News from around the Industry....

2 Men Arrested Allegedly Trying To Board Plane With Guns

Men Allegedly Posing As Police Officers

POSTED: 4:38 pm EDT May 20, 2005

UPDATED: 6:56 pm EDT May 20, 2005

PHILADELPHIA -- Two people were arrested Thursday night for allegedly trying to board a plane with guns at airport.

NBC 10 News has learned, and the FBI has confirmed that the men were just one step away from boarding an American Airlines flight sometime after 8 p.m. Thursday.  Sources told NBC 10 News that Timothy Robinson, of Philadelphia, and Steven Lundy, of Roselle, N.J, cleared the first checkpoint and were headed toward the airplane when an American Airlines representative looked at their paperwork and saw that the men were posing as police officers. The representative felt uncomfortable because she didn't think that they were really police officers, so she called the police department.

FBI agents said that the two men showed airport officials fake badges and fake police identification cards to clear security with the loaded handguns. They also filled out paperwork claiming that they were private police. Authorities said one gun was a 357 Magnum and the second gun was a 9 mm.

The Transportation and Safety Administration launched an investigation and the FBI arrested both men.

Robinson and Lundy were taken to the federal building in downtown Philadelphia. Friday and were arraigned on charges connected to posing as police officers and attempting to board an airplane with firearms.

The investigation is continuing.

Copyright 2005 by NBC10.com

 

Picking Up Open Time...

Picking up 32 hours of extra time this month seemed like a good idea, untill I had to get up at 5:30am on my day off to start the trip on the 12th of May...

Not only did I have to get up early on a day off, but I had to work a three day trip on my least favourite airplane the EMBRAER. 

There are some of our flight attendants who prefer working alone.  They like having complete control and running their own show.  I am not one of those flight attendants.  I work better with someone else as part of a team.

The trip went ok, once I got used to flying on the EMB again.  It went thru Dallas the second day, so I was lucky enough to avoid the weather that Chicago was still having on Thursday.  Now I am back at home, and happy to be here, if only for a Sunday. 

My boyfriend wasn't thrilled that I was working six days in a row but he understands that the more that I work, that the more that I get paid.  He also knows that I love what I do.

Though I should have paid more attention to the callender when I was picking up trips. Not only did I pick up a trip an entire weekend trip, but it's also during Memorial Day Weekend.  I know that it's going to be a nightmare...

Update from 2 weeks ago..

So no unruly children or their parents for that matter on the 11th of May, just some unpredictable weather...

Wednesday morning we arrived into O'Hare from Grand Rapids racing a major thunder storm.  No sooner did we arrive and unload the passengers, did the sky darken and start to rumble.  We were supposed to do another round trip to Grand Rapids at 7am, but we didn't leave the gate untill almost 9am.  Once we got back to Grand rapids, we were stuck on the ground on the runway for almost an hour and a half with a full boat of passengers. 

Now one would think that this would make for a difficult situation, but here comes the kicker...  Because we were stuck on the ground for so long on the runway, the tower in GRR had 10 pepperoni pizzas delivered out to our airplane for all of the passengers.  Yes that's right pepperoni pizzas!  This was the first time in my career that I have had to do a meal service.  In spite of the delay, the passengers were extremely patient and kind while we were on the ground.

I think that we didn't even get back to ORD untill 12:45pm, over three hours late.  So instead of getting done at 2pm, we didn't even get back to O'Hare from Omaha untill 4:30 pm, well past the time I should have been at home watching TV in my PJ's.

Random Acts Of Passive Agressive Behavior...

Being a flight attendant and being passive agressive seems to go hand in hand...  Don't let the smile fool you!  Here are some of my random confessions of girls behaving badly.

 

The following is an old joke, but a good one:

Q: How does a flight attendant say F*** you?

A: "I'll be right back!"

I seem to say, "I'll be right back," quite frequently lately...  Being passive agressive seems to creep into your soul when you are a flight attendant.  I don't personally condoan this type of bahaviour, but sometimes I let things slip without thinking...

***Monday evening Enid and I were working our last flight of the day into White Plains, NY.  I don't know what it is about these passengers that makes them think that they are God's gift to humanity, but their pretention and blatent arrogence annoys me to no end. 

We were in the middle of the beverage service, and Enid was making her way towards the back of the plane.  I was finished in my section, so I started to move the cart to where she was.  Mind you the cart weighs about 90 plus pounds, and is difficult to manuver down the isle dodging knees by ones self.  I accidently ramed it into the armrest of an exit row passenger, and by the look that she gave me, if looks could kill I would have been dead. 

I appologized profusely, and she accepted my appology.  She then went to inform me to move the cart moved away from her seat because she didn't want anything spilled on her.  (whatever I have a job to do, that was more important than her game of solitare!!!)  Blowing her comment off, I continued to help Enid serve the last few passengers, and only scooted the cart forward about 5 inches which meant that I was pouring drinks right next to the top of her head. 

When we were finished, I started pulling out the open cans and placing them on top of the cart to refill drinks on the way back up the cabin.  "OOPPPS...."  I exclaimed as I spilled some tomato juice on top of my cart by mistake.  I never seen someone move so fast in my life as she did to avoid the tomato juice that she thought I was about to spill on her!  When she glared at me, I just rolled my eyes as we pulled the cart back up to the front of the airplane...

***The next morning the flight out of White Plains, I had this family of three sitting in the bulk head row.  The mother was clutching her purse to her lap, when I opened up the over head bin and offered to put it in for her.  After much resistance she handed it to me saying, "Please be careful, where you touch it, I don't YOU want to get it dirty.....  It's REALLY expensive!"  After I had gently placed her precious purse in the over head bin and closed it, I let out a fake sneeze and wiped my nose with my hands and continued to close the rest of the overhead bins.  She didn't want anything from me during the beverage service.

***Wednesday we were working one of our last flights into Omaha.  Enid asks this passenger, who could be a double for Britney Spears husband what he wanted to drink.  After going back and forth several times, "What do you have?" "Well, what do you want?"  He decided on Sprite AND water. 

As soon as she moved past his row, the little punk was shaking his empty glass in the isle at me, demanding a refill.  Mind you I was at row 5 behind the cart, and he was seated at row 10.  I said, "NO!" "Are you serious?" he retorted.  "WE still have other passengers to take care of SIR!  And we will be refilling on the way back up."  I replied as we moved the cart past him.  We seemed to have both forgot to refill his glass as we made our way back up the isle, even though he kept trying to get our attention and make eye contact.  Come to find out, he was just another airline employee traveling on us, and should have known how to behave better.

 

Hope you enjoyed my week more than I did!

An extra fan comment to enjoy...

... where in 'cack-a-lack' are your parents from ..?  I spent time in G'boro, Lauringburg, and in Wilson ... it is my favourite state, and I have promised myself I will be buried there ...
Comment from markonit - 3/28/05 3:13 PM

 

My family lives in Sanford, NC which is closer to RDU than GSO.  They seem to like it, but it is way too rural for my tastes.  My two brothers, their families, my parents and my grandmother, all live within five miles of eachother.

Why do they call "cack-a-lack"?

 

 

Something funny that a friend sent me today!!!!

Comment of the Week...

Can you by any chance say what airline you work for, i think it would be interesting to know, if not thats okay too, i dont want you to end up like QoS(queen of the sky)
Comment from flyinonmy747 - 5/2/05 9:40 PM

 

I am sorry but I cannot comment on what regional airline that I work for. 

Though more than several of my coworkers read my BLOG on a regular basis, and both my manager and union reps are aware that I am writing about my day to day work life.  I have been adivsed, by my union, not to talk about that topic.  As well as post any kind of pictures of myself in uniform whether on the aircraft or off...

Thanks for reading, and keep checking in there are more wacky aventures to come!

The Thing About Child Safety...

Most parents would never dream of letting their children sit in a car without being belted in...  So why should being on board an aircraft be any different?

 

The following is a true story...  I know that alot of my regular readers out there are mothers of young children, so I would love to hear your feed back on this situation.

Monday, Enid and I were working a flight to Dayton, OH.  We had this mother who had a 3 year old child who was being fussy.  So she proceeded to hold him on her lap for take off.  FAA mandates that any child age 2 years and older must occupy, and be seatbelted in their own seat for taxi, take-off and landing.  Enid and I had to tell the woman 3 different times, during taxi to put her son in his own seat, before she glared at Enid, while she threw her crying son in his seat.  Yes, that's what I said, threw!  Now I understand that her son was scared and crying, but it doesn't excuse his mother from the rules that everyone else has to follow.  I am not a mother, but I know that parenting isn't easy. 

Here are some things to consider:

When traveling by car, do you take your seatbelt off as you are turning onto your street?

Do you ride around in your car with your infant in your arms?

Do you make your children wear their seat belts, when they are in the car?

Do you let your children run around inside your car?

Do you argue with a police officer, if you get pulled over?

Then why do people have such a hard time doing the same thing on an airplane?

The rules that the FAA madates that me and my coworkers ensure that passengers follow is for everyone's safety, especially you and your children... 

I understand that plane tickets can be expensive, especailly for a family of 4 or 5.  The FAA does allow children under the age of two to be a lap child, and travel for free.  How much is a child's safety worth?  In an emergency, even a minor one like let's say the landing gear won't come down.  The force of impact upon landing will make it impossible for you to keep your arms around your child.  I am a firm believer that all children regardless of age should occupy a seat in an approved child restaint device, just like travel by car.