A McDonnell-Douglas MD-82 of American Airlines takes off from LAX.
Terry Williams, an American Airlines flight attendant, is suing Boeing after having a mist spray on her from the ventilation system from an MD-82 (Boeing bought McDonnell Douglas, which built the MD-82) aircraft. Williams states she has been suffering from chronic pain, tremors, migraines and vision issues.
Williams and her attorney allege that the ventilation system on the aircraft is faulty and the air is heavily contaminated. Her attorney said, “We believe the hazard is preventable. Sensors and filters are available. It’s up to the aircraft manufacturers to put them on.”
Boeing’s spokesperson Bernard Choi responded, “We believe that the air in airplane cabins is safe.”
This is not the first suit of it’s kind against Boeing. About seven years ago, flight attendants sued Boeing over hazardous air conditions, but the jury found Boeing not liable.
Source: KOMO
Image: rjmcconnell
There is a lot of grumbling (and some good jokes out there) dealing with riding on a modern airliner is like being in a cattle car. Airlines are looking to cut costs and bring in profits at the expense of passenger comfort.
Ryanair normally steals the spot light for crazy ideas, but Spring Airlines takes the cake on this one. They are looking at cutting out seats and putting barstool type seats. It would allow for 40% more passengers and cut costs by 20%.
Spring Airlines gets the first ever MORE CRAZY THAN RYANAIR award for coming up with an idea even crazier than one from Ryanair.
Thomas Cook Airlines Airbus A320-214 (OO-TCJ)
Recently a Thomas Cook flight from Majorca to Newcastle asked its passengers to change seats to help balance out the flight. This didn’t disturb the passengers as much as why they were asked.
The rear cargo door was jammed and bags could only be placed in the front cargo hold. Additionally while waiting to board their flight, passengers could overhear the de-boarding passengers talking how that they just experienced one of the worst flights ever.
Seventy-one of booked passengers didn’t want to press their luck and decided to find other options. Dave Charlton, one of the 71 talked about the passengers who de-boarded before he was supposed to get on, “People were kissing the ground and putting their hands together like they were praying. When people are getting off the plane saying ‘Don’t get on’ and we’d been told there was a fault with [the airplane], there was no way we would get on.”
An airline spokes person stated, “It is standard for all airlines to ensure cargo and passengers are evenly distributed on an aircraft and there will be times when passengers will be asked to move to the front or back of a plane. This is a routine procedure and poses no safety issue. We are disappointed that despite reassurances from the captain and crew, several passengers decided not to travel.’
Although the distribution of weight is a standard and normal procedure (I have been asked to do so on more than one flight), having a jammed door and fearful passengers is not quite normal procedure. There has been more than one flight that has dealt with cargo door issues with negative outcomes. Currently the airline is not providing any compensation and still treating the situation as the passengers are only upset they were asked to change seats.
Image: jenscrabbe
A familiar few out a Southwest Airline's window.
In January Southwest’s mechanics’ union approved the airline to complete some of their maintenance work in El Salvador. Before the program starts, some Southwest dispatchers are raising concerns about their ability to handle the new international operations needed to get the aircraft to El Salvador.
Southwest states they are working with dispatchers making sure they are fully trained and point out there will be very limited number of the international flights.
With the ever increasing competition to provide lower fares, more airlines have been looking at outsourcing their maintenance work. No matter if one thinks this is a wise move or not, it is important to make sure the people in charge of getting the planes to El Salvador are properly trained to safely get them there, even if there are no passengers on board.
Source: Forbes Image: Sthomas1
AIM 120 AMRAAM Model Rocket
In early June a Continental Airlines Commuter jet had a close encounter. While flying out of Houston, they saw a missile-like object flying at about 16,000 feet. At first the six foot long object was heading towards the aircraft, but fortunately veered off. This near miss happened almost exactly one year after a similar occurrence in the same Texas county.
It is now believed to be a model rocket fired from a hobbyist on the ground. Even though there was no immediate danger to the plane, it still could have turned out terrible if the rocket would have hit the plane and obviously caused a distraction of the pilots. Model rockets of this size require a permit to launch in Texas.
Source: KAUZ Image: karl.simpson