Michelle Knepper of Vancouver, Washington. Knepper picked a doctor out
of the phone book to do her liposuction, and went ahead with the procedure even
though the doctor was only a dermatologist, not a plastic surgeon. After having
complications, she complained she never would have chosen that doctor had she
known he wasn't Board Certified in the procedure. (She relied on the phonebook
listing over asking the doctor, or looking for a certificate on his wall?!) So
she sued ...the phone company! She won $1.2 million plus $375,000
for her husband for "loss of spousal services and companionship."
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Friday, March 22, 2013
Auto-pilot it ain't...
Mrs.
Merv Grazinski, of Oklahoma City , Oklahoma , who purchased new 32-foot
Winnebago motor home. On her first trip home, from an OU football game,
having driven on to the freeway, she set the cruise control at 70 mph
and calmly left the driver's seat to go to the back of the Winnebago to
make herself a sandwich. Not surprisingly, the motor home left the
freeway, crashed and overturned. Also not surprisingly, Mrs. Grazinski
sued Winnebago for not putting in the owner's manual that she couldn't
actually leave the driver's seat while the cruise control was set. The
Oklahoma jury awarded her, are you sitting down?
$1,750,000 PLUS a new motor home. Winnebago actually changed their manuals as a result of this suit, just in case Mrs. Grazinski has any relatives who might also buy a motor home.
$1,750,000 PLUS a new motor home. Winnebago actually changed their manuals as a result of this suit, just in case Mrs. Grazinski has any relatives who might also buy a motor home.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
The Good News Department.
TV1 tonight.
A pleasant little argument about Ballooning and Part 115...
According to CAA 33 organisations have signed up to Part 115 to save the general public and make aviation safer for the masses...a debatable claim.
The obvious omission is all the other groups who haven't. Perhaps the journalist could have talked to the skydive organisations that have closed down.
Or pointed out that not one of the Gliding clubs or commercial organisations have signed up (as far as I'm aware).
I must admit that CAA have managed the PR spin very well. Between smiling Yak operators, Vector articles, and pieces on the News, we and other adventure operators who have excellent safety records when dealing with the public have been shut out of the debate.
Leading up to the implementation of the regulation CAA claimed that at least 4 gliding clubs/organisations were intending to get a certification...where are these 4 groups?? It was a fiction of course...
Yes yes...I need to build a bridge and get over it...
On a brighter note...I was at Lake Karapiro at lunchtime to watch some Secondary Schools Rowing (Maadi Cup Regatta for those who know what that entails). The best looking sky I've seen in the Waikato ever...
The Maadi Cup is reputed to be the biggest Secondary School sporting event in the southern hemisphere...a big claim which is both hard to measure and test but who cares...it's big. Good to see lots and lots of kids in the age group we wish to bring into Youth Glide doing stuff.
A pleasant little argument about Ballooning and Part 115...
According to CAA 33 organisations have signed up to Part 115 to save the general public and make aviation safer for the masses...a debatable claim.
The obvious omission is all the other groups who haven't. Perhaps the journalist could have talked to the skydive organisations that have closed down.
Or pointed out that not one of the Gliding clubs or commercial organisations have signed up (as far as I'm aware).
I must admit that CAA have managed the PR spin very well. Between smiling Yak operators, Vector articles, and pieces on the News, we and other adventure operators who have excellent safety records when dealing with the public have been shut out of the debate.
Leading up to the implementation of the regulation CAA claimed that at least 4 gliding clubs/organisations were intending to get a certification...where are these 4 groups?? It was a fiction of course...
Yes yes...I need to build a bridge and get over it...
On a brighter note...I was at Lake Karapiro at lunchtime to watch some Secondary Schools Rowing (Maadi Cup Regatta for those who know what that entails). The best looking sky I've seen in the Waikato ever...
The Maadi Cup is reputed to be the biggest Secondary School sporting event in the southern hemisphere...a big claim which is both hard to measure and test but who cares...it's big. Good to see lots and lots of kids in the age group we wish to bring into Youth Glide doing stuff.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Airspace...who owns it?
This from the GAA website. There are implications for us. The one that comes to mind locally is the long term challange of operating off a fully controlled airport.
Access to the airspace in New Zealand is a right. I am sure that when Airways came into being in 1987 there was much debate and argument about the charging regime. Airways gave commitments and I believe part of its mandate with the Government was that it must facilitate access to the airspace for all users.
Controlled airspace and therefore Airways Corp exist for the sole benefit of the commercial users and fare-paying public. It provides no benefit at all to GA users (quite the contrary). Therefore all costs of its operations should be paid for by those who benefit – ie commercial users and fare-paying passengers. Since GA derives no benefit at all and is frequently frustrated or prevented from private activity by Airways’ presence, there should be no cost to GA.
The Australian and USA systems I have operated in actively promote and encourage GA users to be part of the system, thereby reducing airspace infringements and improving safety. Airways also does that, but the possibility of charges – no matter how small – will discourage it. People will modify their behaviour (often quite irrationally!) when there is a likely cost. This will lead to unsafe actions and decision-making, airspace infringements, non-compliance (turning transponders off, not talking on the radio, not asking for assistance when required, and so on).
Attempts to avoid charges will increase traffic in the narrow low-level transit lanes which are not suitable for high traffic flows.
Non-compliance which results in a mid-air collision will undo all of the savings and headlines such as “Airways charging regime root cause of mid-air disaster” will do nothing for the industry or the travelling public!
The costs to all parties of such a charging regime in administration will be prohibitive, thereby seriously diminishing the benefit. This will include arguments over whether or not a fee should have been charged, collection of small charges, refusal to pay, aircraft owners not being able to recover costs from pilots or not knowing if/when a charge has been incurred, and so on.
The correct actions would be:
1. Actively encourage not-for-profit GA use of the airspace and communication with controllers at no cost, and positively facilitate access.
2. Review the airspace in light of the modern commercial fleet of pressurised turbo-prop and jet aircraft which have steeper climb and descent profiles, higher cruise altitudes, GPS approaches etc, to free up all controlled airspace under 10,000 ft that is not actually required. All the areas outside the control zones should have their lower limits reviewed and the steps brought closer to the terminal.
3. Look to create VFR transit lanes over, as well as around, the large terminal areas that block large parts of the country, for example Auckland, Hamilton, Ohakea, Palmerston North, Blenheim, Nelson etc – wherever possible. I understand this happens in the USA.
♦ Tim is a CPL(A) D Cat with 40 years’ experience and about 4500 hours total time. He owns a PA18, teaches tail-wheel and flies a DC3 as co-pilot. He flew for Bell Air during early fights with Airways over charges in the late 1980s
Access to the airspace in New Zealand is a right. I am sure that when Airways came into being in 1987 there was much debate and argument about the charging regime. Airways gave commitments and I believe part of its mandate with the Government was that it must facilitate access to the airspace for all users.
Controlled airspace and therefore Airways Corp exist for the sole benefit of the commercial users and fare-paying public. It provides no benefit at all to GA users (quite the contrary). Therefore all costs of its operations should be paid for by those who benefit – ie commercial users and fare-paying passengers. Since GA derives no benefit at all and is frequently frustrated or prevented from private activity by Airways’ presence, there should be no cost to GA.
The Australian and USA systems I have operated in actively promote and encourage GA users to be part of the system, thereby reducing airspace infringements and improving safety. Airways also does that, but the possibility of charges – no matter how small – will discourage it. People will modify their behaviour (often quite irrationally!) when there is a likely cost. This will lead to unsafe actions and decision-making, airspace infringements, non-compliance (turning transponders off, not talking on the radio, not asking for assistance when required, and so on).
Attempts to avoid charges will increase traffic in the narrow low-level transit lanes which are not suitable for high traffic flows.
Non-compliance which results in a mid-air collision will undo all of the savings and headlines such as “Airways charging regime root cause of mid-air disaster” will do nothing for the industry or the travelling public!
The costs to all parties of such a charging regime in administration will be prohibitive, thereby seriously diminishing the benefit. This will include arguments over whether or not a fee should have been charged, collection of small charges, refusal to pay, aircraft owners not being able to recover costs from pilots or not knowing if/when a charge has been incurred, and so on.
The correct actions would be:
1. Actively encourage not-for-profit GA use of the airspace and communication with controllers at no cost, and positively facilitate access.
2. Review the airspace in light of the modern commercial fleet of pressurised turbo-prop and jet aircraft which have steeper climb and descent profiles, higher cruise altitudes, GPS approaches etc, to free up all controlled airspace under 10,000 ft that is not actually required. All the areas outside the control zones should have their lower limits reviewed and the steps brought closer to the terminal.
3. Look to create VFR transit lanes over, as well as around, the large terminal areas that block large parts of the country, for example Auckland, Hamilton, Ohakea, Palmerston North, Blenheim, Nelson etc – wherever possible. I understand this happens in the USA.
♦ Tim is a CPL(A) D Cat with 40 years’ experience and about 4500 hours total time. He owns a PA18, teaches tail-wheel and flies a DC3 as co-pilot. He flew for Bell Air during early fights with Airways over charges in the late 1980s
Monday, March 4, 2013
Youth Glide and Muhammad...
If the mountain won't come to Muhammad then Muhammad should go to the mountain...and so I headed off to Matamata to see the planning for the Youth Glide Camp.
Well done to Bill and the team...well done indeed.
So despite the odd bit of abuse your friendly blogger has attracted I'm pleased to report a number of developments.
Firstly, Piako is the base for a central Nth Is Youth glide initiative. It was always the best option with camp facilities on site, no airspace issues, no air traffic congestion, and its far enough away from other distractions to keep the major focus on gliding.
Secondly, and most importantly, there were a couple of youth gliders at the meeting. We oldies tend to think "we know best" but we need to accept that sometimes we don't. Rules like no cell phones..phooey...you want as many texts, tweets, photos, or whatever works, as possible.
Third, its a camp for a week...not an attachment to a club. Peer pressure works...just look at the Walsh flying School.
21st to 28th April.
I'll be there for most of the week, and will put GYL (Duo) in for free. Piako are putting their two seaters in for the week at a massive discount.
Well done to Bill and the team...well done indeed.
So despite the odd bit of abuse your friendly blogger has attracted I'm pleased to report a number of developments.
Firstly, Piako is the base for a central Nth Is Youth glide initiative. It was always the best option with camp facilities on site, no airspace issues, no air traffic congestion, and its far enough away from other distractions to keep the major focus on gliding.
Secondly, and most importantly, there were a couple of youth gliders at the meeting. We oldies tend to think "we know best" but we need to accept that sometimes we don't. Rules like no cell phones..phooey...you want as many texts, tweets, photos, or whatever works, as possible.
Third, its a camp for a week...not an attachment to a club. Peer pressure works...just look at the Walsh flying School.
21st to 28th April.
I'll be there for most of the week, and will put GYL (Duo) in for free. Piako are putting their two seaters in for the week at a massive discount.
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