# London-bound passengers stranded in Canada military barracks as flight crew rests in hotel **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 15, 2015, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545 "2015-06-15T02:07:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/21 "2015-06-15T04:25:09Z")
> [@GusNSpot](#): > > Why go out on a flight that they knew they did not have time to complete? > > Staying at the departure point until a relief crew could be rounded up would be way better than stranding passengers in a bad place… IMO… > > At least they could put up the people in a decent place. > > I wonder if the pilots had to go due to company pressure even knowing that they were going to have to do the stop due to flight hours running out? > > Real strange decision even for a company trying to get by with a lack of pilots due to unforeseen circumstances. > > I feel there is more to the story… > > Could they be scheduled so tight that stronger headwinds ( by a lot ) which were not forecast and they found out too long after departure??? > > Big Iron drivers??? Is there any exception rule for this kind of instance? > > I have wet my pants in the past because of winds that were not supposed to be there so I know it happens but … Are we talking about the same matter? You should consider reading or watching some of the reports. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/22 "2015-06-15T14:19:55Z")
I’d imagine that, indeed, communication (as usual) was the issue. People are remarkably willing to put up with a metric ton of shit if they don’t feel they’re being lied to or ignored. I mean, obviously I am completely understanding of any diversions or delays an airline makes because of legitimate safety reasons. And sometimes that means getting stuck somewhere. But I do expect to be kept informed in an open and honest way. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/23 "2015-06-15T14:22:52Z")
> [@chizzuk](#): > > They should have diverted way down to Halifax. I’m sure it has more hotels and is a bit warmer, and that way when they crashed, the recovery team would be more familiar with the sea floor thanks to fishing out the charred bits of Swissair Flight 111 there a few years ago. Or at least, St. Johns? Which has a population of 100,000, and probably has ammenities closer to those of a major city, unlike Goose Bay, effing Labrador. ---
**Author:** ![Cyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/24 "2015-06-15T14:30:32Z")
> [@chizzuk](#): > > They should have diverted way down to Halifax. I’m sure it has more hotels and is a bit warmer, and that way when they crashed, the recovery team would be more familiar with the sea floor thanks to fishing out the charred bits of Swissair Flight 111 there a few years ago. > [@Diceman](#): > > Or at least, St. Johns? Which has a population of 100,000, and probably has ammenities closer to those of a major city, unlike Goose Bay, effing Labrador. That all depends on how serious the mechanical fault was. Personally I would want my flight to divert to the nearest landing strip instead of spending extra time in the air looking for a comfy place to stay. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/25 "2015-06-15T14:31:00Z")
On further thought, I’m starting to wonder if the situation was perhaps more serious than United has admitted. If the crew was just concerned, you’d think that they could have taken the time to divert to a proper airport. OTOH, if the situation was something more like “OMFG the wing is about to fall off!!! We need to get this thing on the ground **NOW!!!** ”, then it would be more understandable that the plane picked the absolute closest landing site. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/26 "2015-06-15T14:32:25Z")
> [@Claverhouse](#): > > If anyone had a good night’s sleep, I’d rather it were the flight crew than myself. That’s how I feel about it. I want the aircrew as well-rested as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/27 "2015-06-15T14:34:30Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > Or at least, St. Johns? Which has a population of 100,000, and probably has ammenities closer to those of a major city, unlike Goose Bay, effing Labrador. It may have been a runway issue. The longest runway at St. John’s airport is 7000 feet; the shortest at Goose Bay 9500. Or, if it was a potentially very serious mechanical issue, Goose Bay may have been markedly closer. I doubt that they chose to land there just for giggles. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/28 "2015-06-15T15:03:27Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > 😕 Outrage? All I said was I’m glad my job doesn’t require me to fly. I decided years ago that I prefer car trips if the distance is less than 400 miles from my home. I enjoy car trips. That’s my personal choice. YMMV > > I’m posting a new story about some paying passenger’s miserable experience. Make of it what you will. I’m not angry, I’m not outraged, I’m not even annoyed. I wasn’t on that flight. I’ve had miserable flying experiences. I’ve also been stuck on an Interstate for hours. Travel can be a pain sometimes. Your post just stuck me as a rant against “things these days.” Sorry if I got the tone wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/29 "2015-06-15T15:22:24Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > 😕 Outrage? All I said was I’m glad my job doesn’t require me to fly. I decided years ago that I prefer car trips if the distance is less than 400 miles from my home. I enjoy car trips. That’s my personal choice. YMMV > > I’m posting a new story about some paying passenger’s miserable experience. Make of it what you will. I’m not angry, I’m not outraged, I’m not even annoyed. I wasn’t on that flight. You do tend to treat the Dope a bit too much like Reddit. We don’t _really_ need to see posts about every news article that’s trending elsewhere in the intarwebs. Unless there’s something interesting to say about it. In this case, “what about that airline travel?” went out with Seinfeld – not all that interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/30 "2015-06-15T15:29:57Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > It may have been a runway issue. The longest runway at St. John’s airport is 7000 feet; the shortest at Goose Bay 9500. Or, if it was a potentially very serious mechanical issue, Goose Bay may have been markedly closer. I doubt that they chose to land there just for giggles. Just looking at a map, St Johns would be about another hour worth of flying time. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/31 "2015-06-15T16:21:33Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > The plane put down in [Goose Bay, Labrador](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_Valley-Goose_Bay), due to an apparent mechanical fault. The whole area has a population of about 7000, and the Canadian Air Force base there is the main reason there is an airport with a long enough runway to handle large jets to begin with. Hotel rooms are not exactly thick on the ground there. > > Say what you want about a decline in airline service, and maybe the crew should have stayed with the passengers as a gesture of solidarity, but I would rather spend an uncomfortable night in a military barracks than eternity at the bottom of the North Atlantic. YMMV. Plus: chances are, the plane will be repaired, and the same crew will be flying you on to your next destination (London, or Newark as this flight actually did). Do you want the crew - the people who are in charge of keeping you alive - to be short on sleep and not at their best??? ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/32 "2015-06-15T17:47:24Z")
It’s Goose Bay, not freaking Frobisher Bay, for Pete’s sake!! If there are hotels for the flight crew, then there’s a room somewhere for me, I figure. Unless they’re holding a gun on me, I’m not staying at the unheated barracks with no blankets. I’ll hitchhike if need be, but I’ll get to town and I’ll get a room. WITH a blanket and heat! And you can bet the house, I WILL get it paid for by the Airline. I don’t get on a bus until I’m told explicitly where I’m going. And if the answer isn’t : hotel, I’m not getting on the bus! ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/33 "2015-06-15T18:23:56Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Are we talking about the same matter? You should consider reading or watching some of the reports. Why? MPSIMS thread has those requirements? 10:52 PM post so I should go running around looking for the most recent & correct information? To post on the SDMB? Bawahahahah IIRC, the only posts you have ever made that reference me or directly at me have been condensing, arrogant, nasty, snarky or some other negative attitude. 😕 :rolleyes: 😛 I am so bereft that I am going out to the garden to eat worms… My life is Shirley over now. Þ, Þ, Þ ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/34 "2015-06-15T19:01:23Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > It’s Goose Bay, not freaking Frobisher Bay, for Pete’s sake!! > > . . . . > > I don’t get on a bus until I’m told explicitly where I’m going. And if the answer isn’t : hotel, I’m not getting on the bus! Goose Bay + Happy Valley together have under a thousand more people than Frobisher Bay. Both have five motels and some B&Bs. Bus? What bus? ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/35 "2015-06-15T19:21:53Z")
Five motels? Sounds like I’ll find a room! I’m not afraid to hitchhike as I said. I’ll get to the hotel, I promise. 😃 And there’ll be room for me, because most everybody else will just stay put ‘because’. ---
**Author:** ![stillownedbysetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/41988e/32.png) [@stillownedbysetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stillownedbysetters)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/36 "2015-06-15T19:30:25Z")
I don’t think what the airline did regarding accommodating the passengers was out of line at all. What I’d object to, had I been a passenger, was the lack of communication. They treat us like cattle in the air and on the ground. They aren’t going to apologize to a UPS package in the cargohold for being kept sitting on the tarmac, and sadly they tend to view passengers in a similar vein. Yes, there are exceptions, and I have encountered them. But for the most part, passengers have become an income-producing inconvenience, much as our baggage has become. Customer service has gone the way of the dodo. In a situation like this, a little positive PR would have gone a very long way. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/37 "2015-06-15T19:36:22Z")
> [@chizzuk](#): > > They should have diverted way down to Halifax. I’m sure it has more hotels and is a bit warmer, and that way when they crashed, the recovery team would be more familiar with the sea floor thanks to fishing out the charred bits of Swissair Flight 111 there a few years ago. Or Gander, in Newfoundland. But I’m not sure how urgent the “mechanical problems” were – the pilots may not have had much choice. If they absolutely had to stop in Goose Bay, well, there isn’t a lot in the way of accommodations there. Not really the airline’s fault. ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/38 "2015-06-15T19:54:36Z")
Funny. We didn’t get too much complaining when a plane full of passengers had a two night delay after an emergency diversion here. Smoke in the cabin does tend to make passengers edgy. And being put up at a beachfront four star hotel on a tropical island probably assuaged their anger a bit. 😉 Welcome to Cayman. Took two days to confirm the cause of the smoke… burnt cookies in the galley oven. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/39 "2015-06-15T19:58:31Z")
I’m curious if or when Serco was notified that the heat wasn’t working. Decent rooms, shared bathrooms that beat the hell out of going behind bushes, hot breakfast and lunch – it all sound’s fine in a pinch until you get to the heat not working on a chilly night. United really needs to put together a plan that includes having someone oversee the operation, including ongoing liaison with the passengers and with Serco. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2015, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545/40 "2015-06-15T20:52:54Z")
And no blankets? Like they have a base, and a lot of beds but no blankets! They have them somewhere I reckon. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-bound-passengers-stranded-in-canada-military-barracks-as-flight-crew-rests-in-hotel/722545.md?page=3)