Aviation
Infosys chairperson Sudha Murty was called a “cattle class” on airport due to her outfits!
So often, it’s the simplest acts of courage that touch the lives of others. Sudha Murty-through the exceptional work of the Infosys Foundation as well as through her own youth, family life and travels-encounters many such stories…And she tells them here in her characteristically clear-eyed, warm-hearted way.
She talks candidly about the meaningful impact of her work in the devadasi community, her trials and tribulations as the only female student in her engineering college and the unexpected and inspiring consequences of her father’s kindness. From the quiet joy of discovering the reach of Indian cinema and the origins of Indian vegetables to the shallowness of judging others based on appearances, these are everyday struggles and victories, large and small. Unmasking both the beauty and ugliness of human nature, each of the real-life stories in this collection is reflective of a life lived with grace.
Here’s an excerpt from Sudha Murty’s ‘Three Thousand Stitches: Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives’
Last year, I was at the Heathrow International Airport in London about to board a flight. Usually, I wear a sari even when I am abroad, but I prefer wearing a salwar kameez while travelling. So there I was—a senior citizen dressed in typical Indian apparel at the terminal gate.
Since the boarding hadn’t started, I sat down and began to observe my surroundings. The flight was bound for Bengaluru and so I could hear people around me chatting in Kannada. I saw many old married couples of my age—they were most likely coming back from the US or UK after helping their children either through childbirth or a new home. I saw some British business executives talking to each other about India’s progress. Some teenagers were busy with the gadgets in their hands while the younger children were crying or running about the gate.
After a few minutes, the boarding announcement was made and I joined the queue. The woman in front of me was a well-groomed lady in an Indo-Western silk outfit, a Gucci handbag and high heels. Every single strand of her hair was in place and a friend stood next to her in an expensive silk sari, pearl necklace, matching earrings and delicate diamond bangles.
I looked at the vending machine nearby and wondered if I should leave the queue to get some water.
Suddenly, the woman in front of me turned sideways and looked at me with what seemed like pity in her eyes. Extending her hand, she asked, ‘May I see your boarding pass, please?’ I was about to hand over my pass to her, but since she didn’t seem like an airline employee, I asked, ‘Why?’
‘Well, this line is meant for business class travellers only,’ she said confidently and pointed her finger towards the economy class queue. ‘You should go and stand there,’ she said.
I was about to tell her that I had a business class ticket but on second thoughts, held back. I wanted to know why she had thought that I wasn’t worthy of being in the business class. So I repeated, ‘Why should I stand there?’
She sighed. ‘Let me explain. There is a big difference in the price of an economy and a business class ticket. The latter costs almost two and a half times more than . . .’
Exactly,’ said the woman. ‘So there are certain privileges that are associated with a business class ticket.’
‘Really?’ I decided to be mischievous and pretended not to know.
‘What kind of privileges are you talking about?’
She seemed annoyed. ‘We are allowed to bring two bags but you can only take one. We can board the flight from another, less-crowded queue. We are given better meals and seats. We can extend the seats and lie down flat on them. We always have television screens and there are four washrooms for a small number of passengers.’
Her friend added, ‘A priority check-in facility is available for our bags, which means they will come first upon arrival and we get more frequent flyer miles for the same flight.’
‘Now that you know the difference, you can go to the economy line,’ insisted the woman.
‘But I don’t want to go there.’ I was firm.
The lady turned to her friend. ‘It is hard to argue with these cattle-class people. Let the staff come and instruct her where to go. She isn’t going to listen to us.’
I didn’t get angry. The word ‘cattle class’ was like a blast from the past and reminded me of another incident.
One day, I had gone to an upscale dinner party in my home city of Bengaluru. Plenty of local celebrities and socialites were in attendance. I was speaking to some guests in Kannada, when a man came to me and said very slowly and clearly in English, ‘May I introduce myself ? I am . . .’
It was obvious that he thought that I might have a problem understanding the language.
I smiled. ‘You can speak to me in English.’
‘Oh,’ he said, slightly flabbergasted. ‘I’m sorry. I thought you weren’t comfortable with English because I heard you speaking in Kannada.’
‘There’s nothing shameful in knowing one’s native language. It is, in fact, my right and my privilege. I only speak in English when somebody can’t understand Kannada.’
The line in front of me at the airport began moving forward and I came out of my reverie. The two women ahead were whispering among themselves, ‘Now she will be sent to the other line. It is so long now! We tried to tell her but she refused to listen to us.’
When it was my turn to show my boarding pass to the attendant, I saw them stop and wait a short distance away, waiting to see what would happen. The attendant took my boarding pass and said brightly, ‘Welcome back! We met last week, didn’t we?’
‘Yes,’ I replied.
She smiled and moved on to the next traveller.
I walked a few steps ahead of the women intending to let this go, but then I changed my mind and came back.
‘Please tell me—what made you think that I couldn’t afford a business class ticket? Even if I didn’t have one, was it really your prerogative to tell me where I should stand? Did I ask you for help?’
The women stared at me in silence.
‘You refer to the term “cattle class”. Class does not mean possession of a huge amount of money,’ I continued, unable to stop myself from giving them a piece of my mind.
‘There are plenty of wrong ways to earn money in this world. You may be rich enough to buy comfort and luxuries, but the same money doesn’t define class or give you the ability to purchase it. Mother Teresa was a classy woman. So is Manjul Bhargava, a great mathematician of Indian origin. The concept that you automatically gain class by acquiring money is an outdated thought process.’
I left without waiting for a reply.
Courtesy : Scoopwhoop
The FAA has moved closer to mandating that aircraft black boxes record 25 hours of data, as opposed to the current maximum of two hours.
Although it wasn’t enough, this extension of recording time was a positive development. When the NTSB and the FAA began an investigation after an incident in January, the current restrictions on cockpit voice recorders came up. As we witnessed at the time, an American Airlines 777 landed on the incorrect runway at JFK after taxying to it and crossing it, which forced the crew of a leaving Delta Air Lines 737 to abort takeoff with great speed.
How does a Black Box Work ? its importance in an Aircraft.(Opens in a new browser tab)
The FAA announced on Thursday that it will also create an Aviation Rulemaking Committee to examine ways to make better use of the data collected by aircraft and their systems, including enhanced flight data monitoring. According to a statement from the agency, “We welcome any tools or resources Congress wants to provide to assist us to achieve this quickly.”
The FAA requests a 25-hour recording time for cockpit voice recorders. The adjustment would match the two “black boxes,” which currently collect parameters for 25 hours on flight data recorders (FDRs). With this information, investigators will be able to observe (well, hear) what pilots were doing and identify any distractions that would have prevented them from hearing or understanding an ATC call.
The NTSB has advocated for extending CVRs’ recording times for a number of years. It will be interesting to watch if the FAA’s request for longer-running CVRs is met with any opposition. For instance, on the grounds of privacy, pilots have resisted proposals for cameras in the cockpit.
Chinese airlines that use Russian airspace may face a ban from the Transportation Department of the United States of America. Three Biden administration officials told that the US is considering imposing a ban on Chinese airlines and other rivals who use Russian airspace to bring passengers to the country.
The choice was made in the midst of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. In an effort to protect the safety of the passengers, a number of Ukrainian bloc allies opted to stop using Russian airspace once the conflict began in February of last year. Over a variety of topics, relations between China and the US are strained. The National Security team and others apparently received a directive on Monday. Chinese enterprises were forced by the ruling to adhere to the same limitations that apply to US airline companies.
Russia prohibits its pilots from working for foreign airlines.(Opens in a new browser tab)
The New York Times claims that these limitations have significantly impacted the operations of US airlines. A US official claimed last month that foreign airlines that use Russian airspace on flights to and from the US are acquiring a sizable economic advantage over US carriers in key markets, including China and India. They continued, “This situation is directly to the benefit of foreign airlines and at the price of the United States as a whole, with less links to critical markets, fewer high-paying airline employment, and a dent in the economy overall.”
The US airlines’ lobbying, in the opinion of the industry trade group Airlines for America, is what led to this perception of the US government. According to the trade association, US airlines are losing up to $2 billion in market share to foreign rivals every year as a result of Russia’s liberalization of business travel. In order to prevent foreign airlines flying through Russia from landing at US airports, the group has urged the Biden administration to take action.
While maintaining vacant seats, US airlines must operate long-distance flights. To make the jet light enough to fly without refueling frequently, the seats are kept vacant. As a result, all of these regulations have a significant impact on the airline industry. Even if US airlines wanted to fly over Russian airspace, they couldn’t since Moscow last March barred US airlines from using its airspace in retaliation for Washington’s sanctions. As a result, US airlines’ business has been significantly impacted by the geopolitical dynamics between the US and Russia.
About a year after China Eastern Airlines (600115.SS) Flight MU5735 crashed, killing all 132 aboard, the country’s aviation regulator said on Monday that investigators were still examining the cause of the accident.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) released remarks stating that the authority “conducted an in-depth inquiry into the accident” with “meticulous and rigorous technical investigative work.” The CAAC also stated that it collaborated with appropriate departments.
The technical investigation team “has conducted detailed examinations of the plane wreckage over the past year to determine the possible working status of key control components of the plane prior to the crash, conducted experiments on more than 100 significant pieces of wreckage, and analyzed the causes of damage,” the CAAC added.
According to Shao Quan, a professor at the Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, providing the public with updates on the status of an inquiry at the one-year mark is a standard procedure and necessity in the worldwide civil aviation business.
Also, who explains why the probe is still ongoing, investigations into large aircraft disasters typically take longer than a year due to the technical complications and uncertainties that they must overcome.
Only 25% of civil aviation aircraft accident investigations worldwide over the past 30 years have produced final results in under a year, Shao continued. According to the regulator, the investigation team will continue to carry out cause analysis and experimental verification work and immediately provide an evaluation in accordance with the inquiry’s progress.
A UN diplomat criticized the airline for its extremely poor services. On his Twitter account, the official, who was flying from New York to New Delhi, complained about the broken seats and cockroaches in the cabin. He also posted pictures of cockroaches and shattered seat handles as evidence.
Korean Air plane overshoots runway in the Philippines(Opens in a new browser tab)
In response to the diplomat’s post, numerous people came forward and expressed similar concerns. The tweet that has since gone viral is as follows:
As a UN diplomat, I've flown worldwide, but Air India 102 JFK to Delhi was my worst flight experience: broken seats, no entertainment/call buttons/reading lights, and cockroaches! Poison spray. Disregard for customer care! #airtravelnightmare #AirIndia #TataGroup pic.twitter.com/5UcBCzSaoZ
— GPS (@Gurpreet13hee13) March 12, 2023
The inconvenience was regretted by the airlines
On Monday, he tweeted about the incident once more and urged the airline for an explanation. Upon responding to his post, Air India expressed regret for the inconvenience the diplomat had experienced. In order to move the case further, they requested his flight information.
Dear Sir, we sincerely regret the experience you have had with us. This is not something good to hear. Please help us with your booking details via DM for us to highlight the same to the relevant team for necessary review.
— Air India (@airindiain) March 20, 2023
Another similar incident happened, on a SpiceJet flight. one of the SpiceJet passengers expressed his displeasure on Twitter after being forced to travel in a battered plane with tattered seats. He made a suggestion to the airline, “Sell this flight on Olx.
Pictures of the flight have gone popular on social media, with many individuals adding to their concerns about SpiceJet.In response to the tweet, the user said, “This is worse than buses. Lol!” Another Twitter user remarked that it would not sell on Olx and it’s a better deal for a scrap dealer.
Dear @flyspicejet , is flight ko @OLX pe beech do! pic.twitter.com/OxON9681g1
— Ashish Mundhra (@mundhrashish) March 7, 2023
Boeing today released the 2023 Commercial Aircraft Finance Market Outlook (CAFMO) showing another year of recovery and increased demand from aircraft financiers and investors.
Boeing to shift 150 finance and IT jobs to India from the US(Opens in a new browser tab)
The 2023 CAFMO is Boeing’s annual review of aircraft financing trends and assesses near-term market dynamics and financing sources for new commercial airplane deliveries.
An introductory video, presentation and regional financing data is available at www.boeing.com/CAFMO. Select highlights include:
- In 2022, the majority of Boeing airplanes were funded with cash due to strong operational performance and de-leveraging efforts by customers.
- While cash funding will continue to play a significant part in delivery financing, the use of capital markets, bank debt and export credit is expected to expand.
- 2022 capital markets activity was lower compared to its heightened activity recorded in 2021.
- Export credit agencies supported nearly 5% of Boeing deliveries in 2022.
- Lessor-supported deliveries will remain stable but may face competition from other financing sources.
The Boeing 2022 Commercial Market Outlook, a separate annual 20-year forecast addressing the market for commercial airplanes and services, reflects that the global market is recovering as Boeing projected in 2020. Demand for domestic air travel has made a strong recovery across a number of regions, with international traffic gaining momentum as restrictions ease, tracking to return to pre-pandemic levels by 2023 to 2024.
Timing and conditions of 737 MAX or other airplane model regulatory approvals, lower-than-planned production rates and/or delivery rates, and increased considerations to customers and suppliers; economic and geopolitical conditions in the United States and globally; general market and industry conditions as they may impact us or our customers; reliance on commercial customers, U.S. government customers and suppliers; the overall health of aircraft production system, as well as the other important factors disclosed previously and from time to time in The Boeing Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The distinctive livery of the world’s largest international airline, Emirates, has undergone a refresh. Eagle-eyed plane spotters and fans will immediately notice changes to the tailfin and wingtips. In this latest design, the UAE flag on the Emirates tailfin is much more dynamic and flowing with a 3D effect artwork, and the wingtips have been painted red with the Emirates logo in Arabic calligraphy “popping” out in reverse white. Passengers onboard with a window view will see the UAE flag colours painted on the wingtips facing the fuselage.
The signature gold “Emirates” lettering across the main body in English and Arabic is also bolder, and 32.5% larger. On the aircraft belly, Emirates has retained its iconic red branding which it introduced in 2005. The website URL “Emirates.com” has been dropped from the design.
This is the 3rd iteration of Emirates’ official aircraft brand colours. The original livery unveiled with the airline’s launch in 1985 had its first refresh 14 years later, with the delivery of Emirates’ first Boeing 777-300 at the 1999 Dubai Airshow.
The first aircraft to sport Emirates’ newest livery is A6-EOE, an Airbus A380, which has rolled out of Emirates Engineering this week after its makeover. Its first deployment will be to Munich on 17 March as flight EK51.
The new livery will be gradually applied across the rest of the existing Emirates fleet with 24 aircraft, including 17 Boeing 777s, expected to sport the refreshed livery by the end of 2023. All new Emirates aircraft, from the first Airbus A350 entering the fleet in August 2024 will be delivered in this new livery.
Emirates’ original livery in 1985 was designed by the UK design company Negus & Negus. All of the airline’s subsequent aircraft colours were created by its in-house design team. Over the years, Emirates’ numerous colourful and eye-catching aircraft livery have included bespoke designs to drive sponsorship brand association, and for special occasions such as the UAE’s 50th Jubilee livery, and Expo 2020 Dubai.
Spirit Airlines, a gate employee was caught on camera “maliciously” dumping items from a passenger’s luggage into the trash, and the company has now apologized for the embarrassing incident.
The employee, who works under a vendor contract, was captured on camera at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport looking through the luggage before pocketing a few items and throwing the rest away.
Wild weather leaves passengers on American Airlines flight vomiting(Opens in a new browser tab)
Keyonne Brooks told CBS News that he said that before leaving, he had a minor argument with the individual gate agent on fate. He requested a manager, but he had to board his flight before one could arrive. On February 19, when traveling back to Los Angeles after attending a funeral, he inadvertently unintentionally forgot his carry-on bag at the box office.
The briefcase never materialized, so Brooks ultimately filed a lost claim, according to the source. Then, consider submitting a public documents request to the airport to obtain footage from the gate security cameras. The gate employee can be seen placing Brooks’ bag behind the desk and keeping it there until the boarding process is complete in the video. Brooks claims that the gate agent was the same one with whom he had a disagreement before to boarding.
She rummaged through his bag, which included jewels and life-saving medications, while everyone had passed the exit gate. Another observed was her stuffing something into her pocket.
Her subsequent movement towards the garbage receptacle, where her employees joined in, is captured on camera. According to CBS News, woman can be seen tossing the pills into the trash. The incident was being captured on phones while her coworkers were laughing. After that, the gate agent throws everything—including the bag itself—into the trash can.
Spirit Airlines said the contract workers in the video have been suspended by the firm for which they work pending an inquiry, and that they are working to expedite reimbursement for the passenger’s items.
FAA Seeks to Lengthen Aircraft ‘Black Box’ Cockpit Recordings
US considering ban on Chinese airlines using Russian airspace ?
CAAC issues brief statement on China Eastern 737 crash
Passengers criticized the Air India and Spice Jet’s broken seats.
Boeing Forecasts Resiliency and Increased Growth for Aircraft Finance
Emirates unveils new signature livery for its fleet
Gate agent dumped passenger items into trash at armstrong international airport
Etihad Airways enhances interline and codeshare with six airlines
United Airlines Fired A Color Blind Pilot Who Could Not Fly
Qantas launches new inflight menus for its customers
Virgin Atlantic has a surprise for passengers who steal its salt and pepper shakers from flights
Woman’s ‘genius’ revenge hack for people reclining seats all the way on airplanes
United Airlines Blocking Seats Due To Passenger Weight
EasyJet Passengers Escorted Off Plane For Asking ‘Where They Should Put Their Luggage’
The B777’s new livery and impressive cabin of Air India pleased the customers.
Worlds Ugliest Aircraft
Boeing 747 jet clocked up just 42 hours in the sky is scrapped
‘Woman refused to move for my crying son after Ryanair double booked his seat’
Southwest Airlines’ two pilots are winning the internet after the airline received intense backlash for cancelling flights.
Aircraft comparisons between the Chinese-built comac C919 and the Boeing 737 max 8
-
Aerospace4 weeks agoTotal sales of Boeing, Airbus, and Embraer at Farnborough Airshow 2022
-
Aviation2 weeks agoAirplane cleaner becomes pilot after 24 years of hard work
-
Aerospace4 weeks agoThe A350 aircraft owned by Aeroflot could be delivered to Air India.
-
Airlines2 weeks agoCleanest Airport in Asia Pacific according to ACI
-
Airlines3 weeks agoThe most loved and hated airlines in the world
-
Aerospace4 weeks agoThis Embraer Jet is the best-selling light jet in the world for eleven years.
-
Airlines1 week agoIndigo’s livery appears on Turkish Airlines’ Boeing 777 aircraft.
-
Aerospace6 days agoTwo Spice Jet pilots were grounded by just one photo.
-
Airlines4 weeks agoJapanese flight with over 300 passengers sent back to starting point after 7-hour nightmare
You must be logged in to post a comment Login