The Md-11f: From A Ramp Agent's Perspective.

[Guest KHAOS]

Hey Casey,Great story...nice to see how the other side does it. Im an AMT for FedEx in EWR and with the exception of a few minor things, everything on your MD-11s are pretty much the same as ours. You should try to get pics of the crew rest area for the board. I love how the MD-11s unfolds. Ill try to post some pics for a seperate post one day. Nice work.

Thanks :(I'm unfamiliar with the term AMT, what does that stand for? Just wondering. I'm guessing Aircraft Maintenance Technician?I wish I could get a pic of the rest area and even more things, but we're done with the MD-11 on our end for at least a year at UPS. It'll be a long time before I ever see another MD-11 up close. The only way I can see one again is if my dad takes me on another flight with him in the meantime. However, since February 2005, the FAA has passed a regulation saying family members of crew are not allowed to fly on board with them. My dad and I have been trying to see if there is any loophole in that clause to get me on a World Airways flight.I can't believe it's been almost 4 years since our flight together from ANC-LAX-ANC. Amazing how time flies. As far as progress with uploading the extra videos from Peak, it'll be awhile I've decided. I tried installing Adobe Premiere on my laptop, but I don't meet the specs for it. Oh well. I'll figure out something another day soon. I'm in no real rush at the moment to put something together.If anybody has any more questions for me about the ground ops with the MD-11, feel free to ask. My dad could answer questions regarding flight ops. So we're a tag team, lol. Oh, and before I forget...no he won't give me data for FLEX takoffs. :( I've asked. And no, I can't get you fuel planning stuff. Haha. Once again to those who have left well-wishes and the kind words, thanks - I appreciate it. :(

[Gavin 99]

CaseyGreat posts, great pictures, great videos. Thanks.What about your father? Has he got any pics/vids for us?

[Guest KHAOS]

CaseyGreat posts, great pictures, great videos. Thanks.What about your father? Has he got any pics/vids for us?

Yup, he has a few pictures from his flights. I've been encouraging him to take more pictures as he can. I have yet to get most of his pics on my photobucket, but when I do, I'll post in here with them.However, I do have a story and at least some of the pictures from one of his first flights "back in the saddle" after my mom's passing this summer. So here goes:-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In the company my dad works for, pilots are awarded their trips, or 'bid lines', based upon seniority. (I.e., the longer you're in, the more seniority you have. He is in the top 50 out of 450 pilots at World Airways.) Without going into too much detail, in a roundabout, unplanned and unconventional way my dad was able to snag a troop transport flight from Alaska to MCAS Kaneohe in Hawaii on the 29th of August. After dropping US Marines off at the airbase, the crew took the plane to Hickam AFB, HI to park it for the night.30 AUG 08, the next leg of the trip, flying from Hickam to Biggs AAF, TX (KBIF) would be a ferry flight, picking up more troops and then flying them to Bangor, ME.My dad called me from the ramp at Biggs, and we talked. It was a good flight, barring the fact that the F/O was a recent new-hire from the now defunct Gemini Cargo outfit. With the F/O having less than 300 hrs under his belt in the MD-11, my old man had to do a lot of babysitting with the guy. It was the F/O's leg from KHCF to KBIF, and right as they were turning onto the runway the guy's cell phone starts ringing. My dad told me about the look of death he gave the guy and just about ripped off his head and ###### down his neck. I had to laugh, even though I knew it was serious business. We talked only for a few more minutes while he was doing the pre-flight. We said our goodbyes and I went to doing my own thing here back at home. Within 10 minutes, I get a call. It's my dad again. I can tell he's stunned. "I was programming the FMS and guess what I saw..." I had a feeling of exactly what it was, yet he had no idea I knew. The route my dad would be flying that day would take them over Texas, parts of Oklahoma, Kansas and then upward through the middle US, over Michigan, then parts of Canada, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and finally Maine. Years ago, my mom had told me there was a town in Kansas with her name. Her name being unique, it added more to the surprise of what my dad told me. "One of our waypoints we're flying over is - ZENDA." My mother's name is Zenda. He continued. "I'll give you the coordinates. N37 20.5 W098 15.1. Readback." I read it back to him, "North 3-7, 2-0 point 5, West 0-9-8, 1-5 point 1." "Readback correct." I could tell he had a smile on his face. He was amazed at how this waypoint just showed up in his flight plan. The whole matter of this coming to pass, how he managed to snag this flight instead of going to Equatorial Africa, and seeing as how in some form he had my mom with him, really did confirm to us that there was something more going on here than we could see. It was comforting. He later told me that while he was programming the FMS, a cold wind came out of nowhere. He described to me that the packs were on, but there was no way that the jet of air that moved around him in such a manner could have happened by accident. It was distinct. I wish I could describe it better.Anyway, to continue: WOA8522 would be flying this route:

SUMMY J26 CME J26 ICT J21 OVR FOD ODI GRB J522 YYZ J594 MSS PLB J29 RANGY

From 640NM out and inbound, my dad had the FIX page programmed with ZENDA, watching it all the way outbound until it disappeared off the navigational display. In a phone call later, he told me that there were storms throughout the area, and they had to divert somewhat, but commented, "It was stormy over Zenda. How fitting for your mother, lol." He joked. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I managed to capture some audio from LiveATC.net of my dad on the radio departing Hickam: http://www.utahmusclecars.com/khaos/DAD-PH...F-30AUG2008.mp3

WORLD AIRWAYS 9656: (Handed off to another frequency) “World 9656, Good day.”WOA9656: (Scanner picks him up on the other frequency) “…this is World 9656 through 1,600 climbing to 5,000, heading 1-4-0.” HICKAM FIELD DEPARTURE: “…departure…radar contact. Maintain 4,000 for now, I’ll get you there to…a lot quicker.”WOA9656: “4000 for now, World 9656.”HCF DEP: “World 9656 heavy, turn left heading 1-2-0.”HCF DEP: "World 9656 heavy, turn left heading 0-9er-0, and climb to 5,000. Traffic will be at 12 o’clock in 3 miles, expect 6,000." WOA9656: "9-0, climbing 5,000 now, World 9656."HCF DEP: "World 9656 heavy, turn left heading 0-8-0, climb and maintain 6,000."WOA9656: "6,000, World 9656 heavy."HCF DEP: "World 9656 heavy, traffic will be no factor for ya, climb and maintain flight level 3-9er-0, cleared direct EBBER, resume own navigation."WOA9656: "Direct EBBER now, World 9656."HCF DEP: "World 9656 heavy, contact departure on 124.1. Have a good flight."WOA9656: "World 9656, thank you sir, good day."

Here are the pictures from Kaneohe, and a bit from over Kansas:Troops at MCAS Kaneohe My DadScenery View From the Left SeatMountains around KaneoheFlying over HonoluluPassenger CabinLeft WingletOn Airway J26Approching Storms over KansasAbove Storms over KansasDown in the CockpitND Approaching ZendaFix Page - ZENDAApproaching Abeam Point - ABZENSunset over Zenda, KSStorms over Zenda, KSStorms over Zenda, 2While I am thinking about it...I will add one last picture to this post. This picture was taken at 30,000 feet above the North Altantic by my dad. We used this on the inside of my mom's funeral program. We chose it based upon what it represented in our beliefs. I think the picture conveys the meaning by itself: Sunrise

[yahavl 0]

thanks for sharing with us!!!yahav

[questy 0]

Hi Casey, Thanks for the story, I'm deeply sorry for your best friend in life your mum. Your last post brought a tear my eye, i know gutted you are my heart goes out to u and your family. This is something that I always wanted to do as a career but i dont know where to start, i live near EGCC Manchester we get only 5 main freight's, ie fedex cathy pacific, dragonair, great wall. Any advise world be welcome Many thanks Colin

[Guest KHAOS]

Sorry for the late reply - I've not had access to a computer the past week and a half, as my laptop and PC have both fried.

This is something that I always wanted to do as a career but i dont know where to start, i live near EGCC Manchester we get only 5 main freight's, ie fedex cathy pacific, dragonair, great wall. Any advise world be welcome

Colin -Thanks for the question. Sure, I'd be happy to give some advice and share what I've experienced in my job.Start small and work your way up in the world. If planning a career out of it, ask yourself "Do I want to do this all my life?" Work a season or two...or three...a whole year for good measure, even, to get your feel for it. If you indeed like it, work awhile at one place and if something better comes along, well you'll have your experience to back you up.Out of the 5 companies you listed, do you have a preference as to which one you'd like to work for? 1.) Ask what they do there. Would you be building cargo (eg: loading cargo cans by hand, stacking cargo on pallets) or simply loading the finished product onto aircraft, or just servicing aircraft in general? It may vary widely from company to company. That would be my first criteria to look for, because sometimes you'll get stuck building the cargo instead of handling the jets or loading them. That'd be a big disappointment in my book. I had a friend who transferred from our outfit to FedEx at the other side of the airport. He was a qualified ramp agent and deck loader operator, yet they had him loading cargo containers by hand and never was he able to step foot out onto the ramp and touch a jet.2.) Also, check out if the job's hours will fit into your schedule such as if you have school and what not. I've run into a fair amount of jobs like this being part time only, with full time being hard to acquire. The world of commerce operates when others don't. Plan on working most holidays and probably weekends. Plan on working odd hours. In the UPS system, they have shifts (called sorts) scheduled out as sunrise, day, twilight and night. However, at our facility there's only two options: AM (0300-0730) and PM (1600-2100). You may find something that works just right for you. 3.) What's the starting wage? See if one company pays better than the other. 4.) Does it have benefits such as paid holidays or even health insurance? I stress the latter as the most important. You will be working a VERY hazardous job. MAKE SURE YOU ARE INSURED IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER through the company you work for or elsewhere though a third party vendor. I cannot stress that enough. You don't want to be a burden on your family if something unfortunate were to happen to you and you were not covered. 5.) Can you handle working in extreme climate changes? Be prepared to work in rain, snow, high temps, low temps, etc. You might have to buy your own gear to cope with the weather, as your company may not provide it for you. If you have allergies, working outside all the time may be havoc on you. I come home slightly smelling like jet fuel...and yet I love it. The first week was hell, as I had to accustom to the different smells of diesel from the equipment, jet fuel, de-ice fluid and the physical part of literally running around all day. 6.) Can you handle hard physical work? The health benefits are great, I will admit. Being active, I get regular exercise and have now officially lost 57 lbs. They pay me to get in shape is how I see it. I had a gym membership but stopped going when I got the job. If you can do your share and be a team player, you've got nothing to worry about. 7.) Go for it. Dive into everything you possibly can into learning how everything all comes together. If you're gonna work with planes, go ahead be a goof, nerd out and learn the ICAO marshalling signals before you start if you get hired...lol, that's what I did. Things like that. Ask how equipment works, what the procedures are, and don't be afraid to get involved. Every company has their own policy on how THEY do things - and that will be your sword that you live and die by. Follow their rules to the letter. We just so happen to be getting audited next Tuesday. We'll be getting graded on how well we stick to procedures in everything we do. If we fail, we're screwed. Passing grade is a 97%, any less and it's automatic fail. That is why adhering to what you're trained to do is so important. 8.) Have fun. Being a ramp agent is a good time if you are a serious aviation nut. I often tell people when they catch me taking pictures, "What? This is like my porn." Then I continue to keep filming, while they shake their head. I hope that helps, and if you have any more questions, just ask. Let me know how the job hunting goes! I wanna know!