Joel Chusid’s Airline Corner (September 2011)

September 26, 2011 — 1 Comment

Guest Editor Joel Chusid

Guest Editor Joel Chusid

Dressing to Fly

Since my last column, there seems to have been a continuing epidemic of poor judgment on the part of some flyers in choosing their traveling attire despite the emergence of several TV shows set in the nostalgic and well dressed 60’s (Mad Men, Pan Am and The Playboy Club). I get a kick out of businessmen strolling through airports with their roller bags, clad in sport coats and shorts with dress shoes, or suits and ties with flip flops, and a lot of younger folks, male and female, with bottoms that are overly revealing, especially when they bend down to pick up their bags. These are no longer shocking, but of late some passengers have been challenged by flight crews or gate agents over their choice of dress and are consequently denied boarding or, in some cases, removed from an aircraft. A young man on his way back to Oklahoma City from a cruise was denied boarding on American Airlines at Chicago because of the profanity on his shirt, which he had picked up in Key West. He had been accommodated on Delta, but was rebooked on American, where the gate agent upheld a higher standard. He was forced to spend the night in Chicago, minus his bags. Meanwhile, rock star Billy Joe Armstrong of Green Day, was booted off a Southwest flight from Oakland to Burbank after his “droopy drawers” caught the attention of a flight attendant. Let’s see if the new “Pan Am” ABC TV show influences anyone’s attention on proper dress attire, as much as I doubt it – although Banana Republic  has launched a line of men’s and women’s clothing based on the series “Mad Men”.

More Pests on a Plane

In the latest on plane critter adventures, business class passengers on a Boeing 757 operated by Russian carrier Yakutia Airlines panicked when swarms of bees escaped from the galley into the cabin on a ten hour flight from Blagoveshchensk to Moscow soon after takeoff. Why there bees in the galley in the first place? Well, they weren’t there to provide fresh honey for tea, but were being transported in two cardboard boxes and were stowed in the galley by a “slightly drunk trafficker” at the behest of a senior airport official, according to press reports. This and other alcohol-related incidents raised concerns about aviation security in the Russian press. Meanwhile, speaking of the press, Nepal Airlines, which had experienced some embarrassing aircraft groundings due to mice or rats in the cabins, issued a press release on September 8 claiming they were not alone and cited no less than seven rodent-related incidents on other airlines. They lashed out at Air India, in particular, and also cited specific American, Delta, United and Scandinavian Airlines situations where rodents had managed to stowaway on board. Delta Connection had a bat (or a bird) that started doing laps on a flight from Madison to Atlanta that was filmed by passengers on their cell phones, but the animal, which ended up getting trapped into the lavatory, could not be found after landing. Watch the video here:  http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2011/08/05/vo.irpt.bird.cnn?hpt=hp_t2

And then there was the guy who attempted to board a flight at Miami bound for Brazil with seven snakes and three tortoises in his pants! While the magnetometer probably wouldn’t have caught them, it was his lucky day, as well as for his fellow passengers, to be selected to go through the TSA body scanner.

Astounding Airport in Miniature

On a lighter note, but an amazing one, the world’s largest airport model is now on display at Miniatur Wunderland in Hamburg, Germany. Called Knuffingen Airport, and based on the Hamburg Airport, it took six years to construct and cost 3.5 million euros. But the result is stunning, as the model features 40 aircraft that take off and land, 90 vehicles that are moving about the airport taxiways and aprons, and much more that must be seen to be believed. At night, the airport view is dramatic, as it has been recreated down in astonishing detail right down

to the operational signs, jetbridges, lighting, parking lots and the placement of people. See the photos and a short video of this truly astounding reproduction here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1383532/Knuffingen-Airport-German-builds-worlds-largest-model-airport.html. Do not miss this additional video which shows the whole airport in operation, including night shots: http://www.youtube.com/watch?src_vid=4_06qrFnvnw&v=Qz4NcTnQedo&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_781794

Air Fare Riots

Civil unrest is, unfortunately a global phenomenon that occurs due to political, economic and social reasons. But in New Caledonia, riots erupted recently due to increases in airfares. There were other reasons for the riots as well, which resulted in the airport on the island of Mare to be blocked for two weeks. The “airfare riots” weren’t a laughing matter, as there were many injuries and also fatalities as a result. There was also damage to the islands’ tourism industry. Indeed, New Caledonia is rather isolated, and air transportation is critical to getting around. I hadn’t been aware of any civil unrest caused by high airfares before.

Silent Inaugural

Low cost airline bmibaby recently launched service from East Midlands Airport to Ibiza, the Balearic island known for music and parties. To celebrate, people were invited to participate in a “silent disco”. This is an event where people dance to music heard through wireless headphones. Two DJs were in attendance, and the impression to onlookers is that people are dancing to nothing. Creative!

Encumbered Aircraft

Arik Air flight 729, a Bombardier CRJ900, was taxiing for takeoff at Kano, Nigeria for a short flight to Abuja when something unusual happened. The plane was barred from departing by officials of Nigeria’s civil aviation authority and seized to settle a million dollar judgment against the airline. A standoff resulted, and eventually passengers and baggage were offloaded and accommodated on another flight.

An Unpatriotic Way to get an Upgrade

If you’ve flown in recent years, you may have noticed how airline gate agents sometimes allow active military to board first, thank them for their service verbally and, if there are empty seats, upgrade them to First Class. A 22-year old Long Island man dressed in military garb and apparently enjoyed these privileges, including the upgrade, on several flights. But recently upon his arrival at New York’s JFK Airport after an American Airlines flight from Santo Domingo, an astute customs officer called his bluff when did not like his answers and discovered that he was not in the military. He had bogus ID tags, a POW insignia in the wrong place and could not state where he was based or even his rank. He was arrested, not for being creative in obtaining an upgrade, but for second-degree impersonation.

Serendipity or Karma?

One of the best things about traveling is the chance to meet interesting people. But it always amazes me on how some of these encounters can really make an impression, and even more incredible when one realizes what a small world it really is.  On a recent flight from Seattle to Beijing, I met Michael and Larissa, on their way on a one-year around the world journey without a planned itinerary. They are blogging their experiences at www.changesinlongitude.com and posting pictures of “Little Rocky” along the way. “Little Rocky” travels with them, and I had the honor, as did a Hainan flight attendant, of posing with the statuette, in the Airbus 330 galley. Most recently they visited North Korea, with Rocky in tow, and were more recently  contemplating a trip to Chernobyl. A while back, I ran into Audrey and Daniel who were doing much the same, on a three year trek, with wide-eyed experiences such as a horrifically uncomfortable boat trip to rural Paraguay. We spent New Year’s Day strolling around Buenos Aires looking for a place to eat, as most restaurants were closed. This was actually a “Twitter” encounter, but as luck – or karma or serendipity – would have it, they were staying only three blocks from my home. Their blog is at www.uncorneredmarket.com.  But just today, I read a Facebook entry by one of my American friends who happened to be in Beijing on his way to Pyongyang, and he went into a noodle restaurant in the basement of a shopping mall across from the Marriott. As he was a lone diner and seats were at a premium, the hostess asked him if he’d mind sharing his table with another solo customer. Agreeing, a Chinese man sat down and, speaking English, they got into a conversation and suddenly discovered that both of them knew me! The Chinese fellow worked with me several years ago, and we are still in touch, having dinner in Beijing should our schedules mesh up.

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