Listen to the pilot, he knows what he's talking about!

[draco664]

So, I flew back to Melbourne from Singapore this morning. It was an overnight flight, expected to arrive a bit before 7.

Slight problem. Fog. Thick fog.

So, after 2 aborted 'instrument landings', the pilot gets on the intercom and tells the passengers that we will be diverting to Adelaide. Fine, I can accept that. It's only an hour away and I'd prefer to wait for the fog to clear on the ground rather than in the air.

One lady near me was quite happy. Turns out that she lived in Adelaide, and that she had originally planned to catch a connecting flight from Melbourne. She was chuffed that she'd be home early.

We land, and the pilot gets on the com again. Sorry, but we won't be disembarking. We're just refuelling and waiting for the weather report from Melbourne.

Cue an impressive rant.

The Adelaidian stormed up to the front of the plane and demanded to be let off. Nope, sorry, the pilot says, the customs officials in the airport were refusing to release us from quarantine. Everyone had to stay on board and fly to Melbourne.

Cue the same rant.

The pilot repeats himself. He is unable to let her off because he does not have the authority. The officials will not let anyone off the plane.

Cue third repeat of same rant. Boring now.

Eventually, the woman ran out of breath and sat back down. From the expressions on the faces of the cabin crew, I suspected that she was going to have some difficulty securing a flight from Melbourne to Adelaide once we got back.

Seriously though, the logistics of getting a single passenger off a plane is quite extensive. They have to find and remove her luggage, which means organising the whole luggage extraction team to get it out. The airline would need to lease a terminal gate to get her off, not a simple thing. Not to mention that we were at the domestic terminal for refuelling, which meant that she'd have to be escorted to customs.

Easier on everyone at the airport and airline to just keep her on board. It wasn't easier on the passengers' ears, but hey, it's a budget airline.

[Seshat]

So, I flew back to Melbourne from Singapore this morning. It was an overnight flight, expected to arrive a bit before 7.

Slight problem. Fog. Thick fog.

That fog was gorgeous on the ground. But yeah, I wouldn't want to try to land a plane in it.

[dalesys]

Up here that would get a radio message to Melbourne:

"Homeyland Screwoffity? We have a Weiner!"

[Marmalady]

Why am I now hearing that poem by Terry Jones....?

Dorothy Jane
Fell out of a plane
(Though the reasons are still far from clear)
She was wont to complain
And complain and complain
Though she recently hasn't, I hear.

There's a lot more, but that last verse sums it up rather neatly I think...

[Pagan]

Up here that would get a radio message to Melbourne:

"Homeyland Screwoffity? We have a Weiner!"

First thought - What does a US Congressman have to do with it?

Then, I thought, "I know what you're doing, but I'm hearing it as Baba Wawa."

[fireheart]

Draco, I apologise, not all of us Adelaide folk are like her. Just the completely batshit insane ones

[draco664]

Draco, I apologise, not all of us Adelaide folk are like her. Just the completely batshit insane ones

Don't apologise, there are batshit insane folks in every population. But she wasn't insane, just pissed that she could all but see her house from the plane, but still had to wait three hours until the weather in Melbourne cleared, an hour flight, a couple of hours through customs, then a wait for a connecting flight (another hour) back home. I'd have been pissed too, but I'd like to think that I'd have listened to the pilot after the first explanation and not tried to give him ear damage.