can explore Hanalei and Princeville, or stay in Lihue and Kapa’a, but either way, it’s gonna be difficult to not be bored, especially because Rosalina’s not here, since I would spend most of the day with her and possibly joining her on flights. Nevertheless, I’m bored of cruising in a Lamborghini, since I’ve been doing it for the last 5 days in a row. Let’s also be honest here: the only reason a good amount of time has passed is because Rosalina and I had to extensively review the paperwork and begin the proceedings. Life is easy for the both of us, as we’re both residents of Hawaii, and I’m a resident of Honolulu county. Notwithstanding anything outstanding, such as divisions of property or splitting ownership on other things, everything is settled and all we have to do is find a date to finalize the divorce in court. I know I sound pretty repetitive and it definitely is because I’ve just been lounging around in Hawaii waiting for the next leg of the trip. I’ve spent the whole day at home. The food I have with me is supposed to last a few days at the most, so I’m holding off on eating it. Even so, I find some places I like to go to plan some meals out, since the last time I spent more than a day or so here was a few years ago, otherwise, Rosalina has always sent me away so I don’t bore myself to death or eat too much. Nevertheless, I soon fall asleep to the TV playing Man v. Food.
Just Fine Rehearsing On My OwnNext morning, I wake up just shy of 10:00, having slept for almost 11 hours. The reason why I couldn’t tell you, but I think it has something to do with a wicked dream I had last night. I guess I should talk about it. Nothing more than a classic teeth falling out and hearing voices, all but one of whom materialize into physical life forms, human life forms. When the materialized voices start taunting me with, “diabetic,” “heart attack,” “stroke,” and “fatty,” I have a brief trauma flashback but snap out of it rather quickly. Though it’s kind of obvious as to why they’re saying that, I still wonder why it bothers me, even though I’ve lost almost half my body weight since the last time I was called out for my weight. Not like it matters I guess. Most of the people who did call me out are either out of my life or no longer a part of it. In any case, the voice forms fade away and the room becomes a white null and void. No end in sight, but I’ll betcha if I had Pinkie Pie’s superhuman ability to find invisible walls, I would still go insane from the never-ending void. Suddenly, from behind me, a voice shouts, “Yo Max, I got a message for you!” When I turn my head around, the voice that called my name pulls a lever and activates a trap door. When the floor gives out, I shout “Hey!” and fall in. “You’re a conspirator to murder if you support your namesake!” Not that long of a dream sequence in retrospect, but it was enough to raise some questions aside from the obvious “why?” I won’t think much of it. In fact, I’ll probably forget it happened in a day’s time. Besides, I have more pressing real-world issues than worrying about who fat-shamed me way back when. Nevertheless, with cabin fever from approaching 36 hours indoors, and island fever from merely doing a poor job of entertaining myself on each island, settling in, I head into Līhu'e for a walk. If it keeps me from holing up indoors, I guess. After exploring the local Walmart, I decide to venture up the highway towards Princeville, since pleasure cruising is what I do best, and so I can keep my petrol load down. Ideally I’ll return to the plane with about 90 miles of range, and I hope the Q5’s I loaned are similarly returned. Passing Kapa’a, where most of my friends who like Kauai stay, I leave a nice loud exhaust note by punching the throttle to beat the traffic light where a lot of cars are lined up as I head for the north side of the island. Arriving sooner than I thought thanks to a lead foot, I find a relatively close yet secluded place to park, but when I see the condition of the lot, I quickly abandon my intentions and find much closer parking by one of the beaches. I can sink my toes in the sand if I want to like when I was on Maui, but only here on Kauai do I wish I brought my beach clothes. Oh well. Settling for getting my feet wet, I check the time and decide to head back to Līhu’e, when guess who should show up? Right on cue, three Audi Q5’s with three different state license plates, roll in and park. Confirming my suspicions (if the license plates didn’t already) are the obscured figures of Fluttershy and crew, plus their docent, who shows up behind them in a much less luxurious JL Wrangler. This one is a 2-door however, and is a Sport, the base model, but for seemingly obvious reasons, it doesn’t have the stock wheels, for good reason; well, except the spare, but judging by the size of the other four, the fifth simply wouldn’t fit anyway. Fluttershy gasps upon seeing me and shouts, “Max!” “Sweet ride.” I say to their docent. “Thanks man. Same to you!” “Well, thank you. You gonna “Jurassic Park” yours?” “Been thinking about it, but I don’t think so.” “Not to sway your opinion, but if you live here, this is one of the most appropriate places to have one.” “Touché.” “Split Scimitar,” I respond extending my hand, “I just go by Max.” “Max?” He responds shaking my hand. “John Michael. But just Michael’s fine.” “Well, alright Michael. I get called Michael all the time.” “The other “M” name?” “Yeah! How’d you know?” “I’ve been called every M name short of Methuselah. Matt/Matthew, Marion, Mike, etc.” “Same! Matt and Michael are usually what I’ll respond to!” We both share a laugh as Fluttershy greets the two of us. “Hey Max! I see you met J.M.” “Aye, I did. Fancy running into you here.” “I know!” “Where’d you just come from?” “Haena. Spent today here, then tomorrow we’ll hit up Waimea Canyon and the area around Barking Sands.” “Oh cool! How long you plan on staying here?” “Oh, a few hours. We’re actually pretty much done for the day, so we’ll meet up tomorrow.” “Where’s home, If ya don’t mind me asking?” “Princeville. Right by the Queen’s Bath.” “Oh, yeah, yeah! I’m familiar.” “They’re so beautiful. We were gonna go over there, but The Tide Is High.” “Ooh, yeah I feel ya on that one. Such a shame.” “I know. But that’s why we’re here.” “Well, don’t let me stand in your way.” I say as we all head down and set up camp. Since I’m not gonna get wet, I make some small talk with Michael. “What is the purpose of studying each island individually? I mean, I’ve spent a lot of time here, enough to know that each island has its unique little quirks and idiosyncrasies, but how could sustainability efforts be differentiated? In other words, what might be done differently here on Kauai than say Oahu or Maui?” “Actually, there’s not a whole lot that differentiates one island from another. Mostly it’s just working with local business and the resorts to curb waste generation, offset or exceed inputs, so to speak; but unfortunately, one of our biggest variables is tourist traffic.” “Well, not much to do there. That will remain a constant.” “Yeah, not much doing there.” “What have you been studying?” “Native species, invasive species, flora, fauna, the environment…” “The Classic Flora, Fauna, Merryweather.” “Pretty much. It’s relatively simple stuff. They’re a volunteer group at heart, so we haven’t done anything too intense.” “Have you been helping them on every island?” “I met them in Oahu, but another colleague of mine handled them at the lower two.” “Oh cool.” As we continue talking about their trip, they soon return. “Where are you all staying?” “Kilauea.” “Cool. I’m staying at my wife’s house in Lihue, so we’re not too far. Sorry Michael.” He only chuckles. Later that night, I get a knock at my door. “Hi Fluttershy. What’s up?” “Can I come in?” “Yes, of course. “How can I help you?” “Um, I made a mistake in booking, and as a result, we have one less night than we planned. Can we, um, spend the night after tomorrow with you?” “Of course! You’ll be cramped for space though.” “That should be okay.” “Thank you for coming in, though you could’ve easily texted me.” “Actually, I’m here so I can get an idea of how cramped it’ll be.” “Sure. And hey, it works out nicely because we’ll all be in the same place before we head back to the mainland.” “Mhmm. Do you mind if I take a peek around?” “No problem. Just stay out of the dressers. Rosalina keeps clothes here.” “Of course.” With two nights to go, I decide to shadow them up to the area near Barking Sands, but well after they’ve left the beaten path. This is a pretty nice area, and in spite of the obvious outdoorsy feel of Kauai, I could come here just to hang here. Now that we’re approaching less than 48 hours to wheels up, I take a look at the weather models and get some predictions for the journey back to Seattle. While I don’t expect anything too major to make the return trip unbearable, I also know that it is still a bit on the early side to rely on the currently disseminated information. Plugging in my planned route, I expect no abnormalities along the route. Because it’s SeaTac, I can pretty much guarantee that there will be flow control, and that no matter what happens, especially as SeaTac wraps up their construction projects, I hope they can do their operations in the same fashion as San Francisco. That night, I go out to Duke’s for a taste of the local fish, since it’s been a tradition of Rosalina’s and mine to have it at least once before I leave. One of many we have for the Hawaiian islands, I guess it just shows how unpredictable divorce is. Any couple no matter how intimate or comfortable is still just as susceptible as any other. There is no definitive formula. Wistfully, I ponder ways to cope with the process, since that rather than the actual event itself is what eats away at me. Hoping to find ways without eating into the schedules of my other friends, I move that thought to the back burner as I fall asleep before 22:00 again. Going for a morning walk with only my weather briefing in hand, I review all the models but specifically check PIREPs. It is springtime so the possibility of a phantom storm cell or system is real, but my main cause for concern is what could await us in Seattle. Winter came late this year up there, so it can be either CAVU, or San Francisco. (Rainier, please be out to play.) When I finish with my weather outlook, I satisfy an e-cigarette craving in lieu of lunch, because apparently smoking or even e-smoking suppresses hunger, but at what cost? For most, a rise in blood pressure. But hey, mine is only high because of what’s to come. Surely smoking can’t raise it any higher. Since I’m expecting company tonight, I need to warm up the house. Of course, being located in this region, I don’t mean that literally. Nevertheless, by the time I actually finish spiffing the house, I get the text that the Q5 brigade is here just as I see the sunlight reflections through the blinds. Quickly cleaning up evidence of my domestic work, I get the door after a few quaint knocks. As I pat down the wrinkles in my shirt and clean up my act, I open the door to Fluttershy and Wallflower as the frontwomen of the group, with the others coming in right behind them. “Thank you for doing this.” Fluttershy says as she gives me a hug. “Totally rad man! Appreciate the help.” Sandalwood says to back her up. “Of course! Happy to help!” I respond. “Please get settled and comfortable. ‘O ka‘u hale ka hale. Mi casa es su casa!” As everyone decides to pick out a bedroom, I run to the master and close the door before I ask around to see if everybody’s eaten. Kind of a bad question in hindsight, as it’s already 20:30, and a consensus of Yes is a slight relief to me, so I don’t feel so burdened on feeding them. After I call in a fuel order, since I completely forgot to when I landed, I then ask around again once almost everybody is in the room. “Are any of you bound by work schedules? If we need to, we can leave as early as midnight. Otherwise, I can leave our departure to you.” “I’m off work tomorrow, so I can be flexible.” Microchips responds. “So can I.” Adds Wallflower. “Well, let me ask you this: what time would you like to land in Seattle?” “What’s the time difference?” “Uh, counting time zones, add 9 hours. So if we left at midnight, we’d land at about 9 am.” “I don’t know about any of you,” Dr. Fauna chimes in, “but I’d like to not negotiate Seattle rush hour, so can we plan on that?” “Absolutely. That means our window is closed between… 7 and 9 am Pacific?” “Plus or minus an hour.” “Well, I figure it’ll take about an hour to unload and deplane, so we can figure that in.” “There’s no rush. We can leave whenever you like.” “Max,” Fluttershy then chimes in, “do you have a preference for departure?” “In any case, I’ll get a sunrise either way. Unless you want to leave at like 8 am. Red eye or early morning, doesn’t really matter.” “But do you have a preference?” “If I had to choose? Probably late red eyes, meaning departure between 11 and 2, depending on the local time at my destination.” “Anyone wanna leave at midnight then?” Fluttershy asks. “If you’re comfortable sleeping on the plane, we can head for the airport right now.” With no objections, we pack up all our things and head for Lihue Airport.
Not Just ShyThanks to everybody helping out, we get loaded with an hour to play with. I use the time to zone in and take one last look at weather models. With ground power plugged in, I start my preflight inspection by checking all the lights. Microchips takes a liking to the cockpit and asks if he can sit in the right seat. I approve as long he doesn’t touch anything for obvious reasons. When my exterior check is done, I check to make sure everyone is settled before I make my final prep for departure. The area is cleared, the stairs are retracted, and the boarding door is closed. With no one making any additional efforts other than getting comfortable in the first class seats, I get on the horn and say, “Alright, I know all of you want to head straight to sleep, and from all the island hopping you may know the safety features of this aircraft inside and out, but I am required by law to brief you every time, so please do direct your attention to the monitors for the following demonstration.” Once I queue the video, I prep the cockpit for startup and clear the area again. When the video finishes, I get back on the horn and finish my spiel with, “We’re expecting about 5 hours and 35 minutes enroute to Seattle. Weather in the Emerald City is expected to be about 57° with calm winds and a marine layer when we land. Expected high is gonna be about 71° and there’s a good chance for some sun later in the day. Once again, 5 hours 35 minutes, thanks for choosing to fly with me, welcome aboard.” With that, I turn off the cabin lights and Initiate engine start procedure. 2 alight and stable. Let’s move up the ramp so we can avoid blasting things. “Līhu’e traffic, Mālama ‘Āina 1, out of Sunshine, taxiing SE, correction, SW on A to runway 3, Līhu’e.” “Lihue Airport, Lihue, HI. Automated weather observation: 1012Z. Wind 020 at 13. Visibility 10. Sky condition few 4,200, few 6,800, scattered 7,200, few 9,200. Temperature 23 Celsius. Dewpoint 19 Celsius. Altimeter 29.91. Remarks: density altitude 1,200.” Taxi checklist/run up checklist. Combined to avoid jet blast on the ramp. Lights: beacon, nav, taxi on. Flight controls: free and correct: rudder, elevators, ailerons, spoilers all check. Flaps, set to 3. Trim, set for takeoff. FMS: programmed, will get clearance from HCF. Taxi and run-up checklists complete. When I reach the hold-short for runway 3, I announce, “Līhu’e traffic, Mālama ‘Āina 1, short of runway 3, awaiting IFR clearance.” “Honolulu Center, Mālama ‘Āina 1, IFR to Seattle-Tacoma.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, cleared to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport via Direct FRAKR, Direct ZIGIE, A331, ZAGER, A331, SEDAR, then as filed. Cross FRAKR at or below 10,000. Departure frequency will be 126.5, squawk 0126. Clearance void 30 minutes from now.” “Cleared to SeaTac via direct FRAKR, Direct ZIGIE, A331, ZAGER, A331, SEDAR, LATAY, HAWKZ Seven Arrival. Cross FRAKR at or below 10,000. Honolulu Center 126.5, squawk 0126, void in 30 minutes, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, readback correct.” “Talk to you soon!” Since we’re stopped, I decide to check on all of our passengers. A quick peek and walk up the first class cabin, I close the curtain, and head back. A runway check and review of the departure procedure precedes my last call on frequency, “Līhu’e traffic, Mālama ‘Āina 1, departing runway 3 to Seattle. Aloha ahiahi.” Short field procedure. Hug the edge of the runway to maximize all 6,500’. Brakes set. Throttles spool up. Temps, pressures check. Advance to takeoff power. Throttles set, release brakes, rolling. 80 knots. V1 Rotate. V2 Positive rate, gear up. 500 feet, heading 125. Autopilot engage. Flaps up. “Honolulu, Mālama ‘Āina 1, off Līhu’e, 2,800 climbing 10,000, turning heading 125.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Honolulu Departure. Radar contact 3 miles East Lihue airport. Proceed direct ZIGIE, climb and maintain 10,000.” “Position checks, direct ZIGIE, 10,000, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” As the FMS controls the autopilot, I monitor the airplane as we climb up to our cruising altitude of FL350. When we reach cruising, I check my watch against the airplane’s GPS clock. Not that there’s a discrepancy, but the wrist device does a local time conversion without the extra brainwork. That said, that point is completely invalidated even with the advent of onboard WiFi that can work over water. At our halfway reporting point, I finally break and head for the lavatory. I turn up the radio in case we get paged. Hoping we don’t, I take care of business and head back to the cockpit just as a ping from SELCAL comes in. “Oakland, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” I page as I readjust the volume. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Oakland. Just wanted to let you know that you’re the only one traveling on A331 at this time. Weather reports would be appreciated.” “Roger, right now, at 5 miles east of ZAGER, negligible turbulence, inflight visibility greater than 50 miles, no clouds within a 15 NM radius. Temperature at altitude, Flight Level 350, minus 40. Remarks: perfectly moonlight ocean night.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger.” A few minutes later, I head for the galley to grab a drink. Finding the lights, I switch them to the lowest setting, which adjusts the mood lighting from purple to a mellow but still deep and bold blue, pretty much matching the shirts of the cabin crew of the airline this plane used to fly for. On the ceiling, bold fiery orange mood lighting very obviously meant to emulate lava slowly comes to life, and to my surprise not able to wake our sleeping pax. I grab a can of Diet Coke since I can’t be bothered to find anything else, and just as I return to the cockpit, I receive a message on my LinkedIn. Hello Mr. Scimitar, My name is Torque Wrench. I am a mechanic who is currently pursuing her Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) certification. The reason for my inquiry is because of Ms. Applejack recommending me to you. Attached is my resume along with a letter of recommendation from my previous employer. Thank you for your time. Sincerely, Torque Wrench C: (xxx) xxx-xxxx E: Torque.Wrench@TownOfHopeHollow.net “A recommendation from Applejack? I have a good feeling about this one. Let’s take a look at her résumé.” The more of it I read, the more impressed I get. “I like this girl. I’d love to meet her!” Double checking our distance to our next reporting point, I pull out my iPad and attach my keyboard. Pulling up her LinkedIn message, I type out a reply, Hello Ms. Wrench, Thank you for your message. I have received your resume and eagerly reviewed it throughly. While I appreciate your very impressive resume, may I ask what kind of work you are seeking with me? I understand you are currently pursuing your Airframe/Powerplant certification, but are you inquiring about working on my automobiles, airplanes, or both? I am very impressed with your resume, please don’t misunderstand me, and I would be honored to meet you and conduct an interview. However, I would just like some clarification on what kind of mechanic work it is you seek. Please send me your schedule and we can work from there. Thank you very much, I look forward to meeting with you. Sincerely, Split Scimitar “Max” ATP - AMEL Commercial/Instrument - ASEL Complex, Tailwheel, High Performance, High Altitude Aerobatics - Advanced Complete list of type ratings available upon request. I tune Seattle’s ATIS in COM2, since at this time of year, I can expect some morning fog as I mentioned earlier. Of course, I’m not gonna be able to tell until I get closer to the coast, but I can’t assume anything. “Oakland, Mālama ‘Āina 1, position report.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Oakland, go ahead.” “Oakland, Mālama ‘Āina 1, reporting SEDAR. Next report LATAY in 20 minutes.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger.” When I finish the Diet Coke, I quickly head to the galley to dispose of it, and just as I emerge from the cockpit door, a figure is standing up at the back of the first class cabin. I take my last sip and pause in front of the cockpit door. Just as I reach for the cabin lights, the airplane encounters a small pocket of unstable air, which sends my hand straight to the cabin lights switch. Glad it’s mood lighting and not actual blinders, I quickly flip the switch back, but in the brief time the lights illuminate, they reveal Fluttershy staring at me with a very unusual look on her face. Not really thinking much of it, I toss my empty can, spiffy up the clothes I’m wearing, and return to the cockpit. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, contact Seattle Center now on 125.6.” “Over to Seattle, thanks for the help, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “My pleasure.” “Seattle Center, Mālama ‘Āina 1 level at FL350.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Seattle Center, Good morning. Possible radar return 4 to 6 miles southwest of point KS06A. Coordinates 46 degrees North, 125 degrees West.” “Standby, looks like… yes, it is us. Position checks, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger. Descend via the HAWKZ Seven Arrival landing north, expect ILS RWY 34C CAT II.” “HAWKZ Seven north flow, expect ILS 34C CAT II, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” As the FMS automatically changes the autopilot bugs in accordance with the arrival procedure, I brief the arrival anyway. “HAWKZ Seven Arrival into Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, LATAY transition, landing 34C. From LATAY, track 059° to AAYRR, MEA 12,000, then track 062° to HAWKZ, MEA 10,000. Cross HAWKZ at or above 12,000 at 270 knots. From HAWKZ, track 023° to LIINE, then track 027° to FOOTT between 10,000 and 12,000 at 250 knots. From FOOTT, track 030° to GOALZ at or above 8,000, then track 032° to SONDR, cross at 6,000 and 230 knots. Arrival brief complete.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, contact Seattle Approach on 133.65.” “33.65, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Seattle Approach, Mālama ‘Āina 1, HAWKZ Seven.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Seattle Approach, 9 miles from SONDR. Continue on the HAWKZ Seven, passing SONDR, cleared ILS RWY 34C CAT II Approach. Maintain 6,000 until established.” “HAWKZ Seven to SONDR, then cleared ILS 34C CAT II, 6,000 until established, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” Below 230 knots, set flaps 1. “Approach brief. ILS RWY 34C CAT II into Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Primary navaid I-TUC Localizer on 111.7, received and verified by our equipment. Approach course inbound 344°, 9,426’ of runway available, touchdown zone elevation 387, airport elevation 432. SONDR transition: from SONDR at 6,000, intercept the localizer and expect a glide slope interception with it to LORIE, 14.2 DME on the localizer, cross at 5,000, then follow localizer to ODBOE, 11.1 LOC DME, cross at 4,000, thence to TIFYS, 6.1 DME, cross at 2,400, our glideslope intercept. If at any point prior to TIFYS, we receive the glideslope, follow glideslope to ILS SA CAT II minima of 487’ and 1200 RVR. If we pass TIFYS without interception, go missed. As this a CAT II Approach, if we cannot verify that we have touched down on runway 34C within the first 900 feet, go missed. Missed approach procedure: climb heading 345 along Seattle radial 341 to COYLA, 4.7 DME from the Seattle VOR at or above 3,000, then continue heading 345 along Seattle Radial 341 to 5,000 direct MGNUM and hold, 12.7 DME from Seattle, at the intersection of 12.7 DME from Seattle along radial 341 and Paine (PAE) radial 164. Approach brief complete.” “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, information Kilo. 1605Z. Wind 020 at 4. Visibility minus 1/4. RVR runway 34R 1,000 feet. Fog. Sky condition overcast 100. Temperature 3, dewpoint 1. Altimeter 29.71. ILS Runway 34C And ILS Runway 34R in use. Landing and departing runway 34C and runway 34R. Notices to Airmen: runway 16R/34L closed. Taxiway T closed. Various cranes lighted and flagged in various quadrants. Advisory: all aircraft departing from general aviation parking expect holds on the ramp due to arriving traffic. All VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. Read back all runway hold short instructions. Advise on initial contact you have information Kilo.” “Seattle Approach, Mālama ‘Āina 1 has information K.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger. You’re currently number 4 for runway 34C. Reduce speed to 170 knots.” “170, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” Below 210 knots, set flaps 2. “Seattle Approach, Southwest 3534, gone missed.” “Southwest 3534, roger, fly the published missed.” “Published missed, Southwest 3534.” “And Southwest 3534, I have a specific request from tower. You ready to copy?” “Affirm, 3534.” “Southwest 3534, upon reaching the hold at MGNUM, can you do a continuous climb in hold to determine the top of the fog layer?” “We can do that, Southwest 3534.” “Southwest 3534, thank you. I appreciate that.” “No problem!” “Horizon 2250, contact Seattle tower now, 119.9.” “19.9, Horizon 2250.” “Delta 1587, maintain 170 knots.” “170, Delta 1587.” Below 200 knots, set flaps 3. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, passing SONDR, contact Seattle tower, 119.9.” “Tower at SONDR, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” With a few minutes before we reach SONDR, I tune the ATIS again. “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport information Kilo…” “Perfect, no changes.” “Seattle Tower, Mālama ‘Āina 1, K, 2 miles from SONDR, ILS 34C CAT II.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Seattle tower. Are you fully established?” “Affirm, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, roger. Runway 34C, number 2 behind a Delta 737, cleared to land.” “Cleared to land 34C, number 2, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “Horizon 2250, exit at H, cross runway 34R no delay, B, where are you parking?” “H, cross 34R, parking at… C16.” “Roger, Horizon 2250, H B, ground .7.” “H B, contact ground, Horizon 2250.” 1000. 200. Runway lights and ALS in sight, continue on the approach. 100. Minimums! Minimums! Continue. 50. 40. 30. 20. 10. Touchdown. Shy of the thousand-foot markers. 34C verified. Spoilers up, brakes on, 2 in reverse. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, exit at F, hold short of runway 34R.” “F exit, short of 34R, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” “On behalf of your Southern California based flight crew, welcome to Seattle. The local time is 9:02 am, with weather 40 degrees, fog, and very slight southerly winds. Please wait until we have come to a complete stop and the seat belt sign has been turned off. Baggage can be claimed planeside at the bottom of the exit door. Please wait until the all-clear has been given before claiming your baggage and please do not attempt to claim your bags before the all-clear has been given. As this is the termination of our flight, please do ensure you have all personal belongings with you. Certainly has been a pleasure serving you this past week, and we hope to see you again on a future flight. Thank you for choosing us for your travel needs, welcome to Seattle.” Stop at the marked hold short for 34R, short of taxiway E. After landing checklist. -Flaps, spoilers: retract. -Strobes, landing, pulse lights: off. -Transponder: Squawk VFR: 1200. -Taxi instructions: F, short of runway 34R, hold short is short of E. We’ll expect a crossing of 34R, then E to B, all the way down to Q, then cross 34R again and taxi to Signature. After landing checklist complete. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, cross runway 34R, E B Q, hold short runway 34R. Ground .7 on B.” “Cross 34R, E B Q short of 34R, ground on B, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” Merge onto taxiway E, all lights on crossing the runway, then lights in accordance with the after landing checklist. Right B, join the lineup for runway 34R. “This fog is so thick, the reported RVR seems generous.” “Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, information Lima. 1652Z. Wind 010 at 5, visibility 1/4. Fog. Sky condition overcast 100. Temperature 4, dewpoint 1, altimeter 29.72. ILS Runway 34C and Runway 34R in use. Landing and departing runway 34C and runway 34R. Notices to Airmen: runway 16R/34L closed. Taxiway T closed. Various cranes lighted and flagged in various quadrants. Advisory: all aircraft departing from general aviation parking expect holds on the ramp due to arriving traffic. All VFR aircraft contact clearance delivery prior to taxi. Read back all runway hold short instructions. Advise on initial contact you have information Lima.” “Hawaiian 21 Heavy, Seattle tower. Visibility 1/4, no reported RVR. Can you depart under these conditions?” “Standby, Hawaiian 21 Heavy.” “Seattle Ground, Mālama ‘Āina 1 on B short of G, to Signature.” “Mālama ‘Āina 1, Seattle Ground.“ A few moments later, the beauty of a Hawaiian A330 roars past us. I, though secretly breath-taken, let out a “whoo!” When the wake dissipates and I try and peek ahead at the next departure, I breathe a sigh of relief as the fog starts to lift, or at least, around the runways. There are now 6 aircraft ahead in the queue plus the line up and wait. Three of them are past Q, so hopefully I can sneak behind them. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, cross runway 34R behind the departing traffic, hold short runway 34C, arriving traffic.” “Cross 34R at Q, short of 34C, Mālama ‘Āina 1.” Lights on across 34R, then off in accordance with the taxi checklist short of 34C. “Mālama ‘Āina 1, cross runway 34C, Q to Signature.” “Cross 34C to Signature, Mālama ‘Āina 1, thanks for the help!” “You’re welcome! Great day!” Parked. Seatbelt sign off. Shut down. Ground power on the way. Disarm door, air stairs on the way. Once set against the door, I give the all clear to deplane then head to the back to get the cars and bags. One Q5 out, parked next to the stairs. All bags claimed, switcheroo. Rinse and repeat, all bags claimed. No discrepancies. All passengers can go home happy. “How long will you be here?” The lineman asks. “Probably about an hour or so.” “Do you need fuel?” “Yeah. 3,000 gallons. 1.5 a side.” “Got it!” “Thank you!” After I head in and pay all my fees excluding the fuel, I grab a quick drink and find Fluttershy waiting for me in the lounge. “Fluttershy? You don’t have to wait for me. I’m heading home once I’m done here.” “Oh, that’s okay. I’m waiting for a call, and I’d rather take it here.” “Oh, okay.” “Umm, Max. Thank you so much for doing this for us.” “You’re very welcome. It’s been a real pleasure.” I say extending my hand. Fluttershy however, sees my hand and shakes it, but immediately pulls me into a hug. “Thank you!” She whispers as I return the embrace. “Glad I could be of help.” I say as I relax, almost nervous to sink my head onto hers. Oddly though, when I prepare to let go, she doesn’t. I loosen my grip and see if she’ll follow, but still nothing. “You’re like a pillow, Max.” Completely broadsided by her comment, I retract in shock, which causes her to let go. “Oh, I’m sorry.” She blushes. “I didn’t mean it like that.” “No, no,” I insist, “it’s fine. It’s just been a long time since I’ve been called a pillow.” “If that was offensive, I’m so sorry I said it!” “Don’t even trip. The last person to call me a pillow was my sister. And that was when I was in middle school.” “Aww!” She smiles brightly. “Well, you are.” “Thank you, I appreciate that.” “Oh, that’s my call!” She says just as her phone vibrates in her pocket. “Aight Imma head out.” “Come back soon! I’d love to do a weekend together or something.” She shouts before she returns to her call. “I’d love that.” I call back as I head for the front desk to check out.
