What Happened on Northwest Flight 188?
The Twin Cities Pioneer Press reports that the two pilots who overflew Minneapolis last week have advised the NTSB that the reason they lost track of time they were “discussing the new monthly crew flight scheduling system.” The system was put in place as part of Northwest’s merger with Delta Air Lines. They both admitted accessing their personal laptops while they discussed this, something which is in violation of company policy.
How Do Two Pilots Overshoot an Airport?
Pilots of a flight from San Diego to Minneapolis ignored radio calls and flew over 150 miles past the airport. The military was even prepared to intercept. All in all, the pilots of Northwest Flight 188 were nonresponsive for 78 minutes, covering a distance of over 600 miles. With all the attempts to contact them, flashing lights in the cockpit, etc, it is a mystery why this was.
The End of the Balloon Boy Ballad Ballot
[caption id="" align="alignright" width="100" caption="David Parker Brown of AirlineReporter.com"][/caption] Our first attempt at a contest has ended. The Balloon Boy Ballad Ballot, not counting our editor, had one entry. Thus, we are proud to announce the winner of the Balloon Boy Ballad Ballot is…David Parker Brown(pictured left), of AirlineReporter.com. Congratulations, and we hope our next…
Southwest to Add New Saturday-Only LaGuardia Service – But For How Long?
Southwest announced today it would add Saturday only service from New York-LaGuardia Airport to Denver International Airport. The rest of the week the service will be offered on a one-stop basis. Saturday-only service is the only option as Southwest is not securing any additional slots at LaGuardia, but Saturday service is not slot or perimeter…
Southwest Once Again Grows in Denver
Southwest’s Surprise Entry into Panama City, Florida
Image by Getty Images via Daylife We’d talked about Northwest Florida – Panama City International Airport before. It is a new airport being constructed to replace the old Bay County Airport. When it opens on Memorial Day, the old airport will close. Delta is currently the only carrier serving Panama City, offering regional service to…
Southwest Fills the Void Left By American In St. Louis
Is Letting Bag-Free Passengers Board First a Good Idea?
[caption id="attachment_1704" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Leather seats with Headrests"][/caption] Virgin America is testing the idea of letting passengers who are traveling without carry-on luggage board the plane first. Now, we aren’t sure of the exact details. We assume personal items wouldn’t count, and this would be limited to actual luggage. Few people travel with only the…
Do TSA Agents Even Know the Rules?
The Balloon Boy Ballad Ballot
Image via Wikipedia Yesterday, feeling a bit whimsical, our editor wrote a somewhat silly poem based on the balloon boy saga. Pushed by our roving correspondent, Dr. Lane(now on Twitter at @infrequentflier), we have posted the complete poem, which we categorize as influenced by Longfellow, Chaucer, and Dr. Seuss. And thus we announce the Balloon…
Talking about IFE and Wi-FI
Sheriff To Bogus Balloon Boy Parents – Your Balloon’s Burst- Little Balloon Boy Blue as Saga Ends
The TSA Escalates its MythBusting
TSA Releases Video to Clear Itself and Mother Responds
TSA Separates Mother and Child in Name of Security
Last Chance – JetBlue Sample Sale Till Midnight
Balloon Boy Found – Saga Ends
Balloon Building Family were Well Known
Father of Balloon Boy Video On Martian Civilization Coverup
Richard Heene, father of Falcon Heene, the 6 year old boy still missing after the flying saucer balloon he was presumed to be on board landed empty, apparently uploaded this video to CNN iReport. Mr. Heene speaks about his belief that evidence of Martian civilization was covered up by the European Space Agency.
Breaking: 6 year old in Runaway Homemade Flying Saucer Over Colorado
Richard Heene and his 6 year old son have apparently been working on a project to make a homemade hot air balloon that looks like a flying saucer. The son crawled in and unhooked the line. Air traffic has been halted and several National Guard and other helicopters are in pursuit. There is no clear consensus on how to rescue him at present.
Video Time: Air New Zealand wants Southwest to get Naked and Sing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfETlqvBAeE Air New Zealand had a message for Herb Kelleher and Southwest Airlines. They want Southwest Airlines to participate in a airline safety video musical…which may or may not be performed naked. Should Southwest accept the challenge? We’ll wait for the Airline Safety Video Music Awards.
Rant: FREQUENT Flier Programs
Lufthansa to Bring Back In Flight WiFi
Image via Wikipedia Lufthansa is bringing back in-flight wi-fi. As reported by Upgrade Travel, Lufthansa will be the first transatlantic carrier to put out a comprehensive plan for wi-fi connectivity after Boeing discontinued its in-flight wi-fi offering. Lufthansa’s system, called Flynet, is Panasonic-based, and uses a satellite based network, like Row 44, which is working…
Ryanair’s CEO is a Hoot
Image by Drewski2112 via Flickr We wanted to link in this video, but unfortunately, we couldn’t figure out how to, so here is a link. BBC Panorama was doing a documentary on Ryanair. There was nothing new or exciting about the documentary, from what we hear. But they did corner Michael O’Leary, who despite his…