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United pilot to passengers: We're turning around because our plane's too big

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The text alert from United Airlines sounded ominous. "Your 2:13 p.m. United flight to Chattanooga is delayed because of unforeseen circumstances,'' it said. "This is an unusual situation and we're working hard to solve it. We value your time and we're sorry for the inconvenience.'' Unusual was putting it mildly. And the "situation" wasn't news to the 50 passengers on Flight 5277 on Oct. 16. They received the alert after the problem arose,… (www.usatoday.com) More...

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Foxinthehouse1
Foxinthehouse1 12
E175s have landed here many times but only with American that I have seen. I assume because this was a United Flight which I have never seen have a E175 here they probably did not have a tow equipment for it. KCHA has had 777s, and even the presidential 747. They make it seem like the airport is to small when its Uniteds ground equipment issue.
FloridaFan34
James Steiner 7
Other airline ramp crews are not trained on SkyWest's policies and procedures
SmokedChops
SmokedChops 5
okay, not trying to be a smartbutt, but can anyone definitively tell me what is unique to the E175 that warranted a 'wave-off' at this particular airport? Did the Brazilians come up with some sort of bizarro ground power port? Or is it more of a paper-logistics issue "ground crew was not checked out on connecting the tug to the E175, only the E190 and E145ER" or, was it a ground equipment issue? "your tow bar is not long enough, pal" (...surely dispatch or the PIC would have said "I don't recall flying one of these into here before". Either way, they pissed away a fair amount of money, jet-A, and more money. Hopefully this will pop up on someones performance review, so its frequency of occurrence will stay low.
sparkie624
sparkie624 11
The title is kind of misleading, the Plane was not too big.... A better title would have been: "We're turning around because the station can't handle our plane!"

Someone in "Skywest's SOC" really made a blunder! This was totally preventable.
CaptainFreedom
Kind of misleading....more like 100% incorrect. A little foresight would have prevented this dumb error.
djjamar
Jamar Jackson 4
Line service may not have had the equipment to service tow and fuel the plane.
mduralia
Mike Duralia 1
Looking at the tracking info Ken provided, perhaps the pilots were only VFR trained and couldn't see the state of TN yet alone the airport....
ed7778
Reminds me of trying to fly from LAS to DEN on Pioneer when the airline dispatched a plane too small to accommodate the booked passengers.
lynx318
lynx318 1
United didn't have enough credit on their fuel card for the Embraer???😜
Cansojr
Cansojr 2
HA HA HA HA!
kdhurne
Ken Hurne 1
Flightaware tracking page
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/UAL5277/history/20181016/1923Z/KORD/KORD
spammyh
Sam Hernandez 1
At least they got a grand tour of southern Indiana.
watkinssusan
interesting mistake..most airlines rampers understand basic push back and baggage loading/unloading as commuter planes do not very that much..the issue is usually the jetbridge accommodation for the height/length of the plane ..airlines do on occasion borrow or lend equipment,and the station managers charge each other for it..airlines do not cross utilize employees,but in cases of unfamiliar aircraft,usually there is a supervisor who does handle the situation...
Highflyer1950
Highflyer1950 1
I would think a quick call to AA operations and a borrowed tow bar would do the trick. Belt loaders are all pretty much the same as are the headsets and hand signals! A United supervisor on hand to oversee everything and the job gets done. Airlines do help each other out.
sparkie624
sparkie624 2
They probably would not have loaned it to them, but they may have rented it, but there are other issues... For example and foremost would be training... To push back the United Rampers may not be familiar with opening and closing the cargo bin, Fueling Requirements and more... The FAA is very strict on such things.
spinoneone
Fire the dispatcher. This is his/her screw-up.
pjshield
pjshield -1
You nailed it, Paul. That's the bottom line!

saso792
saso792 6
Seriously? I suppose the two of you have never made an error in your life? The incoming rocks are going to be hard on your glass houses.

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