Lazy Afternoon with a Hot Coffee

Was browsing through Amazon Japan before my trip for information on a couple of books to buy there. Came across this DVD, thought of buying it, but decided not to because of the price.



But as 'fate' would have it, I came across it while shopping for 'souvenirs' in Narita Airport.

This is the tiny, extremely un-eyecatching shop where the DVD, together with many other related aviation videos and goods are on sale.



Finally got down to watching it a couple of days ago. Stage of the documentary was set at Washington Dulles International Airport, where the controllers work with 7 runways.

Woah. Can't helping wondering-- we choose the runway in use based on wind direction. When the wind changes in favour of the other runway, we have to inform a ton of people and commence the change. Here, we only have 2 runways and are already feeling the frustration when we have to change. Wonder how those controllers at Dulles deal with SEVEN...

~Applause~

One statement in the video that left an impression on me-- "These controllers are responsible for more lives in a shift than a surgeon in a lifetime."

We all know what's at stake. We ask for the souls on board every flight in their first contact with us. They're just numbers on a paper strip, UNTIL something bad happens.

Isn't it pathetic/sickening/disgusting/sad that how the general public tend to judge the calamity of an air crash by the number of victims? The higher the number of passengers and crew on board a plane that crashed or had some kind of emergency, the bigger the spot it has in the newspapers.

Humans can be so shallow.

I can't deny I am one too.

posted by A Lone Fighter @ 2:03 AM