Flight attendants to become the porn police

by Jamie Rhein on

Back in December, when Aaron posted about the etiquette questions raised by In-flight Internet, he wrote the prevailing thought was that “decency, good sense and normal behavior” would prevail.

According to this article at FoxNews.com, just in case decency, good sense and normal behavior go out the window, flight attendants will become the porn police.

I imagine that while the flight attendant is taking your money for your snack and beverage that used to be complimentary, but isn’t anymore, he or she can give a peek at your screen to see what you’re surfing and shut you down if you forget you’re not in the comfort of your own home or tucked back in your office cubicle.

If your neighbor is getting grossed out or upset by your viewing, the flight attendant will appear to put an end to the shenanigans.

Some airlines, the article reports, will put a block on sites which should give the attendants a break so they can do other important tasks like make sure they give back correct change when you purchase water so you won’t die of thirst before the flight ends.

Airlines that either do or will filter sites when Internet is made available: JetBlue Airways, Continental and Qantas.

Airlines that will or already do let you surf without a filter, and hope that you use common sense when you do so: Northwest, American, Delta, Alaskan Airlines and Virgin.

Here are concerns being raised: What is pornography or not appropriate content and under what circumstances? Different people have different lenses with which they view what is appropriate. Here are two examples given:

  • A child sitting next to a person watching an R-rated movie that is either sexually explicit or violent
  • A person surfing a Victoria Secret lingerie catalog could be disconcerting as well.

As the article also points out, the reason why these issues are felt so strongly when people fly is that they are confined and can not escape from what is distasteful. You can’t move seats and you can’t get off.

Although flight attendants are trained to deal with conflict, as you may have noticed if you read Gadling comments whenever a flight issue is posed, there are a lot of stresses from flying as it is. It seems to me that Internet may be great to have, but could be adding more trouble than it’s worth.

Qantas jumbo jet diverts after fuselage ruptures

by Grant Martin on

A Qantas jet bound for Hong Kong was forced to divert into the Philippines today, after a portion of the fuselage just in front of the starboard wing ruptured.

The explosion left a gash reaching into the cargo hold of the 744, resulting in a loss of pressure in that cabin and an emergency descent to 10,000 feet. Oxygen masks were deployed by the captain and the flight landed fortunately landed safely in the South Pacific without further event.

But what a scary event for passengers. Among not knowing what exploded on the plane, the extent of the damage, how/if the aircraft was going to land safely and the thought of a terrorist attack, I’m sure passengers were mortified. This CNN article points out that several passengers were vomiting as they exited the aircraft.

Was it a terrorist attack? From photos of the damage, it looks more like it was a materials failure (airlines run numerous x-ray and ultrasonic tests to normally prevent this). Who knows though. Someone could have also checked some hazard luggage that reacted in the cargo hold. I’m sure we’ll find out in the ongoing investigation.

Surprisingly, the passengers in the cabin took it fairly well during the descent. AP has some video taken inside of the aircraft and save for the oxygen masks being deployed, everything seems fairly orderly.

Another serious safety scare at Qantas

by Abha Malpani on

With 4 safety scares in a month, Qantas seems to have serious problems to deal with.

The latest: 4 tires of one of its 747’s taking off from LA International Airport blew up on the runway. The 232 passengers and crew on board were not hurt; everyone was evacuated from the plane immediately and taken to a hotel. According to the story in the Sydney Morning Herald, the plane may leave today “subject to the aircraft being cleared for operations”.

Other things that have happened to Qantas this month (!):
– Qantas flying from Singapore to London was forced to land at New Delhi Airport for 36-hours due to a technical problem.
– Oil was found leaking from a Qantas aircraft about to land at Sydney Airport.
– A Qantas 737 flight from Townsville landed at Brisbane Airport with smoke coming from its landing gear.

AND…earlier this year in January, a 747 lost almost all power on its descent into Bangkok because of a water leak that shut down 3 of the 4 power generating units.

AND AND…all of this happened right after December last year when Qantas announced a record half-year profit before tax of $905 million, a 73 per cent increase on the previous year. Looks like that jinxed the airline big time.

Wasps nest inside planes, cause delays

by Iva Skoch on

The airline industry hardly seems to run out of reasons for flights to be delayed or canceled. Here is a really good one from Australia.

A total of five Qantas airline flights were delayed or canceled between January and March 2006 because of “wasp infestation.” Yes, apparently, wasps had built 20-30 nests inside parts of the A330 planes while they were waiting on the runway, according to BBC.

While the plane was taxiing away from the runway, the pilots noticed the brake temperature rose to 685C, causing six of the eight main landing gear tires to deflate. Smoke was coming from the main landing gear area, but nobody was hurt (aside from the wasps).

Qantas and the airport operators have been criticized for responding too slowly to the wasp infestation but a subsequent “enhanced pest eradication program” had now brought the problem under control. Man wins again!

Qantas and Jetstar Offer CO2 Offsets for Passengers

by Catherine Bodry on

While some airlines are complaining about environmental directives for air travel, Qantas and its budget carrier Jetstar are actually doing something about it. On Wednesday, the two airlines launched a scheme that allows passengers to offset their CO2 emissions. No, passengers don’t hold their collective breath for the entirety of the flight; this offset is monetary. For example, the Associated Press reports that a flight from Australia to Los Angeles generates around 1.4 tons of greenhouse gases per passenger, which the airline says can be offset by paying just 17 Australian dollars ($14.50; 10.46 euros) per flight. The money is then donated to a “variety of environmental projects,” like government-approved carbon dioxide abatement schemes.

Critics argue that carbon offset programs don’t have a major impact on CO2 emissions. But at least it’s a step in the right direction. Would you buy carbon dioxide credits?