Last nights Saturday Night Live had a segment that aviation geeks may enjoy…
Continue reading: Saturday Night Live Spoofs Alaska Airlines: Kind Of Funny
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According to P.T. Barnum, no such thing as bad publicity. Sometimes you just have to run with it.
They should spoof Boeing that apparently thinks job requirements have nothing to do with one's prior job experience, skills, education and aptitude.
If i was Alaska airline I would probably be using that video as evidence in the upcoming lawsuit against Boeing...funny though, and that comes from a 10+year 75k/100k about to board AS853 SEA-HNL
I am just wondering when are they going to extend Alaska Companion Fare Certificate.
Okay, maybe a little funny but totally inappropriate since the problem is with Boeing (this plane was delivered brand new in October 2023 so Alaska technicians didn't have any responsibility). The parody's should have been with Boeing and rightfully so, since all they try to do is cut costs, have established "too cozy" a relationship with FAA inspectors and this whole idea of "self policing" is ridiculous.
The snipes about life raft deploying in flight was NOT even an Alaska Airlines incident and the snipe about shutting of engines midflight was also outrageous given that the flight crew managed the incident with full professionalism and safety.
I hope that the DOD is far stricter with Boeing on quality and process.
So, SNL which is ultimately owned by Comcast (worth US$81 Billion in 2022) spoofs Alaska Airlines (worth 'just' US$3 Billion in 2022) instead of the real culprit Boeing (worth US$130 Billion)....funny how these really huge sprawling corporations stick together and always gang up on the smaller players and ultimately we, the public..
As a frequent TATL traveler I expect equipment which has a pressurization problem not be simply restored to service. This aircraft displayed a pressurization warning twice leading up to the incident. NOT GOOD. If the President of the US were to be flown they would use other equipment. My life is IMHO just as worthy.
Decades ago I twice developed crushing head pain while landing on domestic flights at BRI, a pilot sitting next to me surmised the equipment wasn't pressurized correctly. I began using trains rather than certain airlines in Italy.
@Donato The President also drives in an armored car called the beast and has a minimum of 10 secret service agents protecting him when he moves. The level of safety for the world's most powerful person is different than for you and I.
If someone can figure out how to turn this into higher patronage, revenue, and/or stock price for Alaska, then they deserve to be in leadership, as that's very unlikely to happen.
Brian W, you do have a point. I just meant to point out that based on multiple pressurization issues there is blame on the airline as well as BA.
I will refer back to my post. I stated that IMHO my life is just as worthy. Sadly, the airline industry might no think the same way.
It *was* unfair to Alaska. And also incredibly funny. And we know SNL pulls no punches with anyone. They do need to take a shot at Boeing as well, but Alaska was a far easier target.
People forget that Alaska Airlines made a conscious decision years ago to become an all-Boeing Airline. As such, they have tied their reputation to Boeing, for better or worse. It looks like they may have made the wrong decision.
At this stage, it will be difficult for Alaska (like Southwest or Ryan Air) to reverse themselves. Airbus has such a superior product in the 320 family. I suspect that Alaska, flying out of Seattle, did not want to lose Boeing's travel business by flying the Airbus.
As Alaska grows, Boeing will make up an increasingly smaller share of Alaska's revenue. What Alaska does will Hawaiian Air's Airbuses will be insightful.
It was a really hilarious segment on SNL, well put together! It's also kind of ironic that Alaska decided to ditch all these Virgin America A320s a few years back and ordered the 737 Max instead. I would not be surprised if there was a bit of remorse amongst the management.
Oh my, do you really think SNL is a news source? SNL are no more a news source than Fox or Newsmax. It's comedy, satire, and friggin' funny for anyone who was ever a frequent flyer; all have some stories to tell, but none - thankfully - like this one. And, yes, the underlying problem is Boeing. Besides, I love the final reference to Spirit which I absolutely avoid.
Very funny. Loved the last line: "Alaska. Still better than Spirit"
And Alaska does have some responsibility for this. Reminds me of the AirAsia crash some years ago. That plane also had multiple warnings, but maintenance just reset the computer to get rid of the warning, instead of replacing the part that ultimately caused the fatal accident. The crash analysis concluded that careful inspection should have spotted the damaged part...
Great skit....... I'm an AS 100K and LMAO more than a couple times!! Seriously, AS needs to be a little more serious about warning lights, etc. In the end BA is the primary culprit along with their sub Spirit Aero Systems in the totally F-uped quality issue(s) here!! Get ready BA to pay up to both AS and UA for all of the "inconvenience" you caused them and their customers!! $$$$$
I doubt that there is remorse. Of course they wish this hadn't happened, but they made the best decision based on the economics they were offered.
Right now what AS needs is some clarity from Boeing and the FAA. If there is a systematic problem with the plug door or some other issue, then announce a long term grounding. If there isn't, get the planes flying again. It's not fair to the airlines and traveling public to drag this out for no good reason and they have enough information to decide if it will be long term or not
They operate based on standards set by Boeing. That fault was not one that required the aircraft to be removed from operation. They removed it from ETOPS operations and apparently even that wasn't required.
It was funny but pretty brutal. I guess with how terrible SNL has become, they figured they didn't have much to lose.