AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - August 2024 - 12

LETTERS
Ramp Check
Brings back memories
Kollin Stagnito's column ( " Ramp Check, " June
2024 AOPA Pilot) brought back some memories.
I flew a Cessna Citation 500 S/N 091, first
based in Ohio. We were in our hangar outside
Cleveland Airport (CLE) when the FAA
inspector showed up (maintenance, not flight).
His name is lost, but he wore a silly little hat and
never removed it, even indoors. He promptly
filled out a form and told us we were grounded.
We had no logbooks. Cescom was included with
the Citations-computerized record keeping. He
insisted the regulations clearly stated " logbooks "
were required. The Cescom binder had tabs:
Airframe, Right Engine, Left Engine, Avionics,
ADs. It was cool, but it wasn't " logbooks. "
We called Cessna; Cessna called 800
Independence; 800 Independence called
the CLE general aviation district office; they
called the guy with the hat. It took all day, but
we got ungrounded. Only to get ramp checked
the next day at the South Bend airport (SBN)
(again maintenance). No problems. Later that
week, someplace in Georgia, here come the two
guys with a clipboard. Now I've lost my usually
friendly attitude. I meet them at the wing tip,
and they say their piece, I say mine. " This will
be the third time we've been ramped this week.
It is harassment, and I am going to call NBAA for
legal advice. " They offer that they are not trying
to cause us trouble. I say, " If you want to look
at the airplane, help yourself, but if it's a ramp
check.... " They smile and say can we just look at
your airplane, first one we have seen up close.
Flying a new make/model has its ups and downs.
In 40 years and 17,000 hours, other than
checkrides, I was only asked for my pilot
certificate once: by a city policeman on the
ramp at Boca Raton, Florida, at 2 a.m., but that's
a story for another day.
Jim Hackman
Tempe, Arizona
Kollin Stagnito, thanks for your article ( " Ramp
Check, " June 2024 AOPA Pilot). I write because
you imply that logbooks should be available
to document annual inspection, pitot/static,
ELT, and transponder checks at ramp checks.
I never carry my logbooks in the airplane and
have been advised not to do so. It's hard to
believe such fundamentals can have changed
12
AOPA PILOT / August 2024
so substantially. What am I missing? Thanks
for your insight.
John Sandvig
Seattle, Washington
Kollin Stagnito replies: You make an excellent
point. I did say at the beginning of the column
my ramp check was pre-planned, and I showed
" pictures of the logbook entries, " not the actual
logbooks (which should be in a fireproof safe).
However, in the last paragraph I mentioned having
the basic paperwork the FAA wants to see readily
available. I meant pilot certificate, medical, ID, and
AROW and should have said not to carry logbooks
in the airplane.
Ottawa-Gatineau
I was intrigued with Julie Summers Walker's
short note in " Ottawa-Gatineau " (June 2024
AOPA Pilot) touching on a need for a French
Menu Reader when visiting nearby Canada.
For those of us who live/fly from Kent, United
Kingdom, the need for français is often only 20
minutes away!
Although English is proclaimed as " the
international language of the air, " frequently,
français seulement [French only] is a requirement
at even an international airport like Le Touquet
(which, incidentally, just changed its name to
Le Touquet Queen Elizabeth II International
Airport) when ATC has gone to lunch.
To help with this, many international pilots
use an aide memoire [memory aid]. It would be
interesting to know whether fliers in Ottawa-
especially to nontowered fields-are expected
to do the same.
Peter Geldard
Kent, United Kingdom
I wish I had read
Mike Busch's article
( " Savvy Maintenance:
Tale of Two Prebuys, "
June 2024 AOPA
Pilot) in 2003 before
my own airplane
purchase disaster.
An excellent,
well-written article.
Hopefully new buyers
will heed his advice.
Randy Walker
Valdosta, Georgia
ON COURSE
Ramp check
A first-timer's experience
BY KOLLIN STAGNITO / Editor in Chief
AOPA Foundation Legacy Society member
" KOL L IN, THE FA A is fixing to do a ramp check on our Baron, "
said AOPA Senior Photographer David Tulis. " Do you know where
Dave [Hirschman] is? They want to talk to him. " Tulis and I were
in the FBO at Buckeye Municipal Airport (BXK) on the first day of
the AOPA Fly-In, and my first reaction was surprise that the FAA
would conduct ramp checks during the Buckeye Air Fair.
After a few seconds, my brain started recovering from its initial
fight-or-flight reaction. " Wait-this isn't a random ramp check, "
I said. " AOPA's Baron and 170 are flying in the airshow this afternoon.
Every airshow airplane gets a ramp check for safety. We
knew this was coming. "
I had never witnessed a ramp check in my 36 years of flying,
let alone been the subject of one. Hirschman was flying the " dual
fuel Baron, " and I was showcasing the Sweepstakes Cessna 170
one last time before we gave it away. The airshow boss had sent
us an aircraft status and inspection form to fill out that included
a list of documents to show the FAA during our ramp checks. I
was prepared, but the process was still nerve-racking. A golf cart
pulled up to the FBO with two FAA officials on board. " You ready
for the 170? " they asked. " Absolutely, " I responded, doing my best
to hide some trepidation. It suddenly felt uncomfortably hot in
that Arizona sun.
One official, Tom, asked to see my documents while the other,
Jeremy, inspected the airplane for safety issues.
I showed Tom pictures of the logbook entries for the airplane's
most recent annual inspection, 91.207 ELT inspection, 91.413 transponder
check, and 91.411 pitot/static check to prove the airplane
was in compliance. He also wanted to see proof of compliance
for any recurring airworthiness directives, which in the case of
the Cessna 170B included the AD2011-10-9 seat track inspection.
So far so good.
He then asked to see documents that must be carried in the
aircraft or be easily accessible by the pilot in command: the airworthiness
certificate, registration certificate, pilot certificate, driver's
license, and FAA medical certificate (those flying under BasicMed
are only required to show a driver's license). Anticipating he'd
expect to see all required documents (remember AROW?), I asked
if he wanted to see the operating limitations and weight and balance.
" Nope, I don't need to see those. " How foolish of me-and
first lesson learned. If you are being ramp checked, don't offer any
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AOPA PILOT / June 2024
documents or information not specifically requested. It can only
add to the possibility something is missing or lapsed or wrong
and cause you grief.
Attention then turned to the physical condition of the
airplane. The officials pored over the airplane looking for
anything that could jeopardize the safety of airshow attendees,
but the AOPA Sweepstakes Cessna 170 had just been completely
restored; it sat proud on its 26-inch Bushwheel tires and was
resplendent in its shiny new paint job. Tom and Jeremy asked
questions about the upgrades and were impressed with the
craftsmanship of the restoration, until Jeremy pointed to the
wing and asked, " What's that? "
Huh? A few days earlier, I had flown the 170 from Frederick,
Maryland, to Atlanta, Georgia. It was cold at altitude, and freezing
air was entering the cabin air vents in the wing, forcing its way past
the closed outlet assembly and freezing me. During the next stop,
I shoved some blue paper towels into the wing air vent openings
to stop the flow of air. The towels closely matched the color of
the wing and were not easily visible. I explained the paper towel
fix to the inspectors and sheepishly pulled the remnants from the
air vents. Lesson number two: Take the time to walk around the
airplane before the FAA does to make sure everything is in order.
The FAA inspectors might be friendly, but they know how to spot
potential problems.
When I was sure I had passed the ramp check I asked Tom and
Jeremy what common issues, in their experience, caused pilots
or airplanes to fail a ramp check. " Incomplete paperwork when
purchasing an airplane is a big issue, " said Tom. " A lack of evidence
of AD compliance, in particular, comes back to bite people who
rush through the purchase process. "
It's unlikely most of us will be ramp checked during our flying
career-either randomly or as part of an organized event such
as an airshow. But you'll never have to worry about one if you
have the basic paperwork the FAA wants to see readily available.
Now is the best time to
make sure everything is
in place, not on the ramp
when someone says, " Hi,
I'm with the FAA. "
kollin.stagnito@aopa.org
KOLLIN STAGNITO, AOPA
senior vice president of media,
is a commercial pilot, ground
instructor, and owner of a nonsweepstakes
Cessna 170B.
AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - August 2024

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