bmibaby ban bomb hoaxers

[moggiee]

From Yahoo:

Thursday December 16, 01:45 PM

Airline bans family over bomb joke
A family has been banned for life by an airline after a teenage boy made a joke about a bomb being in his aunt's hand luggage.

Ryan Sherwin, 16, was due to fly from Manchester Airport to Malaga, Spain, on Wednesday morning with his mother, aunt and cousin.

But as he walked through the security gate ahead of the 9.45am bmibaby flight, he allegedly joked that there may be a bomb in his aunt's bag.

Ryan, from Ashton in Makerfield, Greater Manchester, was taken away by armed police for questioning before being released.

He and his mother Sue were then kicked off flight WW3113 and were banned from all bmibaby flights.

A bmibaby spokesman said: "bmibaby can confirm that two passengers were refused carriage from Manchester to Malaga following a bomb threat.

"Armed police were called to the passengers who were then taken away for questioning.

"Incidents such as this are taken very seriously and as a result bmibaby will not be carrying the passengers on any of its services in future."

My coment:

When will these morons learn that this is no joking matter?

[Notso Fantastic]

Unfortunately it is a trait of human nature, especially amongst some of the 'less intellectually challenged', that in the excitement and tension of travel and going through security procedures, people for some unaccountable and mystical reason blurt out without thinking a 'bomb' comment. Like the kid waiting outside the front toilet of some Malaga flight when the flight deck door opened, and he was confronted with the flight crew.....'say something' the bright spark is thinking, so before he knows it out comes some stupid comment about a 'bomb'.

These people aren't the brightest sparks in humanity. I don't think they are doing it maliciously. Quite simply, they are idiots saying the first thing that pops into their head, which conversely is exactly what they mustn't say anything about!

I have seen a parallel. When one of my friends was getting things ready for his sister's wedding and the groom didn't turn up, and wasn't going to, he was running around in a somewhat agitated state. Not being a regular churchgoer, he had briefed himself not to swear in front of the vicar, obviously repeatedly. So when all hell let loose, what came out in front of the vicar? It was embarrasing, to the extent the vicar had to ask him to stop using the name of the L........... It's just one of those things in human nature!

[dicksynormous]

You're so right bmibaby are morons, who will never learn.
And when will the morons on security ever learn (or be trained) to use a bit of common sense profiling. Moron checking a moron and calling other morons to over react. Situation normal then.

[FakePilot]

Yeah, like I always have this bizarre impulse to cry out when the minister says " .. or forever hold your peace" at weddings.
I can understand how this works.

But to ban a family because of a 16-year old idiot? C'mon, any man under 30 is an idiot. Around 21 they stop being dangerous idiots.

-sigh-

[B.L.G Bob]

What if he was telling the truth and he was
ignored because he was just a 16 year old?

Then something happened.

You do not know what he may have witnessed
prior to arriving at the airport.


Shutting the stable door before the horse bolts!
Cannot fault "Baby" for doing what they did.


Merry christmas to all:D

[alterego]

Can't believe that someone could actually defend anybody, however old, who does something like this.

In todays climate security is a major part of safety. It cannot be treated as a joke. 5 years ago, we would never have thought someone would try to blow up a plane with his shoe!

The boy should be banned from holding a passport.

[Rocco in Budapest]

Think Fakepilot hit the nail on the head! We don´t know the whole story but for the love of god?!!! To ban a family because of a smart alec comment by friggin clear spermed juvenile is an overreaction beyond belief. There must be more to the story.

[Dash-7 lover]

NO CHRISTMAS PREZZIE'S FOR HIM THEN!! One would think the airline would have a security department that could assess the severity and realise that the actions taken were a bit o.t.t.

[CarltonBrowne the FO]

He got off a lot more lightly than he might have. A stern talking-to, followed by being kicked off the flight? In the UK, this is a criminal offence, and carries a maximum sentence of seven years imprisonment.
I do not think this particular piece of stupid behaviour warranted imprisonment, or even a fine. In this case, the punishment fits the crime quite nicely.

[speedbird_heavy]

The last time I heard someone make a silly comment going through a security search, he nearly received a piece of lead from one of Mr Heckler and Koch’s finest. Basically the muppet (aged 19 at the most) was asked, as he followed an armed policeman through the scanner, if he had anything in his pockets. As he walked through the scanner he replied “Only the gun I took off that police officer ” and at that point the police officer heard him and turned around and took aim. At the same time the lad put his hand in his pocket. Lots of shouting from the police officer followed and I have never seen someone turn such a shade of white before. I think the lad needed a change of underwear afterwards. He received a stern ticking off but was allowed to fly. I don’t think he will be saying anything silly again.

[Bomber Harris]

Security companies want to be taken seriously (like everyone else) and 9/11 was a great vehical to achieve this. Almost everybody, including me, is behind the increased awareness of airport security.

However, there is the chance they may go beyond the realms of reality to achieve this. I was once asked why they started sticking pokers up the asses of pilots at certain airports when it was clear a pilot could down an aircraft just by using his hands. I was able to stand behind our over zealous security system by saying that maybe the pilots' wife and kids were being held hostage at home while he was made smuggle a tweezers through security to hand to a waiting terrorist in the duty free. Thence, great idea that we have internal examinations at security. (but of course no self respecting suicide bomber would visit a duty free because he knows that he will not leave domestic airspace thereby infringing duty free regulations)

However, I cannot think of a scenario where someone who has a bomb (if they don't have a bomb, who gives a cr8p) would announce the fact at security. If a crying woman breaks down and says that the bearded caped chap in front has a bomb and he told me to tell nobody or he would infest me with the death of a thousand camel kicks....then react. If a tittering 16 year old boy say his great aunt flo has a bomb sewn into the label of her armani g-string then I think a stern talking to is in order, if just to reassert the importance of security companies and security systems a s a whole.

I am really worried that high profile is being placed on 'jokers' at airports. Are these people justifying their salaries? I really don't know! Jokers need to be STOPPED, not thrown to the lions!!!

'speed bird heavy'....your last sentance doesn't make sense to me grammtically (a typo possibly?)! But like your post.

[Wiley]

How things have changed in 25 years...

Back in a previous life when I was an Effoh on Diesel 9's on Ozmate, we had a pax announce to four(!) different staff, (ie, at every stage of check in, from baggage hand over to the FA at the aircraft door), that he had a bomb in his bag.

The Dispatcher came into the cockpit to tell us about this 'loonie', who no one had taken seriously. The captain thanked and him and went on with the preflight checks.

I suggested we get the police to have serious talk with this individual before we accepted him. The captain demurred, saying that he was obviously a 'crazy' and we could ignore him. I asked what we'd do if he announced he had a bomb in his bag after we got airborne - ignore him again?

With much overdone sighing, the captain called the police who searched the pax's bag and read the riot act to him. (We still carried him) - and I had an 'interview' with the Fleet captain the next day for overriding the authority of the captain!!!

Ahhh, the good old days of Aviation. I do miss them.

[Curious Pax]

Similar story to Wiley - working at MAN nearly 20 years ago was dispatching an Aviaco holiday flight to Palma late one evening. Group of youths clearly the worse for wear got on, and one of them stood on his seat shouting 'hijack' until I gave him an earful. Then had a word with the captain to warn him, and see if he wanted to consider offloading them. He smiled, and seaid no, I'll just leave the cockpit door shut and let the cabin crew sort it out. Felt really sorry for them, as there were only 3 of them, with an average that couldn't have been more than 25. Don't think it would have happened like that today!

Back to the bmibaby story, it all seems OTT - kick them off that flight, with a severe b*ll*cking, but a ban for life seems excessive, and liable to loose them a lot of customer sympathy which they would otherwise have had. If you ban every idiot who says something stupid for life you're going to run out of passengers!

[bear11]

Pax, I take your point, but personally I'd be far more sympathetic as pax to Baby simply because they refuse to fly 16 year old retards who think it's funny to say the B word in an airport.

The world (and aviation) has gone mad, alright, and before 9/11 - I remember being set upon and threatened with the police on landing in Chicago by Southwest cc on a flight 5 years ago purely because I was seated beside a 50 year old retard who was full of drink and upset that they wouldn't serve him any more on the aircraft. I said very little at the time because there wasn't any point, and had a quiet word with the cc afterwards rather than being American and charging around demanding apologies and threatening lawsuits. If the moron hadn't been let on the flight in the first place the cc wouldn't have had to react, and I wouldn't have had the guilt by association routine which was highly unpleasant.

[hobie]

An old lady was recently off-loaded at "Boarding gate" stage after her fellow passengers heard her repeatedly telling strangers .....

"I don't care if our flight crashes and we are all killed" :(

She took the Airline to Court seeking compensation :{

[Loose rivets]

In August 03 I protested long and loud about the treatment of nervous passengers. This is cut from a longer post.

"A while back a U.S. airline had a luckless passenger that made the mistake of saying that (his friend's) violin?-case, contained a machine gun. It was an obvious reference to the days of Capone, and was the unguarded - and no doubt foolish - words of an ordinary nervous passenger. Bravado shows itself in strange ways, but this does not make this young chap a potential hijacker. When he had gained his freedom, the airline told him that he was banned for life. He is probably still paying back the fine.

The security people, the police and the airline, had no right whatsoever in treating this man as they did. There is no doubt in my mind, that had he had the wherewithal (hard cash ) to take this to the higher echelons of the legal profession, he could have successfully fought, and won, a case on the grounds of violation of human rights. Sending a man to jail - even just police cells - for a nervous joke, is not on."

I'm now not so sure that anyone could be successful in court, the determination of the ‘authorities' to prosecute the innocent is it seems, firmly established. Treatment of this family is cruel and unnecessary.

If, and only if, there are repeated PA warnings–as in ‘do not leave your baggage unattended'–could it be acceptable to treat a family like this for an, albeit foolish, joke.

[one dot right]

Notso,for "less intellectually challenged",i presume you mean "less intellectual" or "more intellectually challenged"

Pompous t**t!!!

[Thrush]

Anyone remember a couple of years ago (post Sepy 11) one of these idiots was refused on a flight from T2 at Manchester (Excel, I think was the carrier) for joking he had a bomb.

He was arrested and taken away, loudly protesting he was A POLICE INSPECTOR.

It made the newspapers, but WHATEVER HAPPENED TO HIM? The moron should have been slung out of the force with no excuses.

Anyone know?

[The African Dude]

Bomb threat is against the law, illegal, crime, whatever!
So is stealing a car.

16 year old with an insecurity complex takes a car to impress his mates - should he be let off?
I don't think so.

Violation of human rights, my a$$!

[lexxity]

I think it's a great idea to ban this "family", at the age of 16 if the little git doesn't know when to shut up and keep it zipped then he deserves everything he gets as does his mother for not teaching her offspring when to shut up. Maybe he'll have learnt his lesson and it searves as an example to other idiots who think it's a funny joke to make. I also suspect that the majority of passengers and airline staff (flight deck-check in) whould prefer that airlines took this seriously and banned people like this.


A while back a U.S. airline had a luckless passenger that made the mistake of saying that (his friend's) violin?-case, contained a machine gun. It was an obvious reference to the days of Capone, and was the unguarded - and no doubt foolish - words of an ordinary nervous passenger. Bravado shows itself in strange ways, but this does not make this young chap a potential hijacker. When he had gained his freedom, the airline told him that he was banned for life. He is probably still paying back the fine.

This was at LHR, if he had done it at ORD where he was headed then he'd not only still be paying the fine off he'd be sitting in jail paying it off. You think bmibaby took it too seriously try doing it in the US.

Violition of his human rights my rear end, violition of everybody elses to have to put up with these idiots!

[Duckbutt]

Pompous t**t!!!

Notso, referring to you in these terms is rather unfair – judging from your posting here and others elsewhere its a bit unjust to call you a t**t.

[Notso Fantastic]

Well I thought so. He is quite right -I did say it wrong- I meant ''more intellectually challenged", which most certainly one dot right is judging by his daft profile!

But let him abuse all he likes- it's off subject anyway. Some people are just like that.

[Duckbutt]

Oh dear, never mind - irony not your thing then?

[Turn It Off]

Well done BMI baby. Ban the lot of them. If you are willing to take the risk, then be willing to take the consequences. Thankfully this little Pr**k didn't get away with it.

good on yer!! :ok:

TIO

[Notso Fantastic]

Duckbutt- since you asked, and it is off subject....you call that irony? Perhaps you ought to remind yourself what irony is! Maybe you don't understand it yourself! I call it a cheap shot that was quite unnecessary, I wouldn't grace it with the word.

Now shall we get back on subject after the abuse and the cheapo sarcasm?

[redfred]

what do you expect from a kid Manc, I think Malaga should just ban Brits full stop from going there

[one dot right]

Well notso,irony is like goldy and bronzy but doesn't have the carbon content of steely!!

[AVIONIQUE]

In my opinion a sixteen year old lad is one of the most likely types to be actually carrying a home made bomb,and also the most likely to be bragging about it.Observation of those types on "the street" would also indicate that many of them are also "intellectually challenged".So how do you tell the gun/explosive obsessed wierdo who trawls the internet for info and craves notoriety from the fuqqwitt who was "avin a larf" ?
YOU CANNOT
Anyone who says anything suspicious must be assumed to be a problem. There are a lot of troubled,twisted people out there as recent stabbings in London showed.they do not wear badges saying"religious fanatic","explosives obsessed,"personality disordered" ,"spotty tosser" you have to take all cases seriously to preveny the one real case.
making an example of jokers is the only way to get the message across. DO NOT DO IT.

[Thrush]

Re my previous post on a Policeman joking about a bomb. Found it on the www.

Disgusting how the cop got off with this. Read and prepare to be amazed:



From "Manchester Online":

"Friday, 28th September 2001


A POLICE officer caused a security alert at Manchester Airport and was barred from a holiday jet after joking that he had a bomb in his luggage.

Inspector John Orr was told he would not be allowed on the plane after the ''flippant and insensitive'' comment to security staff.

Today, the motorway patrol officer, who has served in Greater Manchester for 28 years, is under investigation by the force.

Airport bosses have branded Insp Orr ''irresponsible'', while a police colleague described his remarks as ''unbelievable'' in light of the terrorist attacks on America.

Police were called to Ringway's Terminal 2 on Tuesday night by a security guard amid claims that Insp Orr, who was heading to Crete with his wife, made a remark about a bomb.

Staff later told bosses that he said: ''I have a bomb in my bag.''

Apology

He apologised for the joke, but was not allowed on the Excel Airways flight to Heraklion.

It is believed the incident occurred at 8.45pm when the officer, a father in his mid-40s, had a verbal exchange with a security guard who found a small penknife when checking his hand-luggage.

It is unlikely that Insp Orr, based at Birch Services near Oldham on the M62, will be charged with a criminal offence, but he could face disciplinary action.

A Ringway insider said: ''He made a flippant and insensitive remark about a bomb. In the current climate it was sheer madness.''

An airport spokeswoman said: ''It is highly irresponsible for anyone to make threats about security while going through airport procedures and, in certain circumstances, false statements about luggage can constitute an offence.''

She added: ''Any remark made by a passenger which suggests a threat to security at the airport is taken seriously.''

Senior officers - said to be furious at the incident - have now been called in to investigate the allegations, which come amid heightened security at Ringway. Last night there was no reply at Insp Orr's home in Tameside.

A senior police officer said: ''It is unbelievable that anyone could find such a remark funny after the terrible tragedy in America.''

A Greater Manchester Police spokesman confirmed: ''An investigation has been launched.''


BUT WE STILL DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENNED! WAS IT ALL COVERED UP?

There must be some Police Officers out there who know this idiot - let us know!!

Well done Excel for not letting him travel.

[Boss Raptor]

I have 2 directions on this one...

Yep I am all for a ban but maybe the whole family and for life could be a little harsh...but it does send out the right public message...

However...as pointed out by someone right at the start of this thread the stress caused by air travel in general and in particular the current security (and the moronic staff/application) causes these incidents with many people...manifesting in these outbursts from those with slightly less control...I myself have come damn close especially to those ignorant US TSA cretins for example...but I am older and a little wiser and just think 'A!hole' and clench my teeth :*

I have had several times had to calm very nervous pax, particular older, in the security line who almost get to a panic state...my own mother gets so wound up with security she has to have a drink after check in and before joining the crawl thru departures...I think these issues are telling us something...but the demi-gods in security are never going to let us in the industry achieve/introduce common sense and god forbid erode their new found 'empires' :hmm:

[urdy gurdy]

i had a BA gold card holder claim he had a gun in his bag the day after the twin towers were smashed to bits. we didnt find it funny