PTT broke mid flight

[klovning]

I was flying a rental 172 with a friend and on my way back to the home airport, the PTT button broke.

I tried to use the right seat's PTT and that was a no go too.

I was very impressed with ATC. I squaked 7600 and immediately

"airplane 10 mi east of the field - press ident if your radio is out"

"ident if your intention is to land"

Everything went smoothly. I landed and I let the flight school know about the problem..

It felt good to know that I can deal with a minor SNAFU.

 

[PCHunt]

Depending on how the aircraft is wired, you might have to plug your headset into the right seat headphone jacks, and then use the right seat PTT. Sometimes that works.

Food for thought.

Also, this is why I carry a portable VHF com radio, with headset adapter, in the cockpit.

 

[RV6_flyer]

On my way home from AirVenture 2011, I stopped at LAR for the night. I was getting my wing tie-down rings out of the airplane and dropped one in the cockpit. It hit my PTT (Push Then Talk) button and broke the button. This was not an issue but it was an inconvenience. I have a redundant pilot PTT on the arm rest.

 

[cfiidon]

Thinking on the Fly

Broken headsets and PTT switches are common. It's a good idea to have a backup microphone in the cockpit. I need to devise one with a backup speaker though

Several years back I departed an airport in my client's A36 Bonanza. He called for flight following and couldn't get an answer. I called from my seat and couldn't get an answer. After a few minutes of scratching my head, I checked how the headsets were plugged in. You guessed it, they were swapped. In most aircraft the audio panel has the PTT only connect the appropriate microphone (for good reason).

Don