A United Airlines pilot was pulled from his plane yesterday on charges that he was about to fly to Chicago while drunk.
After he failed a breathalyzer test, he was arrested and subsequently released on bond. United did not release the name of the pilot, but did confirm an employee was “removed from service”.
The flight in question was United 949, scheduled to depart London Heathrow at 12:05pm All 124 passengers had to be moved to other flights as no replacement pilot was available. The passengers were told that the pilot was “sick”.
The airline did not release any more information about the incident. The British press reported his age as 51.
Starting May 2, 2010, United Airlines fans can fly the carrier from the US to Africa for the first time in the company’s history. United will offer flights from DC to Accra, Ghana (and then on to Lagos, Nigeria). Beginning April 18, 2010, passengers flying from DC to Kuwait can also continue on to Bahrain.
Chicago to Brussels nonstop on March 28, 2010. The carrier also added several other new routes this year, including DC to Moscow, and DC to Geneva.
“Our first-ever non-stop service to Africa will offer customers convenient and comfortable travel opportunities to visit two of the fastest-growing cities in the continent,” United’s senior VP of planning said in a press release. “In addition, our new services to Bahrain and Brussels will open more international routes to our customers throughout Europe and the Middle East.”
Today’s bad news comes from Dulles airport, where a bald man in a track suit was called to the podium to have his first class upgrade revoked. The reason? He was dressed too casually.
Now, this was no regular bald man in a tacky track suit – this gentleman is Armando Alvarez, a vice president with electronics retailer Best Buy.
Apparently, United Airlines suddenly decided that they’d pretend we are all back in the 60’s, and that the first class cabin should only be occupied by people dressed for the occasion.
Mr. Alvarez was interviewed by the Washington DC Fox affiliate and told reporters that he was humiliated and embarrassed. When he tried to contact the customer relations department, nobody responded, and even the Fox reporters couldn’t find anyone within United Airlines willing to speak on the matter.
The United Airlines contract of carriage only makes mention of barring barefoot passengers, and I’ve never encountered a dress code. Non-rev passengers (employees and their friends and family) do need to dress in business casual attire, but that obviously does not apply to paying passengers like Mr. Alvarez.
That said, I’m sure a lot of people would love to see a basic level of decency return to the first class cabin, but to be honest, that part of the plane really isn’t all that impressive. A slightly wider seat and some warm nuts don’t justify having to put on your Sunday suit for a trip.
After the jump, a video clip from the interview with MyFoxDC.com.
Check out this cool video showing a trip from Denver to Singapore via Chicago, Los Angeles and Tokyo (and back). The creator put a ton of effort into filming as much of his trip as possible, and included some highlights like the automatic beer machine at the Tokyo lounge (at 3 minutes 50 seconds).
The whole thing is quite dizzying, but it is a great way to show a long trip in just five minutes!
The “sport” of pointing a laser pointer at a plane is not new – many people have been arrested for the stupid stunt.
Last week was a first though – someone caught pointing their laser at two planes was arrested, and sentenced to two and a half years in jail.
His first target was a United Airlines plane carrying 180 passengers. When the beam hit the cockpit window, the pilot caught it right in the eye, causing “flash blindness”. The second target was an Alaska Airlines jet, this time the pilot was able to duck below a glare shield, but did have to abort a critical turn.
There appears to be no shortage of stupidity in the world, and shining a laser pointer at a jet just reinforces that. I’m not even sure what is going through the mind of someone who thinks this is a fun game.
These planes are carrying a lot of people, and in many cases they are on their final approach, one of the most critical parts of the entire flight. To me, two and a half year is on the short side – but hopefully it’ll still send a message to anyone else who was thinking of messing around with their laser pointer.