The flight attendant who helped land a plane when co-pilot had an emotional melt down was a hero

by Jamie Rhein on

If you ever saw the movie Airplane, the spoof on airplane disaster movies, you probably still laugh out loud thinking about it. Remember the scene when Julie Hagerty took over for the co-pilot but had to fight off the automatic co-pilot who was a blow-up doll? She was trying to help Striker (Robert Hays) land the plane.

That was a spoof.

In a real life story, a female flight attendant recently came to the assistance of a Boeing 767 commander after the co-pilot had a mental meltdown. On an Air Canada flight from Toronto to London’s Heathrow, the co-pilot, who had shown up for the flight acting slightly flustered and on edge — not his usual outgoing, chipper self — lost most of his marbles over the Atlantic.

After the co-pilot became increasingly belligerent and erratic, and refused to move from his seat, the flight commander asked the crew to help remove the co-pilot from his seat.

Once the co-pilot was removed — into the capable hands of doctors who happened to be on board — the flight attendant took over the co-pilot’s job. She had a commercial pilot’s license, thus was a huge help to the commander. The flight was diverted to Shannon Airport in Ireland where she helped land the plane. Upon arrival, the co-pilot spent 11 days in a mental hospital before being transported back to Canada.

Although this real-life drama happened this past January, the investigation has just been completed. The commander and flight attendant were found to be heroes, although that term wasn’t used in the official report.

The official report is an interesting read about how decisions are made in the air to keep both passengers and crew safe. It’s a PDF file and was sent along by Gadling’s own Kent Wien who has the insider track to about everything.

These girls were not quite as helpful as that flight attendant. Why not? Click the images to find out!

Which airlines let you watch porn?

by Mike Barish on

Last month, fellow Gadling blogger Grant Martin wrote about airlines filtering in-flight wireless content. Now MSNBC has an article on exactly which airlines are filtering adult content. So, who is letting you join the mile high club alone?

Well, if you are flying on American or Delta, be prepared to pack your own copy of Juggs, because they have asked their wireless provider, AirCell, to filter adult content. Coincidentally, these are two of my least favorite airlines to fly. Southwest is currently testing the use of in-flight wi-fi and their partner, Row 44, will also be filtering content. You’re now free to move about the country. But not your own genitals.

Air Canada will begin offering wireless next spring and their spokesman said that it is too early to comment on filtering. Their fellow hosers at Alaska Airlines have no immediate plans to filter content but will include “a few key bullets in the terms of service area” that will outline what they mean by “appropriate use.” That sounds hot.

Meanwhile, those rebels over at Virgin America have no plans to filter their wireless access. And they also do not filter their seatback touch-screen entertainment. It’s basically a flying peepshow. Kudos to you, Sir Richard Branson. I’d give you a high five, but I think I know where your hand has been.

So there you have it. Armed with this knowledge, your laptop and a 3 oz. container of hand lotion, you are now prepared to indulge in whatever internet habits you deem appropriate while crammed inside a flying tube. Remember: The only safe travel is self travel.

If oil drops shouldn’t fuel surchages drop too?

by Grant Martin on

Ever since oil went through the roof this summer, airlines have been instituting extra fees left and right to recoup the costs. Now, in addition to initial ticket price, passengers are being asked to pay for everything from bottled water to selecting seats to checking luggage.

Once oil returns from the stratosphere, shouldn’t the airlines rescind those fees? Don’t count on it. Many carriers claim that the changes recently made are long overdue corrections to a market that has too long been underweight. Whether or not that’s actually true, you might be hard pressed to find an airline willing to return to the “no fees” days.

Needless to say, I’m proud to report that at least the Canadian airlines are taking steps to right the ship after oil dropped.Air Canada, WestJet and Porter Airlines just announced that they were erasing the fuel surcharges that they, instituted earlier this year — just as long as oil stays beneath $100 a barrel.

It’s nice to know that they’re not using the recent oil spike to take advantage of the everyday consumer. Now if they could just teach the American carriers the same less we’d all be in business.

Aircell GoGo in-flight Internet hops on board Air Canada

by Scott Carmichael on

From zero to hero in a few short months! Aircell just announced that they have signed an agreement to outfit the Air Canada A319 fleet with their successful GoGo in-flight Internet service.

This makes Air Canada the first international carrier to commit to the service, and the fourth airline in the world (after American Airlines, Delta and Virgin America). In a very short period of time, Aircell has become the most important player in this market.

The deployment is expected to start in Spring of 2009. The initial rollout will offer coverage on US bound planes over the existing ground stations, but Aircell is working on licensing Canadian airwaves to bring ground stations to our friends up north, so flights in Canadian airspace can use the service.

Sooner or later people are going to be picking a flight based on whether the airline invested in in-flight Internet, and at just $12.95 for the average flight, I’m convinced that Aircell is onto something really good here. Sadly I haven’t been able to take it for a spin yet, but as soon as I do, I’ll get a full review posted for you!

(Source: Aircell press release)

Severe turbulence causes emergency landing in Calgary

by Martha Edwards on

Several passengers have been taken to hospital in Calgary, Alberta this morning after an Air Canada Airbus A319 had to make an emergency landing, according to reports. The cause appears to be severe turbulence, which led to passengers and loose items being thrown around the cabin. Luckily, no one is severely injured.

According to one passenger’s account: “It happened very fast. One side of the plane just went up a little bit sideways and then just went back down. Our friend was really hurt. … She flew up and hit the ceiling and went back down.”

With a dad who’s a pilot, I certainly know the meaning of bad turbulence — but it’s pretty rare that turbulence is so severe it causes an emergency landing. Scary.