A few weeks ago I flew to BEDA’s Binge Eating Disorder Conference in Philadelphia on a Delta Commuter Jet; a medium-sized jet with four seats across. I was flying from Cincinnati and was excited to see the The Xavier Women’s Basketball Team on board (March Madness!).
It was 9:00pm. Departure had already been delayed two hours (crew issues). The plane was packed. After everyone had boarded, a flight attendant made an announcement. “The plane is overweight.”
You could feel the tension. People started making awkward jokes. A man, whom I believe was the Xavier Women’s Team Coach, pointed to a man I think was an assistant coach and said, “OK, you, OFF the plane.” Everyone on the team laughed. Interestingly, though, I don’t think people were focused or concerned that the plane would crash. Based on the jokes, it appeared people’s minds went where my mind did. I immediately started thinking, “Is it me. Should I get off the plane? Do I weigh too much?”
For the next few minutes, there was a lot of awkward laughter. In an attempt to lighten the load, the ground crew emptied some fuel. The gasoline truck came and went. Then there was another announcement. “Sorry folks. We’re still overweight. We need three people to volunteer to leave the plane”.
Travel Vouchers were offered. Only one man jumped up to accept. The attendant made the announcement again, and then again. No takers. Minutes passed. Discomfort increased, so did the value of the Delta Vouchers…now up to $600. offered to anyone who would get off the plane.
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