Seeker

48 minutes ago, deicer said:

By admitting that their systems are out of date, it only leads one to think that they also lead to the problems with the 737 Max program when they pressured Boeing to keep cockpit commonality with their older models.

Southwest staffs and equips the airline for the 360 (or whatever) days per year when they don't have a winter storm to deal with.  Every business and organization does this; from the person who decides (in July) how many plow trucks will available for the next winter to the person who decides on the staffing for the nightshift drive-through window at your local Tim's.  I believe that most organizations (and the people responsible) put considerable effort into this planning.

At great cost it would be possible to staff and equip the airline for 100% (theoretically) of the weather events that might occur.  Of course this means that for 99% of the time you are overstaffed and have surplus equipment sitting idle - doesn't please the shareholders due to lost profit and doesn't please the customers due to higher ticket prices.

I have often tried to explain this to disgruntled passengers in the airport. 

It goes like this;  "Yes, passengers trying to fly today are delayed and disadvantaged by a lack of extra crew to pick up the slack but passengers flying for the other 364 days of the year got lower prices."  

Their reply, "Well, I would have paid more to have the extra crew available."  

Of course doesn't work like that.  Millions and millions of passengers need to pay more so that on the bad weather day thousands of passengers aren't delayed.  I ask people how they would feel about a system like this;  your ticket price was, let's say, $1000.00 but you have the option of paying only $500 with a 1 out of 365 chance that you're delayed for weather - deal?  Naturally, given the option, people do the math in their head and take the cheaper ticket.

All that being said I do think airlines (hotels, restaurants, etc) that do a better job of managing this should be rewarded (with more business) and those that fail to do so should be scorned.  The problem is that customers have short memories.  Next year virtually all (certainly most) of the people caught in Southwest's mess will book again if the ticket is $5 cheaper than the alternatives.

11 minutes ago, Kip Powick said:

OK...It is Christmas season and the Chief Admin has junped into the fray even though this thread has  a very political tangent.

Well, it is about the transport minister - seems close enough to be on topic.

17 minutes ago, Skeptic said:

Perhaps but that does not qualify  someone, with no transportation knowledge to be the "Minister of Transportation" or indeed to be a licenced plumber, surgeon etc etc 

You are correct but if I had to choose between an engineer or somebody with a BA in medieval poetry I'd choose the engineer.  Of course Minister Algebra has shown us it's still no guarantee of success.  

4 minutes ago, Skeptic said:

Certainly not when it comes transportation. Not part of their studies or responsibilities.

 

I think the general assumption about engineers (particularly mechanical engineers) is that the selection, training and eventual meeting of the qualification standards are "proof" of a high level of problem solving ability and underlying skills in logic, cost/benefit analysis, etc, etc.  Furthermore that these are universally useful abilities.

45 minutes ago, conehead said:

The guy’s a mechanical engineer. He should have at least a clue.

Not necessarily.  I have a family member who's an engineer and the stories he has to tell after 4 decades in the industry are shocking.

Well, that's not true.  Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Ottawa, Halifax, Saint John, St John's, etc have had, and been using, these approaches since 2018 too.  Pearson has had the exact same procedures but hasn't used them.  It's not new at all, they just didn't use them.

19 minutes ago, Specs said:

A friend has won a VIP suite for the Final 4 in QATAR but he's getting married that week.  The church, the reception hall and the honeymoon package are all bought and paid for so it can't be cancelled and he's wondering if I knew anybody who would like to go in his place instead? 

 

If you're interested the details are:  10th of December at St Joseph's Catholic Church, 392 Palace road, Kingston Ontario.  Her name is Mary Elizabeth.

Good one!  Took me a few reads to get it.  

6 minutes ago, Rich Pulman said:

“No one was injured, says the TSB.”

Until next week when some of the passengers decide to extract their pound of flesh.

Yeah, someone has to be so traumatized that they can never fly again after the terror they must have felt.

5 hours ago, Kip Powick said:

The link above has many articles and one is about Quantas FA's going on strike....here is a screen shot of the FA's walking from the aircraft

Click the photo to enlarge.....if you wish 

Thanks.  Yes, she certainly does have presence.

12 hours ago, Kip Powick said:

 

PS....I wouldn't want to get too lippy with the red-headed FA in the photo..

Can't seem to find the FA being referenced.....

2 hours ago, Tango Foxtrot said:

Perhaps it should be an unwritten rule that if a crew is arrested,  no crew will fly into that airport until they are released.  Why would you take a chance

Unwritten?  I say; write it down, publicize it and stick to it.  Arrest the crew and the next day the airport is a ghost town.

Test 

52 minutes ago, Kip Powick said:

By the sounds of it , you are pretty lucky to be here 

You have no idea.  I have a story I've never told here - "luck" doesn't come close to describing it.

On 11/6/2022 at 9:34 AM, Kip Powick said:

Many decades ago before the advent of all the methods of flying of today with the technology aircraft possess, I flew IFR like many other pilots to get from A to B....(back then  IFR  meant I Fly Railways)

Railways?  Luxury, pure luxury!

The places I flew didn't even have railways or roads or power lines  - nothing but lakes, rocks and trees.  I used FOTM - finger on the map - as you'd fly along you'd move your finger to track your current position.  Worked pretty well - didn't even use aviation maps, we used forestry maps because they were higher resolution at 2 miles to the inch.

None of those bush planes had any sort of navigation at all.  They were physically equipped with compasses but none had been swung in decades.

One airplane I flew has an ASI, VSI, Altimeter, a clock that didn't work,  a compass that always pointed North and a single VHF radio with a range of about 10 miles.

1 hour ago, Kip Powick said:

I bet those goofballs sitting under the C-130 would leave in a hurry if # 3 engine was started .

Yeah, I like the headline too: Climate activists stop private jets from leaving Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport

Not many "private" c-130s and, unless I missed something they aren't jets!

4 minutes ago, Falken said:

Lucky you!

I know, right!  Then spent the next year flying at Rusty Myers too.  No doubt delayed my airline career but wouldn't trade my time in the Beech for another two years at a flight level.

47 minutes ago, Skeptic said:

Another oldie still earning 

Northwest Flying Inc. | Facebook

Aircraft Information

 

Mark:

CF-NKL

Common Name:

Beech

Model Name:

C-45H

Serial No.:

AF 378

Basis for Eligibility for Registration:

CAR Standard 507.02, 507.03 - Type Certificate - A765

Category:

Aeroplane

Engine:

2, Piston

Max Take-Off Weight:

3969 kg

24 Bit Address:

Bin=110000000010001101100100, Octal=60021544, Hex=C02364

Regional Office:

Toronto

Base of Operations:

Nestor Falls , Ontario, CANADA

 

  Manufacturer Information

 

Manufacturer:

Beech Aircraft Corporation

Country of Manufacture:

U.S.A.

Year of Manufacture:

1955

You can't post that without posting this.  I spent one glorious summer flying this exact aircraft!

https://twitter.com/i/status/1587936385297940480

7 minutes ago, Kip Powick said:

One of the questions.......if it was an "accident" why would there not be more video leading up to the "accident" ?? Certainly didn't turn on the Go-Pro just prior to pulling the handles.

If "clipping the wires" was the actual cause, as stated by many Russian sources, video of the hit would reinforce the published "accident " scenario...IMO

 

Maybe it would show the pilot was careless/reckless just before hitting the wires?  I know whenever I used to fly under the wires I'd always aim to pass right under one of those big ball markers (they're a lot bigger up close!).  Makes it easier to judge your distance.  

Well, don't know what to believe now.  There are many websites all around the internet referring to this as combat footage.  Are they all wrong?  

One screen capture I got from the video seems to agree with the story about the fin damage when compared to a stock photo.  The flames from the tailpipe (which I initially assumed to be from anti-aircraft munitions) could just be from the unusual attitude caused by the ejection. 

Yeah, I was sent the link from another pilot that I know to be reliable and skeptical about these things.  The Youtube channel specializes in combat footage and has over 2 million subscribers.  Based on those two facts I accepted the video as presented.  Well, let that be a lesson to me!

Whoops, posted a little too quickly.  The comments say this happened in Russia, training flight in June or July.  Pilot hit high-tension power lines which tore the fin off.  Anyway, pretty dramatic video.  Play it at 1/4 speed to catch a few frames of the aircraft tumbling away after the ejection.  Also, interesting to note the pilot pulling into a vertical climb before ejecting to get altitude.

2 hours ago, Kip Powick said:

 

Retired.....where +/- a week doesn't matter  Time always matter to me... but then ...that's only me 

Retired.....I always book with a Legacy carrier. I want to be "there" at a specific time. 

 

Hah!  I knew someone would call me out on the "retired" bit.  Of course I didn't mean retired like you are retired Kip - I meant retired like my Mother.  This week, next week or the week after doesn't matter to her.

2 hours ago, Rich Pulman said:

If the strong survive and the weak fail then the market is working as it should and there’s no need to regulate it. Regulation only adds cost and consumers are clearly driven by (low) cost. The drive for cheap, cheap, cheap may leave some consumers holding worthless tickets when their airline of choice goes belly up, but that shouldn’t be a surprising consequence. Perhaps we should regulate thinking so people are prevented from making poor choices.

Friends and family will sometimes ask about booking, and using, a low-cost carrier for a planned trip.  I explain that it's simply a lottery with unknown odds;  should they get lucky and there are no adverse weather conditions (at either end or anywhere in the system) co-incident with their trip and the airline hasn't experienced a mechanical issue with the single airplane scheduled for their trip that they may be able to save a significant amount of money.  OTOH, a weather event or mechanical event could result in a significant delay of up to a week during which time you will be responsible for meals, hotels, transportation back and forth to airport etc.  Generally, if you're going for an event (wedding, funeral, cruise ship departure) I feel it's not worth the risk.  If you're retired and just going on a random visit to family where +/- a week doesn't matter - roll the dice.