At least Spirit will hold the crash safety record for forever
Posted by No_Key9643@reddit | aviation | View on Reddit | 103 comments
Posted by No_Key9643@reddit | aviation | View on Reddit | 103 comments
agree-with-me@reddit
Everyone laughed at Spirit and now they're fine and it's a tragedy. Humans are fickle and now will be paying higher airfare as competition dwindles.
rotardy@reddit
I keep seeing this around the sub. It’s great and all but they had a lot of help since they started the airline in the 90’s rather than the 20s.
retiredaaer@reddit
QANTAS. Southwest
Whisky-354@reddit
Both have had hull losses, the QF 747 that went golfing in Bangkok was not economically repairable but they did it anyway so they could say not jet hull losses (there were others in the early days, including one shot down by the Japanese in the second world war).
wrongwayup@reddit
Not a crash per se but someone on board was killed and the airplane was a loss https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southwest_Airlines_Flight_1380?wprov=sfti1
rafapova@reddit
I don’t think frontier airlines has ever had a fatal crash either and they’ve been around about just as long
BillWilberforce@reddit
Qantas hasn't had a fatal crash since 1951. Half of its crashes were during WW2, including one aircraft shot down by the Japanese.
AltoCumulus15@reddit
Nor have Ryanair, but don’t be surprised that Americans don’t look beyond their own borders for “records”
rafapova@reddit
Yeah Americans are stupid and the rest of the world is completely cultured.
AlexG55@reddit
I have heard rumors that Qantas have repaired aircraft where it might have been a better economic decision to scrap them, so they can maintain their "never lost a jet" record.
Not sure if it was VH-OQA (A380, uncontained turbine disc failure in 2010), VH-OJK (747-400, explosive decompression in 2008) or VH-OJH (747-400, runway excursion in 1999)- all 3 aircraft returned to revenue service with Qantas.
badkapp00@reddit
United repaired a 33 year old Boeing 767. Very likely to prevent an insurance claim and higher premiums across their fleet.
United B767 repair
chizzle@reddit
Holy I just flew on this exact plane last week from Rio to IAH. Was shocked they were flying a 33 year old plane.
anahorish@reddit
The story is typically told about the runway excursion — that that would have been a hull loss for any other airline.
debuggingworlds@reddit
BA have done the same in the past. The 777 that burned down in Vegas was well past economical repair, rumour has it Boeing did them a deal to stop it being a hull loss.
asmrhead@reddit
Qantas has dodged a few bullets. The A380 engine explosion in particular could have easily led to a fatal crash, they got super lucky with the chunk distribution of that turbine disc when it came apart.
yeahalrightgoon@reddit
"No fatal accidents in the jet age" and apart from a runway overrun in Bangkok on 1999, the only accidents they've had in the jet age is due to malfunctions that weren't the fault of Qantas. Such as an engine blowing up due to a fault from Rolls Royce, faults in the autopilot that caused the plane to ascend or descend sharply, and a oxygen tank that exploded in 2008.
domiciledhere@reddit
War makes a perfect record difficult.
BillWilberforce@reddit
Also that they were using converted bombers, mainly Lancasters/Lancastrians as troop carriers and for air mail. Then after the war they used some tiny little Australian made aircraft. Mainly for rural, rough runway landings.
ThirdSunRising@reddit
Southwest has been around since 1974 and has killed exactly one passenger. Ever.
It was an uncontained engine failure. The plane didn’t crash.
Oh, they did once manage to kill a motorist when the overran the runway and hit a car…
But not damn bad overall considering their size and length of operation
illimitable1@reddit
Does Frontier actually fly? I've mostly had cancelations with them, so I'm not sure if they actually fly real airplanes. That could impact their safety record in a positive way.
rafapova@reddit
Funny
Mr_Chicken_Parm@reddit
Although a small company, Hawaiian Airlines was around since 1929 with no fatal accidents.
Jackmino66@reddit
They’re one with the spirits now…
Fun-Cauliflower-1724@reddit
They skimped on everything except safety it seems like, or maybe they just got lucky
Dotcaprachiappa@reddit
That's the case with basically all western airlines. Skimping on safety will only accomplish getting your airworthiness certificate revoked and being permanently grounded. Not a good business decision.
spastical-mackerel@reddit
Same with Ryanair. Tryna “save” on maintenance is about the most expensive mistake an airline can make
GrafZeppelin127@reddit
Imagine trying to convince an MBA of this in other industries. Probably like trying to teach a snail differential equations.
SnooHesitations3841@reddit
Or like trying to teach an MBA equations!
idiotslob@reddit
GrafZeppelin127@reddit
I swear, the only thing they appear to teach those types is “RENT SEEKING = GOOD!” Maximize short-term extraction at all costs, regardless of long-term business health.
I worked in the hotel industry in several roles at a semi-premium chain while putting myself through college. You would not believe how penny-wise and pound-foolish the corporate side of things and franchise owners were. They would self-inflict the most asinine damage to the building, IT infrastructure, employees, etc. to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars of lost business just to try to go with the cheapest possible option.
At least the actual management, department heads, and supervisors that worked at the location and the regular employees under them had an incredible sense of friendship, camaraderie, and unity, at least, because both groups absolutely detested the upper management and owners.
Salsalito_Turkey@reddit
Do you think Spirit had nobody with an MBA? The Reddit hate for MBAs is so bizarre to me. It’s like hating all actuaries because United Healthcare is a shitty insurance company.
GrafZeppelin127@reddit
Notice how I said ”in other industries.” Aviation is sufficiently intolerant of shortsighted bullshit that they’re largely inoculated against the rampant short-termism that characterizes them elsewhere.
RaechelMaelstrom@reddit
I only partially learned differential equations.
algebra_77@reddit
As someone who took up to partial diffy Q, it's one of those things that for most people it's a tool you learn about as a means to an end. A third, maybe forth grad-level class is needed for the "full" picture.
A PhD in math is great for one's mind, but you need to be something of a trust fund baby (or very fortunate at an early age) for it to be a feasible life path. Deciding you like math as a college sophomore at a mid-level university is an exercise in "too little, too late" for those who need an income.
Eggonioni@reddit
I ordinarily learned them too.
GrafZeppelin127@reddit
Yeah, they’re a bit cumbersome. Especially taxing on the mind of a snail—you can barely get them to learn basic algebra.
3rd-party-intervener@reddit
They took safety seriously. They were also in the top for on time. It’s sad what happened
OttSound@reddit
Easy to be on-time when you just cancel any flight that might be delayed
Yummy_Crayons91@reddit
They didn't skimp on anything, as an airline they operated just fine outside the P&W GTF issues. Professional pilots, crew MX, dispatch, etc. They were just a zero-frills model
Double_Resort_9223@reddit
Took a lot of push back from their pilot’s union. They probably wanted to skimp there but weren’t allowed to.
EmotioneelKlootzak@reddit
"Do you have any idea how expensive crashing is?! Do we look like we're made of money?!" - somebody in Spirit's finance department, probably
Nadamir@reddit
You kid, but I’m pretty sure RyanAir actually did say a morePC version of that. (They also have an excellent safety record and are absolute mad lads on Twitter.)
ziekktx@reddit
Probably made the flight crew put down a $200mm deposit before each flight.
Independent-Ad-8531@reddit
Any crash means a high probability of death for the pylotes. No money in the world could too that?
s0ul_invictus@reddit
We just saw a video here today of a toga that should've been missed before dh, nearly crashed, this kind of risk taking could be reduced with greater consequences. personally i think flogging is the way, but money might work. we should try flogging first.
GrumpyOldGeezer_4711@reddit
Lol, that sounds like one heck of a motivational tool!
”When you’re the captain you can fly with all the warnings you like, this is MY flight and MY deposit so it gets fixed!“
CatPicturesPlease@reddit
Eh I think pilots have plenty of other strong motivations not to crash their planes
YU_AKI@reddit
Like what?
275MPHFordGT40@reddit
Not dying, not killing 200 people.
ApprehensiveFactor98@reddit
Mostly not dying in a huge explosion.
No_Gap6448@reddit
“They were not, in fact, made out of money.”
hongooi@reddit
To be fair, making financial incentives align with policy objectives is part of the art of good policymaking
akacarguy@reddit
“Let’s focus on safety! Good. Cheap. Safety.”
K2step70@reddit
Hawaiian Airlines would like to have a few words with you!
b17reach@reddit
For those not in the loop. Hawaiian Airlines has never had a fatal crash or hull loss in their history. It’s even more impressive when you consider that they fly all over the vast expanses of the pacific where there is nowhere to land if shit hits the fan. Which may not seem impressive considering the reliability of modern planes. That is until you realize that they are almost 100 years old.
Cherry_Crusher@reddit
Crash safety but not passenger safety. Spirit was sponsored by World Star
BeaumainsBeckett@reddit
Much cheaper to cancel flights & pay for everyone to stay the night in Fort Lauderdale
fabi0x520@reddit
I guess it was a solid airline
siouxu@reddit
How fast this sub went from Spirit bad to RIP Spirit you were so good is breakneck
asmrhead@reddit
Spirit as an employer was pretty good to work for. Spirit as an airline gave "budget minded" travelers an option to be treated like self-loading cattle for a discount. And for a while they were HUGELY profitable at doing so.
Praefectus27@reddit
People always compare very different products. Spirit got you where you needed to be safely. I’ve never understood how so many can hate on the fact they get in a giant metal tube fly through the atmosphere like magic and want to be treated like kings for the whole 2 hour flight. When literally 100 years ago it took weeks of grueling road travel to get across the country or a week on a train.
EmotioneelKlootzak@reddit
200 years ago you'd spend a month in a ship or on a wagon, and nonzero number of the people you left with would be dead before you got there.
fabi0x520@reddit
I mean, true but I can't say for sure how they were, I only posted that comment because the article in the OP had a pic from Metal Gear Solid for some reason
But anyway, from what I understand Spirit was for the US what Ryanair is here in Europe, and if there's something I can say about Ryanair is that everyone talks shit about them, but people won't think twice about buying those 50€ round trip tickets to Ibiza. So I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case for Spirit too.
Paper_OCD@reddit
the metal gears inside the airplane engines surely helped
thissexypoptart@reddit
I believe the wings also helped generate lift. And you could sit on the seats without phasing through.
Siiver7@reddit
Yeah, sometimes when I fly other airlines, one second I'm asking for peanuts, then suddenly the person besides me vanishes through the floor. Pretty jarring.
PissOnYourParade@reddit
This is a solid "geared turbofan" reference that clearly flew right over peoples heads ... unlike any of Spirit Airlines aircraft ...
Rerrun@reddit
its also a solid metal gear reference
omega552003@reddit
What?! Metal Gear..s!!!
Jzerious@reddit
When you can’t even say my name
Th3FUCKINGLiz4rdKing@reddit
That animal Blundetto
isaacMeowton@reddit
Say that again....
xyeahtony@reddit
not having a fatality in 30 something years is not an accomplishment. They're competing airlines that started in the 1920s when air travel was far less safe lol.
Alphamedon@reddit
Fuck elizabeth warren.
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ABystander987@reddit
May not of been the greatest in terms of a lot of things.
But they excellent in 2 things.
Arriving and leaving ON TIME.
and SAFETY.
Honestly.. the only 2 things that should matter.
KnowledgeSafe3160@reddit
Huh? Spirit was horrible for being on time. Only on time 70% of the time.
Jazzlike_Climate4189@reddit
On time 70% of the time, every time.
ABystander987@reddit
Hmm usually ran on time whenever I flew. Eh maybe luck of the draw? But fair enough. Guess the numbers are against them in that regard too.
Throwaway_inSC_79@reddit
Having worked at other airlines adjacent to them, in an out station, they were the only airline that had maintenance come out to check the aircraft out on every flight arrival. When Spirit outsourced the station, the maintenance guys remained Spirit employees. When our flights delayed due to maintenance, we had to wait for a guy to come from 45 minutes away and hope he had a roll of speed tape with him. When we eventually contracted with Spirit for maintenance, we were thrilled.
professor__doom@reddit
So that's why they're bankrupt. They failed to deliver on their promise of turning people into spirits.
CrimsonEnigma@reddit
Passengers didn’t pay the “safe landing avoidance fee”. 😔
Lord-Glorfindel@reddit
I thought they existed to serve the unruly customers drunk on spirits.
CrossBamboAtTen@reddit
Hawaiian hasn’t had a fatal crash once in nearly 100 years.
Peardc10@reddit
Actually that belongs to Sun Country
U2ElectricBoogaloo@reddit
But when you factor in the passengers themselves, just how safe was it?
capn_davey@reddit
Exactly. I’m also curious about the number of injuries and deaths onboard the airborne Greyhounds.
petoskey_stone@reddit
Rainman approved
Antelope-Subject@reddit
Just like KMart underwear.
petoskey_stone@reddit
Hanes 32
Antelope-Subject@reddit
Cincinnati Ohio
et_hornet@reddit
Ball knower
Kaiisim@reddit
Why are people so upset by Spirit going out of business?
Honest question, never heard of them before now!
airpab1@reddit
Maybe because 17,000+ good people just lost their jobs… That would be one reason
10tonheadofwetsand@reddit
Because they provided negative price pressure on the other airlines and were a cheap/the only alternative for people who otherwise couldn’t afford to fly.
Marwheel@reddit
Russian eagle also had such a flawless record too i think…
darksidathemoon@reddit
They were true patriots, and nobody will remember their sacrifice
SkyeMreddit@reddit
They sucked in every way except safety. Lawsuits are expensive so they made every effort to avoid them by actually being safe
shrekchan@reddit
Sad when they go young like that
Neat-Asparagus-579@reddit
Kept you waiting
tigernet_1994@reddit
Rain Man will now have to change his line. Spirit. Spirit never crashed.
TomVonServo@reddit
Honestly I had no idea they’d been around that long.
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