The windsock. My friend at the airport. Working hard with your siblings (other windsocks) dotted around the airport. Rain or shine (or snow), day and night. Updating every second, giving the latest wind information to keep pilots safe.
Introducing You To My Students
You are the first thing I point out to my students. Not the taxiway signs. Not the runway hold short line. Not even the control tower that we have to obey. And I have introduced you to many of my students.
Mere moments after we start to taxi, I will point you out, turn to my student and say “look at the windsock and see where the wind is coming from”. We rely on you at the beginning of every flight to park the airplane into the wind for run-up. And we continue to rely on you when we taxi to the runway, take-off, land and taxi back.
Verify With You
When my students ask me where the winds are coming from when we are on final approach, I will tell them what the control tower has just told us and immediately reintroduce you to them. You are a means to verify the wind information when we get closer to the runway. My students may not know yet, but in the future, when they fly to remote places, they will be relying on one of your siblings just like I have done many times before.
You Guys Are Everywhere
Your siblings! They can be found everywhere! From busy international airports to remote landing strips. They are especially important at airstrips and in most cases the only source to tell where the wind is coming from and how “angry” (strong) they are. I will always look out for them when flying over airstrips to determine which runway I will be landing on.
Paying Tribute
I’ve seen you when you are calm, angry and tortured. But after a while, you heal yourself and keep on working without complaining. People always talk about the greatness of an aircraft or the beauty of an airport but never have I heard anyone even mention anything about you.
So this blog post is specially dedicated to you my friend, the windsock.
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