Originally Posted by
peersteve
Hmmmmm......I've thought of "Kettle" as a uniquely American term, based on the Ma & Pa Kettle movies. The image is of befuddled people in a complicated situation, and best of all, reminds us who are experienced in the flight world to help them.
Those wonderful films were shown across the world (English speaking world, anyway). I remember watching them as a kid on Saturday afternoon television. While the characters are American I think that people from anywhere can understand them. When I see the term on FT it makes me smile, I think it's generally used without malevolence.
If I get caught up behind a kettle I'll roll my eyes and be annoyed, but thirty seconds later I've completely forgotten them and the incident.