He can say what he wants, and I believe there was a lot of political theater involved, but as a Captain I would not have subjected my passengers to such a dangerous experience. What does it prove if another 300 pax get slaughtered, even if its just by “accident”?
That’s the decision the Delta pilot made. Which is his and your prerogative, no problem with that. I suspect you’d have the same concerns flying into Yemen or the Ukraine. The question is why the FAA made the decision that Israel is more dangerous than Yemen, Pakistan or the Ukraine. Or Libya or Algeria. And why they changed their mind after no change on the ground. The threat to Ben Gurion today is the same as yesterday, the day before and two weeks ago when six or seven rockets targeting Ben Gurion were take down. I’ve no problem with a pilots decision, none with an airlines as long as it’s consistent relative to other war zones and wouldn’t were the FAA consistent, which it’s not. The obvious reason for the FAA’s inconsistency, at least to me, is to allow Kerry to make the case for economic pressure. Which he’s alluded to before.
I agree. It might be politics. Or it might just be that no bureaucrat wants to take the blame for 300 passengers dying because he did not issue a warning.