Howdy

[Robert Watcher]

HOWDY One of the best Spirit flights.

Some of the instructions from the lead attendant:

"Flying from Fort Lauderdale to Detroit ... If you aren't going to Detroit, hurry and let me know before the door closes"

"Please turn off your cell phones and electronic devices ... If you are having trouble, we have a 9 year old here in the front who can help you."

After landing in Detroit:

"Letting you know that we have arrived 20 minutes early .... Sorry about that .... Please let your friends know ..... We know that you do when we are 20 minutes late"

After deplaning instructions:

"For those who feel the need to smoke .... Just quit."

I asked the significance of Howdy hand painted on the wing tip. The attendant said is was probably a guy in a cubicle that thought it would be funny.



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[Tom dinning]

I'm not a nervous passenger in a plane, Wolfgang, but I do have a tendency to take things seriously, especially with the attitude of the pilot and crew.
For example, when the announcement tells me I'm landing 20 minutes early I'm expecting to land in the ocean 200km short of the runway.
If they have a 9 year old up front, what the **** is he doing there? Not flying the plane, I hope.
Other things that concern me is the rigorous attention to an escape plan. Along with that is the need to know about flotation jackets when I know full well there is nothing between me and my destination but desert.
I once saw a pilot heading for my plane with, what appeared to be an instruction manual in his arm. He was reading profusely as he walked. He also appeared to be younger than my grandson.
There is a comforting feeling when I hear an Aussie accent over the PA but I am also aware of the carefree approach Aussies have to driving.
I do note that the 'Howdy' sign is on the wing tip; probably the last thing you will see as the plane sinks into the ocean.

I do hope you arrived safely, Wolfgang.

 

[Andy brown]

Sh!t Tom, I'm pretty sure Wolfgang arrived safely given that he only had to make it from the kitchen to the settee (couch).
Robert on the other hand ran the gauntlet of the seedy side of downtown somewhere, past the drug lords, a couple of gangs, took his chances with some sketchily prepared enchiladas, past an active exorcism, some sort of voodoo sh!t, curare blowpipe wielding rebels, sat in a minibus with a coca chewing driver hellbent on setting the Central American record for getting you there dead or alive...... Plane journey.... Pfffft!

 

[Tom dinning]

Sh!t Tom, I'm pretty sure Wolfgang arrived safely given that he only had to make it from the kitchen to the settee (couch).
Robert on the other hand ran the gauntlet of the seedy side of downtown somewhere, past the drug lords, a couple of gangs, took his chances with some sketchily prepared enchiladas, past an active exorcism, some sort of voodoo sh!t, curare blowpipe wielding rebels, sat in a minibus with a coca chewing driver hellbent on setting the Central American record for getting you there dead or alive...... Plane journey.... Pfffft!

Oops!
Wolfgangs and Roberts all look the same to me.
Sounds good to me.
I understand the risk involved in getting to the airport. The airport route here is littered with bodies.
The dangers here include Long Grassers recovering from the morning drinking session and laying down on the outbound lane of the road, God Squad cyclists, pit bulls jumping from Utes, the occasional bush fire, croc and snake, and a load of compost heading for the tip. Minor stuff, I know, but life threadening never the less.
Still, a plane with Howdy on the wingtip is not re-assuring to me. Nor is that bit sticking up. Is that a thing with planes these days? Does it second as a keel when the plane goes seaward?

 

[Wolfgang Plattner]

Oh come on! ))))
Thanks for the story, Robert ...

 

[Robert Watcher]

I like one photographers observation - who saw this image - that the inclusion of the writing on the wing is almost like Street Grafitti. I was glad to have ridden on this plane so I could capture it.