I’m pretty sure Mrs. Nussbaum never knew. It had to be obvious there were about 50 small trainer aircraft passing over her pool every day, but then the Nussbaum’s farm was close to the airport and there was flight training. But despite the fact that The Pool, as it became known to pilots and ATC, was a good five miles away from the airport, students persisted in using it as a reporting point for VFR entry into the pattern.
“Two Charlie Tango over The Pool with Information Bravo” was almost a mantra of the flight students. A cynic might suggest the popularity of the pilot-defined VFR checkpoint had something to do with Mrs. Nussbaum, age undeterminable at 1,000 feet agl, sunbathing in the altogether by her pool. It was hardly a rarity in the world of aviation.
Lombardo covers business aviation maintenance-related issues. He is also a writer and on-air reporter for AINtv. He has over 3000 articles published and is the author of several books on aircraft systems for pilots and on the topic of flight simulation.
He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in education from the University of Illinois, has taught aviation for over 35 years in industry and as a university professor and academic dean at three different universities. He is also a frequent seminar and after-dinner motivational speaker.
Lombardo holds an A&P Certificate, ATP, CFI and Ground Instructor ratings. He was a corporate pilot and was a research pilot and flight instructor at the University of Illinois. An FAA Safety Counselor for over 25 years, he was one of the original 13 Counselors appointed to the FAA’s Airworthiness Safety Program for maintenance technicians.
