More good news, folks! The radio news here is reporting a story in an Arizona newspaper today that Alaska Airlines had a MD-80 series aircraft with horizontal stabilizer problems in Alaska last year – not the one that went down, either.
Can you say, “White-knuckle flight coming up?”
“You should tell the truth, expose the lies and live in the moment.” - Bill Hicks
Here’s a link to the aforementioned newspaper story:
http://www.arizonarepublic.com/news/0203md80.shtml
“You should tell the truth, expose the lies and live in the moment.” - Bill Hicks
Well, let us know if you want to do a Phoenix Doper get-together. That is, if you make it here.
I just found a website yesterday that listed every airliner in the world and their safety ratios. IIRC, Alaska Airlines had a very good rating.
For the truly morbid, this site also has pictures of plane crashes and live cockpit recordings from plane crashes. It also lists every famous person that has ever died in a plane crash.
http://www.planecrashinfo.com/
Shadowfox
“Distinguished” Sexy assistant to Head Honcho,
Self-Righteous Clique
Shadowfox
“Distinguished” Sexy assistant to Head Honcho,
Self-Righteous Clique
Shadowfox said:
were you in a private Cessna type airplane, or were you on a commercial airliner?
I was in a company aircraft (Piper Cherokee) with a company pilot. The company made autopilots and I was running a test on one of the components.
Since I wasn’t really hurt it shouldn’t have, but did spoil my love of flying.
Emotions aren’t very logical.
Strainger, send me an email
(Yes, it’s a real email addy)
With a way to get ahold of you (or whichever Phoenix Doper would be the best rapid organizer). I could be up for that, although I’ll be visiting some family and friends that I haven’t seen in a long time and I don’t know how busy they will be keeping me. Maybe I can drag them to a local establishment one of those evenings.
Diver, damn, that story makes those extreme-dudes in the Mountain Dew commercials look like pussies!
“You should tell the truth, expose the lies and live in the moment.” - Bill Hicks
[QUOTE]
Don’t think of it as a bad omen. The reports I have heard say the MD-80 has a far below average accident rate, 25% of the rest of the aviation fleet IIRC.[/q]
In spite of the fact that two-thirds of the helicopters I’ve flown have been crashed by someone, I don’t think that 25% of the fleet is accurate. That would mean that one out of every four aircraft would be crashing.
Face it: The reason airplane crashes are newaworthy (yes, even light planes) is that they rarely happen. I’d have to look it up, but I think the accident rate is more like 1/100,000 or less.
As irrational as it may be, I think I’d be just as scared as you, Milossarian, if I were getting on one of those planes right now.
My boss thinks he may have been on that plane (flight 261) on the prior leg before it took off from Puerto Vallarta. He’d flown Alaska Air from Portland, Oregon to L.A., and the plane he was on was continuing on to Vallarta.
I used to live in Vallarta and I flew Alaska out of there all the time. Ok, time to stop thinking about this. I’m giving myself the creeps now.
Hope your trip is safe and fun Milossarian!
“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” - Anne Frank
That plane had better not crash, Milossarian. Where are we going to have the Michigan Summer Dopefest if you become toast? 
Changing my sig, because Wally said to, and I really like Wally, and I’ll do anything he says, anytime he says to.
Black armbands and bratwurst for everyone, Cristi!
“You should tell the truth, expose the lies and live in the moment.” - Bill Hicks