Wanted: comedian with full pilot's license

This week's contribution to the 'this is not news' collection of ramblings: the guy responsible for the T5 catastrophe is off. We are unshocked. However, this does give us a super-tenuous link to the burning question that has been plaguing us since the last time we belted up and sat patiently waiting for an easyJet flight to take off.

The question is this - why are airline pilots so jolly these days? Because they are. Anyone who is as carbonly immoral or middle-class as we are will have continued to take the requisite 3 flights a year despite warnings of planet death, and will have discovered that the guy driving the plane seems to be cracking a hell of a lot more jokes. On our most recent jaunt we had a pilot riffing on the weather, making cracks about smoking in the toilets, and cheerfully berating us for not paying full attention to the safety demonstration. On past flights we have been more than entertained by in-depth descriptions of stewarding staff...

"For your pleasure today, Susie will be skipping merrily up the aisles with drinks, do feel free to ask her for anything else that you need, as she will definitely provide it with a smile."

Word for word. As noted in the Glitterditch Travel Diary, which currently consists of two airline napkins bonded together with sticky orange juice.

Why? Are they trained to do this? Is it some reaction to the terrorist threat, in which they aim to kill fear with laughter? Google has failed us miserably in this instance, so if anyone has the answer, or any amusing pilot jokes to share with us, please ease our pain in the comments box below.

Photo courtesy of johnwardell on Flickr.

Written by Nikki on 15 May 2008 9:24 AM. Permalink