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FAA Revokes License of Warward Pilots

MasterChiefMasterChief I didn't learn anything!Full Members
edited October 2009 in Miscellaneous
Well, this is interesting.

Apparently two wackjobs had spent 80 minutes absorbed with their laptops, flying past the city they were supposed to land in. Needless to say, this is frightening. Imagine flying in a plane with two dopes accessing their Twitter or whatever in the roosterpit...



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
"What the f--- is a Shakespeare?"
-Rico Valasquez, showing off why no one likes him.

Comments

  • CidolfasCidolfas Member Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Sentiment seems to indicate the powers that be disbelieving this story; they think they just fell asleep.
  • kittenofthepackkittenofthepack It bes a cat hat! Full Members
    edited October 2009
    I too think they were passed out at the wheel. o.o

    Even if they were distracted don't you think they would be hearing the radio telling them they missed the airport or something warning them that they were off course?
  • MasterChiefMasterChief I didn't learn anything! Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Quote:(Cidolfas @ Oct. 27 2009, 5:57 PM) wrote:
    Sentiment seems to indicate the powers that be disbelieving this story; they think they just fell asleep.
    You know, I'm wondering which of the two would be worse. Though it's entirely possible they were distracted. In 1974, a couple of pilots were distracted by conversation about Nixon's pardon and crashed their plane just short of a runway, killing all aboard if I remember right.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    "What the f--- is a Shakespeare?"
    -Rico Valasquez, showing off why no one likes him.
  • flamethrowerflamethrower Member Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Usually, if one is passed out, the other is awake. I hear the flight crew (flight attendant) woke them up.

    It is a testament to how automated modern aircraft are. I think they can even land themselves, but I'm not sure. If the pilots were dead, the aircraft would have kept flying that way until it was out of fuel.

    No one was hurt, but someone could have been.

    There are lots of aviation accidents involving distraction. I was in flight training once - they show you videos of how people got distracted and died. They tell you stories about how pilots made bad decisions and died. A situation similar to the above (getting distracted) can happen even when you have three crew in the roosterpit (bigger planes have 3 crew members in the roosterpit, 2 pilots and a crew chief, I think). Everyone focuses on one problem, ignoring things like straight and level flight.

    Recently at Logan Airport (Boston), there was a near miss where one aircraft did not not stop when ground control told them to.
  • ACPACP A Crustacean in a Pot Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Heh. Roosterpit. That anti-obscenity filter sure stays on its toes.

    I wonder if this story would have garnered so much attention if it hadn't set off Homeland Security's alarums? Crazy stuff happens in the air (and in the airports) all the time, and it barely rates a blip in the media, but this story is different, somehow.

    And as long as we're making book on what could have distracted them so thoroughly, I'm betting 5 bucks on sweaty makeouts. Takers? Counter-bets? tounge2.gif
    When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.
    - Mark Twain
  • OyashiroOyashiro NEEDS MOAR UNDERBOOB! Full Members
    edited October 2009
    I'm sure they where just playing around.
    Give me Underboob, or give me death!
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    "As a gaming enthusiast, people who carry a pro-hacker flag for selfish self-entitled reasons and willfully ignore the damage that rampant piracy does to developers as well as hardware producers don't deserve to enjoy the games and systems that these companies have poured their souls into to produce."

    "A late game is only late until it ships. A bad game is bad until the end of time." ~ David Jaffe
  • Aquila HawkAquila Hawk O_o Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Hmm... weren't airlines playing around with the idea of Wi-Fi in planes? With the laptops added into the mix, they were probably making sure the alternate name for the flight deck was an appropriate one. laugh.gif If that disgusts you, well sadly it would make sense. That sort of thing can be distracting.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    AquilaHawk on Battle.Net: Currently playing Starcraft II
  • shoptrollshoptroll Have towel will travel Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Quote:(MasterChief @ Oct. 27 2009, 6:18 PM) wrote:
    Needless to say, this is frightening. Imagine flying in a plane with two dopes accessing their Twitter or whatever in the roosterpit...
    Last year there was an incident with a Green Line tram due to the operator focusing on texting while he was supposed to be paying attention and doing his job. It's amazing how quickly people forget that when you're piloting (or driving) any vehicle you're putting yourself and all your passengers into something that can be a very risky situation no matter how practiced you are.
    So long & thanks for all the fish!
  • flamethrowerflamethrower Member Full Members
    edited October 2009
    I understand how it would be inconvenient. Those passengers were delayed an hour, not to mention the passengers who were supposed to get on the plane at the appointed time.

    I don't understand how it could be scary. Pilots know the most crucial time is takeoffs and landings. That's due to: 1) Other planes (low alt. airspace, especially around airports, is crowded) and 2) Low altitude (i.e. little time to recover if something goes wrong). I don't think any pilots are sleeping during takeoffs and landings. The plane was on autopilot and did a decent job of flying itself. It would be a problem if it went so far as to run out of fuel...but that didn't happen - not even close.
  • Aquila HawkAquila Hawk O_o Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Actually, the scary thing was that the flight crew was unresponsive to ground based air trafic controllers for over an hour, leading to the readying of fighter jets to take off and potentially shoot down the plane. What was scary was the fear that this was a hijacking in progress. Had they remained silent for much longer, their plane could have experienced the working end of a sidewinder. What was scary was that post 9/11 measures and procedures were put into action.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    AquilaHawk on Battle.Net: Currently playing Starcraft II
  • OyashiroOyashiro NEEDS MOAR UNDERBOOB! Full Members
    edited October 2009
    I don't think that the US government would fire a missile at a plane over the US, full of US citizens.
    Give me Underboob, or give me death!
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    "As a gaming enthusiast, people who carry a pro-hacker flag for selfish self-entitled reasons and willfully ignore the damage that rampant piracy does to developers as well as hardware producers don't deserve to enjoy the games and systems that these companies have poured their souls into to produce."

    "A late game is only late until it ships. A bad game is bad until the end of time." ~ David Jaffe
  • Aquila HawkAquila Hawk O_o Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Unfortunately, faced with a certain set of circumstances, they would not have a choice. However, those are specific circumstances.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    AquilaHawk on Battle.Net: Currently playing Starcraft II
  • MasterChiefMasterChief I didn't learn anything! Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Quote:(Aquila Hawk @ Oct. 28 2009, 12:15 AM) wrote:
    Unfortunately, faced with a certain set of circumstances, they would not have a choice. However, those are specific circumstances.
    Well, from what I understand, the plane was too high up in the air for there to be a risk of a ramming. Though I wouldn't blame people for thinking that a plane that was unresponsive for an hour and 20 minutes might go down in a hurry.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    "What the f--- is a Shakespeare?"
    -Rico Valasquez, showing off why no one likes him.
  • Aquila HawkAquila Hawk O_o Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Also, where it went silent was not too far from Chicago to not worry about. That, I imagine, was the concern.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
    AquilaHawk on Battle.Net: Currently playing Starcraft II
  • CidolfasCidolfas Member Full Members
    edited October 2009
    Well, the pilots have been fired and barred from flying ever again. Yay for common sense.

    Speaking of text messaging, here in Ontario we've finally put in a law banning any use of handheld devices while driving a car. That includes cell phones, GPSes, iPods, etc. You can only use them if they're mounted on the dashboard/windshield or if you're using a hands-free version. Makes me happy. 8-)
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