WIX Archives
Applause! Applause! That was great! :) nt
Posted by Lynn on Thu Dec 25, 2003 11:19:32 PM
In reply top Merry Christmas posted by Steve on Thu Dec 25, 2003 07:36:10 AM
: merry christmas
:
:
: Twas the night before Christmas and out on the ramp,
: Not an airplane was stirring, not even a Champ.
: The aircraft were fastened to tiedowns with care,
: In hopes that come morning, they all would be there.
:
: The fuel trucks were nestled, all snug in their spots,
: With gusts from two-forty at thirty-nine knots.
: I slumped at the fuel desk, now finally caught up,
: And settled down comfortably, resting my butt.
:
: When the radio lit up with noise and with chatter,
: I turned up the scanner to see what was the matter.
: A voice clearly heard over static and snow,
: Called for clearance to land at the airport below.
:
: He barked his transmission so lively and quick,
: I'd have sworn that the call sign he used was "St. Nick."
:
: I ran to the panel to turn up the lights,
: The better to welcome his magical flight.
:
: He called his position, no room for denial,
: "St. Nicholas One, turnin' left onto final."
: And what to my wondering eyes should appear,
: But a Rutan-built sleigh, with eight Rotax reindeer!
:
: With vectors to final, down the glideslope he came.
: As he passed all the fixes, he called them by name:
: "Now Ringo! Now Tolga! Now Trini and Bacun!
: On Comet! On Cupid!" What pills was he takin'?
:
: While controllers were sittin' and scratchin' their heads
: ,
: They phoned up my office and I heard it with dread.
: The message they left was both emphatic and dour;
: "When the fat guy pulls in, have him please call the tow
: er."
:
: He landed like silk, the sled runners sparkling.
: And I heard, "Left at Charlie," and "Taxi to parking."
: He slowed to a taxi, turned off of three-oh,
: And stopped on the ramp with a "Ho-ho, ho-ho."
:
: He stepped out of the sleigh and smiled at my shock,
: As I ran out to meet him with my best set of chocks.
: His red helmet and goggles were covered with frost,
: And his beard was all blackened from reindeer exhaust.
:
: His breath smelled like peppermint, gone slightly stale,
: And he puffed on a pipe, but he didn't inhale.
: His cheeks were all rosy and jiggled like jelly,
: His boots were as black as a cropduster's belly.
:
: He was chubby and plump, in his suit of bright red,
: And he asked me to "fill it, with hundred low-lead."
: He came dashing in from the snow-covered pump,
: I knew he was anxious to be drainin' the sump.
:
: I spoke not a word but went straight to my work,
: And filled up the sleigh, without being a jerk.
: From the restroom he returned with a sigh of relief,
: Then picked up a phone for a Flight Service brief.
:
: And I thought as he silently scribed in his log,
: These reindeer could land in an eighth-mile fog.
: He completed his pre-flight, from the front to the rear.
: Then he put on his headset and I heard him yell, "Clear!"
:
:
: And laying a finger on his push-to-talk,
: He called up the tower for clearance and squawk.
: "Take taxiway Charlie, the southbound direction,
: Turn right three-two-zero at pilot's discretion."
:
: He sped down the runway, the best of the best,
: "Your traffic's a Grumman, inbound from the west."
: And I heard him proclaim as he climbed through the night,
:
: "Merry Christmas to all! I have traffic in sight."
: