Welcome back to the Black Box Aviation Podcast, where Tom and Mike talk aviation, travel, and the real-world experiences flyers and crews deal with every day—covering the things you need and WANT to know about flying.

This episode blends technical aviation insight, travel chaos, and classic road stories, with plenty of humor along the way.

• Heather joins us while navigating a difficult family loss—huge thanks for powering through
• Producer tracks in the studio failed to record
• A strong follow-up discussion on LVTO (Low Visibility Takeoff) and Heather’s technical feedback
• Why technical conversations matter—and how we sometimes lose listeners when things get too deep
• Our commitment to doing a better job bridging technical aviation topics for the entire audience
• Florida iguanas falling out of trees 🦎
• Olive Garden… with no salad dressing 🥗

• Tom’s daughter Anna flying JetBlue to Florida
• Mike’s England recap: MCO–HPN connections and Uber decisions
• A standby return from London that went so badly it cost $10,000 to get home
• Why we’d probably be great (or terrible) running a travel agency
• Mike’s story of getting stuck in Hawaii
• The Terminal 5 waiting game
• Uber to T5 or the TWA Hotel—the real debate

• Reaching out to Delta pilots for insight—surprisingly little clarity
• Flying pets in cargo: what actually happens
• A real-world example of a dog flying Hawaiian Airlines from Boston to Honolulu

• U.S. strikes in Venezuela and the resulting FAA no-fly zone
• Massive airline disruptions
• JetBlue cancellations (CNX 290 flights)
• Combined with winter weather, nearly 4,000 delays by early Saturday morning
• Why every airline was affected

• Managing anxiety during major travel disruptions
• How the family handled the chaos
• Airline support during the disruption
• Would she fly that airline again?
• Loyalty programs and reward considerations
• Choosing a hotel under pressure
• Transportation challenges
• Prepping the family for the next day’s travel
• Seat availability issues and how it worked out
• Full Turks and Caicos resort review

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Real aviation talk. Real travel chaos. No autopilot. ✈️

🎙️ Recap of Last Week’s Technical Mishap🧳 Stories From the Road🐾 Pet Transport Services🌍 Breaking News: Venezuela & Airspace Disruptions🌴 Heather’s Turks & Caicos Travel Story