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UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

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Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#31

Post by aftbit »

netsharc wrote: post #13
anonym00se1 wrote: post #9

"Wife is on the plane. Guy had a speaker named bomb. He just confessed to it. He said he named it forever ago and forgot about it. He’s 16 years old. Wife’s friend is sitting next to him as they are questioning him."

Man, looking forward to hear the phrase of "out of abundance of caution". What a fucking stupid overdose of caution and CYA. Would an actual bomber actually name their device "Bomb"? Chances are, not. Is the broadcast a "bomb threat"? If so, does it disappear if the device is switched off? And if the continued broadcast is perceived to be an active threat, and it persisted even after they turned around, at what point…

Yeah this is really dumb. If someone really wanted to cause harm, they would just name their device "April's iPhone" or something. If they really wanted to send a threat, they'd pass a note to a flight attendant or name it something like you said.

I get the "abundance of caution" mentality and it's a big part of why airplanes are so safe. But at some point, pilots _have_ to assume that the rest of the apparatus has done its job. They have to assume that when maintenance clears them, the plane actually works (at least with some degree of trust). And they have to assume that when security lets people on the plane, those people don't have bombs.

That doesn't mean they need to ignore the evidence of their eyes and ears, just that they should apply some base level of reason and logic to the situation.

Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#32

Post by mejthemage »

bombcar wrote: post #30
Wowfunhappy wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, the passenger was reportedly a 16 year old. They are not generally known for being the most intelligent.

Hey! When I was 16 I was the smartest to ever live! Apparently something happened afterwards …

Lol username checks out?

Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#33

Post by netsharc »

aftbit wrote: post #31
netsharc wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Man, looking forward to hear the phrase of "out of abundance of caution". What a fucking stupid overdose of caution and CYA. Would an actual bomber actually name their device "Bomb"? Chances are, not. Is the broadcast a "bomb threat"? If so, does it disappear if the device is switched off? And if the continued broadcast is perceived to be an active threat, and it persisted even after they turned around, at what point…

Yeah this is really dumb. If someone really wanted to cause harm, they would just name their device "April's iPhone" or something. If they really wanted to send a threat, they'd pass a note to a flight attendant or name it something like you said. I get the "abundance of caution" mentality and it's a big part of why airplanes are so safe. But at some point, pilots _have_ to assume that the rest of the apparatus has d…

Yeah, it's all CYA and following procedures, who wants to take responsibility for any decision, "not me, I don't want to get sued and be in debt for 7 generations if I get it wrong"... so the bullshit rises all the way of the chain of idiots until someone thinks "Let's just play it safe and turn around, because if there's an actual bomb onboard, turning around will make it not explode!"

Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#34

Post by aftbit »

netsharc wrote: post #33
aftbit wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah this is really dumb. If someone really wanted to cause harm, they would just name their device "April's iPhone" or something. If they really wanted to send a threat, they'd pass a note to a flight attendant or name it something like you said. I get the "abundance of caution" mentality and it's a big part of why airplanes are so safe. But at some point, pilots _have_ to assume that the rest of the apparatus has d…

Yeah, it's all CYA and following procedures, who wants to take responsibility for any decision, "not me, I don't want to get sued and be in debt for 7 generations if I get it wrong"... so the bullshit rises all the way of the chain of idiots until someone thinks "Let's just play it safe and turn around, because if there's an actual bomb onboard, turning around will make it not explode!"

This makes me idly wonder what would happen if a Bluetooth device appeared mid-flight with a title like "Bomb will explode if we do not land at LAX before 3 pm" (on a flight to LAX scheduled to land at 2:30 pm or whatever). The idea is... what if turning around is explicitly given as the actual trigger? Would they still turn around out of an abundance of caution? Kinda like Speed I guess ... gotta go fast to be safe.

Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#35

Post by netsharc »

aftbit wrote: post #34
netsharc wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, it's all CYA and following procedures, who wants to take responsibility for any decision, "not me, I don't want to get sued and be in debt for 7 generations if I get it wrong"... so the bullshit rises all the way of the chain of idiots until someone thinks "Let's just play it safe and turn around, because if there's an actual bomb onboard, turning around will make it not explode!"

This makes me idly wonder what would happen if a Bluetooth device appeared mid-flight with a title like "Bomb will explode if we do not land at LAX before 3 pm" (on a flight to LAX scheduled to land at 2:30 pm or whatever). The idea is... what if turning around is explicitly given as the actual trigger? Would they still turn around out of an abundance of caution? Kinda like Speed I guess ... gotta go fast to be safe.

That'd be a great way of getting your flight to LAX very very quickly, probably even with military escort. But of course afterwards you'll be stuck at the tarmac while a million police and military surround the plane figuring out what to do.

Don't try this at home, kids, (I mean, in the sky).

Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#36

Post by LoganDark »

bombcar wrote: post #30
Wowfunhappy wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, the passenger was reportedly a 16 year old. They are not generally known for being the most intelligent.

Hey! When I was 16 I was the smartest to ever live! Apparently something happened afterwards …

How do you know everyone else wasn't just dumb instead? I know I feel that way sometimes.

Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#37

Post by simulator5g »

Cyan488 wrote: post #26
victorbjorklund wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It was in the luggage compartment. Even if he had thought about it he probably would not.

I wonder if the speaker had built in lithium batteries too.

Devices with built-in batteries are ok for checked bags in the US (though, the temperature swing isn't good for their long term health, and whichever airline you choose may have their own further restriction on that). It's just removable batteries that must be removed.

Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#38

Post by ai_slop_hater »

gizmo686 wrote: post #21
ai_slop_hater wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do real bombs have bluetooth?

The type of bomb people worry about for airplanes typically are not built to code. They do need to have some form of dedinator, and tying that detonator to a Bluetooth control seems like a design that someone might come up with.

> They do need to have some form of dedinator, and tying that detonator to a Bluetooth control seems like a design that someone might come up with.

So much doesn't make sense to me. First, if for whatever reason you decided to blow up an airplane, why would you need to wait for so long, that the plane can turn around and land? Why not blow the airplane as soon as all passengers are on board, or at least when the plane is high enough in the air that when it is blown up, no body can survive the fall? It also doesn't make sense to use a Bluetooth detonator, because Bluetooth only works at short range, i.e. the detonator would have to also be on the same plane as the bomb. If you are ok with blowing yourself up as well, why not directly detonate the bomb without a remote detonator?

Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#39

Post by simulator5g »

tamimio wrote: post #15
anonym00se1 wrote: post #9

"Wife is on the plane. Guy had a speaker named bomb. He just confessed to it. He said he named it forever ago and forgot about it. He’s 16 years old. Wife’s friend is sitting next to him as they are questioning him."

What about the airport? Will they evacuate when they detect a Bluetooth called bomb? That will open so many pranks that can be remotely executed and impossible to detect.

While it may or may not be infeasible, it is entirely possible to determine the source of a radio signal. It is also possible to overlay that tech on a camera feed so that you get a composite image showing like, someone standing in the airport & their Bluetooth info above their head.

I would not find it surprising if I learned that a system like this already existed in many airports. I mean now with AI the whole thing could be automated if you don't care about a few egregious errors here and there.

Re: UA flight – 'turn Bluetooth off or we're turning around'

#40

Post by netsharc »

ai_slop_hater wrote: post #38
gizmo686 wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The type of bomb people worry about for airplanes typically are not built to code. They do need to have some form of dedinator, and tying that detonator to a Bluetooth control seems like a design that someone might come up with.

> They do need to have some form of dedinator, and tying that detonator to a Bluetooth control seems like a design that someone might come up with. So much doesn't make sense to me. First, if for whatever reason you decided to blow up an airplane, why would you need to wait for so long, that the plane can turn around and land? Why not blow the airplane as soon as all passengers are on board, or at least when the plan…

Well, if you put the bomb as check-in luggage, it can be up to 50lbs (assuming aḷl the security checks will miss a 50 lbs bomb, but hey, in Trumpistan it's possible). Then using Bluetooth makes sense, although you'd have to test whether the signal goes through all the metal, and what if your luggage is placed way in the back and you're sitting way in the front (book a seat in the middle of the plane I guess).

True, blowing up a plane on the ground would ensure a lot of chaos, the airport would definitely be shut, affecting thousands of flights due to the ripple effect. Some years ago there was a suicide bombing at Brussels airport.

Hmm, looking forward to a visit from the men in black, because discussing about this stuff means we're plotting a terror attack, and "due to an abundance of caution" they have to check whether we're threats.

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