Continental pilot dies during flight... [18-Jun-2009][threads merged]
Jun 21, 2009, 7:06 pm
#196
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body was placed in the crew rest area
Lenell's body was removed from the cockpit and placed in the crew rest area during the flight.
On Boeing 777 the rest area is in last rows of the BF. Can just imagine what other passenger were thinking when thy had seen dead body being dragged.
The curtains around the seat were probably closed.
I think that I remember that a Similar thing happened on BA (I think) flight where a FC passenger died and was placed in an overhead compartment. As a result Singapore now has a dedicated compartment for stiffs.
On Boeing 777 the rest area is in last rows of the BF. Can just imagine what other passenger were thinking when thy had seen dead body being dragged.
The curtains around the seat were probably closed.
I think that I remember that a Similar thing happened on BA (I think) flight where a FC passenger died and was placed in an overhead compartment. As a result Singapore now has a dedicated compartment for stiffs.
Jun 21, 2009, 8:24 pm
#197
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Jun 21, 2009, 9:03 pm
#198
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First, my prayers are with the pilot's family. May the captain rest in peace.
Cardiovascular disorders can remain hidden for years with blind symptomatology. It depends highly on genetics, previous health history and a whole medical laundry list of other factors. Who knows about this one. I am continually surprised as a physician about the mysteries of human health.
EKGs can be notoriously unreliable for such mundane reasons as bad conductivity from the leads, improper placement, a twitchy (don't you like those medical terms?) patient or multiple other things. Just like any medical technology, it is prone to error a certain percentage of the time. Same goes for any lab tests, diagnostic imaging (X-ray, MRI, CAT scan) or other therapeutics requiring close monitoring. The technology may be foolproof, but humans are not.
Cardiovascular disorders can remain hidden for years with blind symptomatology. It depends highly on genetics, previous health history and a whole medical laundry list of other factors. Who knows about this one. I am continually surprised as a physician about the mysteries of human health.
EKGs can be notoriously unreliable for such mundane reasons as bad conductivity from the leads, improper placement, a twitchy (don't you like those medical terms?) patient or multiple other things. Just like any medical technology, it is prone to error a certain percentage of the time. Same goes for any lab tests, diagnostic imaging (X-ray, MRI, CAT scan) or other therapeutics requiring close monitoring. The technology may be foolproof, but humans are not.
Jun 21, 2009, 9:22 pm
#199
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I don't think those who think it's inappropriate to talk about here are burying their heads in the sand.
Jun 21, 2009, 10:05 pm
#200
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This incident has raised an issue I'd like to see addressed - adding the ability for a pilot or doctor to indicate their profession (and thus their willingness to assist) somewhere on the PNR and pax list so if someone is ever needed in an emergency, they can be easily located without the need to make announcements or stir up any worrying.
Here are some links:
http://law.justia.com/us/codes/title49/49usc44944.html
http://www.nwa.com/features/volprovision/
http://www.aa.com/aa/i18nForward.do?...tance/main.jsp
Jun 22, 2009, 6:08 am
#201
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Identifying and discussing a problem is better than pretending it doesn't exist. In this particular case there isn't a need for a better solution, IMO. The cockpit door is locked from the inside. Pretending that such information is top secret and not appropriate for discussion is silly.
Jun 22, 2009, 7:12 am
#202
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I'd like to see addressed - adding the ability for a pilot or doctor to indicate their profession (and thus their willingness to assist) somewhere on the PNR and pax list so if someone is ever needed in an emergency, they can be easily located without the need to make announcements or stir up any worrying.
Naturally, some routes become "commuter busses" for pilots more heavily than others, but it's common these days to find an off-duty pilot or two in a typical passenger load.
Jun 22, 2009, 7:18 am
#203
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Originally Posted by AvWeb.com
APA Uses Continental 61 To Support Age-60 Rule
6-22-09
Speaking for the Allied Pilots Association, spokesman Scott Shankland told WFAA TV in Dallas/Forth Worth, Thursday, that incidents like the Thursday death of a pilot aboard Continental Flight 61 will be more likely, and he knows why. Shankland told the TV station, "this is the reality of what we're going to be dealing with on an increasing bases as a result of the increase of retirement age to 65." Pilot Craig A. Lenell died at the age of 60 while serving as captain aboard the Continental flight. He was examined on the flight by a 72-year-old cardiologist who attempted to revive the captain with the aid of an onboard defibrillator (mandatory since 2004). Of the multiple events involving a pilot's incapacitation or death while piloting a commercial airliner that AVweb reviewed for this story, none resulted in additional fatalities as a direct result of the flight losing a pilot -- a point with which Shankland concurs.
Jun 22, 2009, 9:35 am
#204
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Ways to mitigate / better ideas = FAs blocking front galley using beverage carts or cable fence (as I noted seeing on UA); FFDOs (as suggested by another poster); requiring cockpit door to be opened from inside only, by an FA stationed inside for that purpose (as several posters noted is ordinary procedure); allowing cockpit door to be unlocked using code from outside, but only in emergencies, and allowing an outside unlock attempt to be manually overidden from inside the cockpit (as indicated by the Airbus Industrie marketing video).
Burying head in sand = saying that no information about onboard security, no matter how public and/or widely published, should be ever discussed on an Internet forum.
Last edited by EsquireFlyer; Jun 22, 2009 at 9:41 am
Jun 22, 2009, 11:22 am
#205
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"CollegeFlyer is now LawSchoolFlyer"
Is anybody surprised?
Is anybody surprised?
Jun 22, 2009, 10:39 pm
#208
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divert?
If you were on the flight or were that captain, would you be in favor of diverting to Shannon or Keflavik even if there were no realistic chance of survival just to say that everything possible was done?
If you were on the flight?
If you were the dead/dying captain?
If you were on the flight?
If you were the dead/dying captain?
Jun 23, 2009, 8:14 am
#209
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Passengers don't typically get votes in these matters, so that question is off the table too. I would suspect that any right-thinking person, passenger or crew, would happily incur some inconvenience if a life were truly in the balance. I hope we have that much humanity left in us.
Jun 23, 2009, 8:37 am
#210
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If I were on the flight I'd have no idea that it was happening because the crew was so incredibly professional that they actually didn't alert or alarm the passengers.
And if I were a pilot I'd follow my policies and work with dispatch/operations which I'm sure they did in this case.