I have personally seen Spinicle get lost, on wrong frequency, turn the wrong way, take off without clearence, and even run into sh!t on the ground.
And this doesn't happen at other airlines? The majors? Ummm, yeah, it does.
2 nights ago in PHL during all the crap that hit, an AA 757 is in front of us CRAWLING along the taxiway like they always do. It's not, however, normal PHL ops, there's absolutely NO ONE in front of them for takeoff, which you could see from leaving Spot 9.
WE saw it and had both engine spooled and ready to go, but the tower controller keeps calling them for takeoff clearance and HELLOOOOO, no one's home. Still on ground. At the end of the runway. Numbnuts finally switches over and says "We're still getting our numbers punched in". WTF? You just took 10 minutes to taxi 5,000 feet and you don't have your numbers?
The guy is finally ready for takeoff and takes the active, but as he turns the corner asks tower, "Ummm, you want runway heading?" when the PHL7 departure tells you EXACTLY what heading they should have. Then the guy asks, "What's our departure frequency?" Which is also printed right on the fracking plate!
So, you don't know how to plan ahead, you don't know WHICH DIRECTION you're going, or WHO TO TALK TO??!!
Long story short, there's numbnuts at every airline. After flying at PCL for 5 years, I can say the vast majority of their pilots are professional aviators.
It takes a massive cultural change to become safe and loose a reputation like this. They have had the same cowboy mentality as far back as I can remember (1988). I know there are some good safe pilots at oops-I-hit-what-inicle. I feel for you. There are only a few airlines I would class you with like Great (mistakes) Lakes, Cape (Scare) Air, and Big Sky.
I wouldn't classify them that way anymore. After 3701 the "Cowboy" mentality has been severely curtailed. There will always be a few that "behave" when being checked, then go back to being an a*s but, again, EVERY airline has that. Yours, too, I'd bet.
Sorry to make a joke out of it. It is only funny until some unknowing pax get killed.
You going to say that about Comair, too?
Lots of accidents I can think of at both majors and regionals attributed to pilot stupidity. It's not fair to single PCL out when their safety record, when taken over the last 10 years, isn't much better or worse than anyone else's.
or the saab that went into the ditch in MEM because somebody didn't seet the brake or chock it,
That was maintenance. I have the picture if you'd like it, it's in that big culvert between the Maintenance hangar and the FBO (Wilson Air?)
or the numerous CRJs that have wing damage from being taxied into stuff,
Now you're just being dramatic. Last night I was in ATL trying to commute and watched a Freedom airplane taxi into the boarding ramp. Happens everywhere. No, I've never done it (yet... knock on wood).
(First and last time I try to take a Freedom jumpseat - that's a LONG story with an amusing ending, for another time, but I ended up finally getting fed up with the CA and going back over to the mainline DAL flight.
)
or the CRJ in MSP that tried to takeoff, first flight of the day, covered in ice without deicing, or ... well you get the idea.
Or the USAirways 737 that slid off the end of the runway into the Potomac because the pilot neglected to properly use the engine anti-ice and waited WAY past his holdover time in heavy snow?
Again, the finger-pointing thing can be done at every airline. Why does everyone like to bash PCL so much?
I also find it amusing that this is done on a thread where the pilot's decisions probably were the smallest link in the accident chain,,, I know the dispatcher personally as well, and doubt he did anything wrong either. My money's on the TVC snow removal program (or lack thereof) and sh*tty runway condition reporting (having been up there repeatedly in the winter and experiencing it first-hand), combined with some fatigue and a little extra float.
Hope it doesn't happen to all you finger-pointers out there in the peanut gallery. Seriously.
