Before the Sukhoi Superjet smashed into a ledge on Wednesday, killing 45 people and raining debris down the slopes of Mount Salak, I had never heard the term “joy flight.”
The “joy flight” is the airline equivalent of you going down to the Ferrari dealership and taking a test drive. Or it would be if you were being driven in the Ferrari for fifty minutes or so, in a party atmosphere courted along with a bunch of other potential buyers.
The “joy flight” is a selling tool for the manufacturer. They host this ride for potential buyers to show off the features and quality/qualities of a new plane they are trying to sell.
Until the black box is recovered (we hope one was on the plane!), we won’t have any idea if the pilots had been asked to “buzz” the mountain, or if their request to fly low was a response to the heavy cloud cover. United Aircraft Corporation which built the Superjet says that pilot Alexander Yablontsev (who had logged 10,000 hours in Sukhoi prototypes) was their best test pilot, and had overseen “everything from the designing of the aircraft to its certification.”
Buzzing mountains renowned as an airline graveyard would not be the smartest thing to do, but everyone does wonder why the pilots requested to lower their altitude right over Mount Salak. Family members are already protesting the hazardous route that had been planned for the demonstration flight.
There were 35 Indonesians, 8 Russian crew members, 1 French and 1 American.
The American, Peter Adler was a consultant for Sriwijaya Air, a domestic Indonesian carrier. Adler had been born in São Paulo, Brazil to Auschwitz survivors, grew up in Los Angeles and leaves behind a wife Randi, and family.
Joy flight is a cruelly ironic term. In catastrophic loss of life cases, loss of joy can be considered part of the damages, as families inevitably remain haunted by the loss of their loved ones.
We offer our condolences, but we know how insufficient that is, as relatives are only beginning the harsh journey of grief that begins with shock and a sense of immeasurable loss.
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A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
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Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
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A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
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A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More
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Air Force Helicopter carrying 21 makes emergency landing near Agona Nkwanta
A Ghana Air Force Helicopter with registration number GHF 696 today [Tuesday, March 19, 2024] made an emergency landing Bonsukrom near Agona Nkwanta in the Western Region.Read More