Watching the enclosed Yahoo video link, and reading the USA Today article, I can only think of coming days news saying something like this:
A little extra fuel could have saved their lives
Obviously, they will all blame the pilot for not taking enough fuel, and a little extra for the extra mile. But I ask you the following: What would they come up next with, in order "to save on costs"?
See the video, as shown in Yahoo news, and the actual news, as shown in USA Today. This is awesome, awful to say the least.
Pilots worried about flying with less fuel
http://gmy.news.yahoo.com/v/8852898/abc/20080717/av_abc_wnt/_goodmorningyahoo_abc080716_wn_lstark_airlines
US Airways pilots: We're pressured to cut fuel
http://m.usatoday.com/detail.jsp?key=872582&rc=main
US Airways pilots: We're pressured to cut fuel
7/17/2008 7:03 AM
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The pilots union for US Airways said Wednesday the airline is pressuring pilots to use less fuel than they feel is safe in order to save money.
US Airways Captain James Ray, a spokesman for the US Airline Pilots Association, which represents the airline's 5,200 pilots, said eight senior pilots and the union have filed complaints with the Federal Aviation Administration.
The union also paid for a full-page ad in Wednesday's USA TODAY addressed to "our valued passengers." The ad accuses the airline of "a program of intimidation to pressure your captain to reduce fuel loads."
Ray said soaring jet fuel prices have sent all the airlines scrambling to find ways to cut the weight of airliners because the heavier the plane, the more fuel the plane burns. US Airways, based in Tempe, Ariz., has recently removed movie players, redesigned its meal carts and replaced glassware with plastic to cut weight.
Jet fuel has surpassed labor as the airline industry's greatest expense.
But US Airways recently crossed the line when it ordered eight pilots who requested "an extra 10 to 15 minutes worth of fuel" to attend training sessions, or "check rides," that could put their pilot licenses in jeopardy, Ray said. The pilots were supposed to report for their training sessions Wednesday, he said.