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12 bizarre reasons for flight delays
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6. Plugged up
A passenger freaked out as the plane was taxiing out to the runway because an earplug became lodged so far up his ear that he could not retrieve it. He was frightened that the air pressure would cause it to lodge even farther possibly causing permanent damage. The cockpit was alerted and after a 90 minute delay, the captain himself got out his personal tweezers and performed a successful removal procedure.
7. Gender specific
I was once pulled off of a Germany flight to work on the more senior Tel Aviv flight, when a group of passengers demanded a male flight attendant in accordance with their religious beliefs. I was happy to go, but the other female flight attendants were not as happy with the situation.
8. Chicken or beef
A captain who was fed up with his airline decided to make a stand and declared that he would not depart until his special meal arrived. Two and a half hours later a catering representative finally brought his meal and the flight finally departed. He has since retired, much to the chagrin of his wife, I am sure.
9. Erupting delay
I have encountered previous delays due to natural disasters like earthquakes, blizzards, tornadoes, and even hurricanes, but have you ever heard of a delay due to a volcano? Mount St. Helens erupted and delayed all flights in and out of the Northwest. It would have been interesting if we were eventually able to fly by and see the display, but no such luck. All we got was a three-hour delay and news coverage.
10. Lucky delay
Leaving Las Vegas, a passenger won over $350,000 on a slot machine waiting for his flight. Understandably, he forgot about his flight and refused to leave the machine until his win was confirmed. Since he had checked bags, the airline had to search and remove his luggage. Somehow I don’t think he was too concerned about his luggage.
11. Haunting delay
I have heard of creeping delays but never a haunted one. An airplane that had previously been in an incident involving multiple fatalities when a cargo door ripped off in flight, was considered haunted by many crewmembers. Years later, the captain did his routine briefing with the flight attendants and wisecracked that the airplane they were on was indeed the same refurbished aircraft. Two very superstitious crewmembers immediately called in sick, delaying the flight until replacements were found.
12. Mother’s milk
A female captain who was forced to return to work too early after giving birth routinely delayed her flights in order to pump for breast milk. She had no problem announcing the reason for the delay, citing it as safety related and her company wisely refrained from making an issue of it. Having a pilot wife who recently gave birth to our second son, I will refrain from commenting as well.
Those are my wildest stories. Do you have any others? Send them to me — and don’t delay.
James Wysong is a veteran flight attendant who has worked with two major international carriers. James recently released a new book, “Flying High With A Frank Steward: More Air Travel Tales From the Flight Crew.” For more information about James, visit his Web site or send him an e-mail.
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