The media tries to make a scandal or a crisis out of everything. Case in point: Captain Craig Lenell, the Houston airline pilot who died in the cockpit recently.
The plane landed safely, because there was -- ta da! -- a co-pilot! That's why we have co-pilots. Let me preface this next comment by saying that I in no way find Captain Lenell's death amusing. His family and friends have my sincerest sympathy in the loss of their loved one. What I did find amusing was the media questions to the passengers debarking from the flight. I'm sure they were looking for dramatic stories of panic. What they got instead was, "We didn't know he was dead. All we knew was that they asked for a doctor." Which is exactly as it should be.
Now the media is saying that the age limit for pilots should be lowered back down from 65 to 60. Captain Lenell's abilities are not in question. He had recently passed all his health exams. What happened to him could happen to a 42-year-old pilot.
I say to the media, "Get a grip!" The back-up system worked like it was supposed to. This is a non-story! And I won't even mention two weeks of you-know-what about Michael Jackson!
"Pilot's death may rekindle debate over age limits in cockpit." The Dallas Morning News; June 22, 2009; p. 3D.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
There priorities are bit off, aren't they?
Post a Comment