SuperDDS From United States of America, joined Mar 2007, 3 posts, RR: 0 Posted (6 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 5 hours ago) and read 9214 times:
This was a routine trip from San Francisco to Houston on United Airlines Flight 0378 on Friday, March 23, 2007.
About half way into the flight, at 35,000 feet, the flight attendant announced that they had reports of turbulence for the remainder of the flight, so they would be suspending beverage service and they asked everyone to return to their seats and fasten their seat belts. My wife is frightened by turbulence, so she grabbed my arm really tight and held on, expecting the worst.
About a half hour later, the flight attendant made a further announcement that "if it becomes necessary to evacuate the aircraft after landing, we should leave our personal belongings behind and move to the nearest exit as quickly as possible". This announcement terrified my wife even more, and she cried for the remainder of the flight. I explained that turbulence is nothing to be afraid of, but she said that they wouldn't be talking about evacuating the aircraft unless something else was terribly wrong.
As it turns out, there was no turbulence whatsoever, and this smooth flight ended with an uneventful landing at Houston Intercontinental Airport. Now I'm wondering if my wife was right. Do you think that there was really something else wrong that they were not telling us about? How can we find out what REALLY happened on United flight 0378?
EK20 From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 1, posted (6 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 5 hours ago) and read 9151 times:
Quoting SuperDDS (Thread starter): How can we find out what REALLY happened on United flight 0378?
Does it really matter now? You're still here and still in one piece. When it's your time to go there aint going to be anything you can do about it so stop worrying and start living.
Clrd4t8koff From United States of America, joined Mar 2005, 225 posts, RR: 0 Reply 3, posted (6 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 8845 times:
Quoting EK20 (Reply 1): When it's your time to go there aint going to be anything you can do about it so stop worrying and start living.
I can see how some may take this as insensitve, but the statement is right on. You can either start dying to live or keep living to die. Why worry about something when nothing happened? UA did what they had to do, which was prep you for an event, should something happen. Obviously, since the trip report is here and so are you, nothing happened and I don't think you will find out if anything was truly wrong.
SuperDDS From United States of America, joined Mar 2007, 3 posts, RR: 0 Reply 4, posted (6 years 1 month 2 weeks 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 8758 times:
I think I may have been misunderstood. I am an instrument-rated private pilot, and I'm not afraid of dying in a plane crash, and I don't worry about things I have no control over.
I'm just curious about why United made that announcement, when it was so obviously upsetting to some of the passengers. Has anyone ever heard instructions about airplane evacuation during a flight? For turbulence? Do you think it is standard procedure for United to instruct passengers about evacuation whenever an airplane encounters turbulence? I'm just curious . . . do you think that something else may have been going on, and if so, what?
September11 From United States of America, joined May 2004, 3623 posts, RR: 23 Reply 5, posted (6 years 1 month 2 weeks 5 days 6 hours ago) and read 8243 times:
ILUV767 From United States of America, joined May 2000, 3141 posts, RR: 8 Reply 6, posted (6 years 1 month 2 weeks 4 days 18 hours ago) and read 8022 times:
Both were standard announcements that United does. If the turbulence gets to be moderate or higher, the crew is asked to take their seats to prevent risk of injury to themselves and others.
After the flight deck crew announces "Flight Attendants prepare for landing" the flight attendant staff will then make an announcement stating: "Ladies and Gentlemen, in preparation for landing, please bring your seatbacks upright, please lower your headrests and put your tray tables away. At this time please make sure that all portable electronic devices are switched off and that all carry on items are stowed. If an emergency evacuation becomes necessary, leave all carryon items behind." The safety video says the same thing about leaving personal items behind in an evacuation. The logic behind saying that is that people in the past have tried to take their personal items with them in an evacuation, slowing down an evacuation and endangering others. If an evacuation becomes necessary, leave everything and get out. If you remind people not to take things, then most likely they wont.
There was nothing out of the ordinary that happened in those announcements.
Tu154 From United States of America, joined Dec 2004, 366 posts, RR: 4 Reply 7, posted (6 years 1 month 2 weeks 3 days 15 hours ago) and read 7681 times:
Pilots make announcements about turbulence and such, and advise f/a's to be seated. The landing announcement includes, "if an emergergency evacuation becomes necessary, please leave all carry on items behind.(as stated in the previous post this is "official" UA announcement.
Scared of turbulence?? why? Is she scared of the wind on the beach? Turbulance is not much more than wind at a high altitude. This really does not belong in the trip report section.
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SuperDDS From United States of America, joined Mar 2007, 3 posts, RR: 0 Reply 8, posted (6 years 1 month 2 weeks 3 days 12 hours ago) and read 7616 times:
Quoting ILUV767 (Reply 6): After the flight deck crew announces "Flight Attendants prepare for landing" the flight attendant staff will then make an announcement
Thanks for the responses. The only catch is that the announcement abvout evacuating the aircraft was made at 35,000 feet, about 90 minutes from our destination, with forecast turbulence ahead of us, and NOT as the flight attendants were reparing for landing. I have heard that standard announcement many times over the years, but not in that circumstance. This was just a sentence about evacuating the aircraft, and not the standard before-landing instructions. On our return flight 3 days later, United did not make any announcements at all about aircraft evacuation.
It just struck me as odd, considering the effect it had on many of the passengers.
FlyDreamliner From United States of America, joined Jan 2006, 2759 posts, RR: 15 Reply 10, posted (6 years 1 month 1 week 5 days 4 hours ago) and read 6762 times:
If someone is that terrified of flying, you can't really blame the airline for that. They do their job. They get reports of turbulence, they pass them along for everyone's safety. The plane might hit that turbelence, it might not. It's better for them to be on the safe side. I think most people would rather announce it when they get the report of turbelence and risk someone terrified of flying being uncomfortable (which is something, btw, you may want to deal with before flying) than risk someone getting injured when they are walking about the cabin and the plane hits some rough air.
The pilot and FA's are just doing their jobs and trying to keep everyone safe. I am sorry if your wife is made uncomfortable by air travel, I can understand how that could be terrifying for her, but really it is something that can't be helped.
"Let the world change you, and you can change the world"
Boston92 From United States of America, joined Aug 2006, 3390 posts, RR: 7 Reply 11, posted (6 years 3 weeks 5 days ago) and read 6193 times:
Quoting Tu154 (Reply 7): Scared of turbulence?? why? Is she scared of the wind on the beach?
I am not trying to be rude in any way shape or form, but that has to be one of the most un-thoughtful, inconsiderate, ignorant comments ever posted on this website. Believe me, I get you scared ****less by flying through turbulent weather.
"Why does a slight tax increase cost you $200 and a substantial tax cut save you 30 cents?"
Mike89406 From United States of America, joined Mar 2007, 1266 posts, RR: 3 Reply 12, posted (6 years 3 weeks 4 days 15 hours ago) and read 5948 times:
Quoting SuperDDS (Reply 8): Thanks for the responses. The only catch is that the announcement abvout evacuating the aircraft was made at 35,000 feet, about 90 minutes from our destination, with forecast turbulence ahead of us, and NOT as the flight attendants were reparing for landing. I have heard that standard announcement many times over the years, but not in that circumstance. This was just a sentence about evacuating the aircraft, and not the standard before-landing instructions. On our return flight 3 days later, United did not make any announcements at all about aircraft evacuation.
I think this sums up you're question basically you're saying that this such announcement was made out of routine and not the norm. Quite odd if you ask me.
Ayubogg From UK - Scotland, joined Mar 2007, 216 posts, RR: 0 Reply 13, posted (6 years 3 weeks 2 days 15 hours ago) and read 5584 times:
This would make me angry. As an airline enthusiast, I still get some sort of nervousness when strong turbulence happens. I know that even I would get panic at an announcement like the one this FA gave about evacuating. If I would've been on this flight I would have not hesitated on asking around the crew after the flight what those annoncements were all about.
MarkHKG From United States of America, joined Dec 2005, 960 posts, RR: 2 Reply 15, posted (6 years 1 week 1 day 13 hours ago) and read 4534 times:
If this was an actual emergency situation (thankfully, it wasn't!) , the flight attendant would have read from a pre-arranged script. This would typically begin with the lights being turned to bright, and over the PA the following announcement starts:
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, MAY I HAVE YOU ATTENTION PLEASE. THIS IS YOUR PURSER SPEAKING. THE CAPTAIN HAS INFORMED ME WE WILL BE MAKING AN EMERGENCY LANDING IN ( minutes) REQUIRING AN EVACUATION USING THE SLIDES."
Or something along those lines.
Following this script is typically mandatory among carriers; flight attendants cannot "make it up as they go" or try to make changes to the script.
Maybe the F/A in this case felt the need to be overly-cautious. Or perhaps the captain suggested the need to do a precautionary disembarkation. I do agree that the announcement you stated would scare most people.
I do hope your wife is feeling better; reading from your description I feel awful she had to experience that.
Release your seat-belts and get out! Leave everything!
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