Laptops and other devices feared linked to plunge

@GamTrak 180747 wrote:

When I travel to places that I’ve never been I will video tape the landing and the take off, but I guess I should not do that anymore. LOL :Cry:

I turn everything else off when instructed to do so though. Below is what happened last week.

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INVESTIGATORS say it is too early to blame laptop computers for a Qantas jet’s nosedive over WA – as the airline said it would refund passengers’ fares.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has said an “irregularity” in one of the plane’s computers may have caused the dramatic altitude change which hurled passengers around the cabin on the flight from Singapore to Perth.

Laptops could have interfered with the plane’s on-board computer system, it has been reported.

But the bureau says it’s too early to make that judgment.

Amazing new pictures of smashed cabin

A passenger clicking a wireless mouse mid-flight recently sent a Qantas jumbo jet off course on a three-degree bank, an ATSB report revealed.

“Certainly in our discussions with passengers that is exactly the sort of question we will be asking – ‘Were you using a computer?’,” an Australian Transport Safety Bureau spokesman said yesterday.

The flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder had only just arrived at the ATSB’s Canberra headquarters and were yet to be analysed.

ATSB director of aviation safety investigation Julian Walsh said: “We don’t know, and we don’t fully understand the dynamics of this event.

“Certainly there was a period of time where the aircraft performed of its own accord,” he said.

Qantas offers refunds

Qantas says it will refund the fares of passengers on the plane.

More than 70 people on Qantas flight QF72 from Singapore to Perth were injured when the Airbus A330-300, carrying 303 passengers and 10 crew, suddenly dropped altitude on Tuesday.

Up to a dozen people were seriously hurt, including with spinal injuries, after the sudden drop sent the plane into a nosedive, throwing passengers around the cabin.

A Qantas spokesman said the company would contact each of the flight’s passengers and deal with those injured on a case by case basis.

“We will be arranging to refund the cost of all the Qantas travel on their itinerary in the form of an ex-gratia payment,” he said.

“We will also provide each customer with a Qantas travel voucher for the value of an equivalent flight between Australia and London.”

Qantas would talk directly to passengers who sustained injuries in the incident, the spokesman said.

“We will be talking to our customers directly about any other needs according to their individual circumstances and in particular in association with any injuries sustained as a result of this incident.”

This was huge news here actually…

The plane dropped 8,000 feet in 10 seconds… I’m a pretty bad flyer, but I can’t imagine what I would have been like if I was on that plane… I feel sorry for the people who got hurt, but at the same time they DO tell you to wear your setbelt at all times while seated right…

I guess there’s a reason why they tell you to turn off your electrical equipment too… it only takes 1!

I ALWAYS have dreams like that.. and I really hate flying, so it scares me even more..

I reckon I have at least one dream per week about being on a plane and something going wrong.

Last year I royally freaked out on a plane from Athens to Paris… wasn’t pleasant for anyone on board, so these days I make sure I dont sleep for at least 24 hours before I get on a plane so I can pass out when I get on… I feel sorry for the people flying with me.

I dont think ive EVER been excited to get on a plane… more excited to get off one..

@GamTrak 180760 wrote:

You poor thing. I can’t imagine having that situation.

My brother who is terrified of flying, but had to make a flight once and almost got arrested because he was smoking in the bathroom because he was so nervous!! I could have killed him! LOL

I’m used to it… the only time the dreams scare me these days is if someone I know is on one of the planes or something and are taking a trip in real life..

In fact, last week I dreamt that I got someone booted from a plane because he was planning on blowing it up with some of those electronic dice you can get at the conferences…
I know its just my mind going spastic though. I think WAY too much..

The thought of smoking in the loo has crossed my mind before… although knowing my luck I would get arrested and be put somewhere much worse than a plane.

I dont know how people can not be nervous sitting on a plane.. Its just not natural.. Doesn’t mean I wont get on one.. I’m just a nervous wreck until I fall asleep, which is usually before the plane takes off because I’m so exhausted from being nervous. :tongue:

@GamTrak 180766 wrote:

ROTFLMAO I did have one incident where I requested that a wheelchair be waiting for me because while flying something happened to my foot and I could not walk soon after I boarded.

I had the rudest attendant that I’ve ever seen giving me flack about it and before I knew it I was yelling at him out of frustration/pain and folks on the plane turned to stare at me. LOL The head attendant did take care of it and even put me in first class for my return trip so I worked out in my favor.

On my flight from Athens to Paris I freaked out coz there was a guy (who I might add looked like a terrorist) sitting in front and across from me next to the only empty seat on the plane after we were delayed coz they had to take someones bags off the plane who had a fake passport…

My ex decided to start f***ing with my head… And the thing is, I wasnt listening to the captain, so at the time I didnt realise what had happened… so my ex, thinking I didnt understand (as it was in greek) decided to translate.. Then said, oh he may have had an acomplice… it might be that guy over there…

Then the guy was being very secretive about using his phone… right up until the plane had actually taken off, the plane was in the air and he was still using his phone…

I was going off at that stage.. balling my eyes out… pressing the attendant light hysterically… when the seat belt light finally went off my ex walked down the back and told one of the attendants who came and told the guy to turn off his phone, but the whole 3.5 hour flight i was then watching him..

not to mention the asshole in front of me who decided to push his chair all the way back as soon as we got on the plane, and even after the attendant told him about 3 times to put it up he wouldn’t… i had asked him twice to put it forward, in french and in english… but to no avail.. so i had my legs up kicking the chair forward…

Yeah not a good flyer :3eyes:

@FictionNet 180773 wrote:

Jeeeeez, Renee – you’ve given me enough bad nightmares never to want to fly ever again. I HATE flying already

Well try living with this crap.. I’m scared to fly.. but more scared of sharks.. Id rather get on a plane than go into the ocean any deeper than my knees. Thats another story for another day..

I drive between 15-20 hours per week and more people die in car accidents than on planes…

Just know that if you ever by bad circumstances have to be sitting next to me on a plane, drug me.

Just know that if you ever by bad circumstances have to be sitting next to me on a plane, drug me

I’d like to echo those sentiments …. only we don’t necessarily need to be on a plane.

I won’t mention any stories.

i’m ok on the plane, but pretty stressed out leading up to my outgoing flight.

As i told many in Barcelona, flying to europe is particularly stressful because for some reason, crashing into the ocean bothers me more than crashing over land. :rolleyes:

Renee,

I feel your pain. Its funny because a joke within our company is how I’m so scared to fly.
I never use to be like this until 2 years ago, when something changed in my life.

I suffered on flights, I would think about flying EVERY DAY, EVERY HOUR, and worry about it, this occurred even if I knew I had no flights booked for months to come. When I would see a plane in the air, I would get all freaked out. It was the strangest thing.

I was going to visit our Programme Manager about 6 months ago, and I had to get on a 8 man plane, it was windy and… well I’ll leave it at that.

So I come back home and think to myself “I can’t fly anymore, I won’t do it”.

I know everything about planes, stats, sounds, flight paths, turbulence, etc. I studied because I was told by one of my best friends (who fly’s fighter jets for our Military) that the more I knew about it the better I would feel. This still didn’t help.

I was then told to buy some DVD about how safe flying is, I never ended up buying it but I can send you the link if you want..

So that was then… Now I bring you to 5 days before a 12 hour flight to CAPEURO. I was going crazy, and scared for my life. I was told about these “pills” that will calm me down. I went as far as going to see a doctor for a last ditch effort. I explained my fear of flying to her and she said “OK Chris, I’ll give you these pills, see how they work, and when you come home let me know, if you need more you can have more”

Lets just say I was sweating driving to the airport, right before I got on the plane I took one of these pills, 30 seconds later I couldn’t wait to take off. I was relaxed, throughout the whole flight, had no fears whatsoever. I actually flew directly over my house on take off, and was soo happy to look down and see it, I remember thinking “Wow how neat is this, I’m lucky to be a plane right now, not everyone gets this oppurtunity”.

To sum it up you should get pills, If you want to PM me or email me I can tell you exactly what you need, trust me you will thank me in London.

I understand everything you wrote and was in the same boat less then a month ago. I now look back to when I was scared to fly and think “Boy oh Boy was I crazy”

Cheers