From Australian Broadcasting things you don’t want to hear on final approach:
Speaking over the address system as the Flybe flight approached Charles de Gaulle airport, the pilot announced to startled passengers “I am not qualified to land the plane” and turned back to Cardiff.
While is was a technical licensing issue, and not competence, it really is not a confidence builder.
On-line Opinion Magazine featuring annoyed rumblings from the leading edge of the Baby Boom firmly tied to a reality-based world.
Established: 21 November 2004
The opinions expressed in Comments are those of the individuals making them. Truly absurd comments and opinions are subject to being cruelly mocked, but "flame wars" will take place on someone else's dime.
Your first comment, all comments with extensive links, and random comments that the software decides it doesn't like for no discernible reason will be held for moderation.
[Be aware that for unknown reasons the software rejects comments shorter than 15 characters, so if you want to leave a short comment fill the gap with periods ........]
2 comments
Ha! This gives me the opportunity to post some of those *truth is funnier than fiction* stories I’ve been collecting over the years! 😀
All too rarely, Australian airline attendants make an effort to make the in-flight “safety lecture” and their other announcements a bit more entertaining. Here are some real examples that have been heard or reported:
1. On an Air NZ Flight with a very “senior” flight attendant crew, the pilot said, “Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve reached cruising altitude and will be turning down the cabin lights. This is for your comfort and to enhance the appearance of your flight attendants.”
————–
2. On landing the hostess said, “Please be sure to take all your belongings.
If you’re going to leave anything, please make sure it’s something we’d like to have.”
————–
3. One flight attendant, in an effort to make the usual announcement more interesting, said: “There may be 50 ways to leave your lover, but there are only four ways to leave this aircraft… five if we crash.”
————–
4. As the plane landed and was coming to a stop at Auckland, a lone voice came over the loudspeaker: “Whoa, big fella. WHOA!”
————–
5. After a particularly rough landing during thunderstorms in Adelaide, a flight attendant on a Qantas flight announced, “Please take care when opening the overhead compartments because, after a landing like that, you can be sure as heck everything has shifted!”
————–
6. From a Qantas flight attendant: “Welcome aboard Qantas Flight XXX to YYY.
To operate your seat belt, insert the metal tab into the buckle, and pull tight. It works just like every other seat belt; and, if you don’t know how to operate one, you probably shouldn’t be out in public unsupervised.”
————–
7. “In the event of a sudden loss of cabin pressure, masks will descend from the ceiling. Stop screaming, grab the mask, and pull it over your face.
If you have a small child traveling with you, secure your mask before assisting with theirs. If you are travelling with more than one small child, pick your favourite.
————-
8. “Weather at our destination is 32 degrees with some broken clouds, but we’ll try to have them fixed before we arrive. Thank you, and remember, nobody loves you, or your money, more than Qantas Airlines.”
————–
9. “Your seat cushions can be used for flotation; and in the event of an emergency water landing, please paddle to shore and take them with our compliments.”
————–
10. “Should the cabin lose pressure, oxygen masks will drop from the overhead area. Please place the bag over your own mouth and nose before assisting children… or other adults behaving like children.”
————–
11. Heard on Qantas Airlines just after a very hard landing in Hobart:
The flight attendant came on the intercom and said, “That was quite a bump, and I know what you are all thinking. I’m here to tell you it wasn’t the airline’s fault, it wasn’t the pilot’s fault, it wasn’t the flight attendant’s fault … it was the asphalt!”
————–
12. Another flight attendant’s comment on a less than perfect landing:
“We ask you to please remain seated as Captain Kangaroo bounces us to the terminal!”
————–
13. A United Airlines pilot wrote that on this particular flight he had hammered his ship into the runway really hard. The airline had a policy which required the first officer to stand at the door while the passengers exited, smile, and give them a “Thanks for flying United.” He said that, in light of his bad landing, he had a hard time looking the passengers in the eye, thinking that someone would have a smart comment. Finally everyone had got off except for an old lady walking with a cane. She said, “Sonny, mind if I ask you a question?”
“Why no Ma’am,” said the pilot. “What is it?”, The little old lady said, “Did we land or were we shot down?”
————–
14. After a real crusher of a landing in Sydney, the Flight Attendant came on with, “Ladies and Gentlemen, please remain in your seats until Captain Crash and the Crew have brought the aircraft to a screeching halt against the gate. And, once the tire smoke has cleared and the warning bells are silenced, we’ll open the door and you can pick your way through the wreckage to the terminal.”
————–
15. Part of a Qantas flight attendant’s arrival announcement: “We’d like to thank you folks for flying with us today. And, the next time you get the insane urge to go blasting through the skies in a pressurized metal tube, we hope you’ll think of Qantas.”
————–
16. A plane was taking off from Mascot Airport. After it reached a comfortable cruising altitude, the captain made an announcement over the intercom, “Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking.
Welcome to Flight Number XYZ, non-stop from Sydney to Auckland. The weather ahead is good and, therefore, we should have smooth and uneventful flight. Now sit back and relax – !#*@! ARGHHH! OH, MY GOD!”. Silence followed and after a few minutes, the captain came back on the intercom and said, “Ladies and Gentlemen, I am so sorry if I scared you earlier, but, while I was talking, the flight attendant brought me a cup of coffee and spilled the hot coffee in my lap. You should see the front of my pants!”,
A passenger in Economy said, “That’s nothing. He should see the back of mine!”
After a landing by the co-pilot in Athens in a C-130 we bounced because he came in too fast. The lead navigator came on the intercom and asked which of the landings he should log as official.
I went to college with the co-pilot and he was a really good football [soccer] player, but he really sucked as a pilot. The problem was that all of his coordination was concentrated in his feet.