27 September 2013

Dear Marlborough Express...

Yesterday you asked some interesting, but if I may say rather, unfortunate questions on your reporting of a sparrow artfully flying into the cockpit of an Air New Zealand aircraft on Monday. The passengers had to wait to board for an hour and once they were seated, their pilot informed them they had been delayed trying to extricate a sparrow from the cockpit
 
You then reported, An Air New Zealand spokeswoman said yesterday the flight had been delayed by a "crewing issue".  The spokeswoman was asked to explain the disparity between a "crewing issue" and a sparrow. 
 
It's a simple answer... on all the aircraft flying into Blenheim there is only seating for two flight crew. Notwithstanding the need of the third crew member not having need of a seat, its tendency to fly around the cockpit would indeed cause a serious "crewing issue"
 
You then commented that Air New Zealand did not respond to questions from the Marlborough Express about how the bird came to be in the cockpit, or why it took so long to catch and release the bird outside. Really? When was the last time you went out to Woodbourne Airport? The plane lands, the door opens, the door stays open until boarding is completed. And as for trying to chase a bird out of the cockpit - if it has Air New Zealand ground staff trying to catch it in an extremely limited when it finds a gap to fly away it is going to head in straight line - right into the main cabin.
 
It's a pity, it could have been a good story
 

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