Lovefly Blog: Malaysian Flight 370

This was in a popular UK newspaper recently....

Be careful what you read and let into your head. This is an article written about the co-pilot of that flight.   Here is some of the article reprinted below and our comments follow:

Daily Express 15th October 2019
Mr Shah has come under intense scrutiny, with some suggesting he went on a suicide mission, after allegedly “practising” the route on a home flight simulator.  However, Mr Hamid has also come under the spotlight in two documentaries which revealed he allegedly broke flight rules by having guests in the cockpit and smoking mid-flight. 

In 2011, he invited two women – Jonti Roos and Juan Maree from South Africa – into the cockpit during a one-hour flight from Phuket, Thailand, to Kuala Lumpur.  In ITN’s 2016 documentary ‘Malaysia 370: The Plane That Vanished – Air Crash investigation’, it was revealed this meant “there are questions about the character and professionalism of the 27-year-old”.  

Malaysia Airlines said in a 2014 statement about the claim: “Malaysia Airlines has become aware of the allegations being made against First Officer, Fariq Abdul Hamid which we take very seriously.  “We have not been able to confirm the validity of the pictures and videos of the alleged incident.  “As you are aware, we are in the midst of a crisis, and we do not want our attention to be diverted.”


However, experts have said this incident does not mean Mr Hamid would commit a crime as horrific as killing 238 people.

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Our Comments

Bad news sells newspapers.  We are all still interested to know what happened to that flight. It is terribly sad for the families just not knowing.  We also want to know as we care about other members of the human race. This is all normal.  

The problem is that if you are a nervous flyer, you will be reading ALL of the articles around incidents like this.  Unfortunately, it doesn't do you any good. If you have a strong fear of flying, all this does is 'feed the fear.'

By all means, scan the news but don't believe everything you read.  Especially any comments that include phrases such as 'experts have said...'  

Who are they?
What are they 'experts' in?
What did they actually say?

This type of article makes us really, really angry.  There is a lot more that we could say about this type of article but nothing that can be published!

That's it for now...

Take care,

lovefly team


loveflyteam@yahoo.com

Lovefly Blog - Dad Flies Plane to Spain

Myth versus Reality!

If you are a person scared of flying, you definitely spotted this story recently:

Family's easyJet holiday flight is delayed - so dad flies the plane to Spain himself...

There are a few things to say about this scenario because they weren't mentioned in the articles and news that came out...  

Myth:

So, anyone who is a pilot can fly the aircraft if they happen to be there?  How safe is that?!

Reality:

• The pilot worked for EasyJet so was familiar with all its policies and procedures
• The pilot had his airside ID with him so he could go to the aircraft as crew not just as passenger
• The pilot was trained and current on that actual aircraft type (you can't just fly any aircraft)
• The pilot was rested in line with national standards and airline regulations
• The pilot would still have had to do all the normal briefing and checks before they took off
• Wearing jeans or wearing a uniform has no effect upon flying ability!  (as far as we know)

'Hi there, this is your undercover Captain Speaking...'

Hope that was useful context?

Lovefly Team

P.S. Apologies to any commercial pilots reading this blog.  We know you hate the shortened version of 'Plane' and prefer Aircraft or Aeroplane... Just reporting it as it is written.