BA196 Diverted for the convenience of VIP pax?
#1
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BA196 Diverted for the convenience of VIP pax?
On 03 July, BA196 IAH-LHR diverted to YYT (St. John’s, Newfoundland). Per Expertflyer, appears to say that the diversion was due to VIP passenger convenience.
Im sitting at YYT and the BA 777-300 is sitting on a side taxiway a good distance from the terminal.
Im sitting at YYT and the BA 777-300 is sitting on a side taxiway a good distance from the terminal.
#2
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Don't be misled by the VIP bit. Overwhelmingly the reason will be someone fell ill on the aircraft and YYT has a superb process for getting people off the aircraft and into the nearby hospital with the minimum of fuss. So if the Medilink people advised an offload, a captain would normally hope to be in the vicinity of St. John's NL. It's a bit unusual to be overnighted, usually they can turn around in around 90 minutes there.
#4
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VIP = Very Ill Person?
Gallows humour aside, I think this is more likely the result of limited reasons available to list for a diversion rather than a plane full of passengers genuinely being diverted for one person’s convenience, no matter how important they are. If medical, hopefully the person got the treatment required and makes a full recovery.
Gallows humour aside, I think this is more likely the result of limited reasons available to list for a diversion rather than a plane full of passengers genuinely being diverted for one person’s convenience, no matter how important they are. If medical, hopefully the person got the treatment required and makes a full recovery.
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If there were only limited reasons available to list as the cause of a diversion, why would one of them be "COMMERCIAL PUBLICITY / PASSENGER CONVENIENCE, VIP" and them not have a diversion reason for medical emergency? That seems very unlikely to me.
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#10
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Consider that a Medical Emergency falls within the 'Passenger Convenience' part of the IATA code rather than the Commercial Publicity bit.
Passenger Convenience being "not dying in a metal (or composite) tube at 35,000 ft', although as the Notes might suggest, actual death could also fall within this category
Passenger Convenience being "not dying in a metal (or composite) tube at 35,000 ft', although as the Notes might suggest, actual death could also fall within this category
#12
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Consider that a Medical Emergency falls within the 'Passenger Convenience' part of the IATA code rather than the Commercial Publicity bit.
Passenger Convenience being "not dying in a metal (or composite) tube at 35,000 ft', although as the Notes might suggest, actual death could also fall within this category
Passenger Convenience being "not dying in a metal (or composite) tube at 35,000 ft', although as the Notes might suggest, actual death could also fall within this category
We would divert to offload a very sick person, we would likely not divert to offload a body.
#13
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If someone were in a bad way and in such need of hospital to necessitate a diversion, I’d suggest they probably are the most important person at that time, certainly in terms of decisions being made. VIP therefore seems apt in any case.
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