Letters to the Editor
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journalistic integrity
the 21st century oxymoron. not you, Patrick - the MSM...
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Carry-On Craziness
Thank you Patrick for commenting on what I too noticed when I saw those initial pictures with the passengers running from the plane. They were completely laden down with their carry-on!! Although I was initially amazed that everyone survived, I became even more so when I realized many passengers had their carry-on with them. I don't know if it was the training of the flight crew or pure luck or both that ensured everyone exited the plane safely while clutching their valuables, but I do know that if I were in the same situation, I would not have stopped to take time to remove my laptop or whatever. Those things can be replaced. The same cannot be said for your life.
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Carry-on craziness
It's just another example of modern Mind Over Matter: "I don't mind, and you don't matter."
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It's also the reason I don't take my shoes off until after we're airborne
This is the reason, by the way, for the litany of prohibitions during taxi, takeoff and landing: Tray tables need to be up, window shades open, laptops and iPods put away.
And I put my shoes back on when the tray tables go up.
Cue pictures of Bruce Willis in Die Hard.
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US Air
I still say it - call me stubborn but that's what branding does.
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Just while we're being pedantic ...
British Airways stopped calling itself the world's favorite airline some time ago. They actually stopped about a year before it happened, because they saw it coming (they were overtaken by Lufthansa).
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Nearest exit may be behind you,a short trip down memory lane and the biggest,newest air queen ...
With airports so fully engaged in layers of security screening and monitoring any air traveller who has endured all that surely is deserving of an oasis of reduced fear and less nervous apprehension once seated,waiting for push-back and on to taxi and take-off time.
Filmed coverage of a Boeing 737-800 on fire(not some vintage Russian lineage craft of dubious history/record) while on the ground is not a common sight these days. For those on board this aflamed aircraft it surely was a much more acute matter.
Calling a 737 a 727 is a wide miss. Any Boeing three holer fan knows these two aircraft may have similar forward nose looks but from mid fuselage/wing onback these are very different birds. They both started out with some 707 DNA but in major ways are quite different in wing/powerplant plan-out.
DC-10s or later MD-11s are pretty easy to identify. As were Lockheed L-1011s. Both of these now have become very rare in scheduled airline passenger service and are becoming rare as airfreighters as well.
Boeing 747s are truly one of a kind in shape yet there are older models still in the mix with newer and newest models. The 747s have been around for so long now that most of the early examples have been cut up for scrap. A few may still languish here and there in aircraft graveyards in various states of preservation or neglect.
I remember seeing the first 727 land in Madison,Wisconsin back in 1966. NorthwestOrient Airlines flew that one into Truax Field. First time I saw a jet airliner up close landing and coming onto the terminal apron in Madison. Madison still saw DC-3s and twin engined Convairs or four engined Allison turboprop equipped Lockheed Electras in daily service. NorthwestOrient was phasing out the Lockheed Electras and the 727s were the new bird coming on line. At that time the passenger terminal was still on the east side of the airport along HWY.51.There was a viewing platform on top of the building so you could see the aircraft on the apron,passengers leaving or arriving and get the full airport panorama. In 1967 the new west side airport terminal building was opened. That 1967 vintage Madison terminal has underwent several make-overs and additions since then.It is a very nicely done American Midwest airport facility/terminal today. It is possible some parts of the original 1967 building may still remain at Madison airport but seeing a 727 in Northwest Orient livery is unlikely now at the Madison NWA gates. The NWA 727s now having followed the NWO Electra turboprops to the aircraft graveyards and scrap cutters.
Airport security for passengers is more akin to getting into or out of a prison these days and again airline passengers must endure many hurdles getting to the gates for a flight which hopefully will be on schedule and not delayed or cancelled. New or inexperienced air travellers surely in for new dimensions of experience in lining up for pass/fail testing or being "nails" which stick/stuck out get hammered down/in.
An aircraft starting on fire and passengers and crew having to get out from a burning aircraft and away surely is an acute event for all those unfortunate enough to be on/in that aircraft.
Perhaps it would make more sense to remove carry-on luggage from over-head areas of airliner cabins and design set-apart storage elsewhere in secured areas of the aircraft. For greater safety. For improved emergency exit outcome patterns. For less troubles/hazards of several sorts getting onboard,stowing odd/poorly contained stuff in overhead storage lockers and having stuff fall out on passengers or impeding passengers getting out either under normal conditions or in emergency situation conditions.
Seeing that 737-800 on fire reminds one that flying still is subject to errors and random chances. I am thankful all were able to exit that burning China Airlines aircraft. Open access carry-on luggage remains a weak area of airliner design and a weak link in aircraft emergency exit plans.
Getting lucky is not a good plan in emergency exit outcomes.
Very much looking forward to seeing a Airbus 380 take off or land at some point over next few months. From the looks of things that event is not too far off.
In a few years the Airbus 380 will be a not uncommon sight at some major international airports. Singapore Airlines is now very close to putting the first 380s on the schedule roster for passenger service. May the 380 do well and have a long reign as the new air queen.
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Not without my Laptop
This issue regarding the abandoning of carryon luggage in an emergency is worth thinking about a little bit. For the reasons Mr. Smith has noted, plus many more, it is almost certain that people will be grabbing their valuables prior to heading for the exits, unless they are already themselves in extremis. Human greed is as instinctive as self preservation. I’m surely not exaggerating to say that it is certain that a statistically significant fraction of our fellow air travellers will value their own property over that of the (abstract) lives of the anonymous co-passengers surrounding them. This is especially true if the need for immediate evacuation is not obviously apparent to them. And given the propensity for many passengers to even push the limits for allowed carryon in the first place, it’s virtually certain that a chaotic fracas will ensue at the first hint of the need to leave the apparent comfort of the cabin. The strongest motivation isn’t limited to the mere monetary value of laptop computers. For some employers, the value of the data on those computers rivals the value of the actual employee carrying it. Thus it is not surprising that even the most genteel professional would wantonly ignore the screams of a most determined flight attendant while clutching his or her valuable tote bag like a halfback heading for the line.
Airlines are being unrealistic to assume in their emergency egress tests, as I’m sure they do, that people will actually abandon their valuables prior to exiting. I’m not sure that even implementing a “shoot violators on sight” edict would be a sufficient motivator to stop it from happening..., although it may be worth a try.