Wow, we have been blessed with some amazing flying weather recently! It appears that we’ve almost made it through another winter with no serious cold spells like last year, but keep your fingers crossed as we are not completely out of the woods yet. A friendly reminder to stay prepared for those freezing nights by taking all the proper precautions. Covering plants and pipes, and leaving a slight drip on faucets to avoid busted pipes can really go a long way.
With all of these beautiful flying days, the traffic pattern can often fill up very quickly. Pearland Regional Airport is one of the busiest small airports in terms of daily operations, despite not having a control tower. As a result, it is all of our responsibility to maintain a safe and fun environment for all of our pilots. Sometimes cockpit management can become quite overwhelming and we have had several incidents recently with pilots making radio calls but not listening to others. This has resulted in a couple of near misses, many go arounds, and a few flared tempers.
Remember that we have all skill levels from zero hour beginners to several thousand hour airline captains. If you have the skill to safely do unusual procedures, remember that does not mean the others sharing the airspace have the knowledge, ability, or willingness to go along with it. Following proper pattern entries, procedures, and radio calls will significantly help to minimize potential conflicts. If we're all respectful, patient, and foster a mutual learning environment, everyone can have a great flight and return home safely to do it all again another day.
As always, the safety of everyone is always of the utmost importance and we are constantly looking for ways and methods to improve the experience of everyone visiting, working, and living on the airport. Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions, concerns, or comments that will continue to make Pearland Regional Airport the place to be and visit!
Safe Flying!
Jason Panos
General Manager
