Big gamble asked of passengers on flight

[CopperBrompton]

+1 to all the above. A 3.5-hour delay on a charter flight by a holiday company - oh the humanity!

The airport manager was talking bollox: there is one circuit that indicates the slide is operational, not one that indicates it is and another than indicates it isn't.

Under CAA regulations, there must be one exit per n passengers, and all passengers must be within x distance of one. It is illegal to fly without this requirement being met, and they thus had no choice but to offload passengers and reseat as required.

Stuff like this happens from time to time when flying. If you can't cope with it, don't fly.

 

[Bromptonaut]

+1 to all the above. A 3.5-hour delay on a charter flight by a holiday company - oh the humanity!

The airport manager was talking bollox: there is one circuit that indicates the slide is operational, not one that indicates it is and another than indicates it isn't.

Under CAA regulations, there must be one exit per n passengers, and all passengers must be within x distance of one. It is illegal to fly without this requirement being met, and they thus had no choice but to offload passengers and reseat as required.

Stuff like this happens from time to time when flying. If you can't cope with it, don't fly.

+1

The rules are quite clear. Some defects are permitted some are not. If the system cannot tell the crew the chutes are functioning correctly they have to assume not and apply the appropriate rules. Very lucky that there were seats available to BOH; demand management often means flights are full.

And it's not just a 'blown bulb' issue most modern airliners will computerise these systems and display them on a VDU.

Even if all the chutes are functioning correctly there has to be a margin in case the circumstances of an accident render some unusable. I've never actually seen an airliner evacuated this way but I happened to pass Leeds/Bradford one day in May 1985 shortly after a BA Tristar had overrun the runway. Landed late on a strip that was wet, slippery and above all very short. The front chutes were unusable because of the sloping site on which the 'plane eventually came to a halt.

 

[Theseus]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4601342.stm
I've never actually seen an airliner evacuated this way but I happened to pass Leeds/Bradford one day in May 1985 shortly after a BA Tristar had overrun the runway. Landed late on a strip that was wet, slippery and above all very short. The front chutes were unusable because of the sloping site on which the 'plane eventually came to a halt.

This was the one I saw up close and personal. Very happy to walk away from it thanks to the chute.

 

[Norm]

PaulB, why didn't you volunteer to take the Bournemouth plane.

And as mentioned, we all know that 'rules and regulations' are a priority and yet they were overlooked in luggage travelling on a plane without the passeger(s) it belongs to How come one rule was floowed and another ignored?

Simply because that is not a regulation.

If it was, it would be difficult to re-unite people with their luggage when they got separated. I can imagine the call now "Sorry, Mr Norm but your suitcase was put on the wrong plane and is currently in Atlanta. There is a flight to Atlanta in 18 hours, can you hop on the plane so we can fly the suitcase back to the UK."

 

[Piemaster]

Think the whole point here was there was no gambling at all. Passengers were not given the choice of gambling - its a flight, not the lottery.

Pilot knows the rules say he doesn't take off until some of the cargo has been unloaded. Very clear, no gambling there at all. He is responsible for his passengers safety (presumably as he'll be at the front end he will be quite interested in a safe flight as well). He doesn't ask for their opinion, he tells them what will or won't happen.

These ship things sound dangerous. But at least I can go tell the captain on this one to go boil his head. heh.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

This is a great thread.

 

[summerdays]

Perspective yourself. There were people with babies and no milk yet the waitresses refused to supply them even with water.

I've been on a 5 hour delayed evening flight years ago when our children were very young... I felt very sorry for the other passengers ... as numerous tired children took a while to settle (ours included). Me if I had the option to get off the flight with loads of tired children on I would do it unless I had very young (pre-5's) children myself. Perhaps she couldn't open the refreshments until the decision to go ahead with the flight was made. I've sat on board a plane before and been served refreshments while I waited ... but I can't remember what that delay was caused by.

 

[asterix]

Somehow I can't see the OP being accepted into the SAS if that's his idea of a tough time.

 

[NormanD]

Put it this way, if the pilot had of said I was sitting in a defective aircraft, I'd have been on the other flight ASAP without question!

 

[snorri]

[QUOTE 1230069"]
I was once delayed for 5 hours out of Orlando in the middle of the night. I read half a book.
[/quote]
I had to wait for a week in Gothenberg for a ferry to the UK, I discovered Gothenberg had a nudey beach.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

One time I got mucked about at an airport and had to go through security three times. Second time was because there was a fire alert and the building was evacuated and then when I'd got back up my plane had been cancelled so I had to go back down to the ticket office and buy a ticket for another plane. I was on first name terms with security on the third go through the x-ray machine. I can't remember how long the whole 'experience' lasted.

 

[Arch]

This was the one I saw up close and personal. Very happy to walk away from it thanks to the chute.

Passenger quoted:

"When we got down the chute there was no-one there to take us further away from the plane"

What state has the human race got to, when it needs someone to direct it away from a potentially exploding plane?

(Hoping that quoted guy isn't Touche....)

 

[Theseus]

One time I got mucked about at an airport and had to go through security three times. Second time was because there was a fire alert and the building was evacuated and then when I'd got back up my plane had been cancelled so I had to go back down to the ticket office and buy a ticket for another plane. I was on first name terms with security on the third go through the x-ray machine. I can't remember how long the whole 'experience' lasted.

Was that when you were threeflightmcginty?

 

[threebikesmcginty]

Was that when you were threeflightmcginty?

It was at Edinburgh airport too!

 

[Theseus]

Passenger quoted:

"When we got down the chute there was no-one there to take us further away from the plane"

What state has the human race got to, when it needs someone to direct it away from a potentially exploding plane?

(Hoping that quoted guy isn't Touche....)

Not me. I headed back to the terminal until told where to go by the nice rescue/fire chaps that came out and took control.