I messed up while on a cross country today.?
I entered Pittsburgh's Class B airspace on accident. I was trying to find Wheeling and I was headed to the wrong stacks. I was told to contact the tower, but I turned out of there right quick. I then had to contact them immediately. I know I screwed up, and I know I should have contacted them sooner. After landing at my destination I was given a number to call on my cell phone and I had to talk to a man at Pittsburgh. He was nice and everything, but I felt as if I was going to get reprimanded after the fact. At the end I asked him if I was going to get into trouble, and he said no. Is this true, or did he tell me this to keep me calm on my return trip??? I told my flight instructor what happened and they told me not to worry, but I still am. I already know what I did was very wrong and dangerous.
Aircraft - 7 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
You are ok especially if they know you are a student pilot. Knowing your tail number they will probably contact the owner/instructor to let them know what happened. But if you are a student pilot and it was an honest mistake I wouldn't worry. Also it is a good idea for student pilots to tell ATC they are students. This way ATC will give you special handling. When I was a student pilot flying by myself I would tell everyone I talked to on the radio that I was a student. It helps.
2 :
FAA officers in dark blue tenchcoats will knock on your door in the middle of the night and drag youoff to secret FAA headquarters in Arlington, Virgina, in the 14th subbasement of the CIA building, where, if you answer truthfully and submit to invasive procedures, you may be allowed to contact your loved ones on alternate holidays... ...uh, actually, no. Maybe a letter of reprimand, but I doubt it, just don't do it again, or they really will >> service interrupted by security request <<
3 :
I was flying in a rented plane with my father-in-law a few years ago & the exact same thing happened. I forget the specifics, but I think it was that he thought you could come within 5 miles of PIT airspace when it was actually 3 (don't know if those numbers are right; might have been 8 & 5 miles or something like that). We weren't paying attention to the radio in our headsets, so we didn't hear the ATC, and when we got back to the airport, they told us & my father-in-law had to call the airport. Apparently the rule changed at some point and he wasn't aware. I think it was mainly because Pittsburgh's is an international airport. Either way, it's nothing to worry about. I would say, however, it's a good idea to always monitor your radio in case someone is trying to contact you - which means you should always be aware of your own tail number (which we weren't).
4 :
You'll be fine. always be courteous if you bog it. Controllers know what it's like to be a student and always do their best to help you
5 :
No answer has mentioned this. Learn what a NASA form is and how to use it. Your instructor can help you. If you are still within the time limit on filing one then do so immediately.
6 :
Sounds like a perfect time to learn about the NASA ASRS form and what it's all about. You have 10 days to get it in if you want to use the immunity feature, but like others here, I don't think that anything will come of today's adventure other than the fact that you'll probably be more careful in the future.
7 :
Join the crowd. I've done worse than that. Aint tellin though. You'll be fine. If the controller was going to make a big deal of it he'd have contacted the fsdo by now. Relax.
