O'Hare in a Warrior
Posted by Derpatron9000@reddit | flying | View on Reddit | 82 comments
I'm taking my son to an event at the O'Hare Hyatt on Sunday, July 12. Coming from the Minneapolis area.
I'm considering flying to ORD. I'm a \~1300hr CFI/CFII and have flown piston singles to PHL and BWI and had no problems so this wouldn't be my first rodeo at a bravo primary, but I'm assuming O'Hare is a step up from Philly and Baltimore in terms of traffic volume and operational tempo. I've also transited the Chicago area IFR many times so I have plenty of experience with their approach/departure controllers.
I know this is possible because there's a handful of youtube vids of people doing it, but I'd like to not be a colossal pain in the balls to the controllers and commercial traffic.
Any tips from anyone who has done this? From the research I've done it looks like I could come in IFR most likely get 09L/27R, barrel down final at best forward speed (full throttle in a Warrior LOL), intentionally land long and/or fast taxi down to the high speed at the end and not be too big a nuisance.
For departure I've heard the best way out is to request VFR at 1800 any direction and they'll set you up for the shortest taxi and a straight shot out of their airspace. But I could certainly file and depart IFR as well. If it's an actual IMC day we'd probably just drive. This is supposed to be a fun trip for my son and he's not a fan of being kicked around inside clouds.
Thanks!
Doc1010@reddit
You will not save any time going to ORD versus PWK. It will take longer on approach, longer to taxi, you’ll likely get lost while taxiing, Signature ORD is insanely expensive and not convenient whatsoever. The reasons to use PWK versus ORD are limitless. Is it something you CAN do? Sure. But it will be miserable for literally everybody involved.
PWK on the other hand is easy in and out, less expensive and is geared for this sort of aviation. I personally cannot think of a single reason to use ORD over PWK for almost any operation aside if you’re an airline.
I fly corporate and even those passengers wanting a lift to Chicago to perhaps catch an international flight out of ORD are regularly convinced to fly into PWK rather than take the ORD shuffle. Last landing at ORD required a 35 minute taxi from the south complex to the FBO while ORD was landing east. It’s then a 10 minute drive to drop at the terminal. It makes me nauseous just thinking about taxiing a Warrior around ORD.
capn_davey@reddit
Absolutely won’t save any time going to ORD versus PWK. The only, and I mean ONLY reason I consider ORD in a NearJet is because of the utter stupidity that is the ILS 16 circle 34 at PWK. If winds are out of the north and the runway is contaminated and the clouds are low…that’s either the start of an NTSB report or normal winter ops at PWK. Ugh.
jdaude@reddit
This
Curious-Owl6098@reddit
I fly in that area. For reference I’ve never gotten a bravo clearance anytime I’ve tried. Next thought was try to use a “hack” to file IFR to transit but they will either route you west around the bravo on the tango airway to MAPPS or you’ll be over Lake Michigan on a heading and altitude of their choice. (This is for transiting the area only) with that being said You would probably have luck and way less issues getting into midway. Which is pretty close to ohare. Or flying into Chicago executive which is GA friendly. The only time you might get into Ohare is if you fly there at 2am and hope it’s not busy. Which is pretty impractical and way too much of a pain.
ashtranscends@reddit
Seconding this, also on the tiny off chance you are able to land at ORD the landing fees will be massive.
PWK and 06C are both great options. They’re equidistant from ORD and I will say 06C has no landing fees.
Cessnateur@reddit
If you go to PWK, do NOT go to Signature.
I nearly did recently. When I used the pull-down menu to select my aircraft type (Cessna 170), it gave me a handling fee of $3,570.
To their credit, however, they did graciously offer to waive the fee if I were to fill up with 940 gallons of fuel:
https://i.imgur.com/Ef8qGdf.jpeg
flyguy42@reddit
That's bizarre. I'm at PWK and Signature several times a summer in a Maule and that just not the fee structure. Just called them and they say it's not the fees for a Cessna 170 either. No idea where that image came from. In any case, it's $37.50 overnight parking, $30 handling, $8 tax to the authorities. The $30 is waved with 10 gallons of their premium gas. I started using them regularly for my trips to visit my daughter when she bought a house in that area, has basically been the same deal for the last 4-5 years.
Cessnateur@reddit
The image is a screen capture I grabbed from their own website.
But based on what another person here says, it might be a 170-specific glitch in the system.
Nevertheless, the fact that such a degree of overcharging almost seems plausible says a lot!
x4457@reddit
That's exactly what it is. Some database line got swapped somewhere.
Skrenlin@reddit
Yeah, I don't get how PWK is 'GA friendly' .. even their 100LL prices are on the order of "go anywhere else, we don't want your kind here."
flyguy42@reddit
GA includes private jets and turboprops, which is the traffic PWK caters to. It's very friendly from that standpoint. Three FBOs to choose from. I use signature every time now and the staff has always treated me like a valued customer despite being in a plane with pistons and burning avgas.
Imaginary_Amoeba3461@reddit
Are you sure you clicked the right button? I tried a random 172 model and it says $30 dollar handling.
jdaude@reddit
Not to mention parking fees
Tiny-Ad-830@reddit
I was going to say this myself. We used to fly in to the airfield in Chicago that was downtown and right on Lake Michigan (can’t remember what the name was - it’s a park now.) We used to ask for Bravo clearance so we could get higher faster for our flight back to Oklahoma and we were in a Twin Comanche. We were denied every time.
Gabriel_Owners@reddit
Meigs Field. Fuck Daly.
JimTheJerseyGuy@reddit
Fuck Daly for all time.
hopmeamadeus@reddit
Live in Chicago, and 100% agree. I'd wager taking off from Meigs in FS is what got probably half of the people on this forum into flying to begin with.
JimTheJerseyGuy@reddit
That’d be me. Back when it was Sublogic FS on a Commodore 64!
prex10@reddit
Say Meigs generated in millions economic growth and the park in its place it's one of the least used and least accessible in the city in r/chicago. Come back 20 minute later and your comment will be like -500 and have 20 angry replies
SecureAsk8297@reddit
And his fucking family
Hiddencamper@reddit
You need to modify your landing checklist for landing at ohare.
Throttle full Mixture lean Trim forward Speed Vne - 5 kts
StangViper88@reddit
No offense man but why do you need to fly into ORD? You fuck up everything for everyone. It’s not meant for a piston going 60 knots. Fly into a local airfield or something.
SixtyFourPewPew@reddit
I have watched multiple airliners do go arounds because someone wanted to land their Cirrus in EWR. It's just kind of a jerk move imo. There are so many smaller airports that are a lot less hassle for everyone involved.
s_mcbn@reddit
Someone crashed a Cirrus at Houston Hobby a few years ago after multiple attempts to get lined up between the SWA 737s.
R5Jockey@reddit
Did you listen to the audio? That was a huge cluster fuck… Pilot just couldn’t get it together.
ywgflyer@reddit
This happened to me, and then they had the audacity to tell me to fly X heading and expect to be like number 20 in the sequence again. Yeah fucking right pal, fat chance, YOU are the ones who let that guy into this place, I don't have the fuel for this nonsense.
Ended up declaring min fuel and the controller was very upset with me. Sorry man.
For the E190 drivers here, we got to the gate with 750kg of fuel in tanks.
weech@reddit
It’s 100% a dick move. Don’t do it.
SixtyFourPewPew@reddit
Yeah watching hundreds of people have their day extended 30 minutes + possible missed connections because a PPL holder wanted to say they landed at JFK/LGA/EWR etc just seems like a dick move. It is almost always more convenient and reasonable to land at a smaller airport.
Kseries2497@reddit
Sequencing an airliner behind GA piston singles is a pain in the ass even when the bug smasher is being helpful. Take however much space you think you need, then double that, and then add a couple more, and you might be all right... until you get one that doesn't understand you were serious about X speed to five mile final.
D-VO@reddit
KPWK or 06C are the answer here. The savings on ramp fees will more than cover your Uber to/from the Hyatt.
hopmeamadeus@reddit
Schaumburg is the answer here. Easy to get to Rosemont, and much cheaper than landing at ORD. No ILS, but if you need that, maybe PWK. Stay far away from O'Hare unless you're looking for a bucket list checkbox
Cdraw51@reddit
I was just about to suggest Schaumburg (06C). They also have an awesome restaurant there called Pilot Pete's that we always stop at on our way to Oshkosh.
FLETCHA53@reddit
Love Pilot Petes!
Cdraw51@reddit
It's noticeably (but not too far) out of our way when we head up to Oshkosh, but it's so worth it.
Impossible_Sky9384@reddit
Man, bunch of buzz kills in here! I’ve flown into 6 bravo airports in pistons (including DFW during an AA push), it’s not as huge a deal as folks are making it out to be. Of course the taxi will be longer. Of course there is likely a landing fee. You should not plan on buying fuel unless you want to break the bank. Call ahead if you want to know the costs. All of my bravo arrivals/departures, including experiences by friends who have done it, have been complete non events. Go for it, I think you’ll enjoy the experience
autonym@reddit
I haven't flown to ORD, but I've flown small planes to other Class B airports for Angel Flight missions. It's quite fun since all the fees are waived for Angel Flight, but otherwise I wouldn't consider it.
SavingsPirate4495@reddit
I’d avoid ORD. Go to MDW or DPA instead…GA is MUCH easier and accepted there. I was there YEARS ago in my GA days.
SATSewerTube@reddit
Been a while but I’ve done DFW an ORD in a Cirrus and it wasn’t a big deal other than the long ass taxi and complicated instructions if you’re not ready/familiar. At ORD expect them to land you on either the far north runway (good taxi) or far south runway (bad taxi). You’ll find out your departure from ORD, it will probably change at least twice, and will be a bad taxi regardless.
Being normally aspirated helped because I could haul ass until they needed me to slow; was told to slow to final approach speed around 3 miles because I had a 20kt overtake on the MD80 ahead of me (it was a while ago).
jtyson1991@reddit
I didn't catch the connection to being NA. You're saying in a turbo this would be more problematic? You're not supposed to cut power suddenly, or what?
SATSewerTube@reddit
Yea shock cooling
junebug172@reddit
The controller get pissed when you start slowing from 250 when they don’t tell you and you want to inject yourself into that flow? Good luck.
NecessaryLight2815@reddit
I highly recommend staying as far away from O’Hare as possible. It’s a CF on a good day. If you do insist on doing it, go late at night when it’s quieter. And learn their very specific taxi procedures.
mfsp2025@reddit
This. I’d done DTW, IND, and MDW in a piston. Even asked my CFI when I was training if we could do ORD. He said no.
Been ORD based for a few years now and I laugh at my naivety that I could ever do ORD in a piston. It’s such a mess I actually enjoy trips that don’t touch base until day 4.
prex10@reddit
DFW, SFO and ORD are probably the only bravos in the country I wouldn't take a single engine plane into.
Even ATL wouldn't be terrible. They got that place on point and the FBO is easy to access.
Mission_Sink_8747@reddit
Fly here all the time. Go to KPWK instead. 12 miles to the north.
aftcg@reddit
Meigs Field perhaps?
KidSilverhair@reddit
Is his Warrior a seaplane? 😆
aftcg@reddit
Amphib
Lopoetve@reddit
Anything can be a seaplane once.
FLETCHA53@reddit
I like to chair fly all my flights in MSFS, what could possibly go wrong planning to land at KCGX? Weird that the last METAR was 17 years ago!
zone_of-danger@reddit
ORD stresses me out and I’m based there. Taxis are long and can be confusing especially if you’re unfamiliar. You might have 6+ planes on final for each runway. They keep us at 170kts until FAF. So, for them to try to squeeze in a plane going 100kts slower will be an extreme task.
Crusoebear@reddit
If you do decide to do this please stay very vigilant to your surroundings.
Unlike the guy in the single engine Cessna that stopped on the taxiway directly in front of us - and stopped talking to ATC for almost 40 minutes…while we burned more fuel than his airplane weighed. We were about to start a flight to Asia and almost had to return to the ramp for more fuel because of that. Not an ideal way to start a 14 hour flight.
Like others have mentioned - if you must - consider doing it in the wee hours of the morning before it gets busy.
Necessary_Topic_1656@reddit
even the scheduled Part 135 Caravans bringing in EAS pax from central/southern Illinois are told to maintain maximum forward airspeed to try to keep them in the 180kt arrival streams while the regional, narrowbody and widebody jets are all told to slow to 160kts on final so that they dont overrun the Caravan
Derpatron9000@reddit (OP)
Alright you guys convinced me. I'll probably just go to 06C and Uber to the event. We'll want to eat dinner before heading back home anyway and I've always wanted to hit up Pilot Pete's but Schaumburg has never been a convenient stop when I'm passing through.
Honestly the prospect of the long departure taxi scares me more than anything. That particular airplane has always run a bit hot. If it's a hot day, the prospect of watching those CHT's steadily climbing while I'm sitting there 7th in line for takeoff or whatever isn't something I want to deal with.
FLETCHA53@reddit
Check out Schaumburg (06C) or Chicago Executive (KPWK).
If you do fly a Cherokee into KORD, please be sure to let us all know how it went!
PetesBrotherPaul@reddit
A long dual XC flight from my flight school transited overhead there at around 1am. They called ORD tower and asked for a touch and go and the controller said “sure, cleared touch and go, runway your choice”
So if you can come and go around that time…
jdaude@reddit
Just because you can doesn’t mean you should
scottyh214@reddit
I’ve done ORD in a 182. It’s not hard, just make sure you’re on top of your game and be prepared to be vectored around a bit until they can find a hole for you. You will almost certainly have to come in IFR; they likely will deny you if you’re VFR. Departing north shouldn’t be much of a problem as they’ll just put you on the northernmost departure runway and turn you.
millzonmillz95@reddit
Schaumburg is your best bet. The fbo’s at PWK frown upon piston traffic and won’t be as welcoming
Advanced-Throat-420@reddit
I've flown into MDW in a Warrior before with no problem. You could take the CTA to O'Hare
TornadoTim60@reddit
Considering they space us 3.1 to 5.1nm apart on final for all 3 landing runways, and considering what an absolute cluster it is even when everyone is paying attention and knows what they are doing on the ground… I would stay away from ORD if you’re flying for funsies. Even if you call ahead, you’d be gumming up the machine and frustrating the controllers. Everyone’s first question would be “why is this Warrior subjecting himself to this instead of going to Palwaukee or Schaumburg?”
PWK or 06C are best bets. No idea what it costs to park at Signature at ORD, but I would guess it’s more than the cost of an hour of wet rental time of a single engine piston.
I fly in and out of ORD for work all the time, would not recommend doing it for fun.
Gabriel_Owners@reddit
As an airline pilot intimately familiar with ORD ops, I wouldn't even consider flying a bugsmasher into there. What an absolute pain in the ass for everyone involved.
But hey, it's a free country.
Gabriel_Owners@reddit
As an airline pilot intimately familiar with ORD ops, I wouldn't even consider flying a bugsmasher into there. What an absolute pain in the ass for everyone involved.
Working_Football1586@reddit
If you do get in feel very sorry for you having to get taxi instructions single pilot having never been there and being expected not to stop anywhere
alexmoose454@reddit
Fly to Schaumburg and don’t file IFR unless you want them to waste your time.
Recent-Day3062@reddit
You could end up taxiing longer than the flight
SubstantialTaro743@reddit
Ah man, flying into ohare intentionally especially in a warrior just sounds like you’re into some weird bdsm type shit. my advice would be just don’t unless you’re comfortable with long complicated taxi routes that are issued so fast you ain’t even got time to write them down and taxiing that warrior about 10 knots below vs0. That’s not even really scratching the surface I just don’t want to repeat what’s already said
Wild-Language-5165@reddit
Not much, good luck. There's separate ground frequencies.
MartonianJ@reddit
9000+ hour corporate pilot here. I’ve not flown into ORD but I’ve flown into IAH and DFW and to me it’s worth it to go to the next closest airport like PWK for ORD or ADS for DFW. It’s just too much of a PITA. On the DFW one, a line of weather moved through while I was on the ground and there was a ground stop, so then when we were leaving we were like 20th in line to takeoff. Long taxi. Expensive fees. I’d recommend just going to PWK.
GravitationalConstnt@reddit
My instructor and I have done landings at LGA, JFK, and EWR. My advice would be to go well into the evening. For each of those landing it was about 10 or 11PM.
Also, caution wake turbulence!
prex10@reddit
Just fly into PWK. Way less of a headache for everyone
Funkshow@reddit
Bad idea unless it's in the middle of the night. Land at PWK and be done with it.
Muschina@reddit
You might want to check what the landing/parking fees are like at Signature first. Unless you're made of money, you could use KDPA or KPWK and rent a car/Uber.
jabbs72@reddit
PWK is a 20 min Uber away just saying
SMELLYJELLY72@reddit
i mean it’s your circus and your monkeys. i taught near chicago and students would frequently as if we could fly to ohare, i said when you get your ppl you can do whatever you want but im good.
its gonna be extremely expensive and late at night
Fly3rBoi@reddit
Call them, be flexible on an arrival time. Do your homework and know what to expect from approach, landing and especially taxi instructions. Have backup paper charts if you use tech in the cockpit.
I’ve flow into busy Bravos, communication is KEY. They will likely give you an arrival window to attempt to hit.
I’ve done a few and requested 2 or 3am when they are super slow. Was fun flying into a big city at night as well and I know I was the least nuisance as possible at that time.
ps2sunvalley@reddit
I would not try it in a piston unless it was 3 am.
Controllers there are great, but they are great at getting airliners sequenced in and on the ground. A piston flying around will really gum it up and they will be frustrated
Perfect_Big_5907@reddit
personally i would stay away. plenty of other fields to drop in. Been to ORD many times in corporate planes but i would not want to go there in my own plane. Full on shit show.
Ornery-Ad-2248@reddit
No
Agent62@reddit
No specific advice other than arrival time will be important, and honestly calling ahead will also help you.
HelloNeumann29@reddit
I’d personally just make a phone call to the TRACON to see if there’s a good time of day to arrive and depart. If you can’t make those times then just ask ‘em what would best work and what to expect. I assume IFR would be better. Alternatively you can land at Midway and take the train (orange line) to downtown, and transfer to the blue line to O’Hare. I don’t know how easy it would be to get from the train to the hotel if you did that.
rFlyingTower@reddit
This is a copy of the original post body for posterity:
I'm taking my son to an event at the O'Hare Hyatt on Sunday, July 12. Coming from the Minneapolis area.
I'm considering flying to ORD. I'm a \~1300hr CFI/CFII and have flown piston singles to PHL and BWI and had no problems so this wouldn't be my first rodeo at a bravo primary, but I'm assuming O'Hare is a step up from Philly and Baltimore in terms of traffic volume and operational tempo. I've also transited the Chicago area IFR many times so I have plenty of experience with their approach/departure controllers.
I know this is possible because there's a handful of youtube vids of people doing it, but I'd like to not be a colossal pain in the balls to the controllers and commercial traffic.
Any tips from anyone who has done this? From the research I've done it looks like I could come in IFR most likely get 09L/27R, barrel down final at best forward speed (full throttle in a Warrior LOL), intentionally land long and/or fast taxi down to the high speed at the end and not be too big a nuisance.
For departure I've heard the best way out is to request VFR at 1800 any direction and they'll set you up for the shortest taxi and a straight shot out of their airspace. But I could certainly file and depart IFR as well. If it's an actual IMC day we'd probably just drive. This is supposed to be a fun trip for my son and he's not a fan of being kicked around inside clouds.
Thanks!
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