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14 Aug 2011 21:25

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U.S.: Andrew Cuomo sure flies around a lot using taxpayer money

  • bad A little while back, cost-cutting New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie got a lot of crap over taking a helicopter to his son’s softball game. He ended up repaying the costs of the plane ride, but he didn’t apologize, claiming that it was important for him to be a good father.
  • worse Now, his neighbor directly to the north, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, is facing similar scrutiny, but in his case, he used state aircraft to fly 19 times between his girlfriend’s place in Westchester and his job in Albany. Should we judge him for this? source

10 Aug 2010 21:05

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U.S.: Ted Stevens plane crash: Why flying in Alaska is almost necessary

  • As we’re sure you’ve heard, Ted Stevens died in a plane crash. Looking beyond the man’s history (a long-standing Alaska senator who finished his career in scandal) and the crash itself (which killed five and injured four others, including a top aerospace executive), it’s good to point out a little bit of the culture around why Ted Stevens, who was 86 years old at the time of the crash, was in a small plane in a remote region of Alaska, rather than, say, on the road. Simple answer: It’s pretty much the best option available. source

Alaska: A state built for small planes

  • 1.3 the number of pilots per 100 people in Alaska source
  • » Why? Simply put, Alaska has a very complex geography which makes it impossible to drive to the many small towns that pepper the state. So instead, they fly. In fact, there’s a whole cottage industry around flying in small aircraft, or air taxis, as the natives call them. So, as a result, it has a higher pilots-per-capita than any other state by far.

Stevens: Synonymous with planes in Alaska

  • Stevens was no stranger to planes, or plane crashes. In 1978, Stevens survived a plane crash in Anchorage that killed his first wife, Ann. It’s also worth pointing out that Ted Stevens has an entire airport named after him, the “Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport.” Will they keep the name? It’s going to be a strange reminder of a man who died in a plane crash.

14 Jul 2010 21:49

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U.S.: Iroquois lacrosse players find nebulous space without passports

  • Somehow, a tribe that recognizes lacrosse as a sport doesn’t recognize passports. Members of the Iroquois lacrosse team, who had gotten a one-time waiver from the U.S. government, couldn’t get the same from the British government. The tribe uses their own non-standard passports, not American ones, creating a weird area even beyond the realm of exception. (Oh yeah: In case you’re wondering: Lacrosse originated with the Iroquois and Huron tribes, not douchey high school students.) source

03 Nov 2009 10:01

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Offbeat, Tech: Afraid of flying? There’s a (wait for it) iPhone app for that

Virgin Atlantic Airways claims a 98% success rate for its “Flying Without Fear” course, which now has an iPhone version for fearing flying on the go. source

14 Sep 2009 10:29

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02 Aug 2009 11:40

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World: A plane in Indonesia disappeared shortly after takeoff

  • 15 people were on board the missing Indonesian plane source

29 May 2009 14:18

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Biz: Southwest, looking for revenue, stares hard at kids and pets

  • $50 charge for children traveling alone on an airplane, round-trip source
 

26 Apr 2009 20:53

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Sports: This NASCAR race had it all: Crashes, injuries, and flying debris

  • 7 were injured when Carl Edwards’ car went flyin’ at Talladega source

16 Mar 2009 23:34

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Offbeat: A rapping flight attendant – hey, why the heck not?

This dude’s a camera phone, YouTube sensation. And he raps! He’s way cooler than a rapping dog! source

02 Jan 2009 08:19

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U.S.: Muslim family barred from AirTran flights

  • What happened The family, scheduled to fly yesterday, was detained after a passenger misconstrued comments they made about the “safest” spot to sit. The FBI questioned them and released them, but AirTran would not let them on another flight. source
  • What happened The family, scheduled to fly yesterday, was detained after a passenger misconstrued comments they made about the “safest” spot to sit. The FBI questioned them and released them, but AirTran would not let them on another flight.
  • Airtran says The family, who was headed from D.C. to Orlando on vacation, had the FBI’s go-ahead but not AirTran’s. Despite not booking the family on another flight, the company offered the family full refunds and an opportunity to fly for free in the future. source