Ponce
17th November 2011, 10:23 PM
I don't blame the copilote because I would have done the same thing.......but......the passenger should had call one of the attendants and told them what was going on......on a flight to S. Africa, back in 1976, I saw a stream of fuel coming out of the wing, I wrote a note and gave it to the drink server and after a couple of minutes the engineer came out to take a look, three minutes later it stopped and I was then invited to go in first class......when we reached our destination and I was leaving the place the captain by the door wisphered "Thank you".
=============================================
Pilot causes mid-air terror scare by locking himself in toilet and then sending passenger 'with Middle Eastern accent' to cockpit for helpBy Laurie Whitwell
Last updated at 5:51 PM on 17th November 2011
Comments (112) Add to My Stories Share A pilot inadvertently caused a mid-air terror scare when he accidentally locked himself in the toilet and sent a passenger 'with a Middle Eastern accent' to the cockpit for help.
With the flight not far from landing, a spooked co-pilot refused to let the Good Samaritan in, and instead told the control tower at LaGuardia Airport of his serious concerns that an attack was underway.
The passenger continued to bang on the door for assistance and even offered the password but the co-pilot refused to budge, leading to fighter planes being alerted.
Scroll down for on-flight audio recording
Terror fear: The pilot of a New York-bound flight caused panic when he locked himself in the toilet and sent a passenger 'with a Middle Eastern accent' for help
Jittery: The co-pilot alerted air traffic control of his concerns (stock photo)
The apparent danger was only averted when the pilot managed to force his way out of the men's lavatory and resume his place behind the controls.
In a cockpit radio recording, obtained by the New York Post, he can be heard telling air traffic control: 'The captain, myself, went back to the lavatory and the door latch broke and I had to fight my way out of it with my body to get the door open.
'There is no issue, no threat.'
The drama took place on a New York-bound Chatauqua Airlines flight from Asheville, North Carolina, and began when the pilot decided to take a bathroom break before landing.
More...Are you listening, TSA? Europe to ban 'naked' airport scanners over cancer fears
Gunman shot dead by police on Berkeley university campus was business student 'with history of erratic behaviour'
Suspected U.S. drone missile on Pakistan Taliban stronghold kills 16 alleged militants
But when he tried to leave the latch broke and he was locked inside at a crucial moment in the flight's journey. The plane was holding pattern above the airport and ready to touch down.
A well-meaning passenger sitting in the front row heard his hammering and rushed to assist, the New York Post reported.
Relieved, the pilot told the passenger to go to the cockpit and tell the crew of his situation, the paper said.
But the co-pilot, already jittery about why his colleague's bathroom break was taking so long, was in no mood to allow a stranger into the highly-secured area, least still one with a Middle Eastern accent, the New York Post reported.
Almost stammering, he swiftly contacted air traffic control.
New York: The Chautauqua Airlines flight, which was running under the Delta name, was just about to land at LaGuardia Airport, pictured
'We are 180 knots 10,000 [feet] uh, can we leave the frequency for a minute? We are going to try to, uh contact dispatch,' he said in the recording obtained by the New York Post.
'The captain disappeared in the back, and, uh, I have someone with a thick foreign accent trying to access the cockpit.'
The passenger explained through the door what had happened but the co-pilot was still suspicious.
'What I'm being told is he's stuck in the lav, and, uh, someone with a thick foreign accent is giving me a password to access the cockpit,' he said.
'I'm not about to let him in.'
The controller, also scared, advised the pilot to declare an emergency and 'just get on the ground.'
The captain finally managed to bash his way out of the bathroom and told his colleagues everything was fine. At that point fighter planes had already been alerted, although they were never scrambled.
When an air traffic controller called back to check if 'there any level of disturbance on the airplane,' the pilot responded 'negative.'
The FBI and Port Authority officers met the plane when it landed around 6.30pm, the New York Post reported.
A spokesman for Chatauqua said police talked to the passenger and quickly established there had been a big misunderstanding, the New York Post reported.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062708/Chatauqua-Airlines-pilot-route-LaGuardia-causes-terror-scare-locking-toilet.html#ixzz1dyZyKf9X
=============================================
Pilot causes mid-air terror scare by locking himself in toilet and then sending passenger 'with Middle Eastern accent' to cockpit for helpBy Laurie Whitwell
Last updated at 5:51 PM on 17th November 2011
Comments (112) Add to My Stories Share A pilot inadvertently caused a mid-air terror scare when he accidentally locked himself in the toilet and sent a passenger 'with a Middle Eastern accent' to the cockpit for help.
With the flight not far from landing, a spooked co-pilot refused to let the Good Samaritan in, and instead told the control tower at LaGuardia Airport of his serious concerns that an attack was underway.
The passenger continued to bang on the door for assistance and even offered the password but the co-pilot refused to budge, leading to fighter planes being alerted.
Scroll down for on-flight audio recording
Terror fear: The pilot of a New York-bound flight caused panic when he locked himself in the toilet and sent a passenger 'with a Middle Eastern accent' for help
Jittery: The co-pilot alerted air traffic control of his concerns (stock photo)
The apparent danger was only averted when the pilot managed to force his way out of the men's lavatory and resume his place behind the controls.
In a cockpit radio recording, obtained by the New York Post, he can be heard telling air traffic control: 'The captain, myself, went back to the lavatory and the door latch broke and I had to fight my way out of it with my body to get the door open.
'There is no issue, no threat.'
The drama took place on a New York-bound Chatauqua Airlines flight from Asheville, North Carolina, and began when the pilot decided to take a bathroom break before landing.
More...Are you listening, TSA? Europe to ban 'naked' airport scanners over cancer fears
Gunman shot dead by police on Berkeley university campus was business student 'with history of erratic behaviour'
Suspected U.S. drone missile on Pakistan Taliban stronghold kills 16 alleged militants
But when he tried to leave the latch broke and he was locked inside at a crucial moment in the flight's journey. The plane was holding pattern above the airport and ready to touch down.
A well-meaning passenger sitting in the front row heard his hammering and rushed to assist, the New York Post reported.
Relieved, the pilot told the passenger to go to the cockpit and tell the crew of his situation, the paper said.
But the co-pilot, already jittery about why his colleague's bathroom break was taking so long, was in no mood to allow a stranger into the highly-secured area, least still one with a Middle Eastern accent, the New York Post reported.
Almost stammering, he swiftly contacted air traffic control.
New York: The Chautauqua Airlines flight, which was running under the Delta name, was just about to land at LaGuardia Airport, pictured
'We are 180 knots 10,000 [feet] uh, can we leave the frequency for a minute? We are going to try to, uh contact dispatch,' he said in the recording obtained by the New York Post.
'The captain disappeared in the back, and, uh, I have someone with a thick foreign accent trying to access the cockpit.'
The passenger explained through the door what had happened but the co-pilot was still suspicious.
'What I'm being told is he's stuck in the lav, and, uh, someone with a thick foreign accent is giving me a password to access the cockpit,' he said.
'I'm not about to let him in.'
The controller, also scared, advised the pilot to declare an emergency and 'just get on the ground.'
The captain finally managed to bash his way out of the bathroom and told his colleagues everything was fine. At that point fighter planes had already been alerted, although they were never scrambled.
When an air traffic controller called back to check if 'there any level of disturbance on the airplane,' the pilot responded 'negative.'
The FBI and Port Authority officers met the plane when it landed around 6.30pm, the New York Post reported.
A spokesman for Chatauqua said police talked to the passenger and quickly established there had been a big misunderstanding, the New York Post reported.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062708/Chatauqua-Airlines-pilot-route-LaGuardia-causes-terror-scare-locking-toilet.html#ixzz1dyZyKf9X