AA Pilot Gives 'Come to Jesus' PA
OK - so maybe someone farted. Or maybe some nun farted?
Is that enough to stop a flight in the 'Land of the Free' these days?
So glad I don't have to go there anymore.....
Is that enough to stop a flight in the 'Land of the Free' these days?
So glad I don't have to go there anymore.....
Ripe for JB methinks. When you have as many individuals in a company or institution as AA do there are bound to be people doing things others disapprove or are suspicious of. Not necessarily dangerous. Like praising the lord or even flipping the bird. How can we get to six pages of this BS? And now sulphuric NUNS!
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Notice that now the CEO of AA has published an apology for the 'behavior' of the 'come to Jesus' pilot.
With clowns (pilots) like this, would think that AA would need a whole department to explain themselves.
Will it ever end for AA, one finger salutes and all......?
Short answer, not in our lifetimes.
AA, arrogance personified.
With clowns (pilots) like this, would think that AA would need a whole department to explain themselves.
Will it ever end for AA, one finger salutes and all......?
Short answer, not in our lifetimes.
AA, arrogance personified.
AA seems to have become the Johnny Rotten of the airline industry.
Who says big business is colourless and bland - these pilots rock.
(However I wouldn't want to fly with them!)
Who says big business is colourless and bland - these pilots rock.
(However I wouldn't want to fly with them!)
quidquid excusatio prandium pro
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AA now reporting that the pilot in question has been grounded pending a full investigation of the incident. They'll have to tread carefully, in my opinion, certain sections of the population so inclined agree with his actions, and will likely boycott the airline should he be turfed. A sticky problem for AA management, no?
May I suggest donating one of your mothballed 727's to his cause, and put him in charge of the new 'division', headquarters TBA.
May I suggest donating one of your mothballed 727's to his cause, and put him in charge of the new 'division', headquarters TBA.
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>>Knowing LAX-JFK flights there were probably plenty of Jewish lawyers on board ......
Outcome should be interesting !!<<
An apology appropriate to the market demographics of the route has been issued:
AA chief apologizes for pilot's comments on Christianity
05:25 PM CST on Friday, February 13, 2004
Associated Press
FORT WORTH - The chief executive of American Airlines has apologized after a pilot suggested that non-Christian passengers on a recent flight discuss the faith with Christians.
Gerard Arpey said the airline has grounded the pilot with pay while executives investigate the incident.
Arpey said he apologized to anyone who was offended by the pilot's comments on a flight from Los Angeles to New York.
"Let me assure you that we take this very seriously and are conducting a thorough investigation," Arpey wrote in a letter to Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, an advocacy group that monitors anti-Semitism. He said American Airlines "promotes an environment of respect for the diversity of all persons, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, disability, gender, age or sexual orientation."
Foxman had written to Arpey that religious belief is a personal matter and the pilot had breached the privacy of passengers. He called the pilot's conduct "deeply troubling."
The airline said the Washington-based pilot asked passengers on the Feb. 7 flight to raise their hands if they were Christian. Speaking over the aircraft public-address system, he then suggested that other passengers use the flight time to talk to the Christians about their faith, an airline spokesman said.
An airline spokesman, Tim Wagner, said American was interviewing crew members and passengers who complained about the comments. The airline has also asked the pilots' union about the incident. Wagner declined to say whether American would disclose its final findings.
The pilot did not respond to an e-mail request for an interview.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...lot.92818.html
Outcome should be interesting !!<<
An apology appropriate to the market demographics of the route has been issued:
AA chief apologizes for pilot's comments on Christianity
05:25 PM CST on Friday, February 13, 2004
Associated Press
FORT WORTH - The chief executive of American Airlines has apologized after a pilot suggested that non-Christian passengers on a recent flight discuss the faith with Christians.
Gerard Arpey said the airline has grounded the pilot with pay while executives investigate the incident.
Arpey said he apologized to anyone who was offended by the pilot's comments on a flight from Los Angeles to New York.
"Let me assure you that we take this very seriously and are conducting a thorough investigation," Arpey wrote in a letter to Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, an advocacy group that monitors anti-Semitism. He said American Airlines "promotes an environment of respect for the diversity of all persons, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, disability, gender, age or sexual orientation."
Foxman had written to Arpey that religious belief is a personal matter and the pilot had breached the privacy of passengers. He called the pilot's conduct "deeply troubling."
The airline said the Washington-based pilot asked passengers on the Feb. 7 flight to raise their hands if they were Christian. Speaking over the aircraft public-address system, he then suggested that other passengers use the flight time to talk to the Christians about their faith, an airline spokesman said.
An airline spokesman, Tim Wagner, said American was interviewing crew members and passengers who complained about the comments. The airline has also asked the pilots' union about the incident. Wagner declined to say whether American would disclose its final findings.
The pilot did not respond to an e-mail request for an interview.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...lot.92818.html
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1965 and Ralph -
Well, I do fly with them a lot. Nearly 3 MILLION air miles worth, and I like them a lot, and will continue to fly them. In all those air miles I have never experienced an "odd" PA from the flight deck - ever!
Here is the LINK HERE to the CNN story that 411A so graciously left out. For those that are "firewall" challenged, here is a cut'n'paste of the story:
"Friday, February 13, 2004 Posted: 3:33 PM EST (2033 GMT)
• Pilot's proselytizing scares passengers
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- The chief executive of American Airlines apologized after the pilot of a recent cross-country flight got on the intercom and asked all Christians aboard to raise their hands.
The pilot, Rodger K. Findiesen of Annapolis, Maryland, has been grounded while the February 7 incident is investigated, Gerard Arpey said.
The pilot of the Los Angeles-to-New York flight asked all Christians aboard to discuss their faith with their fellow passengers.
Let me assure you that we take this very seriously and are conducting a thorough investigation," Arpey wrote to Abraham Foxman, director of the Anti-Defamation League, a group that monitors anti-Semitism.
The airline "promotes an environment of respect for the diversity of all persons, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, disability, gender, age or sexual orientation."
Foxman had complained about the incident.
Findiesen did not respond to an e-mail request for an interview, and a woman who answered the phone at a number listed for him hung up. "
ps - my apologies bubba dinna see ya beat me to the story ...
Well, I do fly with them a lot. Nearly 3 MILLION air miles worth, and I like them a lot, and will continue to fly them. In all those air miles I have never experienced an "odd" PA from the flight deck - ever!
Here is the LINK HERE to the CNN story that 411A so graciously left out. For those that are "firewall" challenged, here is a cut'n'paste of the story:
"Friday, February 13, 2004 Posted: 3:33 PM EST (2033 GMT)
• Pilot's proselytizing scares passengers
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- The chief executive of American Airlines apologized after the pilot of a recent cross-country flight got on the intercom and asked all Christians aboard to raise their hands.
The pilot, Rodger K. Findiesen of Annapolis, Maryland, has been grounded while the February 7 incident is investigated, Gerard Arpey said.
The pilot of the Los Angeles-to-New York flight asked all Christians aboard to discuss their faith with their fellow passengers.
Let me assure you that we take this very seriously and are conducting a thorough investigation," Arpey wrote to Abraham Foxman, director of the Anti-Defamation League, a group that monitors anti-Semitism.
The airline "promotes an environment of respect for the diversity of all persons, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, disability, gender, age or sexual orientation."
Foxman had complained about the incident.
Findiesen did not respond to an e-mail request for an interview, and a woman who answered the phone at a number listed for him hung up. "
ps - my apologies bubba dinna see ya beat me to the story ...
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i'm a christian and i think that what this pilot did was rather unprofessional.there's a time and a place for everything,and the cockpit is not a place to preach from! this sort of thing really doesn't give a very good image of professionalism to the pax at all.
Sadly,as always,there are those who bring islam into this (i suspect mainly because of a deep sense of suspicion/envy/fear/resentment of muslims).the fact is that outward displays of religious practice are very much a part of their culture,which is foreign to us westerners.Thats why,when you hear a prayer on Saudia or whatever,It is perfectly normal to the majority of those on board.
Conversely,such outward manifestations of Christianity are not the norm in the West,so its obvious that such 'preaching' constitutes something that DOES NOT FORM PART OF OUR CULTURE.This is at the heart of why what this pilot said is not professional,proper or desirable for the image of the Airline.
As a christian i see my religion (which incase all those muslim-haters don't realise,is practised DIFFERENTLY to islam,which is a much more publicly practised,homogenously observed religion) as a deeply personal thing,and i can understand why this guy's preaching made people uneasy.
Sadly,as always,there are those who bring islam into this (i suspect mainly because of a deep sense of suspicion/envy/fear/resentment of muslims).the fact is that outward displays of religious practice are very much a part of their culture,which is foreign to us westerners.Thats why,when you hear a prayer on Saudia or whatever,It is perfectly normal to the majority of those on board.
Conversely,such outward manifestations of Christianity are not the norm in the West,so its obvious that such 'preaching' constitutes something that DOES NOT FORM PART OF OUR CULTURE.This is at the heart of why what this pilot said is not professional,proper or desirable for the image of the Airline.
As a christian i see my religion (which incase all those muslim-haters don't realise,is practised DIFFERENTLY to islam,which is a much more publicly practised,homogenously observed religion) as a deeply personal thing,and i can understand why this guy's preaching made people uneasy.
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Rudas
Considering AA pilots give over 3000 P.A.'s a day, and that currently there are over 11,000 pilots on the property it's a shame that certain folks use this topic to further justify their contempt for all AA pilots.
Undoubtedly, this ONE P.A. caused some attention that may be warranted. AA flies millions of hours between such events. I very much doubt anyone making a P.A. at AA "preaches this sermon", again.
Even the great Bob Hoover's judgment was called into question a few years ago (and he's a guy that can fly the wings off most people on this forum!).
We've ALL been learning from the Wright Brothers' (and others since) mistakes to get where we are now.
The lesson learned from today is....
Cheers, DD
Considering AA pilots give over 3000 P.A.'s a day, and that currently there are over 11,000 pilots on the property it's a shame that certain folks use this topic to further justify their contempt for all AA pilots.
Undoubtedly, this ONE P.A. caused some attention that may be warranted. AA flies millions of hours between such events. I very much doubt anyone making a P.A. at AA "preaches this sermon", again.
Even the great Bob Hoover's judgment was called into question a few years ago (and he's a guy that can fly the wings off most people on this forum!).
We've ALL been learning from the Wright Brothers' (and others since) mistakes to get where we are now.
The lesson learned from today is....
Cheers, DD
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Problem is dallas dude, the appearance that AA shows to their customers as well as their very poor hull loss safety record, seems to indicate a rather callous attitude on the part of AA flight crew to pax relations...and indeed the safety of flight operations in general
Cali, Littlerock, A300-600...well the list goes on and on. Not simple mistakes, absolutely egregious mistakes, which a competent crew, with competent training, would avoid.
Not to mention, big-mouth clowns making inappropriate announcements to the pax.
AA, a very poor record.
One has to wonder, IF these AA turkeys have so much time on their hands, that they can attend religious revival meetings, perhaps they need to be worked a bit harder, so as to avoid this nonsense PA cr@p.
This particular AA guy needs to be booted out the door...pronto.
Cali, Littlerock, A300-600...well the list goes on and on. Not simple mistakes, absolutely egregious mistakes, which a competent crew, with competent training, would avoid.
Not to mention, big-mouth clowns making inappropriate announcements to the pax.
AA, a very poor record.
One has to wonder, IF these AA turkeys have so much time on their hands, that they can attend religious revival meetings, perhaps they need to be worked a bit harder, so as to avoid this nonsense PA cr@p.
This particular AA guy needs to be booted out the door...pronto.
Last edited by 411A; 15th Feb 2004 at 13:09.
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Glad to see Pprune is still home to balanced opinion!
I am an agnostic so it matters little to me what religion you are!
Do I think this story is worthy of all the attention? No!
Were the pilot’s words appropriate? Probably not!
Should non-Christians be offended by his words? No! All he asked was for non-Christians to discuss Christianity with their fellow passengers.
America and Britain for that matter are Christian states that are tolerant of other religions, which is more than can be said for some Muslim countries. So whilst it may not be the norm for public expressions of faith in either of these countries should we condemn it when it happens? Personally I don’t think so.
From my own point of view had I been a passenger on this Captains flight I would not have given his comments a second thought, I would leave that to the small minded. That said I would agree with the view that there is a time and place for everything and this was not the time or place but what harm did he really do?
To use this argument to condemn AA’s safety record is more offensive than any comments the Captain made in my opinion. One has nothing to do with the other. With 11000 pilots on their books you can expect one or two to have some extreme views that do not necessarily reflect an individuals competence. I was about to point to the current US president as an example but of course that would blow a hole in my argument!
I am an agnostic so it matters little to me what religion you are!
Do I think this story is worthy of all the attention? No!
Were the pilot’s words appropriate? Probably not!
Should non-Christians be offended by his words? No! All he asked was for non-Christians to discuss Christianity with their fellow passengers.
America and Britain for that matter are Christian states that are tolerant of other religions, which is more than can be said for some Muslim countries. So whilst it may not be the norm for public expressions of faith in either of these countries should we condemn it when it happens? Personally I don’t think so.
From my own point of view had I been a passenger on this Captains flight I would not have given his comments a second thought, I would leave that to the small minded. That said I would agree with the view that there is a time and place for everything and this was not the time or place but what harm did he really do?
To use this argument to condemn AA’s safety record is more offensive than any comments the Captain made in my opinion. One has nothing to do with the other. With 11000 pilots on their books you can expect one or two to have some extreme views that do not necessarily reflect an individuals competence. I was about to point to the current US president as an example but of course that would blow a hole in my argument!
Last edited by kinsman; 15th Feb 2004 at 22:54.
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The pilot's idea was inappropriate, despite being well-intentioned, but what a big fuss about so very little.
Pilot grounded?
The complaining director of the 'Anti-Defamation League' given assurances AA take it "very seriously" and are conducting a "thorough investigation"?
And on this thread suggestions by some that the Captain, who for all we know may well be an outstanding pilot with an unblemished career record, should be fired?
What 'thorough investigation' is necessary?
Did you say it?
Yes.
Don't do it again. PA's are for official announcements not personal messages, non-Christian passengers may be offended, and those with too much time on their hands write letters complaining.
==============================
Pilot grounded?
The complaining director of the 'Anti-Defamation League' given assurances AA take it "very seriously" and are conducting a "thorough investigation"?
And on this thread suggestions by some that the Captain, who for all we know may well be an outstanding pilot with an unblemished career record, should be fired?
What 'thorough investigation' is necessary?
Did you say it?
Yes.
Don't do it again. PA's are for official announcements not personal messages, non-Christian passengers may be offended, and those with too much time on their hands write letters complaining.
==============================
Last edited by Danny; 17th Feb 2004 at 21:57.
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Who listens to PA's anyway?.... Next time you fly as a pax, ask the person next to what was said and see what they reply....... Who cares what the guy wanted to say, he had the mike and the captive audience were going to listen regardless....there's a lot to be said about listening to a discman when paxing
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Forget that it was religion that he was selling. It's just damn inappropriate to canvass from the flight deck.
Advertising, spam, junk mail... it's all the same, no matter what's being sold. Give us a break!
Advertising, spam, junk mail... it's all the same, no matter what's being sold. Give us a break!
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About 20 years ago a US airline decided to jazz up its PA announcements along the lines of 'We don't want to crash but just in case we do....' and 'If you see flames coming out of the engines....', etc, with the supposed aim of making pax more relaxed about the risks of flying. The policy was not received too well by said pax and the policy was quickly abandoned. Does anyone remember which airline it was?
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Zoom,
It sounds suspiciously like Texas International. Back around 1970 or so I was on one of their flights from ABQ-ELP and a few minutes after we took off, a propeller stopped and we returned to ABQ. On the way back to ABQ the FA kept saying we are not going to crash, we still have another engine. We got back to ABQ
and the problem was fixed. took off again and the other one stopped this time. This time there was a bit more concern but the FaAwanted us to sing songs.it was all a bad, bad experience.
It sounds suspiciously like Texas International. Back around 1970 or so I was on one of their flights from ABQ-ELP and a few minutes after we took off, a propeller stopped and we returned to ABQ. On the way back to ABQ the FA kept saying we are not going to crash, we still have another engine. We got back to ABQ
and the problem was fixed. took off again and the other one stopped this time. This time there was a bit more concern but the FaAwanted us to sing songs.it was all a bad, bad experience.
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411A,
tsk tsk, never got hired by AA or any other major in the good ole US of A. Well, bleat on. A real chuckle. A USA native having to leave the country to fly isn't really making it now is it?
tsk tsk, never got hired by AA or any other major in the good ole US of A. Well, bleat on. A real chuckle. A USA native having to leave the country to fly isn't really making it now is it?
Invictus says "Regarding the Saudi flight(s); anyone traveling to or from Saudi Arabia will (should) be fully aware of the very public demonstration of faith/religion that exists there. You cannot go there on holiday, "
I don't know if you can't go there on holidays; I certainly can.
Rwy in Sight said "In a related side I hope/wander if a pax would sue AA over emotional distress caused by the announcements." Did I see you use the word 'hope'? Emotional distress? Get a grip. There is no emotional distress. If one doesn't agree with the pilot's comments, one ignores them and gets back to reading the newspaper. What a beat-up.
I don't know if you can't go there on holidays; I certainly can.
Rwy in Sight said "In a related side I hope/wander if a pax would sue AA over emotional distress caused by the announcements." Did I see you use the word 'hope'? Emotional distress? Get a grip. There is no emotional distress. If one doesn't agree with the pilot's comments, one ignores them and gets back to reading the newspaper. What a beat-up.
