jakeandelwood wrote: ↑Mon Oct 22, 2018 9:00 am
Any info from a flight attendant should be taken seriously, Helios 522 comes to mind, I don't know the workings of a 737 but if a flight attendant had informed the pilots the passenger oxygen masks had deployed maybe the pilots would have caught on to the real problem in time?
What you say is very correct about taking information seriously and one should not think that I would suggest otherwise. All I am saying is that there are cases where bad information is given. Each situation is different. In the Helios case, if one got information about O2 masks deploying, it might be time to take appropriate action(such as donning an O2 ask, levelling off with terrain considerations in mind and analyzing the problem of why the horn that you though was the takeoff configuration horn is sounding.
7ECA wrote: ↑Mon Oct 22, 2018 5:56 am
I really don't see what you're looking to accomplish here, by cherrypicking the random occurrences in which a pax (or crew) report of fire/smoke or some other possibly serious incident - which luckily turns out to be a non-event, is?
I am simply pointing to another example of what the title of the thread says.....Another example of the bad info pilots can be given. Diversions due to smelly boots, dust from ducts, etc. You are correct that it is random but it obviously happens on occasion. I will continue to post examples as I come across them as a reminder.
7ECA wrote: ↑Mon Oct 22, 2018 5:56 am
You've called FAs ditzes with no aviation experience,
No...now you are giving bad info. I said some are ditzes(I used the term 'occasional' actually), which includes ones with very little and in some cases a fair amount of experience. Sorry, the truth is not very nice sometimes. Some prefer to hide it, I prefer to just acknowledge reality.
7ECA wrote: ↑Mon Oct 22, 2018 5:56 am
So only proper pilots can confirm these events, although I don't imagine many pilots are particularly keen to take a leisurely stroll through the cabin when the back end is reporting fire...
Depending on the situation, you may want to at least ask more detailed questions. When the word smoke is used and you ask what colour it is(or some other appropriate question) and discover that it is really some fumes, you might realize that it is not smoke and might be something else(like the smelly boots in the ATR example).
7ECA wrote: ↑Mon Oct 22, 2018 5:56 am
How about in the Harbour Air case then, you're flying a single pilot machine - you can't take that stroll. You turn around to take a look, but there's a bit of cabin back there and maybe you can't see or smell anything amiss, but the pax are pretty friggin' sure they've seen and smelt smoke. Probably nothing, but since when do we treat potential smoke/fire as a nonevent?
Probably no big deal for the DHC-3 driver going back to land on the water. Some aircraft have oceanic diversion airports as far away locations and are not the kind of places you really want to go, even when the weather is good. Actually, the same can frequently be said over land as well. In the case of the DHC-3, if the pilot smelled smoke, he has confirmed what the passengers said and it would be reasonable to land. However, I guarantee you he did not smell or see any smoke.
7ECA wrote: ↑Mon Oct 22, 2018 5:56 am
How about a situation in which you're flying some sort of a twin, lets call it a member of the King Air family, and a passenger reports seeing oil streaking down the cowling, what would you do, ignore it?
Hmmm....how about doing what I suggest...go back and take a look(or just look out the cockpit window) if there is no other indication for corroboration. Would hate to divert to some marginal airport for PT-6 exhaust stack soot("sorry captain, I was sure that the black stuff was oil. By the way captain, how realistic is that Airplane movie starring Leslie Nielson?").
I have seen oil running back on the cowl many times on the old 737-200 while riding in the back. I knew it was normal and never said anything but I bet other pax have over the years. Some on this thread might panic and divert to the nearest so-called suitable airport....just in case(because the pax were "pretty friggin' sure" that there is a massive oil leak).
This pic is actually less oil leaking than I have frequently seen.
https://www.google.ca/search?biw=1280&b ... bLfxyDBnlM:
As an interesting aside..... as a pax, I did report a fuel leak to the pilots of a Beech 99 many years ago while on the ground. It started from the nacelle tank after the right prop came out of feather(King Air and 99 pilots should check for this on every flight anyways). I actually had to report it twice before they shut down to look into it further. Eventually the cap was replaced. I guess I gave the pilots good info that night.