Quote:
Originally Posted by speeder
Not sure there was a pilot involved. Sounds like it was being towed by the little tug boat on wheels when it happened.
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Yup, it was the tug driver. Pilots don't drive out of the garage.
Tug drivers are one of our best business generators. I could go on and on regarding their "skills".
One of the best was in Jordan. The crapped out third world tug pushing a brand new 787 back from the gate had a carb fart and lit all of the accumulated grease and grime under its hood on fire. Didn't kill the engine. The driver panicked and ran away from the flames, leaving the tug right under the nose of the shiny new airplane. Coulda pulled the pin at least, and driven it a few yards. But, nope...
It sat there roasting the airplane until it finally did kill the engine. First fire truck shows up to shoot it all with foam, and its pump is dead. Second fire truck shows up to attempt it with water, but the hydrant was dry. Third truck shows up and douses it with the wrong kind of foam, engendering a massive case of hydrogen embrittlement on parts that would have survived.
I spent a long time in Amman on that one. Beautiful place, though. Gave me the chance to float in the Dead Sea on the "other side", looking back across at the West Bank. Was told to be sure to be out of the water before dark, because anyone crawling out of the water after dark gets shot. Nice place...