> It is mind-boggling that 6 years after passing the law, after spending millions of dollars, the FAA license still does not have a photograph. It is absolutely astounding that the DHS, TSA and FAA could after 6 years of implementing the law still achieve such an incredible level of incompetence.

@DannyBeckett Yes they do - of Orville & Wilbur :)

lmao, what a quote... from UCAP #212

@PatoSáinz again, where's my license?! lol

@DannyBeckett seriously, how the hell would they do photos on FAA licenses?

I don't really see the point of photos on the licenses.

I mean for me? Fine. My plane is tied down directly across the field from the FSDO. I could walk there.

@voretaq7 yeah they said that

@BretCopeland we're legally required to have photo ID to exercise the privileges of our certificates (Thanks Congress!), but the certificate itself has no photo... Tell me this isn't a government operation

I got locked up in Amsterdam one night for having no ID on me

Apparently you're required to carry it at all times

(not that I could have possibly known that)

@voretaq7 right, which seems to work just fine. I always have a separate ID or two on me anyway when I'm flying.

@BretCopeland Fun Facts: That stupid badge you have to have to get airside at Republic? Doesn't count. :)

but yeah I always have my driver's license on me which has my photo

@voretaq7 I wasn't counting that. I always have my driver's license, and more often than not, my passport is in my flight bag.

My passport is expired. I'm basically putting off renewing it because I know it's gonna be a painful lesson in bureaucratic sucktasticness :)

@voretaq7 it's easier to get your passport renewed than to get a New York driver's license.

It requires less documentation, at least.

it's not that hard to get a new york driver's license. Just go into the DMV with your seeing eye dog...

I've had a DL in four different states now, and NY is the only one which required more than just my previous DL as proof of identification.

In all seriousness, you should see what the driving test in India consists of

I like that the EDL (which gets you into Canada basically) really does take more effort to get than a passport (which gets you into anywhere except Cuba) :)

I'm going to see if find the video I saw

@BretCopeland How do we know your license isn't just a MOST EXCELLENT forgery sir?!

the driving test is 17:25 - 18:45

@DannyBeckett NY road tests are performed on live roads, with live traffic.

From what I understand DMV examiners have a VERY high attrition rate

@voretaq7 same here. I presumed it was like that everywhere until I saw that

NJ road tests used to be done on a closed course. I think they're done on actual roads now too though

@DannyBeckett that's terrifying. It'd be like if the practical exam for pilots only included taxiing.

so...

basically "Don't hit the dog and you pass"?

@BretCopeland exactly.

I would NOT want that dog's job.

LMFAO

@PatoSáinz that.... is a credible impression of our airman certificates actually!

you actually got 2 digits correct on my door number too :p @PatoSáinz

23

I think it might pass a ramp check.... if the inspector forgets their glasses.

beginning to think you Facebook'd me or something... brown hair, blue eyes? that's right too :p

!!convert 70 kg stone

@DannyBeckett

looks like I broke the bot

That's Otto's way of saying "Nobody uses stone you freak!"

11 stone

meh, near enough :p

@voretaq7 exactly!! haha

funny

I'll try using it ;)

@voretaq7 have you even heard of stone before?

I gather it's an English thing

@DannyBeckett I have, and it is entirely an English thing

I know of no other country that uses Stone for anything

!!tell Pato wiki Catch me if you can

@Pato en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catch_Me_If_You_Can

@voretaq7 thought so..

@BretCopeland: I tried saving the edit again.

England's weird. We like both imperial and metric, so we use both

e.g. miles per hour

but kilograms for food

and stone for humans

there're probably other oddities too

!!google alcohol gunpowder degrees vs Gay-Lucent Degrees

@DannyBeckett gutenberg.org/files/1051/1051-h/1051-h.htm ; ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/c/carlyle/thomas/sartor_resartus/… ; archive.org/stream/alcoholitsproduc00simmuoft/…

I have no idea what that is...

lol ok

@lnafziger I guess it was pending approval.

ahhhh

you mean ABV

yeah we measure alcohol in "volume"

not "proof"

e.g. vodka is ~40%

American's would probably say 80 proof, or something

"alcoholic beverage volume"

@DannyBeckett We specify both on spirits

I believe ABV is legally required though

ah really? didn't know that

Yup - per TTB ABV is required, Proof is optional

yeah that's pretty cool actually, measuring its alcohol content by pouring gunpowder on it

@DannyBeckett Yeah. That's right out of the "Hey, hold my beer and watch this!" school of alcohol quality testing :)

lol!

where are you? US?

ah, Chile

they just increased the age limit in Holland actually

@PatoSáinz Dude. You're in Chilé. You guys even HAVE laws down there? :P

it's been 16 for years - now 18

actually, it pissed me off slightly when they increased the age on cigarettes in the UK from 16 to 18

I could legally buy cigarettes for about 3 months, lol

(had smoked longer than that)

Fun Facts: There is no "US Drinking Age" -- it's all coercion. "If your drinking age is 21 or older you get these nice Federal Highway Fund grants for your roads"

@voretaq7 interesting!

@PatoSáinz ahahahaha

@PatoSáinz or buy a cigarette around here.

to be fair, you can do that in the UK too

army at 16, drink at 18

actually, my driving license claims I'm authorised to drive tanks and steamrollers

@DannyBeckett I understand that in the UK you can basically drive whatever the hell you want as long as it doesn't damage the roads?

which (at the time it was issued) was impossible, because I was 17, and I wasn't in the army... there's an age limit on tanks

there's a dude who apparently drives a tank around London, and it's OK because it has rubber treads

@PatoSáinz LMFAO, IRL

@voretaq7 yeah you can... do you ever watch Top Gear?

@DannyBeckett yeah I think that's where I saw this guy

they make some "interesting" vehicles and put them on our roads

to be fair you can do that in new york too.... you just have to get it past a DMV safety inspection :)

@PatoSáinz It's not the tank that's expensive, it's the ammo....

@voretaq7 same here, an MOT, it's called

DUKWs are expensive though

lol

@PatoSáinz I am your mayor, and I disapprove this parking. :)

!!youtube Jeremy's P45 - Smallest Car in the World! - Extended Full HD - Top Gear

All we ever have in aviation are Cessnas landing on minivans

Top Gear's awesome

this episode is legendary:

!!youtube The Hover Van - Top Gear: Series 20 Episode 4 - BBC Two

@voretaq7 holy shit! idiot driver

@DannyBeckett Bonus: The guy flying was a student on a solo. (he did eventually go on to get his certificate)

I want to say it was his first solo cross-country, this was a while ago & I'm hazy on the details

that car driver's a f*cking idiot, in my opinion

well in fairness to the driver there were no traffic control devices - just "STOP" painted on the pavement

A big freakin' sign saying "STOP. CHECK FOR LANDING AIRCRAFT BEFORE PROCEEDING" would not have gone amiss.

yes but still, he didn't stop

He probably "stopped" as much as everyone around here "stops" for a stop sign

slow down, look for cars, go. No cars? Roll right on through.

I guess..

do you know if they improved the signage after?/did anything @voretaq7

> Saturday's crash was the fourth accident linked to Northwest Regional Airport in the past six weeks. The other three involved crashes after takeoff that killed six people and injured one.

@DannyBeckett I'm not sure - Google Maps doesn't have a street view of the road in question because it's a "private road"

I would certainly hope they did though

@PatoSáinz They've done a few wheelchair ones

it's not the best one

I'll find you that one

!!youtube top gear mobility scooter

@PatoSáinz you need to watch the full episodes tbh... showing them building them and secretly breaking eachothers lol

funny show

did you watch the hover van?

yeah exactly

a "P45" by the way, is a government document showing how much tax you've paid, when you get fired from a job

hence the laughter when he says it's called a P45

scroll up and watch the 2nd to last one

erm, there have been quite a lot

I'd watch the entire hover van episode... that was funny

ok mate, good talking!

seeya

whenever someone's around next, can you tell me what happens under these circumstances? (zero visibility)

!!weather kjfk

@DannyBeckett KJFK: LIFR • Observed: 9 mins ago • Wind: 180°/S @ 16kts • Visibility: 0.0mi/0.00km • Sky (AGL): Overcast @ 200ft • Temperature: 11.0°C/52°F • Dewpoint: 10.0°C/50°F • Pressure: 29.69" Hg/1,005mb

!!metar kjfk

@DannyBeckett KJFK: 060729Z 18016G24KT 0SM R04R/1800V3000FT BR OVC002 11/10 A2969 RMK AO2 PK WND 17030/0658 SFC VIS 3/4 RAE23 P0002 $

now there's "Obscured @ 0ft"

!!weather kjfk

@DannyBeckett KJFK: LIFR • Observed: 4 mins ago • Wind: 180°/S @ 19kts • Visibility: 0.0mi/0.0km • Sky (AGL): Obscured @ 0ft • Temperature: 10.6°C/51°F • Dewpoint: 10.0°C/50°F • Pressure: 29.67" Hg/1,005mb

I guess JFK's closed?

gonna listen to ATC and find out

apparently not, someone just got cleared to land

"do you know you have no lights on the runway?" :|

If anyone has a list/link to a list of full IATA -> ICAO airport codes, I'd much appreciate it. Need it to be able to make the !!weather command accept an IATA code, since you can only search for METAR data on ICAO code

ourairports.com looks like it'll do the trick! :)

screw paying IATA $5k a year!

> NTSB: We recognize that our website used to present a challenge, and that many people have memorized the path through the maze or bookmarked the information they need. Unfortunately, due to the new organization of our website content, those trails of breadcrumbs and bookmarks will no longer work. We apologize for "moving the cheese" at the end of the maze, but we think you'll have a much easier time finding the information you need.

Video of a mid-air collision, 10 skydivers jump to safety

hey @PatoSáinz I think I'm the only one here

lol glad you enjoyed it ;)

yeah pretty much

they do "specials" every now and again that are very good

let me look up which ones they've done

ooooh.. new season starts on 23rd!

awesome

Series 20, Episode 3 was interesting - they go to Spain

idk... it's quite funny

there's like a ghost town

just looking at the list of episodes now to see if some of them stick out in my mind

(I've seen tons)

Series 18, Episode 4 was the mobility scooter episode @PatoSáinz

there's a full list here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Top_Gear_episodes

ah ok

I can't really remember specific episodes @PatoSáinz

But this looks good: topgearbox.com/2011/news/…

or I guess just search "most popular top gear episodes" (how I got that link)

3-character IATA codes are now working for the !!weather and !!metar commands:

!!weather mia

!!weather lpl

@DannyBeckett EGGP: VFR • Observed: 11 mins ago • Wind: 200°/SSW @ 19kts • Visibility: 6.21mi/9.99km • Sky (AGL): Few clouds @ 2,000ft; Few clouds @ 3,600ft; Scattered clouds @ 4,800ft • Temperature: 10.0°C/50°F • Dewpoint: 6.0°C/43°F • Pressure: 29.03" Hg/983mb

@DannyBeckett KMIA: VFR • Observed: 38 mins ago • Wind: 220°/SW @ 4kts • Visibility: 10.0mi/16.09km • Sky (AGL): Few clouds @ 9,000ft; Scattered clouds @ 11,000ft; Broken clouds @ 25,000ft • Temperature: 23.9°C/75°F • Dewpoint: 20.6°C/69°F • Pressure: 30.07" Hg/1,018mb

also notice the "human time" instead of a timestamp, and the "AGL" thing has been improved

@PatoSáinz SCEL: VFR • Observed: 32 mins ago • Wind: 220°/SW @ 3kts • Visibility: 6.21mi/9.99km • Sky (AGL): Ceiling & visibility ok • Temperature: 25.0°C/77°F • Dewpoint: 10.0°C/50°F • Pressure: 29.91" Hg/1,013mb

it took lots of code!

tbh, it was more the trying to find a reliable data source to do the conversion between IATA -> ICAO

SERIOUSLY, try searching

there is a reliable source.... IATA

except they want $5,000/year for the data :|

all the other websites I found with lists are outdated @PatoSáinz

@PatoSáinz KJFK: MVFR • Observed: 4 mins ago • Wind: 270°/W @ 16kts • Visibility: 3.0mi/4.83km • Sky (AGL): Scattered clouds @ 300ft; Broken clouds @ 2,000ft; Overcast @ 3,200ft • Temperature: 9.0°C/48°F • Dewpoint: 8.0°C/46°F • Pressure: 29.50" Hg/999mb

The !!weather command alone now takes up 207 lines of JavaScript and 76 lines of PHP :p

...and growing!

!!weather lpl

@DannyBeckett EGGP: VFR • Observed: 19 mins ago • Wind: 200°/SSW @ 19kts • Visibility: 6.21mi/9.99km • Sky (AGL): Few clouds @ 2,000ft; Few clouds @ 3,600ft; Scattered clouds @ 4,800ft • Temperature: 10.0°C/50°F • Dewpoint: 6.0°C/43°F • Pressure: 29.03" Hg/983mb

!!weather kbfi

@egid KBFI: VFR • Observed: 1 hour ago • Wind: 140°/SE @ 4kts • Visibility: 10.0mi/16.09km • Sky (AGL): Clear • Temperature: 0.0°C/32°F • Dewpoint: -2.2°C/28°F • Pressure: 30.25" Hg/1,024mb

@egid Hey! does that have a 3-letter IATA code you can try, also?

just wanna make sure that all the IATA codes I try get correctly translated to their ICAO counterparts (which aviationweather.gov requires)

!!weather fhr

@egid KBFI: VFR • Observed: 43 mins ago • Wind: 130°/SE @ 4kts • Visibility: 10.0mi/16.09km • Sky (AGL): Clear • Temperature: 0.0°C/32°F • Dewpoint: -2.2°C/28°F • Pressure: 30.23" Hg/1,024mb

@egid KORS: VFR • Observed: 22 mins ago • Wind: 360°/N @ 4kts • Visibility: 10.0mi/16.09km • Sky (AGL): Clear • Temperature: 4.0°C/39°F • Dewpoint: 2.0°C/36°F • Pressure: 30.22" Hg/1,023mb

@egid KFHR: VFR • Observed: 44 mins ago • Wind: 350°/N @ 5kts • Visibility: 10.0mi/16.09km • Sky (AGL): Clear • Temperature: 3.3°C/38°F • Dewpoint: 1.1°C/34°F • Pressure: 30.23" Hg/1,024mb

looks good to me

that's great! thanks :)

working on adding the full airport name