Did I ever tell you about

[Gato_Solo]

my brush with CNN while I was in Baghdad? They had a travelling news crew going from place to place. No biggie...until they tried to bring along a portable generator...with a full gas tank. When we were palletizing the baggage, they strode up...with their VIP badges showing...and asked us to put their stuff on the pallet. I asked...point blank...if they had a Shipper's Declaration of Hazardous Goods for their generator, as required by ICAO. They said they didn't need one because the generator was drained of fuel. I then went on to explain that, according to international law, we could not put their generator on the baggage pallet because doing so would violate not only US, but UN directives. At this point, the reporter started to get a little upset, so I had to explain to her that the generator was Hazardous Class 9, and the gasoline was Hazardous Class 3, and niether could be shipped as baggage. SHe again said that the generator was drained of fuel. Thats when I took off the gas cap. Lo, and behold! The gasoline was up to the very top of that plastic screen. The cameraman turned beet red. Guess they didn't expect me to know my regs, being just a 'PAX puke'. The cameraman, at least, knew this was a losing battle, and asked where he could get a Shipper's Dec for the generator. The reporter was a little more stubborn. It took me getting a copy of the ICAO regulations, and AFJMAN 24-204, and showing her the $25,000 per day, per violation fine to settle her down. Turns out that the other bases in the AOR were just giving them a 'free pass', and burying the generator under luggage so the loadmasters wouldn't see it. Not on my watch...

 

[highwayman]

Excelent...

 

[Gonz]

When you had them there, did you point out their utterly disgusting managerial decisions & how they have killed Americans?

 

[BB]

yeah, we meet awkward squaddies and beaurocratic nit pickers everywhere!



That sounds about right - the cameraman is like - fair cop - ok, son, what do we need to do then?

the up her own arse (and loving every minute of it) reporter, is like still on spoilt city pompous cloud nine and 'i'll sort this' daydreamin tack -

-
but tell me Gato - if they'd been straight and hadn't tried to fuck around with you and said look this is this - we need a lift - etc - would you have been more ameanable?

i.e. would you have stuck to the letter - or was it more because of the half-assed and pretty much derisory way they approached it?

.....................

seen this kinda situation many times -and people like the reporter usually either a) cause it or b) escalate it.

if the crew are ok, savvy and friendly, at least they'll get some help along the lines of - ok -this is the situation - but you can call so and so or do this or try that -

or try bob over there - but this ain't coming under my duristiction etc.

..............................................................................................

 

[BB]

Course there is another issue - if it was a diesel geni - then of course there is a real danger ( yes, i know this is the original point about the regulations )

but my point is this - there then is a very real and big difference between getting from A to B or getting through some red tape etc -

to actually doing something that may endanger themselves AND others.

Look at that shock Jock water intox-death thing!


No crew i ever worked with would attempt a stunt like that (a full diesel geni is potentially dangerous at the best of times, let alone in a war zone!) - and if you are moving it -

people NEED to know it is there and what is in it!

 

[Gotholic]