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Northwest Airlines / Northwest / Pilots / Delta / Airlines / Airline News / Mistakes / → All Tags

An Update On The Northwest Airlines Pilots Who Flew Too Far

It seems like just yesterday that a couple of pilots flew a Northwest Airlines plane a little too far while they were distracted. We probably won’t ever know what they were actually doing, but with the punishment that was handed down, they won’t be doing it again anytime soon—kinda.

The pilots who missed the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport by that much have decided not to put up a fight about losing their licenses. However, they could eventually get back behind the controls. In an agreement with the FAA they can both reapply for their licenses this August, but there’s no guarantee that their paperwork will get the official government stamps. They even worked out some language into their agreement that makes it seem like they didn’t do anything wrong.

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Mistakes / Northwest Airlines / SAN / MSP / Airline News / Pitlots / → All Tags

Hijacking Was Feared In The Case Of The Northwest Plane That Flew Too Far

Have you ever been so engaged in a heated discussion while driving that you completely drive past your destination without noticing, although you've got the GPS on? It's hard to imagine, but that's exactly what two Northwest Airlines pilots are claiming happened to them on Wednesday, when they overshot their destination of Minneapolis by 150 miles, claiming they were distracted by their "heated discussion over airline policy and lost track of their location."

No one was hurt, and the plane eventually did turn back around and safely land in Minneapolis, although behind schedule and with some majorly freaked out air traffic controllers. You see, after the airport tower couldn't get contact with the pilots for over an hour, and then when they did they received vague answers, the controllers feared that the flight had been hijacked. Fighter jets in the area were scrambled and ready to fly, but weren't deployed once the NWA pilots finally got their heads on straight and completed maneuvers to prove that they were indeed in control of their own plane.

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GPS Travel / Italy Travel / Mistakes / → All Tags

GPS Typo Sends Swedish Tourists 400 Miles In The Wrong Direction

Mark this under "do not do": a Swedish couple vacationing in Italy had a hankering for the tropical charms of the island of Capri, and so programmed their GPS of their rental car to show them the way. At least they though they had set it for Capri; instead they miss-typed and ended up being directed 400 miles out of the way to Carpi, Italy.

Upon arrival at the Carpi tourist office, they reportedly asked where to find the famous Blue Grotto. As for what else transpired, we'll let the Carpi tourism official tell the story:

Capri is an island. They did not even wonder why they didn't cross any bridge or take any boat. Once they realised their mistake, the couple got back in their car and headed south.

There had to have been so many stupid mistakes made and overlooked for this to even happen: GPS units usually display a map and your location name, they would have been heading further and further inland, and did they not even read signs on the highway? Oh well— they're now the subjects of a BBC story; that's something to write in their postcards home.

Related Stories:
· Swedes Miss Capri After GPS Gaffe [BBC]
· GPS Travel Coverage [Jaunted]

[Image: Google Maps]

Mistakes / Maps / BMI / Israel / → All Tags

BMI Wipes Israel Off the (In-Flight) Map

Imagine for a moment that you are traveling with a major airline, and winging your way from one major world city to another, but your destination fails to appear on the in-flight entertinament LiveMap. What do you do? If you're an Israeli heading home from London on a BMI plane, you file a complaint against the airline with your tourism ministry, and get that stuff fixed before it becomes an international incident.

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Mistakes / Travel Brochures / Beaches / Spain Travel / → All Tags

Costa Brava Brags About Its Great Beach With a Snapshot from Perth

With our giant soft spot for Australia we probably would already have voted Down Under beaches ahead of Spain's Costa Brava, but now the Spaniards have done it themselves. In a recent resort brochure for the supposedly beautiful Spanish coastline, they used a picture of a Perth beach by mistake. Ooops.

If you, like that resort, suspect Western Australia's beaches might be prettier than the Costa Brava, then you could check out City Beach, which was used for the Spanish ad. Along the same city coastline, Cottesloe Beach is also famous for atmosphere and easy train route access; a little north of the city, Scarborough Beach is one for the teenagers and surfers.

Of course, the beaches across Oz might all be better than the Costa Brava--just check our top five Sydney beaches to start your comparison. And when daydreaming over Spanish vacation brochures next, don't forget to wonder if what you're seeing is really Down Under.

Related Stories:
· Costa Pertha in Spanish Resort Promotion [The Age]
· The Five Best Beaches in Sydney [Jaunted]
· Perth Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo of Cottesloe Beach, Perth, not the Costa Brava: Ole Reidar Johansen]