Great reporting

[Arm out the window]

The Cairns Post came out with a fine example of aviation reporting on the weekend; apparently a 146 had a windscreen panel crack, crew returned to departure point, quite straightforward you would think...but no, according to the paper it was a terrifying plunge towards the sea, with passengers thinking they were about to die and the pilots heroically wrestling the stricken machine from its dive.

They must have a list of words that are required by law to be used whenever there's a flying incident; I guess something like 'the crew of an aircraft that suffered a cracked windscreen carried out appropriate actions and landed safely today' just doesn't cut it in journalistic circles.

[mr hanky]

They must have a list of words that are required by law to be used whenever there's a flying incident

Quite so. Here is how it's done: http://radans.net/jens/planestory.html

[En Avion]

That Cairns Post articles was one of the biggest beat ups I have read in a long time. I'm sure it sold a lot of papers though...

[Arm out the window]

Outstanding, Mr Hanky, thanks!
I was laughing away there as I was scrolling through the options; I think the Cairns Post article actually was called 'Flight from Hell' or very similar.

[king oath]

Hey guys.

You should see the NT News version of the same last Saturday.

The sad thing is they think this is serious journalism.

Can any of you Darwin based dudes alert the editor to the feedback he gets regulary on this site. He might pay for a few basic lessons in aviation to broaden his horizons.

[maximus]

what a waste of time

I called the Cairns Post today and spoke to one of the reporters (female probably in early twenties) whose name was attributed to this story. When I told her that she had sensationalised a quite ordinary proceedure (the descent) she seemed to take offence. Didn't like it when I asked if she did indeed have a degree in journalism (not that that seems to make any difference) and that it was a typical Murdoch story. I tried to tell her that the incident was not "a flight of terror" or a "plunge in a stricken jet" as she had written but a normal proceedure in the circumstances. It however fell on deaf ears.
I also said that her reporting of the pilot's "heroic efforts to maintain control" was a load of crap and that is what he is trained to do was again treated with indifference. Our ace reporter informed me that that was what the passengers had said and what would I know as I wasn't on the flight. My attempts to enlighten her further was a waste of time for she said it "was news" and "was current".
I told her to look on Pprune and to put the word journalist in the search box to see the contempt that she and her ilk are looked upon by the aviation community. Alas I think that I have wasted 5 minutes of my life trying to convince this airhead cub reporter of the stupidity of her story but at least it made me feel better.
:{ A pox on all their houses.

[Tutaewera]

Journalist - Truth - Professionalism: same sentence?

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha - Did I forget to say HA!

Next you'll be expecting Pollys, realtors, car salesmen (sorry persons) and Coppers to tell the truth as well!

I know it makes ya blood boil when you read such rubbish in the daily fish wrapper but I can't even remember one honest and technically accurate media account of an aviation incident in my 20 odd years in this game.

Really enjoy the occassional pax reports e.g,; "Magda of Waggawagga said - strewth blue weez wuz gunna die 4 sure, I wuzz soooo scared mate. Ruckon flying iz reul dangerouse, I'm gonna take the torana next time."

Loved the website link given by "Mr Hanky". Most excellent!

:}

[SkySista]

Sadly, it's likely said CNS reporter felt the need to 'dramatise' the story after last week's sad events..... :mad:

I got the same reaction oce after lodging a complaint with Channel 7 after the Boxing Day tsunami... something which was said that given the situation totally inappropriate...

of course it was "well that's the way the news goes"

The :mad: even had the cheek to imply that "A young person like yourself needs to see that this world is a big bad place and everything can't be roses all the time." when I had a perfectly legitimate complaint - at least five or ten others had made the same complaint as me...

Bloody :mad: too right I wanted to go over there and deposit his phone in a more suitable place!

Make me want to :yuk: !

[criticalmass]

"Never let the facts get in the way of a good story" is the first - and only - rule of modern journalism.

Perhaps we need the concept of "virtual news" - computer-generated random stories about fictitious events in non-existent places which are completely unverifiable - a journalist's dream. Sensational stories every day at the click of a mouse!

Sometimes I think we're just about there already.

[Capn Bloggs]

Sounds just like the jorno Kelly Mills who was conned big time by the Jetstar load sheet PDAs. A rambling, half page spread in last Tuesday's (10May) IT Australian about how they lighten the pilots workload! Compared to sitting there, looking out the window and being presented with a piece of paper, the pilots now have to spend a few minutes creating their own lodsheet on a PDA! Not to mention all the hassle of picking the thing up (and the printer), making sure the software's up to date, keeping it full of paper.

The poor girl didn't realise they simply are a way of saving money by transferring work from the load control centre onto pilots (for no extra pay?).

Go the journos...

[sinala1]

Now now, surely we all know that journalists are professionals who do the very best they can to present an unbiased and fair account of the facts so as to present the reader with as close as possible to the true story?

:O :O :yuk: :yuk: :mad:

I think they said it best on Little Britain - "Yeah woteva!!!!"

[ZK-NSJ]

kev bloody wilsons "dicktaphone" song runs thru my head after reading about those reporters and what u want to do to them :p

[Tutaewera]

Pity I can't figure our how to put one of those PPRUNE opinion poles on pilot perceptions of professionalism / honesty for various "professions".

Would be interesting to see where Journalists rate in the scheme of things compared to say Politicians, Salespeople, Lawyers, Cops, Doctors etc.

I reckon journos would have to be down the bottom somewhere... When I was in the UK that were known affectionatley as "Fleet Street Scum". (Although most have since left Fleet St).

That old adage "never let the truth get in the road of a good story" seems very applicable to this thread.

:\

[planemad2]

IF you don't like their stories, you can always make up your own. :ok:

http://radans.net/jens/planestory.html

[Mr Maverick]

http://www.pegasus.bigpondhosting.com/PPRuNe/Crackup1.jpg

http://www.pegasus.bigpondhosting.com/PPRuNe/Crackup2.jpg

http://www.pegasus.bigpondhosting.com/PPRuNe/Crackup3.jpg

[Woomera]

Now that'd make one sit upright in the seat, wouldn't it? :ooh:

[Capt Claret]

Letter to the editor of the revered :yuk: :yuk: NT News on May 24 from the chair of an aviation safety group put a good slant on the reality of said incident.

A letter from one of the pax, in the NT News :yuk: of 29th May basically told the author of the letter of the 24th that he didn't know what it was like descend from 27000' to 8000' in "30 seconds" ! :sad:

Now the 146 might be a capable aircraft, and despite some light hearted ribbing I do believe it does what it does quite well, and one of its better points is going down, but I ask you ..... 38,000 feet per minute rate of descent? I don't think so.

[jokova]

. . . reporting perfection of proctologist's plainly plane purpose.

WHAT ??? !!!

He that designed the aeroplane shirt - lift the tail . . .
. . . . . and see the whole plane.

To sound a more to the point note (no, not Milligan's 'DUNNGG')
this warped poster was summoned to CNS some years ago to cover
for an operator that had been in effect shut down by the 'Post's' front
page libel that he had endangered his pax by landing for a liquid
laugh.

Truth was he had felt a bit crook, and putting it down to a bait in his lunch
box, did the sensible thing, did a precautionary, got rid of the lot
washed his face and continued on to base, ops normal.

Self loading cretin saw a scoop and next day the poor bugger was
virtually closed down. Took him months and numerous visits
south for a string of clinical tests - all negative of course.

I kept several copies of the pernicious rag for months - to light fires, to
keep in the boot for emergency use and to remind myself that luck's
a fortune, despite three dots, four dots, two dots, dah happening all
the time.

[eyeonthesky]

Sorry chaps, but I worry about all this stuff about the media.

Where do the media get their stories when something happens involving an aircraft ???

First they go to the airline -

Media Question : What happened ?

Airline : We don't know what you're talking about !

Media Question : But wasn't there a problem ? didn't the aircraft have to return to XXXX ?

Airline : Standard procedure, slight hiccup, nothing to worry about, we'll release a statement in good time ....

So where do the journo's go ? - to YOU for what turns out to be a ..."no comment - ask the airline" ... no that doesn't work ... we've tried that.

So they go to the PAX ... and if they exaggerate, stretch the truth, guild the lilly - who do you blame...?? ...of course .... the MEDIA ...

Why don't you guys just ring the media yourselves - or post your home phone numbers on this site, so when something goes awry on a flight - they can call you direct - to get the REAL truth...

Sounds a bit ludicrous doesn't it ? .. about as ludicrous as most of your assertions and sweeping statements about "the media".

If the media are all bad, why bother reading, listening to or watching it ??? - and I thought you blokes were intelligent ....

Don't shoot the messenger guys ... and don't tar all journalists with the same brush...

[Jerricho]

Why don't you guys just ring the media yourselves - or post your home phone numbers on this site, so when something goes awry on a flight - they can call you direct - to get the REAL truth...

And be totally misquoted? To have random journos ringing, trying to scoop a story that really is a non-event? I don't think so.

Plus, I think you'll find that I (and I'm sure others would agree) would certainly be seeking other employment if my employer discovered I had taken it on myself to contact the media to give them the story.

99% of the time the REAL truth is just that......and it probably won't sell papers.

[Laikim Liklik Susu]

That's a great sequence of photos!

Now, if the Cap had been blown out BAC1-11 style, then it mighta been a good read in the newspaper! :=

There would have been Pucker Factor number 10 for a while whilst the Cap tightened down his shoulder straps :8 Wouldv'e fixed his haemorrhoids anyway...

[Arm out the window]

Dunno about the poor old media being picked on, eyeonthesky. Pretty much every story I've seen in print or on the TV that I had some prior knowledge of included wrong information that I would think should have been checked; just simple stuff like what kind of aircraft was involved, or something of that nature.
The Cairns post article that I referred to, however, was an absolute load of drivel that was pretty obviously intended to get people to buy the paper on the basis of its emotive and ridiculous headline and content, particularly as it was printed not long after the tragic Lockhart River crash and the public could be expected to be 'twitchy' about air transport issues.
Entertainment of the public is one thing, but if a newspaper claims to be an unbiased and truthful reporter of the facts, then it should not print rubbish like that.

[The Voice]

:eek: crikey .. now how'd THAT happen? :mad: bet the air turned blue! Looks a bit like it's on the ground in GV with the red dirt in the background. That'd be a good spot to be in with something like that .. NOT!

[Eastwest Loco]

She must have been in the class of the dropkick who published an article recently in the Hobart Mercury.

A JQ 717 (HBA SYD I believe) was thrown into evac mode after a LAME noticed a shower of sparks from one of the turbines as it was taxiing for take off.

This resulted in evac through slides. The amusing thing was the JQ spokesman. The problem according to this management trainee drip was a "starter motor" problem.

Hello? Couldn't it have been the camshaft or the synchro on second?

Maybe they should have push started it.


Sorry to be cynical, but after having a plate glass window at the office punched in over the weekend and a dropkick running into my ageing Z car and shot through, I have abandoned happy thoughts. There are upsides though. The plate window collapsed on the arm of the vandal and bucket loads of blood were everywhere - nothing trivial I hope, and I found the life support system for genitals that ran into the Z today. He denied everything, after his mate who was in the car had already admitted everything. I am over dole bludgers, journos and airline managers,as I am sure you all are.

Best all

EWL