East Coast Visibility

Skylune wrote:

by "Kingfish" Jun 22, 2006 at 11:02 AM



I'm confused. You say (he said) vis is better now than in the late
60's/early 70's due to airborne pollution then say vis was far better
in the 50's than it is today.

scratching head

Proof that any fool can get a PPL.

Yes, you can if you apply yourself.

Matt

Depending on where you were, oily films were common on
buildings and cars. I remember walking on the city streets
in both my hometown of Springfield and in Chicago and seeing
a black oily scum on the buildings. They had crews
sandblasting the limestone and sandstone buildings.
When I lived in Tulsa back in the early 70s, if the wind was
from the northwest, our car would have a oil film overnight
from the refineries in West Tulsa.
Flying near these places, before scrubbers became common
would leave a nice coat.

I also remember the change in the water color just of the
Chicago shoreline, from gray to blue-green.



"Matt Whiting" wrote in message
...
| Kyle Boatright wrote:
|
| I was having lunch with a buddy of mine the other day
who has been a pilot
| for almost 50 years. We discussed the bad visibility we
have in the South
| and up the Eastern seaboard in the summer. Haze to
10,000', lateral
| visibility frequently under 5 miles, etc.
|
| He said that it is much better now than in the late
60's/early 70's. He
| said the airborne pollution in those days was so bad
that if you went on a
| long X/C you often came back with an oily film covering
the leading edges of
| the wings. He also added that when he started flying,
in the 50's,
| visibility was usually far better than it is today.
|
| Any comments?
|
| I don't believe the oily film part and I don't believe
things were
| better in the 50s than in the 60s or 70s. I do believe
things are
| better now than anytime during the 50s-70s.
|
|
| Matt

"Matt Whiting" wrote in message ...
Kyle Boatright wrote:

I was having lunch with a buddy of mine the other day who has been a pilot for almost 50 years. We discussed the bad
visibility we have in the South and up the Eastern seaboard in the summer. Haze to 10,000', lateral visibility
frequently under 5 miles, etc.

He said that it is much better now than in the late 60's/early 70's. He said the airborne pollution in those days
was so bad that if you went on a long X/C you often came back with an oily film covering the leading edges of the
wings. He also added that when he started flying, in the 50's, visibility was usually far better than it is today.

Any comments?

I don't believe the oily film part and I don't believe things were better in the 50s than in the 60s or 70s. I do
believe things are better now than anytime during the 50s-70s.


Matt

Just drove through Chicago last week, and the car was 'oily' - still a very dirty city.

".Blueskies." wrote

Just drove through Chicago last week, and the car was 'oily' - still a
very dirty city.

You can get that from following just one van, with a transmission rear seal
blown out. Just ask the "mother of all grills" after it got to OSH two
years ago.

You should have seen the smoke roll off of it, when it was lit for the first
time, after the trip! g
--
Jim in NC