Not Your Average Air Travel Stories: Week of July 30
Another needle: Air Canada says a needle was found in a sandwich served aboard a Vancouver-Toronto flight prompting “heightened security measures.” Still unclear: how all those needles got into Delta sandwiches.
Bird strike: Avian vs. United plane leaves gaping hole in nose - no injuries reported. Judging from the damage, perpetrator might have been an ostrich [Editor's note: yes, we know ostriches cannot fly].
Bee strike: Delta flight out of Pittsburgh delayed by removal of massive swarm of bees on wing. Unclear why this was necessary – were there fears bees would fall to their deaths during take-off? – but perhaps readers can enlighten.
Passenger booted: Man on Spirit flight told to pull up his saggy pants (“they came down below his rear end”). He then threatens the crew and gets kicked off plane. He’s got plenty of company.
Passenger arrested: A billionaire Bahrainian prince allegedly stormed the flight deck of a British Airways plane last week to rant about service. Wonder how a royal would do on a really lousy airline?
Passenger not arrested: Cops did give flyer a stern talking-to after he dropped “a few F-bombs” on an Alaska Airlines flight because of a fellow passenger’s refusal to turn off a reading light.
Blarney time: Ryanair’s latest brainstorm: planes with wider doors so passengers can enter two-by-two to board faster. They haven’t quite thought this one through though since aisles are only one-person wide. But it got us talking about them, yeah? And that’s the point.
You be the screener: Developer Gary Nunley of new TSA-simulation game called Checkpoint Madness thinks it’ll be a hit based on past experience: “I started selling ‘The Official TSA Groping Guide’ T-shirts on the Internet,” said Nunley “and sales went wild.”
Wearable suitcase: The Stuffa Jacket is a puffy vest that holds jeans, shorts, T-shirts, undies, socks and a hoodie. Downside: wearer looks like Michelin Man.
Stalled flight: 12 people aboard the Superman Ultimate Flight roller coaster in Vallejo, Calif., got stuck on the ride for an hour Sunday. Unpleasant but not quite a hell flight.
Headline of the day: “Bali tourism screams bloody murder over soaring booze prices.” In case you were wondering, this happy island goes through 60 million bottles of alcohol a year.
