Truly fascinating reading, gents! I don't know that I will retain a lot of it, but I do enjoy reading these comments and getting the tips. The complexity is mind boggling. Why I am so captivated is a mystery to me. To this day, even after 50 years as a pax, when I go somewhere I walk around from gate to gate looking at the different airplanes and watch them taxi. Especially at the gateways like SFO/LAX/MIA/JFK/ORD etc. When I fly UA I listen to atc from block to block and can not understand a lot of it even though I know what to listen for!

Bruce