The reader might wonder about the various components that go into the liveries and logos painted on the airplanes. What elements are most common? What is deemed attractive enough to be emblazoned on an aluminum tube?
Not surprisingly birds seem to rule the roost on most aircraft. It was the flight of birds that dared men to dream about flying and it was bird "architecture" that inspired airplane design.
Sometimes this extended to winged creatures, such as Pegasus or Mercury with the winged feet.
In the case of AdamAir, we may presume that they chose Icarus, who continues to be cited as a moral lesson about the danger of hubris, suggesting that someone who dares to fly too close to the realm of the gods will suffer for it.
How else can you explain their failure to keep flying?
A Boeing 737-300 passenger jet operated by Indonesian budget carrier Adam Air made a hard landing in the country's second largest city (Surabaya) Wednesday, damaging the aircraft and causing other flights to be diverted to Bali's Ngurah Rai airport.*
Natalia Budihardjo, a regional spokeswoman for PT Adam Skyconnections Airlines, said the aircraft encountered heavy rain and wind. (Does that mean that in future Adam Air will only operate in good weather?)
"The sudden stop of the plane was the best decision by the pilot for the safety of the 130 passengers," she said. (Really? The discomfort is supposed to be a comforting thought?)
An Adam Air flight crashed into the sea on New Year's Day, killing all 102 people aboard, and the airline has had a series of incidents since it was founded in 2003.
It's relatively good news then that the government has grounded all seven of Adam Air's Boeing 737-300s pending an investigation into the cause of the latest incident. And it's relatively bad news that they haven't grounded the entire fleet of c.19 given their appalling safety record, nor said that they shouldn't proceed with their plans to expand.
A load of ballsStill focussing on East Java, an International Geological Workshop has just concluded following an exchange of views about what triggered the mud volcano in Sidoarjo.
In essence, they say that it may have partly been the result of the movement of tectonic plates which had caused the massive destruction in the Yogyakarta area two days previously and it would have happened at some point regardless of whoever was drilling. This may partially exonerate Lapindo Brantas, owned by the Bakrie clan, which remains financially liable for compensation to the victims.
And probably no-one will be able to stop the mudflow.
James Mori, a geology expert from Kyoto University, Japan, stated he could not be certain when the mudflows would end and that up until now, there was no proper way of halting the mudflows.
"Perhaps, some brilliant people in Indonesia will be able to," he said.
And the 'brilliant' plan?
In the latest effort to brake the flow of hot liquid mud, the government has announced plans to drop 1,500 concrete balls in clusters of four linked by metal chains and weighing 800-1,000 pounds each into the mouth of the volcano.
So, the idea is to block the flow of hot mud which is being forced, under considerable pressure from the bowels of the earth, ever upwards. These massive balls will presumably cause constipation.
Mud volcanoes are often caused by a buildup of pressure from sediments crushed several miles below the surface that release methane and other gases. They are often found near oil and gas deposits, also caused by a crush of organic matter.
Don't these 'brilliant' scientists know what the result of blocked bowels is? I leave it to you to imagine the flatulence and its aftermath.
*Son No. 1 emailed me yesterday with the following tale: Further Indonesian aviation news reaches the UK that a Singapore - Sydney BA flight had to make an emergency landing in Bali after smoke engulfed the flight cabin.
Problem was that apparently the BA crew had problems making the Balinese Air Traffic Control understand the meaning of the word ‘Mayday’.
I can't find any confirmation of this, although it sounds all too credible, doesn't it?
