Travel News

Icarus Award: Usual Suspects

Locations in this article:  Salt Lake City, UT

American Airlines monopolized the last edition of the Icarus Awards. Lucky for them, they are out of the spotlight this week and we’re back to the usual suspects—drunk passengers, misguided TSA agents, airport mishaps, and much more. Check out the past two weeks in travel failures in Lily J. Kosner’s Icarus Award.

50-Day Bender Ends with One Day in Court

Earlier this week, the FBI arrested Anatoliy N. Baranovich for attempting to open an emergency exit seat on a Delta Air Lines flight from Boston that had just landed in Salt Lake City. Baranovich’s outburst damaged the plane’s fuselage. He was restrained by other passengers and held until law enforcement could arrest him. Sitting down with the FBI, Baranovich confessed that he was just ending a 50-day bender, where he stayed drunk for all 50 days. Let’s hope he’ll be sober when he appear in court where he is facing federal charges.

Binders Full of Fees

Two weeks ago, Spirit Airlines cashed in on American Airlines loose seat issue with a 7.57 percent off promotion. This week, they’re trying to jump on Mitt Romney’s “binders full of women” viral gaffe. Spirit ran an email promotion noting, “We’ve got tons of binders full of sales…women will love them.” Points to Spirit for making the same joke as everyone else.

Can Do

Normally, it’s a bottle, not a can, that causes a car crash. On October 4, A food and beverage truck lost control and plowed into AirTran flight 725 in Milwaukee. This week, the driver of the truck spoke with investigators noting that a loose can caused the crash. According to his account, a can got stuck between the floor and the break, preventing the driver from stopping the truck and damaging the plane’s fuselage. No passengers or crew were harmed by the loose can.

Unchecked Bags

Employers always fire people on Fridays, and the TSA is no exception.  This week, the organization proposed letting go of 25 employees at the troubled Newark Liberty International Airport. An additional 19 employees were up for suspension. This is only the latest for Newark which saw eight employees fired this summer. In all cases, employees have been caught by hidden cameras failing to follow proper security proceedings.

Check-Out Time

Usually hotels go to great lengths to prevent theft, but not the Waldorf Astoria. Head over to the Waldorf Astoria New York’s Facebook Page that has an album celebrating hotel theft. The “Waldorf Amnesty” campaign is showing off some infamous thefts including silver spoons that were stolen 80 years ago. In addition to the Facebook album, guests can check out the returned bounty in the hotel’s lobby, no questions asked.

“It Started with a Spat” was the worst American Airlines failure. Check out the Icarus archives for winners and losers from all the airlines and airports. And cast your vote here.

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By Lily J. Kosner for PeterGreenberg.com

Related links: MSNBC, USA Today, CNN, Washington Post