Phsyc Joe
The only way you get to be an old fart in aviation is by learning from your own and others experiences. There have been many experiences that show that one of the most dangerous things in aircraft accidents, is misusing exits.
The 2 that immediately spring to mind are British Airtours in Manchester and a Canadian DC9 in the USA. Both old accidents now,but us old farts learnt from them and the examples are still valid today.There are many more if you choose to look. In both those cases misuse of main exits caused the fire to erupt in the cabin.
As airline crew, both CC and TC we are trained amongst other things to check the exit is safe before opening. It is drilled into you every EPs day.It is a real danger and has nothing to do with age or the kind of hair you have. Only training will let you handle the situation if you find yourself there and it is as much about blocking an exit when justified, as opening the door and keeping an exit clear for evacuation.I therefore have a very real problem of substituting the old policy of travelling crew, retired crew, armed forces and police types with the person who pays the most.These exits are life and death not just a better seat. Once open, they can't be closed and death has and will result from a wrong decision. It gets even worse with automated check in, as the 1st time a real person gets to see if your suitable is in the seat. With the time pressures involved it is hard to see how this could be resolved at such a late time.
And then we get to alcohol. I put up an earlier post on just this, which died through lack of interest.DOT and CASA when the DAMP rules where put in place used in an example of who could be tested in a SSAA, a person washing the refueling truck. If the truck washer is so critical, why is not the controller of overwing exits even more important.In fact at a DAMP conference last year I asked that very question. I asked the question to the CASA DAMP team again earlier this year and they admitted that it was under discussion. The situation is scandalous when the persons at overwing exits are not checked for drugs and alcohol prior to boarding and can then be served alcohol in flight.
This situation is a clear example of why the regulator has failed and the airlines greed has overtaken their safety conscience.The only way to make an overwing exit safe is to go back to the old system, or even more radical, have a cabin crew member supervising this vital safety function.
Wunwing
Last edited by Wunwing; 9th Aug 2011 at 12:11.