Some of American’s 14 Grounded Boeing 737s are Expected to Be Out for Two Weeks

by Gary Leff

Mar 10 2019

American Airlines grounded 14 Boeing 737-800s. These are planes that have undergone the ‘Oasis’ modification – to replace interiors with more seats; less comfortable seats; less distance between seats; less recline; no seat back video; and smaller lavatories plus bigger overhead bins.

All of the planes were modified by the same vendor, Aviation Technical Services. There were several problems identified with some aircraft including the way that overhead bins attached to the aircraft, and how wiring was done that raises potential safety concerns.

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Europe Will Impose De Facto Visa Requirements on US Citizens Starting in 2021

by Gary Leff

passport getting stamped
Mar 10 2019

Americans will be required to get an ‘ETIAS’ (European Travel Information and Authorization System) in order to travel to Europe, which is essentially what the US requires of Europeans (an ‘ESTA’). It’s advance permission to travel.

Of course the game of tit-for-tat is far from over. Two years ago the US Secretary of Homeland Security said he wanted to revisit allowing Europeans to travel to the US with ‘only’ an ESTA. By the way the number of people killed by terrorists who entered the U.S. under the Visa Waiver Program is zero.

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Two Commercial Airlines Have Crashed Within 24 Hours

by Gary Leff

i'm sad words picture
Mar 10 2019

A four month old Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-8 MAX lost radar contact six minutes after departure at 8:44 a.m. local time. No survivors among the 149 passengers and 8 crew from flight ET302 from Addis Ababa to Nairobi have been found.

The one you may not have heard about is that a Laser Aereo Colombia Douglas DC-3 from San Jose del Guaviare to Villavicencio with 14 passengers on board declared an emergency at 10:40 a.m. local time on Saturday, and crashed into the ground bursting into flames.

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What It Takes to Fire a Qantas Flight Attendant (the Culture That is Australia)

by Gary Leff

Mar 09 2019

Two years ago a Qantas flight attendant was awarded six months’ pay after being fired for stealing alcohol and lying about it. He claimed the beer in his jacket and vodka in his pants got there by mistake. He “inadvertently pocketed the beer and vodka while serving passengers.” And while he really had no idea, “the gin might have come from a hotel mini bar.”

So what does it take to lose an appeal to Australia’s Fair Work Commission?

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Flight Attendant Puts Coffee Grounds Above Passenger’s Head to Mask the Smell of Chick-fil-A

by Gary Leff

overhead bin with something coming out
Mar 08 2019

A reader brought a bag of Chick-fil-A on board with him (“12 grilled nuggets w/ buffalo sauce, 2 grilled chicken deluxe sandwiches no bun”). He admitted that it smelled quite a bit in the small first class cabin of an American Airlines Bombardier CRJ-700 regional jet operated by SkyWest.

He finished eating, a flight attendant picked up his trash, and “moments later without making eye contact crushed up a bag of coffee grounds, opened the overhead bin, and placed the bag directly over my head in seat 2C.”

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