Page 46 - Volume 15 Number 8

44 • TWIN & TURBINE AUGUST 2011
From the Flight Deck by Kevin R. Dingman
Pour Some Sugar on Me
When you’re on the road for 20 or 30 years traveling for a living, certain things become more important than they might otherwise. You learn to be grateful for a good night’s sleep and the niceties of a quality hotel: Timely transportation to the hotel, a room key that works the first time, free wireless internet, wall plugs not hidden by the mattress, quiet neighbors, a coffee pot in the room that makes more than one cup at a time, and a good, hot breakfast. Speaking of breakfast – the concept of food, and the appreciative eating of it – takes on a whole new meaning; as does finding the types of food that can be enjoyed, in a dignified manner, sitting at the pointy-end of a modern airliner.
The Turnaround
Most of us have given up on the convenience and enjoyment of having the entire crew layover together. In the domestic system it became more cost effective to schedule the cabin and cockpit crews separately and send them to different hotels. We used to layover together. We’d all meet for dinner and maybe a movie. In the really olden days we may have gone skiing, to a Broadway play, or rented a car and traveled somewhere.
Even though the trials and tribulations of a three- or four-day trip can be daunting, I prefer them. I commute to work, so the more days I can fly without having to go back and forth to Michigan, or spend nights in the crash pad, the better. The alternative to the layover is a turn. Short for turnaround, a turn is when you go to another airport and then back. ORD-MSY-ORD for example. A double-turn would mean you go
to another airport and back, and then do it again, maybe or maybe not, to the same destination as the first turn.
Finding time to rest and eat while doing turns or double-turns can be problematic. After the passengers have deplaned, it’s only a matter of minutes before we board the next passengers for the return trip. During those minutes, we all have things to do to prepare for the next leg. The flight attendants deal with passenger issues, recheck safety equipment and clean the cabin. The first officer does an extensive exterior and interior preflight. The captain prints and reviews the flight plan, takeoff data, weather, NOTAMS and coordinates with the agent working the flight at the boarding counter. Once back on the jet, the captain will brief the crew on all of the above and the crew will advise the captain of any issues (if you read the September 2010 Twin & Turbine don’t forget the accent when you read the word: issues).
Snipes, Prop Wash & Beignets
When you have a good captain (like Captain Dingman, for example) you needn’t be shy in expressing your hunger due to lack of grub during a day of turns or double- turns. And if you’ve flown with him before, you remember it’s likely that he will buy for the crew.
On this day we’re doing a single MSY turn and my FA’s have put in a request for some beignets. You don’t know what that word is, you say? I didn’t either when I first came to the airlines. As a newbie I learned about the word on my first trip to MSY – New Orleans. When you’re the new guy, sometimes words like snipe, prop wash and beignet can
be used against you during your “initiation.” But astonishingly, it turns out, beignet is a real word. Not only is it a real word but it’s an edible word; and not only that, but it’s exceptionally edible. Believe you me: They are delicious!
The word is pronounced Ben-yea. Like the name Ben and the cheer Yea! And even though they’re very tasty, don’t scream the yea part the way an unnamed presidential candidate may have on live TV during his campaign. Yes, the word beignet looks like the color beige and net, I know.
I routinely call them Ben-Yets or Beige-Nets for fun. Why I like to play with words is an enema, I mean enigma. You know, like calling a resumè a resume, jalapeños, jalop- in-o’s; and Hors d’oeuvres, Horsey- dee-over’s. Feel free to modify the beignet pronunciation yourself if you want; it is French after all.
Beignets are a light, donut-like pastry, about two-thirds the size and shape of a McDonald’s apple pie except light like a plain donut. The kind of plain-brownish donut you eat along with apple cider in the fall. They’re sometimes described as a square donut with no hole. And did I mention they’re delicious?
Folkloric Status
It’s been said one of the world’s great carbohydrate indulgences is a beignet. The most classic version of a beignet consists of a fried square of dough, which the chef may or may not frost, but typically dusts with liberal amounts of confectioner’s sugar. The word beignet comes from the early Celtic word “bigne” meaning “to raise.” Beignet is also French for “fritter.”