Dave Reinitz
Burbank, California, United States | INDIE
Music
Press
22/09/05 - World news section
'We were watching our own disaster movie'
Terrified passengers aboard a plane crippled in mid-air have revealed how they watched their plight unfold on live television screens fitted in the aircraft. One passenger taped a farewell message to his girlfriend as he feared for the worst.
The JetBlue flight was stranded in the California skies when its front wheels jammed at a 90-degree angle after takeoff.
Frantic, many of the 140 passengers could do little but watch events unfold on live television screens aboard the plane, making desperate calls to relatives.
David Reinitz, a comedian travelling to New York to make a documentary, used his video camera to film his last goodbye.
"We had live coverage up until about 10 minutes before we landed," he said. "That was the scary part, when they cut it off."
Landing gear problems
Flight 292 left Burbank yesterday afternoon, headed for New York. But shortly after takeoff, the pilot radioed ground control to say he could not retract the landing gear.
He was diverted to Long Beach, conducting urgent exchanges with officials and asking for emergency equipment. The plane was forced to circle the skies for three hours burning fuel before making an emergency landing in Los Angeles on its rear wheels.
More than 100 firefighters and paramedics lined the runway to witness the plane skid on to the tarmac amid billowing white smoke and flames. No one was hurt.
Passenger Alexandra Jacobs, who is six months pregnant, said the worst part was the fear that her husband and parents might be watching on television.
"It was insane - the sight of the plane from the outside just aroused this feeling that we were going to watch our own demise," she said.
"It was very scary. The flight attendants were shouting 'brace, brace, brace'. It was like a prayer. And then we smelled burning rubber and the plane stopped and a big cheer went up."
Christiana Lund said no one was screaming, but many were crying and praying.
When they were told to brace themselves for impact, she said: "That's when it really hit me that this could be it. I didn't know if I was going to live or die."
'I love you' text message
Lisa Schiff, 34, of Los Angeles, sent a text message to her mother saying: "I love you. Don't worry about me. If something happens, know that I am watching you and Daddy and (her brother) David."
A similar problem happened on a flight from Newark, New Jersey in 1999, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. The pilots were able to land the plane in Ohio before it was evacuated.
The Federal Aviation Administration said malfunctioning landing gear was not uncommon.
"Aircraft do have landing gear problems," spokesman Donn Walker said.
"What is extremely rare is when you have television cameras aimed at the plane - there were a lot of people in our office that were really stunned about how perfect that landing looked."
An Airbus spokesman said the plane did not have a manual mechanism to move the front wheel into alignment. A more common problem is when the landing gear fails to drop properly and lock into position.
Ann Decrozals, a company spokeswoman at the aircraft manufacturer's headquarters in France, said the A320 was designed to be able to land with front wheel problems.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the incident.
JetBlue is a budget airline based in New York. It operates 286 flights a day in the US and has a fleet of 81 A320s.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Find this story at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=363188&in_page_id=1811
©2005 Associated New Media - Daily Mail
His footage showed images of couples holding hands, flight attendants reassuring passengers, and Reinitz even recorded his own personal message to his girlfriend Barbara, who he had a fight with just before departing on the plane.
"I just suddenly had this vision of her watching the television knowing I was on that plane," a still emotional Reinitz told us, as he almost came to tears recounting the experience.
And on the tape, as the plane approached the runway for its descent, you could hear the captain issuing a command to his passengers.
"We heard the pilot go, 'Brace. Brace. Brace,'" Shaun said to Dave.
"Yeah, they showed us what to do," he added.
Finally, the plane touched down and everyone inside was safe. As he walked the runway, Reinitz shot the other passengers getting off the plane and even a shot of what was left of the plane's front wheels.
Copyright 2005 by NBC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
- NBC/Access Hollywood
"Dave Keeps Things Moving" - LA Times
Today's Top Travel Stories
• Belly-up to the table for the finest fare around the world - 11:06 AM
• Once a haven for senior citizens, Atlantic City is drawing younger crowds - 11:06 AM
• Utah in January: Ski for free, go celebrity watching - 11:05 AM
• Where stars are Spotted - 11:05 AM
• Superdome major part of New Orleans' comeback - 8:55 AM
• Add USATODAY.com RSS feeds
E-Mail Newsletters
Sign up to receive our free Travel e-newsletter and get the best travel news, deals & features in your inbox.
E-mail:
Select one: HTML Text
USA TODAY Travel Specials & Deals:
$323+ RT: Air to Hawaii from West Coast
A ShermansTravel.com pick: Enjoy low rates on air to Hawaii from the West Coast thru 3/15. Sale ends 1/2. Sign up for Sherman’s Top 25 for more details.
Flights to Europe and beyond
Roundtrip airfare to Europe and beyond from $313*. Find this deal and many more in TripMania.com's Top Travel Deals newsletter!
Save $100 on Mexico hotels
Escape the winter in Mexico and save up to $100 on your hotel room. Find this deal and many more in TripMania.com's Top Travel Deals newsletter!
Advertise your deal
JetBlue passengers watched their own ordeal on live TV
By Roger Yu, USA TODAY
In the latest example of how real-time information is changing commercial aviation, passengers on JetBlue Flight 292 on Wednesday watched on seat-back TVs the lead-up to their emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport.
Those on board described a strange but generally calm atmosphere in the cabin during the hours that television covered their circular flight over Los Angeles before landing safely at LAX.
Five-year-old JetBlue widely touts its multichannel television feature, giving Flight 292 passengers an array of channels on which to watch their jet circle.
The flight, bound for New York from Burbank's Bob Hope Airport, made the emergency landing after the flight crew discovered that the wheel on its front landing gear was turned at a 90-degree angle.
The plane circled for three hours to burn off fuel for a safer landing.
Dave Reinitz, a comic from L.A. and one of 140 passengers on board, describes the experience of watching the broadcast live as "surreal."
He says the familiarity with the faces of broadcasters and the stations helped to alleviate anxiety. Experts' comments largely predicting a safe landing also helped. nonetheless, he made a farewell video for his girlfriend.
Alexandra Jacobs, another passenger, credits pilot Scott Burke and crewmembers for calming the passengers. They informed passengers of the problem and likelihood of a favorable outcome.
The level of anxiety among passengers rose once TV stations began covering it live, she says.
"That was when the alarm began to be ratcheted up," says Jacobs, an editor at The New York Observer newspaper. "The channels of communication stopped being exclusively from passengers" and crewmembers.
On Sept. 11, 2001, passengers on some flights hijacked by terrorists learned of the World Trade Center situation by cellphone. As airlines work toward installation of Internet connections, and possibly the routine use of cellphones in flight, old ways are changing, experts say.
Capt. Ron Nielsen, an airline pilot who conducts fear-of-flying classes, says airlines and pilots will have to be more forthcoming with information about delays, potential hazards and mishaps as passengers get more information access.
Says Nielsen: "Pilots will have to communicate more. But there's also an increase in passenger responsibility. They're responsible for their own state of panic."
The proliferation of instant information sources is "something that airlines have to potentially respond to," says Bert Boquet, a professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
John Paul, a Dallas consultant and a frequent flier, says he'd welcome any measures that would increase passengers knowing more about in-flight situations.
"Some of the most frustrating times for me are when passengers are kept in the dark," he says.
Frequent-flier Anita Madison of Chicago says she wouldn't have wanted to watch on TV what was happening with Flight 292.
"The information being given by the flight crew would be more accurate than some unknowns on the Larry King Live show speculating as to what was going to happen," she says.
On the JetBlue flight, TV sets went dark for the final minutes of the flight.
The flight captain chose to turn off the TV to "fully brief the passengers on board of the emergency situation," says Jenny Dervin, a JetBlue spokeswoman.
- USA Today
" We don't often make referrals but for Dave Reinitz we do. Not only is he professional but he is also an extremely solid and funny comedian."
"Dave is a pro, always on his game, and as an emcee can pretty much push a dull show into a phenomenal show"
Bob Stane The Ice House - San Jose Improv/IceHouse
Discography
2004 Bowling for Common Sense
2006 Side effects May include...
Photos
Bio
Dave Reinitz
Joke The Vote
Stand-Up Comedy
Dave’s unique perspective and sarcasm gives us a hilarious hour of stand-up comedy that won’t soon be forgotten. He finds the humor wherever common sense is in jeopardy, such as the prescription drug industry, his struggle to have an open mind and his girlfriend’s incomprehensible view of the world.
Dave is originally from Ithaca, New York but currently resides in Los Angeles California. The son of a history professor and artist mother, he has been struggling to understand the world around him for most of his life. His father passed away when he was only 13, leaving him to experience his teenage years with an all female family, a Mother, two sisters, and the family cat.
Dave graduated from High School as valedictorian! Of course, this sounds much more impressive than it really is. You see, he attended “The Alternative Community School” and never actually received any letter grades, so he was only the valedictorian because he gave the graduation speech. A fine speech it was! He went on to study at the State University of New York, Brockport, but found that something else was calling to him. After a few years he got the travel bug and off he went, not on a cruise or vacation, but on a road trip. He bought a 1973-dodge motor home, and began to travel across the country. The next 4 years were filled with restaurant jobs, from Cape Cod to Venice Beach. The extended trip soon came to a sudden end when the engine in the motor home blew up. Dave settled in Los Angeles and became an executive recruiter and more importantly a stand up comedian. He found that stand-up comedy was a great way to tell share his view of life and the world we live in.
Dave has been performing as a professional Stand up Comedian for over 10 years. He has worked as an MC, feature and Headline for Clubs, Corporate Events and Colleges all over the country. He is also the Co-Executive Producer of H2F Comedy Productions Inc, a Comedy Management and Development Company, that produce such shows as “Uncle Clyde’s Comedy Contest, and “Survival of the Funniest.” He was the Assistant Publisher and Comedy Editor of Laugh-Line Magazine (1999-2002).
Since the events of 911, Dave’s comedic voice has taken on a political twist. He lists George Carlin, Bill Maher and Chris Rock as sources of inspiration. He recently tied for 1st Place in the San Jose Improv Battle of the Bay comedy contest, has been heard on "This American Life" and KPFA Radio and seen on the discovery network, and continues to perform at Clubs and College across the country. Also you may recognize him as “The Jet Blue Guy” who filmed a farewell message to his girlfriend inside the cabin of the recent flight 292 that had an emergency landing at LAX. Spend an hour with Dave and find out what’s really going on in the world!
“Dave Reinitz...KEEPS THINGS MOVING...”
LA TIMES
"I laughed throughout the show, and talked about it for days after" Cal state student
"I almost never recommend comics but i recommend Dave Reinitz"
Andy Kulakowski General Manager San Jose Improv
Dave made me laugh and now i have some questions!
Ice House Guest
"Hilariously funny...Your contribution to our Comedy Week helped make it a Great Success!!!" Cal State Long Beach
# # #
Links
