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11/19/09
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10/26/09
10/26/09
Airplane ergonomics are probably the worst in the world. #airplaneairbags
10/26/09
It is also designed to raise the survivability threshold of a crash from 9g to 12g. That involves accidents on or very close to the ground (overshooting the runway for example) but clearly excludes plummets of death.
It's amazing how quick we all are to find stupid shit to bitch about. #airplaneairbags
10/26/09
10/26/09
Since we travel with a baby, I would love to know how to have one deactivated, since it looks like on deployment it would push my child through my face.
I also don't understand why they don't add some sort of 5-point harness - you would only have to wear it during takeoff and landing, and then just wear the lap belt at cruise altitude. #airplaneairbags
10/26/09
Given that, I bet the 5 point harness would be too complicated for addled passengers to take off before the fire got them. #airplaneairbags
10/26/09
You could easily have a 5 point harness with a big, easy to grab, release catch. I think the airlines don't like the "message" sent by something that looks like it belongs in a stunt plane. #airplaneairbags
10/26/09
Heaven forbid putting exits and both the front and the rear of the place.... #airplaneairbags
10/26/09
10/26/09
10/26/09
10/26/09
10/26/09
The cost of replacing all those "what to do in an accident" pamphlets is going to be astronomical. #airplaneairbags
10/26/09
Just buckle your damn seatbelt when you're seated. It won't kill you, hell, it might even save you a nasty bruise.
(edit: they can always add a shoulder strap for much less weight and about the same degree of protection)
10/26/09
09/24/09
Gasp I say, Gasp.
09/25/09
09/24/09
Here are some real world examples of how I did not die or cause a plane to crash by using my electronics:
1. On a flight over to Paris, France from Los Angeles, California I (get ready for this!) TURNED ON MY PORTABLE GPS UNIT WHILE IN THE AIR, DESENDING INTO CHICAGO!!! Yes, I was flying over Chicago at the time, and I wanted to see how fast the plane was actually going. As soon as I turned it on and data began to pour in, all communications on the plane were interrupted and the plane took a hurtling nose dive into the ocean and….oh, wait, no it didn’t. Absolutely nothing happened except I was able to see data pouring into my GPS unit. I kept it on for about 10 minutes before I got bored and put it away.
2. While on dozens of flights from Burbank Airport to Las Vegas I (ARE YOU FREKING READY FOR THIS????) LEFT MY CELL PHONE ON!!!!!1!1!!!! Each and every time I have done this, my plane has crashed into a fireball into the desert. Or……….…I landed safely without any incident just like the dozens of other folks who left their phones on in the same plane (some of whom were even….GASP….TEXTING!!!!). I'm going to keep the suspense going and let you GUESS at whether or not my planes crashed into the desert or if I landed without incident.
3. One time, while we were in the descent/landing process (PREPARE YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!!!) I ACTUALLY WITNESSED A 20 SOMETHING YEAR OLD SPEAKING ON HIS CELL PHONE TO SOMEONE!!!! OMFG!!!!!! The airplane instantly rolled over and crashed into the ground, causing a massive fireball that could be seen for miles………….whoops, wrong again. We actually landed without incident just like every other time I've left my portable electronics on.
So after taking those examples into consideration, perhaps we may conclude that either I (and apparently half of the passengers who I saw playing with electronics they were prohibited to play with) was INCREDIBLY LUCKY and, by the grace of God, landed safely when certainly the plane should have crashed….or…….perhaps we need to reevaluate these outdated (and unfounded) rules and regulations? But then again, I'm just basing that on my observation of numerous electronics being on during takeoff, flight, and descent which is the catalyst for me to raise questions based on actual real world examples and evidence which is, of course, JUST CRAZY TALK. Certainly, until something can be proven to NOT cause a plane to go down, it should be banned! Personally, I refuse to use soap and water on my body until it can be proven to NOT cause cancer of the RIGHT buttock (I almost certainly have cancer of the left buttock from keeping my intertubes turned on), and I think I made a wise decision. You all have FUN with your showers and ASS cancer; I'll just play it safe and not question the infallible logic of proving a negative!
09/24/09
The issue is not the frequencies but those random occurances where electronics are made incorrectly, that cause it to cause issues with the navigation equipment. It's rare but it happens, a friend of mine had one of those children laptops with a mouse (you know the learning laptops), that would result in a 10 degree deviation in the VOR when you moved the mouse in a particular direction.
10 degrees isn't much in cruise, but during landing, or take off in instrument conditions it can be the difference between another entry in the log book, or being a story in the news paper.
So in summary stop being lazy, and turn it off for a few minutes. You can live without it.
09/24/09
The FCC's concern appears to be based on the fact that a cell phone's reception is limited to line-of-sight with the tower, in general. When you're traveling at 40k feet, you're able to connect to just about every cell phone tower that isn't blocked by the curvature of the Earth.