Morning friends. It's 3:30 AM here in the Great North Woods. So here is the rest of the story.
Left home around 4 AM(in old Rusty) to get to Clinic to pick up my itinerary and Cab vouchers. Then a 10:00 With my Shrink.
Left Craig on Prince of Whales Island around 2 PM in a van to Hollis as the pass was closed do to low fog and snow. Got to ride in second chair in a Dehavilland Beaver (450 hp Pratt & Whitney 985 series Wasp JR) ARR AHRR AHRR (picture Tim the Tool Man Here) In my opinion the finest STOL bush plane ever built. This one Manufactured early 1956. The ride in the Beaver was a good flight. I am the only passenger, very little freight and a 30 knot tail wind, we made good time. We stayed at between 250 and 500 feet to stay below the cloud cover and to minimize icing. Got to Ketchikan International with about 30 minutes till boarding the milk run to Anchorage.
Now things start to get interesting. We take off in a 737 400 with a 50 knot head wind. And were in the air rather quickly. Capt. said we would be going to 2000 feet to get above the storm and that it would be smother than going higher. Before joining FTE I was a flight Simaholic, With an average of 4 to 6 hours flight time daily, unless the honey do list was falling behind. So I had a very clear picture of the flight plan to Sitka. Stay over the water to avoid the mountains well in access of 2000 feet. We got the cr*p knocked out of us till we got above the ice storm and leveled off. Took a couple more pain pills as I suspected us to have a very bumpy ride into Sitka. Boy Howdy was that an understatement.
As we started our decent into Sitka the Capt. said to buckle up tight as it was going to be rough and the tower would only give him one try. I knew that Sitka is one of the shortest runways this 737 could get into. There is a 2000 foot peek about 5 miles off the south end of the runway. So I am sure we will be making our approach from the north as there is miles of open sea and an easy straight in low altitude approach.
As soon as we dropped into the cloud cover we get slammed around pretty darn hard. We drop out of the clouds at about 500 feet and are met with a white out snow storm. Mind you I have attempted this approach on my Sim several times under these same conditions and with autopilot to decision height. I don't remember ever surviving.
There is a break in the snow and I can see that we are about 250 feet of the water. I am seated just behind the right wing and the turbulence is so sever that the wings are flapping like a sea gull. Some are praying and the rest are snow white and hanging on to what ever we can find just to stay in our seats. Than another white out. I feel the landing gear come down an see more flaps deployed. Another brake in the snow and It looks to be about 200 feet or less to the water. The engines spool up a bit and more flaps extended. Than another snow squall. It clears just enough to see that we are going by the Cost Guard station at the northern tip of the runway. I estimate that we are about 50 to 75 feet above the runway. More flaps and less throttle as we go by Alaska Air Terminal and the nose comes up as we fly by Horizon Air. Keep in mind that i know this runway almost as well as my shop so I know that we are almost half way down the runway and not losing any altitude do to a 60 knot gust of wind almost head on. Throttles are at an idle and full flaps as the Capt drive her into the tarmac. I am thinking ain't no freaking way we are going to make the 180 a few hundred feet at the end of the runway. So I confirm my standing with my Lord as the runway sits on an Island that is all used by the runway. And I am positive we are going to get wet.
We hit the tarmac with such force that I think I lost and other inch of height. Full reverse thrust and all the brakes she has. Seat belt about to cut me in half and my face making a perfect imprint on the set in front of me. We start the 180 off the runway to taxi to the terminal. And I know we are going way to fast. The 737 tips up on her side (I'm on the high side so I have a clear view of the right wing tip) and I swear the wing was slapping the breakers rolling in on the beach. As the aircraft sets back down on all it's wheels every one applaudes the Capt and flight crew.
Flight crew said we had about 30 minutes till take off to Juneau. And to please stay abroad. Well I need a smoke so bad at this point that I grab my cane (I call him Wobbly) And head for the exit. My flight attendant said sir I know that you need a wheel chair to get up the ramp why are you leaving the aircraft. She smiles calls the forward attendant and orders a chair. Than hollers ahead to clear a path for us.
I have a couple smokes and a few Valium. Than back on board for Juneau.
At this point I am felling pretty good as I figure even though Juneau is a tough ILS approach it can't get any worse. Of course no thought given to taking off from Sitka as with a strong tail wind and hundreds of miles of open sea what could possibly go wrong. HA was I way off base.
Capt comes over the intercom and said we would be climbing to 2000 again as that was the smoothest air. The engines spool up and we are rolling out. We lift of just in front of the Tower and reach about 300 feet off the end of the runway when we got hit on the nose with lightning. I see the wings turn blue and a huge blinding flash leave the wing as I am looking out the window and thinking of taking a nap as the Val's were kicking in. So I was looking directly at the place on my wing that the lightning exited the aircraft. As being mostly deaf I felt the boom from the lightning more than heard It. As I turned to look at the other passengers and noticed that most were covering there ears I was still not sure what had happened. I am thinking a landing light has blown or something similar. Than the aircraft went completely dark.
The exit lights and the ones on the floor were the only lights on. Including the Flight deck. As the cockpit door was open. I am thinking that the last time I had seen the water with the landing and taxi lights on we were about 400 feet in the air. I could feel the plane descending, knowing in less than a minute we would be in the North Pacific. At this moment the lights come back on and I can see the cockpit panel resetting, red light turning to green. I can see the left arm of the Capt and the right arm and shoulder of the Copilot. They have there legs braced against whatever they can find and are pulling back on there yoke's with everything they have in them. Mind you this all happened in less than three seconds. Now I know how long it takes my computer to reboot so I am sure they weren't using anything from Microsoft.
As the landing lights were back on I could see that we were almost on the water looking at 25 to 30 foot seas. The engines are screaming at a high pitch that even I could hear. The nose starts to come up finely and we all feel a bump as the landing gear slaps the top of a wave. We are back in our ascent and heading thou the clouds and snow. As we were belted in we couldn't give the flight crew a standing ovation so we all clapped as loud as we could. The Capt comes over the intercom in what I thought to be way to calm a voice and said that we had been hit by lightning. And that it was not that uncommon. But very rare at low altitudes. Said all systems were green and we would be going on to Juneau.
The landing in Juneau was about the same as Sitka but being a longer runway it was a little more comfortable. Although the turbulence was quite sever. The first class ran off the plane as fast as they could with no regard to who got in there way. Those of us in coach Waited till the Pilots were exiting the flight deck and gave them the standing ovation they so well deserved.
5 and a half hours later they brought us another 737-400 and I got to my room a 3 AM. 24 hours after leaving home.
Well that's enough for now. Will fill you all in on the sergery and return trip if there is enough of you interested in hearing it.

Happy New Year. And that from a man that didn't expect to see Christmas.

Tricky