Complete Incompetence!

[BigMotorToter]

pilots use "apron"?

I used "apron" once when I asked the "stewardess" if she forgot "hers" when "she" was cooking up my crew meal.

Anyway, real pilots say "tarmac", "stewardess", "cockpit", "Co-pilot" and "Skipper".

 

[Dogwood]

Click.....

The pilots from those legacy carriers hired at JetBlue were all fo's at their previous carriers. So, they had nothing to say before.

Wrong ... Many of those who came over were Captains.

This is a crazy thread, and I'm not sure why I'm reading it anyway.

 

[Desert1]

This incident reminds me of NWA Detroit 10 years ago. I guess nobody learned from that incident. NWA was sued. Although they had a hand in the blame, they were not the only ones and certainly not the major culprit. Detroit (Wayne County) ended spending millions in new snow removal equipment. It, FAA, and NWA revised their procedures to the extent everyone went into panic mode with the first sign of weather... In the final review, the causes and blame were spread far and wide. I will say this: it wasn't the crew's fault. First off, the forecast didn't predict the level of snow that eventually hit. NWA ramp mgt could have alleviated some of the problem by pulling empty planes off gates so arriving planes could deplane and get towed. That would have worked for a little bit, but when the rate of snowfall became excessive, the county was no longer able to clear the taxi ways. Not only did they lack the necessary equipment to handle that much snow, the equipment operators that were called in (late) couldn't get in to DTW because the roads closed. To make matters worse, ATC didn't catch on until it was way too late. A massive breakdown in communication between ramp, ground, tower, approach and center. This breakdown had planes continuing to land with nowhere to taxi, never mind deplane. For a long time they continued to allow incoming traffic to depart for DTW.

Of course, everyone blamed NWA...

The truth of the matter is that we operate in a system that has difficulty keeping up when things are normal. We see it every day. Yes, it's the airline execs, but it's also the feds. Due to typical gov't inefficiency and dinosaur mentality, we have a system that is still operating under 1970s technology. Not only do we burn obscene amounts of fuel routing all over creation, we still depend on voice comminication that barely keeps up in GOOD weather. Essentially we stuff 50 potatoes into a 10 potato bag every day.

Bottom line, when weather of this magnitude hits, flights must get cancelled. Period. So, ...knowing what we know, why doesn't this happen? Follow the money: with the tight budgets and often erroneous forecasts, heads roll when flights are cancelled (monday quarterbacking). Look at the losses incurred by United this year due to wx. That's the airline exec portion of it. The gov't portion involves the closing of airports. They too are judged and are expected to 'push it'. Most of the time, we roll the dice and things work out. This time it didn't. People were inconvenienced and it sucked...but no one was hurt. If we cancelled flights and 'played it safe' to avoid this admittedly severe occasional inconvenience, it would wreak havoc in our business. And the public would complain about that too...

Bottom line, it could have been handled better...but severe weather happens folks. Yes, it sucked, the lawyers are salivating...and we should try to avoid this in the future--but nobody was hurt. Look at us: we live in such an instant gratification/ victim/ blame society...and we operate what is widely considered a public commodity for which people want to pay pennies. This drives the budget, forcing tight margins and risk...then they complain about the service. How far we've come from the covered wagon...in so many ways.

In the end, the class-action suits will lay the blame. Like NWA, however, rest assured the captains won't be found accountable: there was nothing they could do. Enough with 'blowing the slides' and other ridiculous arm-chair heroics. We have enough scrutinizing by management, flight doc, flying public, Federales, market place,...weather, maintenance concerns, etc. We don't need to be attacking and second guessing each other.

Enough already.

D1

 

[localizer11]

During the Northwest debacle in '99 at least one captain called the NWA CEO at home to ask for help.

During American's fiasco at Austin, the captain taxied his aircraft to a gate without authorization, risking his own career.

No doubt we will hear accounts of how JB crews took great steps to mitigate and cope with this disaster in the coming days.

In all three cases the blame/responsibility was essentially the same: Storms that lasted longer and were much more intense than forcasted. Coupled with unprepared company management that provided no plan and little leadership.

 

[Oakum_Boy]

Sounds like a glorified regional airline.

 

[Dizel8]

Sounds like a glorified regional airline.

And you sound like a ....................

 

[Dizel8]

Good post D1!

 

[Nado]

So BBB, what about the Delta boys, or are you scoped locked on just JB? Diffterent airline, same day. Just no cell phone cameras in the back.

I haven't seen your diatribe on that one yet. Go for it.

http://forums.flightinfo.com/showthread.php?t=94028

It was a way bad day, but no one was hurt and nothing was destroyed. Man, you are feeling it, aren't you.

 

[JetFumes]

This is the dumbest f..k..g post I have read in a while. You morons were not there. Nuff said.

 

[SteelCity]

Frozen brakes jolt JetBlue fliers' plans in Pittsburgh

By Justin Vellucci and Jim Ritchie
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, February 16, 2007


Angie Theodoridis left her Moon home two hours before dawn for a weekend rendezvous in midtown Manhattan with her younger sister.
Lori Chirico weathered flight delays and spent the night in an airport hotel in hopes of making a dental appointment in New York.
Michael Gast, fresh from visiting friends at West Virginia University, just wanted to return home to the Big Apple.
All their plans -- and those of at least 89 others -- were thwarted Thursday when malfunctioning brakes on a JetBlue Airways plane left them stranded on a Pittsburgh International Airport runway for five hours.
The pilot of JetBlue Airways Flight 1050 reported the brakes were frozen and not working after the aircraft headed down a runway to take off about 8:20 a.m. Rescue vehicles responded to the ice-blanketed airfield while workers unsuccessfully tried to repair the brakes, and passengers onboard snacked on animal crackers, nuts and water.
Later, a bus started shuttling 20 passengers at a time to the airport's Airside Terminal, where the waiting persisted and weather conditions forced more outbound flights to be scratched.
The flight finally departed at 7:43 p.m., a JetBlue spokeswoman said.
"Interesting story, isn't it? 'Oh, what'd you do this week? I sat around Pittsburgh Airport,' " said Chirico, 40, of New Castle, Lawrence County, as she killed time in an airport gate nine hours after she was set to fly to John F. Kennedy International Airport. "I'm glad they found out now, rather than when we landed, that we had no brakes. ... But don't they check?"
Chirico chose to wait for JetBlue rather than dish out $735 for a last-minute American Eagle flight to New York. Theodoridis found the price quoted to her for an American Airlines ticket to New York -- $800 -- a bit ridiculous.
"I told them, 'I don't love my sister that much,' jokingly," said Theodoridis, 38.
Others waited out the clock at C56, a gate without TVs or radios where rumors about departures trickled out as JetBlue workers distributed bottled water, gourmet potato chips and $10 meal vouchers.
"I have a brand-new book, but I'm too tired to even read," said Nancy Campbell, 54, of Mt. Lebanon, who slept after her 3:30 p.m. flight to New York was canceled, and she found herself waiting with the morning flight passengers.
The experience Campbell shared with other stranded JetBlue passengers at Pittsburgh International was not unique.
JetBlue was lashed with criticism for numerous delays Wednesday at JFK, including 10 flights on which passengers waited up to 10 hours onboard planes.
More than 250 of JetBlue's roughly 500 flights nationwide were canceled Wednesday, but ''fairly normal'' service resumed yesterday -- except in Pittsburgh. Calling Wednesday's delays ''unacceptable,'' the airline planned to offer affected passengers refunds and free flights. There was no word last night if a similar offer would be made to the Pittsburgh passengers.