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    Plane passengers accidentally told they are about to crash into ocean

    British Airways has an "oops" momentPassengers aboard a trans-Atlantic British Airways flight were startled when a recorded message was accidentally triggered at 3am, telling them their flight was about to crash into the ocean.

    "We were about three hours into the flight when an automated message came over saying, 'This is an emergency. We will shortly be making an emergency landing on water,'" flight passenger Duncan Farquharson told the Daily Mail.

    The automated message, which began while the plane was at about 35,000 feet in the air during its voyage from Miami to London, apparently was triggered when one of the plane's pilots accidentally bumped it in the cockpit's tight quarters.

    Farquharson says the passengers then braced for the worst, assuming they were all about to die. "We looked at each other and figured we were both about to die," Farquharson said. "Families with children were distraught and people were in tears. It was very distressing."

    Another passenger, Michelle Lord, told the Telegraph: "People were terrified, we all thought we were going to die. They said the pilot hit the wrong button because they were so close together."

    About 30 seconds later, a crewmember "casually" announced that the crash warning was played by accident and that the plane and passengers were not in any danger.

    "Imagining yourself plunging toward a cold, watery grave in the middle of the Atlantic is a pretty horrific thought," Duncan Farquharson. "But they seemed pretty blase about it."

    British Airways issued an apology to customers after the incident for any "undue stress."

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    • Mad  •  Anchorage, Alaska  •  4 mths ago
      How many times does a pilot hit the wrong button and why is there even a recorded message like that? its so used they need its own button?
      • Sky High 4 mths ago
        As to "how many times", depends on how involved they are with a stewardess.
      • Fred 4 mths ago
        it's probably recorded because if the plane is about to crash the pilots are a little busy with... ummm... oh yeah, trying to prevent it.
      • Diss 4 mths ago
        they are busy strapping on their parachutes..
    • Joe  •  4 mths ago
      Crash water landings happens that often that they need a pre-recorded message for it?
      • Robert Gary 4 mths ago
        It only needs to happen once for you to wish they're prepared for it.
      • Joe 4 mths ago
        Yeah....i would rather hear it live from a crew member......such as Sully.That also would avoid bumping the wrong button and freaking the passengers out....but that's just me.
      • George Washington 4 mths ago
        In an emergency water landing a pilot has much better things to do than to chat with the passengers - therefore the prerecorded message.
    • burned_once  •  4 mths ago
      Epic Fail. Should have at least sent the drink cart with free drinks.
      • Pedo.bear 4 mths ago
        lol, i woulda been like "excuse me, get me the strongest proof liquor you got, and tons of it'
      • Pedo.bear 4 mths ago
        and also an extra pillow to cry in
      • mysticalmuse73 4 mths ago
        I'm sure a lot of people could have used a stiff drink after that, or maybe 12!
    • Maverickdchang  •  4 mths ago
      I bet if a passenger made that kind of statement, federal agents all over the place and someone is getting locked up. When it comes from the cockpit, an apology is ok.
      • UnknownTruth 4 mths ago
        why would a passenger make that kind of statement? your just as dumb as 'we're all about to die' button
      • Cindy 3 mths ago
        you're*
    • CALIFORNIA REPUBLICan  •  4 mths ago
      "Attention passengers, we are about to CRASH INTO THE OCEAN ... Oops. Sorry about that. I meant I am about to splash on some lotion. Never you mind!"
      • Debbie 4 mths ago
        OMG your comment made me bust out laughing!!!! LOL!!!
      • Dusty Faerie 4 mths ago
        I am guffawing !!!!!!! snort ! ♥ pointin my finger !
    • Haddanuf  •  4 mths ago
      "What's this button do?", he asked.
    • U.S. Citizen  •  Birmingham, Alabama  •  4 mths ago
      A passenger on the same flight would get 10 years for making that same announcement...
    • The Bat  •  4 mths ago
      The least they can do is offer to pay for the cleaning bills of those passengers who soiled themselves when the announcement came over the intercom!
    • Mark  •  Los Angeles, California  •  4 mths ago
      Good thing he didn't accidently push the pilot eject button.
    • LivinginMN  •  4 mths ago
      Question 1) Why does this recording exist? Question 2) Why is it so easy to play?
    • Jeff  •  Reno, Nevada  •  4 mths ago
      Expect a new EU rule soon the the effect that if an announcement is made that they are going to crash, the aircrew must crash the aircraft whether they intended to or not. It's a matter of customer expectations....
    • A_Nonny_Moose  •  4 mths ago
      Why the heck would they even HAVE that button?
    • Bradley  •  Owego, New York  •  4 mths ago
      Note to self, Better put a cover over that switch so that you must lift the cover to activate the alert!
    • Ray  •  4 mths ago
      I hate when that happens.
    • c  •  Fort Cobb, Oklahoma  •  4 mths ago
      I would have chit my pants!
    • Rebekah  •  4 mths ago
      Hmm...I don't know that the idea of quarters being so tight that the pilot is accidentally pushing random buttions is a terribly comforting one...
    • Jason  •  3 mths ago
      Who was flying this plane? The cast of Monty Python?
    • SHEILAH  •  Los Angeles, California  •  4 mths ago
      It's bad enough that I don't have enough room when I sit on a plane. Now I find out the pilots don't either. WTH?
    • Steve  •  Norfolk, Virginia  •  4 mths ago
      "Ladies and gentlemen, we'll be nose diving into the Atlantic at 600 knots in a few minutes, we regret this inconvenience. Thank you for flying British Airways!"
    • A Yahoo! User  •  4 mths ago
      Crash into ocean, and Emergency landing on water not quite the same thing. Thanks for the misleading headline (like virtually every headline you print) but hey, you got my click right?
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