NBC Regrets Emmy Award Airing Of "Mock Plane Crash" Sketch

NBC has finally owned up to its "blunder" and expressed regret over the airing of Emmy Awards comedy that include a mock plane crash. The Associated Press, via Toronto Sun reports:

NBC expressed regret yesterday for an Emmy Awards comedy skit that included a mock plane crash and aired on the network the evening of a fatal Kentucky jetliner accident.

"Our hearts and prayers go out to the many families who lost loved ones in the plane crash in Kentucky on Sunday, and to the entire community that has suffered this terrible loss," NBC said in a statement the day after the ceremony.

"In no way would we ever want to make light of this terrible tragedy," NBC said. "The filmed opening during the Emmy telecast was meant to spoof some of television's most well-known scenes. The timing was unfortunate, and we regret any unintentional pain it may have caused."

The pre-recorded skit was broadcast as part of the live Emmy ceremony just hours after a commuter jet crashed into a field and burst into flames, killing 49 people.

Criticism of the sequence appeared on websites Sunday night, including the Los Angeles Times', with a columnist for the paper calling it "cringe-inducing" and "of questionable taste."

Those of you who have seen the sketch, what do you think? Do you think it was that bad? I actually watched it last night and thought that it was quite funny. I didn't realise there was an air crash, though. I might've seen it in different light had I known about the air crash.

Sometimes When I Look At The Clouds...

Sometimes when I look at dark clouds closing in from all directions, I can feel my heart pounding. I guess my brain was in turmoil trying to make sense of what the eyes transmitted for it to interprete. This is not a good day to fly, it could be telling the heart. And so the heart pounded in protest.

But why on earth am I worried about the dark clouds when my flight is still weeks away? It's irrational, this fear of flying. Too irrational to comprenend!

Shhh... Don't Tell The Children

Sometimes I wish I had the ignorance of a child who can't think of nothing else except to enjoy a flight, no matter how rough it might be. I still remember my first flight; about how excited I was with the prospect of being high up there among the clouds -- something I had long wished for.

It's a different story now -- I wish I could avoid a flight but that seems impossible simply because it has become a necessity to fly every now and then because the job requires me to do so.

Which brings me to the subject of whether it is proper to discuss about aviophobia within the earshot of the children. But my guess is, we'd better not. Let the children enjoy the flight for as long as they could -- for a lifetime if possible -- and never to be bothered by all the worries of an aviophobic.

And because of that I think I had made mistakes by talking infront of the children about how afraid I was during a particularly rough flight. I shouldn't have done that. I shouldn't have tainted the ignorance of a child about the possibility of a flight being in danger.

I am now worried that I had unwittingly cultivated the fear of flying on the child concerned who had just discovered how exciting it is to be flying.

I guess I had better check my mouth and while I was at it, check my fear as well.

Bad English Costs The Lives Of Over 1,500 People

Bad English can be as deadly as a live bomb placed on an aircraft. According to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), over 1,500 air crew and passengers lost their lives in accidents because of the lack of proficiency in Aeronautical English on the part of the airlines crew.

[Source: The Australian]

All 189 member states of ICAO are required to meet these new English proficiency standards by March 2008.

Aviphobic people like us would like to welcome the initiative by the ICAO and call for transparency in the process of assessing the Aeronautical English-proficiency of airlines crew around the world. Further read, here!

And another thing, those with my level of English proficiency need not apply for any jobs in the aviation industry, particularly those that are related to flight safety, however remote the relation that job with safety might be!

Mass Murder "Plane Bomb" Plot Foiled

British authorities said it has folied a "mass murder" plot by blowing up several aircraft flying over the Atlantic Ocean to the US. Reuters via The Star today:

LONDON (Reuters) - British police arrested 24 people in overnight raids and said on Thursday they had foiled a plot to commit "mass murder" by blowing up several aircraft flying over the Atlantic Ocean to the United States.

Tough new security measures brought chaos to airports on both sides of the Atlantic in what U.S. President George W. Bush described as a stark reminder his country was at "war with Islamic fascists".

Airports were in near chaos as departure halls were jammed with people, waiting as airlines cancelled flights and trying to sort out their bags as hand luggage and liquids were banned from flights and passengers with babies were made to publicly taste their food.

Meanwhile, Bernama reported that Malaysia Airlines flights to London will operate as scheduled.

Airlines Tighten Cabin Baggage Rules After London's "Plane Bomb" Scare

Airlines in the region have tightened screenings on cabin baggages, banning liquids in cabins except for a few items such as milk and medications in the wake of a "mass murder" plane bomb plot uncovered in the United Kingdom yesterday.

The plotters were said to be planning to carry the components of the bombs, including liquid explosive ingredients and detonating devices, disguised as beverages, electronic devices or other common objects. According to Singapore Airlines, items that are allowed in cabins on flights from the United Kingdom are:

Pocket-size wallets and pocket-size purses plus contents (for example money, credit cards, identity cards etc (not handbags)

Travel documents essential for the journey (for example passports and travel tickets)

Prescription medicines and medical items sufficient and essential for the flight (eg. diabetic kit), except in liquid form unless verified as authentic

Spectacles and sunglasses, without cases

Contact lens holders, without bottles of solution

For those travelling with an infant: baby food, milk (the contents of each bottle must be tasted by the accompanying passenger) and sanitary items sufficient and essential for the flight (nappies, wipes, creams and nappy disposal bags)

Female sanitary items sufficient and essential for the flight, if unboxed (eg. tampons, pads, towels and wipes)

Tissues (unboxed) and/or handkerchiefs

Keys (but no electrical key fobs)

All passengers must be hand searched, and their footwear and all the items they are carrying must be X-ray screened.

For flights to and from the United States:

Baby formula, breast milk or juice for a small child or infant;

Prescription medicines bearing the name that matches that of the passenger’s ticket;

Insulin and other essential non-prescription medicines

No liquids or gels apart from those listed above, and including drinks or items purchased at the airport can be taken on board the aircraft. Beverages, shampoo, suntan lotions, creams, toothpaste, hair gel and other items of a similar consistency are not permitted in the cabin. These items must be carried in checked baggage.

The latest scare is not good. Not good at all for people with aviophobic like me.

Thai New Airport Has 29 "High Risk" Areas

Thai's soon-to-be open ultra-modern airport has many high risk areas, says ICAO. Via People's Daily Online:

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has questioned the readiness of Thailand's new Suvarnabhumi airport for its official opening slated on Sept 28, citing "high risk" areas in a report sent to Thai aviation authority, media in Bangkok said Friday.

The ICAO report, based on its information collected and observations made between June and early July, identifies 29 high- risk areas, or about one-third of the 93 items on its checklist, while 43 others are rated as medium-risk and the rest low-risk, according to Thai newspaper Bangkok Post, which quoted the ICAO report sent to Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT), an agency under the Transport Ministry overseeing international airports, including Suvarnabhumi.

Among the high-risk items identified are the "airfield visual aides" including taxiway, apron and airside road signs, lights and markings.

Failure to address them could lead to unsafe ground operations which "may contribute to an aircraft incident or accident", the report says.

But Thailand aviation authority said it will go ahead with the plan to open the airport as acheduled.

Configured For Landing

Aviophobia and Stage Fright

Do you think there is a co-relation between the fear of flying and the fear of public speaking? That people who are aviophobic are also afraid of speaking in front of audience?

Could be, could be not. Perhaps someone should conduct a study on this. Maybe if we can cure the stage fright, we can also cure the fear of flying in the process.