I was lucky Monday night!

[renovation]

It would have taken over 2-3 hours to get my bags from my flight at the airport if I had them in baggage. Some 18 year old kid was killed by a plane tug which is one of those trucks used to move a plane from and to the terminal. Sure glad all I had was my laptop case and winter coat.
It happened at Detroit Metro airport about 10:30 pm 4-9-2007

[sizemic1]

Thank God someone's death didn't inconvenience you!

[cheapie]

oh man. i fly through there all of the time. that's so sad! and those tugs go so slow. wonder how it happened.

[cheapie]

gotta link? i can't find it anywhere.

[renovation]

first off - i do- did feel sad for the kid and his family .
but as for a link i look tonight and see if i can find one !

here is a news story that happen late last night .it happen at the same airport .the very last line talks about monday accident -
Airport: Worker flips deicer while drunk, is fired

Joe Menard / The Detroit News

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ROMULUS -- A drunk airport worker with a half-empty beer in his vehicle and an unopened can in his pocket flipped his deicer rig on a remote airstrip at Metro Airport on Wednesday afternoon, airport officials said.

The man, whose name was not released, flipped the rig shortly after starting his shift, said airport spokesman Mike Conway. Airport police who responded to the accident, which occurred around 3 p.m., gave him a Breathalyzer test, which he failed.

"It was well over" the 0.08 Michigan legal limit, Conway said.

The man, younger than 21, was fired, Conway said. He worked for Orlando, Fla.-based Aircraft Service International Group, which performs refueling and deicing duties at the airport. He was in custody Wednesday night at the airport police lockup.

"Not only is he underage drinking, he's operating a vehicle under the influence," Conway said. "The Airport Authority is not happy about this. He's never going to work here again."

Conway said other workers noticed the man driving erratically and a supervisor was preparing to follow him onto the airfield when the rig flipped.

He added the man was not near any terminals and posed no threat to passenger safety.

The incident came two days after another ASIG employee, Dorian Powell, 18, of Detroit was killed when he was crushed by a tug used to pull planes.
http://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070412/UPDATE/704120415/1003

[Jeffbx]

Here it is - pretty sad. Kid was only 18...


Airport worker killed by plane tug

Man, 18, reportedly had his back to vehicle; ASIG investigating cause of the accident.

ROMULUS -- A Metro Airport worker was killed Monday night when he was crushed by equipment used to move planes.

Dorian Powell, 18, of Detroit, was pronounced dead at the scene after another worker backed a tug into him as his back was turned, said airport spokesman Michael Conway.

Officials at the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office confirmed Powell's identity Tuesday.

Powell and the driver of the tug, a vehicle used to push or pull planes to hangars or from runways, were employed by Orlando, Fla.-based Aircraft Service International Group. The victim had worked for the company for about six months, Conway said.

"He was on the ramp and his back was turned. The tug backed up and hit him. (The driver) was very distraught," he said.

Conway said the incident happened shortly before 10 p.m. Monday and near gate A-60. The tug that struck the man was not attached to a plane, he said.

ASIG officials have assembled an investigative team to work with airport authorities to determine the cause of the accident, said Dan Sellas, vice president of sales and marketing for ASIG.

"These events are extremely rare," he said.

Powell should have been issued a protective vest and ear gear, Sellas said, but it is unknown whether he was wearing the gear while working Monday.

The last worker fatality at the airport was in 2006, when an employee was accidentally pinned by an aircraft belt loader, Conway said.

Monday's accident contributed to a two-hour wait for passengers on a Spirit Airlines flight from Cancun, Mexico.

Linkadink (http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070411/METRO01/704110390/1006)

[Maarchk]

I dont know if ear plugs would help stop some one from running over you. Worse yet, i think you wouldn't hear the tug coming unless they have walkies in the ear, which i bet against because you see them all directing with their hands and light wands. its sad and probably no ones fault. people looking the wrong way and loud noise make it hard to avoid this.
Still sad. I'm glad you made it out.