Posted on 01/17/2005 2:43:05 AM PST by Dallas59
If I may ask what this stands for?
Beggin Strips should have been strapped around the cage to distract it from eating the plane.
If I may ask what this stands for?
Transponder Collision Avoidance System
LOL. In all fairness, it would have indeed been tragic had something happened bc of the damage, but when it comes down to it, in this case, it's a hapless beast acting out of fear and instinct. Dogs may be intelligent but I don't believe any dog would have the intelligence to understand the possible consequences here. *ANY* dog, be it a pit bull, a Golden, or the commonest street mutt. Likewise any animal without a human there for them to pick up cues from. My first rat understood not to gnaw on my puter cables, but it's also bc she was perceptive enough to understand little cues I gave like watching her more closely or reaching towards her a bit. Animals may be perceptive as a part of their desire to please, and may certainly instinctively avoid danger at times, but they don't think on the same level as ppl...they just don't understand.
Traffic Collision Avoidance System. It picks up on radar transponder returns from nearby aircraft, shows their relative position and altitude on a display in the cockpit, and warns the pilot when other aircraft are too close either vertically or horizontally. The more sophisticated ones can tell the pilot whether to climb or dive to avoid a collision.
}:-)4
When the TCAS says "Dive! Dive!", is it followed by a klaxon making one of those "AH-OOOGAHHHH" like a sub's diving alarm?
(Sorry, couldn't resist! I'm a pilot and an ex-submariner.)
My girlfriend used to have two Pit Bulls. One day, she went to work - and their ball rolled underneath the bed. They ate through the mattress by the time she got home from work.
But, they were able to retrieve their ball.
Determined little buggers...
Another frightening account of a Pit Bull. Remind me to ask the next time I fly, if there is a Pit Bull in the cargo!!
By STEVE HUETTEL, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published August 15, 2002
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pilots heard a thumping sound as American Airlines Flight 282 approached New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport and guessed that a 68-pound pit bull in the cargo hold had broken out of its kennel.
Soon afterward, they couldn't figure out why backup radio and data communications equipment went out as the Boeing 757 descended into JFK.
After the flight from San Diego landed, the captain and the dog's owner went into the cargo compartment and were shocked at what they saw.
Not only was the pit bull running loose, but the dog had chewed and clawed a 18- by 8-inch hole through a fiberglass bulkhead and bitten through wires in an electronics compartment.
Alarmed by the damage, American banned adult pit bulls, Rottweilers and Doberman pinschers -- and related mixed breeds -- from its planes five days after the July 22 incident.
While the dog didn't damage equipment critical to flying the plane, it was the first time the airline heard of an animal getting loose in flight and damaging a plane, said spokesman Gus Whitcomb.
American decided there was too much risk to continue carrying breeds of large dogs it considered overly aggressive, he said,
"We're on unique ground here," Whitcomb said. "We don't know what spooked the animal, but we're trying to minimize the risk. The simplest way to do that is to prohibit these breeds from being taken on the airplane."
The Federal Aviation Administration investigated and did not recommend making any improvements to the 757, said Roland Herwig, a spokesman in the agency's Oklahoma City regional office.
The Transportation Security Administration's hazardous cargo division will also investigate and could recommend new procedures for shipping aggressive dogs. "They look at it as if a substance in a package got out and destroyed something," Herwig said.
Photos posted on American's Web site for pilots show at least four insulated cables severed in the electronics bay, which holds computers, wiring and gyros used for navigation. Pilots call the compartment "the brains of the airplane."
The damage was "a pretty significant event . . . cause for concern," said Sam Mayer, an MD-80 captain and spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association, which represents American pilots. "You hope it's a one-in-a-million event and you'll never see it again."
The aggressive dog policy has outraged groups representing dog owners. The airline is punishing responsible owners and unfairly stereotyping entire breeds of dogs as dangerous, says the American Kennel Club.
"This is a knee-jerk reaction to an incident that could have occurred with any breed of dog and is more an issue of making sure the dog is in an appropriate traveling crate," vice president Noreen Baxter said in a prepared statement.
American, the world's largest airline, transports about 14,000 pets and animals for zoos and charities each year, Whitcomb said.
The ban will inconvenience hundreds, if not thousands, of pet owners -- from reassigned military personnel to competitors at dog shows, said Walter Woolf, owner of Air Animal, a Tampa company that arranges pet transportation for people moving to new homes.
Last year, Continental Airlines stopped carrying pit bulls and any other animal that "is offensive or shows aggression," according to the airline's Web site.
"The animals are likely to get hurt when they're trying to chew out of the kennel," said spokesman Rahsaan Johnson. "A few occasionally get out of the kennel and on the tarmac. We don't want them attacking employees."
A few carriers, including Southwest Airlines, refuse to transport any animals.
American personnel followed all airline and federal regulations transporting the pit bull on the July 22 flight that carried 125 passengers and a crew of seven, Whitcomb said.
The dog was in an approved plastic kennel with the door securely shut, he said. American asks owners not to lock the door in case employees need to assist a distressed animal.
A narrative on the pilot's Web site said the kennel door was damaged "where the dog apparently ran into it with its head."
American won't take dogs as checked luggage during summer months. But the pit bull was shipped as air cargo, and the temperature in San Diego was below 85 degrees.
The dog damaged cables for one of two radio channels, a device for exchanging data with the airline's dispatchers and a backup navigation system, said Whitcomb, the American spokesman. Pilots considered diverting to another airport to check out the noise and equipment loss, the Web site said, but decided they were close enough land at JFK.
The 757 was out nine days for repairs but has returned to service, Whitcomb said.
American didn't publicize the incident or the ban on certain breeds. The American Kennel Club received questions from dog owners told last week that American would accept only pit bulls, Dobermans, Rottweilers and related mixed breeds between 8 and 12 weeks old.
"We've heard from dog groups we didn't know existed," Whitcomb said. "They figure we're singling out certain dogs. But our No. 1 job is safety, and we're going to take it seriously."
I ran this story by someone more knowledgeable than myself and was told two things, the dog turned out not to be a pit bull and that the restrictions AA enacted were short lived.
I won't say which breed because for one I've got no documentation to back up the assertion though I'm still looking and for another I agree with the statement in the article,
"This is a knee-jerk reaction to an incident that could have occurred with any breed of dog and is more an issue of making sure the dog is in an appropriate traveling crate,"
As to the ban mentioned in the article a search of AA's website yields this...
Types of Pets Allowed
"Dogs (American Airlines maintains the right to refuse acceptance of any dog that is exhibiting aggressive behavior.)"
There are no breed specific restrictions at present.
Embargo of American Pit Bull Terriers (Pit Bulls, Pit Bull Terriers)They have breed specific restrictions.
Continental Airlines will accept American Pit Bull Terrier puppies which are between 8 weeks and 6 months of age provided they do not weigh more than 20 lbs. All American Pit Bull Terriers more than 6 months old or weighing more than 20lbs. will be refused. This embargo does not apply to American Staffordshire Terriers, Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, or Miniature Bull Terriers. Crossbreeds with American Pit Bull Terriers are also excluded from this embargo. The purpose of this embargo is due to the aggressiveness of the breed and the danger presented to our aircraft and our customers.
C'mon now. I know a LOT of you on here don't like pitbulls, but do you have to go that far with it??!?!
Bump!
I'm not going to explain it...it would just take the mystery out of it! ;)
Whoa. Mysterious guys are haaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhtt.
Dooderbutt, you are SO haaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhtt.
Well, I'm actually a female! Perhaps haaaaaahhhttt, but I would assume not to you.
LOL. You are STEALTH, to boot. My apologies to a very funny gal.
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