Ukraine Makes Plea To Airlines Around The World To Lease Their Planes, Employ Their Crew

by Gary Leff

Mar 21 2022

By some estimates, with normal life in Ukraine – especially more economically significant Eastern part of the country – grinding to a halt, GDP is by some estimates down by a third. Against this backdrop, Ukraine International Airlines is promoting an opportunity to keep itself afloat and its employees working – and in safety.

The nation’s flag carrier, based at Boryspil International Airport, is marketing ‘wet leases’ of its grounded fleet. That means they’re working to have airlines around the world pay them to use their aircraft staffed by Ukraine International Airlines crew.

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Boeing 737 Crashes In China

by Gary Leff

stairs going to plane on tarmac
Mar 21 2022

China Eastern flight MU5735 from Kunming to Guangzhou, operated by six year old Boeing 737-800 registration B-1791, crashed near Wuzhou, China. After descending at a rate of over 30,000 feet per minute, the 123 passengers and 9 crew are presumed not to have survived though rescue crews are on the scene.

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It Took Two Years, But This Man Actually Ate An Airplane

by Gary Leff

Mar 20 2022

Michel Lotito had a thick stomach lining and a desire and ability to eat things that lacked nutrition. He was able to eat sharp metal without injuring his stomach or intestines. He also had powerful digestive juices that allowed him to process things others could not. Lotito began performing feats of eating at age 16.

The strangest feat of eating he ever engaged in was a Cessna 150 aircraft.

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Two Strange Things About The Congressman Who Died Flying LA – Seattle On Friday

by Gary Leff

alaska airlines plane
Mar 19 2022

Don Young, the 88 year old longest-serving member of the House of Representatives (49 years!) died while preparing to fly Los Angeles – Seattle on Friday evening. His wife was with him and noticed that he had stopped breathing. One of the stranger things about coverage of the incident, which has blanketed the news, is that the flight where this happened goes unmentioned. (There were also no viral first-person accounts on social media that I could locate.) Alaska Airlines, Delta, United and American all operate Los Angeles – Seattle. However Young was connecting onward to Alaska, making flying Alaska Airlines the most likely (though Delta also operates the route). Indeed Alaska Airlines confirmed the death according to Young’s first Chief of Staff. The second thing that strikes me as strange, perhaps even ironic in the…

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How Many People Fly Every Day In The U.S. Without Valid ID

by Gary Leff

Mar 19 2022

For years TSA has been warning that if you don’t get a ‘REAL ID’-compliant drivers license you won’t be able to fly and I’ve explained that isn’t true because you can fly without ID, in fact people do it all the time.

The requirement of an ID to fly began as a ‘do something’ policy after the explosion of TWA flight 800. President Clinton demanded to be able to immediately announce new airline security measures, and told his National Security Council team to come up with some. Yet to this day around 700,000 people per year fly without showing valid ID.

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