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UA840 to LAX causes major emergency scare at SYD - forced to return to airport

UA840 to LAX causes major emergency scare at SYD - forced to return to airport

 
Old Jul 28, 2004, 1:05 am
  #61  
 
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Exclamation

Originally Posted by Arthurrs
I'm glad my name is Arthur!
OMG! Another Rabid Terrorist Harboring Underground Resistance!!!!

Someone Help!!!
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 1:08 am
  #62  
 
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Originally Posted by ozstamps
As UA have no ground staff AFAIK in any of the above his choice was the only one basically.

Port Moresby *might* safely land a 747 - I am not sure, but the plane would likely have been stripped and vandalised by 11 am the next day even if it was possible.
Let's not put ozstamps in charge of an emergency!

Hopefully, the consideration of available groundstaff would not come up if the captain honestly thinks he has an emergency situation on board!
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 1:25 am
  #63  
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It Captain REALLY thought it was an emergency, as I pointed out IMHO BNE would have been the major airport of first choice that allows a 747 to land safely. As I also pointed out, no UA staff there, which seems to have been a factor in Captain turning back to SYD.
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 2:36 am
  #64  
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Originally Posted by ozstamps
The captain aborted the flight after the note was found near the toilet by a passenger and "handed in", Mr Anderson told Sydney radio 2GB.
Okay, all of you who would have "handed in" the BOB barf bag to a FA, raise your hand.
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 6:36 am
  #65  
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Everyone really should see clearly by now that the captain did NOT believe that a bomb was on board. If he believed that, he would have behaved much differently, right? He wouldn't have flown all the way back to SYD. And when he landed, the plane would have been evacuated immediately. That's not what happened.

The whole episode is ridiculous. The Australians should be ashamed of themselves, acting like Americans!

Bruce
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 7:09 am
  #66  
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Originally Posted by bdschobel
The whole episode is ridiculous. The Australians should be ashamed of themselves, acting like Americans!

Bruce
How in (insert expletive)'s name can you blame Australians in this? It was a US plane and it was a US captain who made the call.

What could Australia do, say "sorry, you can't come back"?

This is why i'm amazed that they took the plane back to SYD (and perhaps where Australia could have acted differently) but this is US hysteria, and nothing to do with any other country....
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 7:13 am
  #67  
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This excellent thread might also be of some interest regarding a hoax bomb scare on a British Midland flight at EDI recently...

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=339541
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 7:28 am
  #68  
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Originally Posted by Swiss Tony

How in (insert expletive)'s name can you blame Australians in this? It was a US plane and it was a US captain who made the call.

What could Australia do, say "sorry, you can't come back"?
Gotta agree .. Bruce you are totally off the mark here. The Captain has admitted it was 100% HIS call, and made AFTER consulting with UA who backed his call. Australia had nothing to do with it.

The fact it cost us a million bucks in lost productivity and p!ssed off 100,000 peak hour commuters tells you that much.
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 7:40 am
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Originally Posted by ozstamps
Gotta agree .. Bruce you are totally off the mark here. The Captain has admitted it was 100% HIS call, and made AFTER consulting with UA who backed his call. Australia had nothing to do with it.

The fact it cost us a million bucks in lost productivity and p!ssed off 100,000 peak hour commuters tells you that much.
Please sue us. (I'm serious) It's the only way people will learn to take responsible for their knee-jerk, Chicken Little responses to "security" matters.

A huge fine might convince people to stop seeing imaginary terrorists in every lav and seat-back pocket.
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 8:26 am
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Originally Posted by robb
OMG! Another Rabid Terrorist Harboring Underground Resistance!!!!

Someone Help!!!
LOL! Shhh! Don't spoil my cover!
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 8:54 am
  #71  
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Originally Posted by ozstamps
Bruce you are totally off the mark here. The Captain has admitted it was 100% HIS call, and made AFTER consulting with UA who backed his call. Australia had nothing to do with it. The fact it cost us a million bucks in lost productivity and p!ssed off 100,000 peak hour commuters tells you that much.
Yes, I was wrong and apologize. It was purely American hysteria. I hope that the Australians complain vociferously so that future United captains reconsider taking such stupid action!

Bruce
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 9:06 am
  #72  
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Captain Boob should be sacked.
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 9:25 am
  #73  
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Originally Posted by bdschobel

I hope that the Australians complain vociferously so that future United captains reconsider taking such stupid action!

Bruce
Sadly our fearless Prime Minister has been on national TV saying UA Captain made a WISE decision and he applauds it.

Same PM was also on TV last year saying Dubya also made a WISE decision to blow the heck out of Iraq for no reason, and he applauded that too - and sent a bunch of young Aussies over there to be shot at.

Wise judgement is not his big strength.
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 9:27 am
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Would we be able to ground UA's fleet by dropping "Bob" barf bags everywhere? Next stop: TED barf bags!
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Old Jul 28, 2004, 9:43 am
  #75  
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Originally Posted by ozstamps
Sadly our fearless Prime Minister has been on national TV saying UA Captain made a WISE decision and he applauds it.

OK, i'm struggling to decide how the UA captain should have responded, but perhaps the blame culture that is prevelant in the US (and becoming increasingly so elsewhere) is part of the issue. However, I still don't understand why they declared a full emergency at SYD (That's probably the busiest airport in the southern hemisphere, no?) for what was clearly a marginal decision!

BTW - Bruce, thanks for your gracious retraction of the earlier comment...
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