And then we have this.....
August 23, 2007
Passengers on a China Airlines plane that caught fire at Okinawa Airport criticized the flight crew on Thursday, saying they gave unclear evacuation instructions that could have caused potentially fatal delays.
China Airlines defended its crew's reactions.
"If the crew hadn't been on the ball and the clients hadn't cooperated, then the result could have been different," said Chen Peng-yu, the Taiwan airline's assistant publicity vice president.
Passengers got at least USD$857 apiece in compensation, and more if their luggage was burned, Chen said.
According to many in a group of about 30 passengers who returned to Taipei on Thursday and spoke to reporters, passengers were crying and screaming for help inside the 737-800 aircraft that caught fire on Monday after landing on the southern Japanese island.
The fire had broken out as the plane neared its gate following its flight from Taipei to Okinawa's Naha Airport.
All 157 passengers and eight crew escaped unhurt minutes before the plane's left engine exploded and ripped the plane apart, sending flames and columns of black smoke billowing into the air.
The crew-members did not see the fire as early as passengers looking through the plane windows did, causing panic among the 157 passengers and attempts to open the doors, the returning passengers said.
They said emergency exits didn't open fast enough and they didn't know where to gather for evacuation.
"Inside it was normal, but outside you could see smoke," said Lin Hsiu-cheng, 52, a returning tourist from southern Taiwan. "Everyone was scared, and why couldn't (the crew) see it?
"Finally all four doors opened," she said, her voice quickening and eyes widening as she spoke. She said the explosion came a minute after she got out.
Another passenger surnamed Liao said: "The crew was not clear on what to do. We witnesses were much more clear."
A Japanese Transport Ministry team investigating the fire said a bolt on the right wing of the plane appeared to have ripped through a fuel tank.
"We found a tear in the fuel tank, so there is a high possibility that fuel from the tank leaked through that opening," Kazushige Daiki, an investigation team official, told a news conference.
(Reuters)
Perhaps the punters expected cooled mai tais once exiting the aeroplane, seeing as how they all got out with no fatalities.
Clearly, you can't please everyone....
