Going Back To Miami

Miami International Airport, Florida - September 4, 2010 (7:03pm)  We would like to dedicate this song to a recently turbulent chunk of real estate at the end of highway 41 just south of the Alligator Alley of the Florida peninsula and to a certain distinguished resident there, you may know him:  Mr. Wayne Cochran.  My sister Blake will sing about that town.  Going back to Miami, (going back to Miami).  Going back to my girl, (going back to my girl).  I said I’m going back to Miami, (going back to Miami).  Going back to my girl, (going back to my girl).  I’ve got to get back to my baby and take her in my arms again.  I’ve got to get back to my baby, I ain’t seen her since I don’t know when.  Got to get back now to Florida, lay out in the morning sun.  Got to get back to Miami, have a whole lotta fun.  Going back to Miami, (going back to Miami).  Going back to my girl, come on, (going back to my girl).  I said I’m going back to my Miami, (going back to Miami).  Going back to my girl, (going back to my girl).  Look out!  [Alto sax solo].  I’m going back to Miami, (going back to Miami).  Going back to my girl, (going back to my girl).  I said I’m going back to Miami, (going back to Miami).  Going back to my girl, (going back to my girl).  [Drum solo].  Got to, got to, gotta get back, (got to, got to, gotta get back).  Got to, got to, gotta get back, (got to, got to, gotta get back).  Got to, got to, gotta get back, (got to, got to, gotta get back).  Got to, got to, gotta get back, (got to, got to, gotta get back).  Look out!  Chicago, Illinois;  Los Angeles, California;  Philadelphia P.A.;  San Francisco;  New York, New York;  Dallas, Texas;  Atlanta, Georgia;  Going back to Miami, (going back to Miami).  Going back to my girl, (going back to my girl).  I said I’m going back to Miami, (going back to Miami).  Going back to my girl, (going back to my girl).

Here is a really nice photo of me and Blake.  We had just arrived in Miami from Charlotte.  Isn’t she adorable?  We flew on an US Airways Boeing 737-401.  I was so busy taking pictures of aircraft at the airport in Charlotte that I almost forgot that my flight was leaving soon.  When I realized how close I was cutting it, I ran to the gate as fast as I could.  I nearly had a heart attack when I noticed that the sign at the gate said “flight closed”.  I had missed quite a few flights in recent years and during this trip I came very close to miss 3 of my 4 flights!  Anyway, the gate agent very nice and let me get on board but told me to hurry.  I was the last one on board and my plane was pushed back soon after I found my seat.  I was in the back of the plane at seat 21F, which is behind the wing.  The first thing I noticed after I looked out the window was that a chunk of the wing was missing!  Being an aeroplane enthusiast, only I could notice something like that.  It turned out that the cone in the back of the outboard flap track fairing on the port side of the wing was missing!  I didn’t think this was that big of a deal but nevertheless, I told one of the flight attendants to report this to the captain.  She told the pilots about this, then came back and told me that this was the fourth flight of the day for this aircraft, that the pilots were aware of the situation and that there was nothing to worry about.  Anyway, Blake and I made it to Miami in one piece!  As I got off the aeroplane, I reminded the pilots that the flap track fairing needs to be fixed and they confirmed that they were aware of this issue.  While not a severe problem, the missing cone would affect the aerodynamics of the aircraft while in flight by adding additional drag, which would cause it to burn more jet fuel.

On August 31, 2006, I saw a US Airways Boeing 737-401 (identical to the one that I flew on from Charlotte to Miami) after it made an emergency landing at Miami International Airport.  This was during my lunch break and I even took several pictures of it and posted them on my aviation website at www.JetPictures.com.  A small fire broke out in the starboard wheel well and two tires blew out when this aircraft landed.  Fortunately none of the passengers or crew were injured during this incident.