3 ms·

[Edit] Oddly enough, I just talked to my father for the first time in years. It's amazing how faulty memory narrates. It was a Cessna 421 and the tanks were v

[Edit] Oddly enough, I just talked to my father for the first time in years. It's amazing how faulty memory narrates. It was a Cessna 421 and the tanks were vented, but the vents had frozen over because of a heater failure. The temp was 42F below zero. They didn't puncture the tanks, just unscrewed the caps. The craziest part, which I had forgotten, wasn't the problem with smoking. Their nav equipment had failed after the engines quit. They had to dead reckon to Iceland. They were much closer than halfway, but were still navigating blind. Needless to say they sighted Iceland and found the airport.

gist 8y ago
> [Edit] What is interesting is that given that I read HN for both knowledge and entertainment the edit didn't even matter. The story was still interesting even if the facts were off.
- tfha 8y ago
  I'm glad he made a followup instead of editing the original. The two together make up a fantastic whole.
toomuchtodo 8y ago
Talk to your father more. You’ll most likely regret not doing so when he’s gone.
- rimliu 8y ago
  This does not necessarily applies to all. My father died last year. We were never close. I don’t even think we’ve ever talked besides absolutely necessity.
  - Razengan 8y ago
    I've often noticed this exchange on HN. Someone well-meaning recommends someone to cherish their parent(s) and maintain contact with them, and gets checked by people telling them that not all parent-child relationships and interactions are pleasant or desired. Are many people here estranged from their parents? I too have seen my biological father barely 10 times in my entire life, but I have had other father figures in my life, uncles and aunts and other adults that raised me and guided me, and regrettably passed away too soon because I could pay them back, or even show them my appreciation enough. There are still people from my childhood who still help me and whom I wish I could get along with, but there is also a lot of friction between us and I regret that, because they are at the end of their lifespans and I would like to part on a better note if possible. People only live once and there is never anyone else exactly like someone. Even if you despise your close relations on a personal level, in the interest of "science" I think you could still try to gain their insights and record their experiences, document their history, before they cease to exist. Especially if you are the best or only person in the position to do that.
- Flowsion 8y ago
  Strange comment, when you have zero information about their relationship.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
vram22 8y ago
>Their nav equipment had failed after the engines quit. They had to dead reckon to Iceland. I had read about dead reckoning as a kid in some book, but forgot or didn't know what it meant. Looked it up: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_reckoning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_reckoning Both that and the related idea of inertial navigation systems are interesting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_navigation_system https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_navigation_system
- bogomipz 8y ago
  Dead reckoning was also infamously the reason why Allied bombs accidentally hit Prague instead of Dresden in World Ward II. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1945_Bombing_of_Prague https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1945_Bombing_of_Prague
jacobush 8y ago
This was all very interesting, thank you. But the first time in years? That story is begging to be told. As you walk by the bank of pay phones, you will hear them all ring, one after another, until you tell that story.
modells 8y ago
Dead reckoning needed probably because they lost vacuum and gyro power to instruments, which then spin down and float randomly if there’s no battery backup Inertial Navigation System... a mechanical system which maintains position by double integrating acceleration, which means infinitesimal errors grow to dominate over time, and so need to be recalibrated often. a, v0 maybe vectors; x maybe a point insead of a number x(t) = a(t)*t^2 + v0*t + x0 Modern human-portable INSes for adventuring/surveying use laser ring gyros, and GPS when available.
- frutiger 8y ago
  Your formula only works for constant acceleration.

gist 8y ago

> [Edit] What is interesting is that given that I read HN for both knowledge and entertainment the edit didn't even matter. The story was still interesting even if the facts were off.

tfha 8y ago
I'm glad he made a followup instead of editing the original. The two together make up a fantastic whole.

toomuchtodo 8y ago

Talk to your father more. You’ll most likely regret not doing so when he’s gone.

rimliu 8y ago
This does not necessarily applies to all. My father died last year. We were never close. I don’t even think we’ve ever talked besides absolutely necessity.
- Razengan 8y ago
  I've often noticed this exchange on HN. Someone well-meaning recommends someone to cherish their parent(s) and maintain contact with them, and gets checked by people telling them that not all parent-child relationships and interactions are pleasant or desired. Are many people here estranged from their parents? I too have seen my biological father barely 10 times in my entire life, but I have had other father figures in my life, uncles and aunts and other adults that raised me and guided me, and regrettably passed away too soon because I could pay them back, or even show them my appreciation enough. There are still people from my childhood who still help me and whom I wish I could get along with, but there is also a lot of friction between us and I regret that, because they are at the end of their lifespans and I would like to part on a better note if possible. People only live once and there is never anyone else exactly like someone. Even if you despise your close relations on a personal level, in the interest of "science" I think you could still try to gain their insights and record their experiences, document their history, before they cease to exist. Especially if you are the best or only person in the position to do that.
Flowsion 8y ago
Strange comment, when you have zero information about their relationship.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]

vram22 8y ago

>Their nav equipment had failed after the engines quit. They had to dead reckon to Iceland. I had read about dead reckoning as a kid in some book, but forgot or didn't know what it meant. Looked it up: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_reckoning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_reckoning Both that and the related idea of inertial navigation systems are interesting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_navigation_system https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_navigation_system

bogomipz 8y ago
Dead reckoning was also infamously the reason why Allied bombs accidentally hit Prague instead of Dresden in World Ward II. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1945_Bombing_of_Prague https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1945_Bombing_of_Prague

jacobush 8y ago

This was all very interesting, thank you. But the first time in years? That story is begging to be told. As you walk by the bank of pay phones, you will hear them all ring, one after another, until you tell that story.

modells 8y ago

Dead reckoning needed probably because they lost vacuum and gyro power to instruments, which then spin down and float randomly if there’s no battery backup Inertial Navigation System... a mechanical system which maintains position by double integrating acceleration, which means infinitesimal errors grow to dominate over time, and so need to be recalibrated often. a, v0 maybe vectors; x maybe a point insead of a number x(t) = a(t)*t^2 + v0*t + x0 Modern human-portable INSes for adventuring/surveying use laser ring gyros, and GPS when available.

frutiger 8y ago
Your formula only works for constant acceleration.