Midwest 717 Makes Emergency Landing in IRK

[Airpiraterob]

that news article was a completely irrisponsible attempt at informing the public. The writer decided to take it upon his/her own self to sensationalize factual information. I can guarantee that he person that wrote this either did NOT attend the Mizzou J-school, or did and passed it with an absolutel minimum GPA....or was drunk the mornign after a party.

"About 80 people took a flight from hell Thursday night and lived to tell about it."

WTF is that? the writer dosent know enough to say anything about what the flight was like. Were there any useful hard factual accounts from passengers? NO. any accounts from crew? NO any accounts from anyone actually involved? NO. All there was was a report of turbulence and a precautionary landing.

therefore does the writer have the authority to "spice up" what factual information he/she has? absolutely NOT. Too many people in the news industry now got degrees in 'mass-media' and not real honest to god Journalism degree.

A journalist delivers FACTS only. it will be dry. it will be non-entertaining. it will be factual information only and no interpretation or opinions will be made in any way by the reporter...that is a journalist!

and on a related note...FOX news can suck it. theyre not even close to being in the ballpark of a real news organization of any ethical responsibility when it comes to news.

my rant is over...you may now resume naked swimming.

 

[ebaybob]

COU would have most likely been the closest larger airport if the flight was south of IRK....OTM to the north is a little bigger than IRK as well...otherwise not much else around...the largest planes I ever saw landing in IRK growing up were the Gulfstream line and a Saab 340 (TWE plane that had something go wrong a few years ago and made an emergency landing). I haven't been back in a while but I'm sure nothing has changed as far as the airport facilities...it looked like they had to use a construction lift to get the folks off the plane.


By the way...the quality of journalism from KTVO is about what I expected...always amazing to see the crap small town tv comes up with.

 

[millhouse21]

"Flight from hell?" I thought they departed from Kansas City. Well, maybe the reporter has a point...

 

[ebaybob]

So all of your posts have caused me to spring into action..."flight from Hell" has officially pissed me off as well...now my wife is going to have to hear about it for days. Maybe pilots should organize efforts to write to stupid reporters when they pull crap like this...


Here is my email to the reporter:

John,

As a former resident of Kirksville I enjoy reading andwatching the online KTVO news as well as other news services from the area. As a pilot, however, I'm frequently dismayed at the media's portrayal of aviation and aviation incidents. Your reporting on the incident at the Kirksville airport a few nights ago seems to fall below the standard of professional journalism I'm sure you strive to meet.

While the Midwest Airlines flight you reported on may have been scary for both the passengers and crew,saying that the trip was a "flight from Hell" detracts significantly from the quality of your news story. I'm sure your intention is to sensationalize and elicit an emotional response from your viewers. The actual impact of such a statement, however, is to reduce the content of your story to tabloid status.

I appreciate the desire to catch viewers' attentionwith exciting stories. Unfortunatley Kirksville has had too many "exciting" stories at the airport recently, primarily due to the tragedy with thecommuter airline crash. Please continue to cover these stories with the professionalism they deserve and refrain from using buzzwords to sensationalize and add drama to the events. Such statements serve novalid newsworthy purpose.

Sincerely,
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Salt Lake City, UT

http://www.ktvotv3.com/Global/story.asp?S=3339896&nav=1LFrZouB

 

[eprops]

FYI

MKE Journalsentinel

Midwest flight emergency is airline's second in 24 hours

No one hurt in landing at Missouri airport

By JESSE GARZA
[email protected]

Posted: May 13, 2005

A second Midwest Airlines flight in less than 24 hours to make an unscheduled landing encountered bad weather Friday, an airline official said.

Travel

Photo/AP

Passengers that were aboard Midwest Airlines Flight 490 make other arrangements Friday at Kirksville Regional Airport in Kirksville, Mo., after turbulent weather forced the jet to make an emergency landing late Thursday night in Kirksville.

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Flight 490, which left Kansas City about midnight destined for Washington National Airport, encountered severe weather shortly after it became airborne, said Carol Skornicka, a senior vice president at the airline.

The pilot attempted to fly around the storm, but the aircraft then encountered turbulence, Skornicka said.

The pilot of the Boeing 717 made a precautionary landing at Kirksville, Mo., where the airline arranged lodging for the flight's 76 passengers, Skornicka said.

She said the plane was flying at 23,000 feet when it ran into turbulent weather.

Friday morning the passengers were bused back to Kansas City, where they boarded alternative flights to their destinations, Skornicka said.

The aircraft was undergoing a complete inspection for damage and technical problems, she said.

Passengers who were aboard the plane told of harrowing experiences while the plane was in the air.

"All of a sudden, we started rocking up and down," Mike Lavalle, a producer with a Japanese television network, said in an interview with the Kirksville Daily Express. "My body was actually weightless at times. I could actually feel the skin pulling from my face. I've been through some turbulence before, but nothing like this."

The weather had delayed the flight's departure from Kansas City International Airport for several hours, The Associated Press reported.

"Everybody was so calm," said Mike Ryan of Kansas City, Mo. "I really felt like if somebody in the back had started screaming, a lot of people would have let loose. One of the things that kept me calm was the little kids in front of me, because I knew losing control wouldn't help them."

The flight was the first for Ryan's brother, Brian, who said, "I ain't getting on another one after this. I don't care what's going on."

Clint Pickett of Overland Park, Kan., said, "They told us to get in the crash position, and then they told us we were going to land in Missouri. And someone asked, 'At an airport?' It was nice to hear when they said, 'Yes.' "

Thursday afternoon, a Midwest Airlines Boeing 717 carrying 83 passengers from Milwaukee made an emergency landing en route to Kansas City after the flight crew noticed minor engine surges similar to the sputtering of a car.

The captain declared an emergency on Flight 401, which left Milwaukee about 1:15 p.m., so the nearly 2-year-old plane could be checked, Skornicka said.

The plane had a final destination of San Antonio, with a stop in Kansas City.

It landed in Des Moines, Iowa, where passengers boarded another Midwest flight coming in from Milwaukee.



Associated Press contributed to this report.

Epr/Ops

 

[mamba20]

While most of these posts make great points the simple fact of the matter is that only the flight crew knows what happened and what they needed to do. While IRK may not seem like the best choice to us sitting on the ground with a beer in hand it seemed perfectly logical to the flight crew at the time.

Bottom line, they landed the airplane safely, who really cares where?