An unidentified pilot with a southern accent can be heard on an air traffic control radio recording delivering some choice words about the Bay Area, our politics, and our inability to drive fast.
The expletive-laden rant can be heard here at the 20:55 mark. It was first caught by the blog One Mile at a Time, and subsequently reposted on SFGate, and it was recorded two weeks ago, on March 13. The plane was getting ready to land at San Jose Mineta International Airport.
The pilot on the recording, speaking apparently to his fellows in the cockpit but not realizing he was being broadcast over the air traffic control frequency, says, "Fuck this place, goddamn liberal fucks. Fucking weirdos, probably driving around in fucking Hyundais, fucking roads and shit that go slow as fuck."
So, I guess the perception among some red staters is that we all drive slow because of the foreign cars we drive and our liberalism?
“You don’t have balls unless you’re fucking rolling coal, man, goddamn it," he adds. I'm not sure what that means, in the context of driving, and I don't have the energy to look this up.
Anyway, he sounds like he voted for Trump! And he does not like liberals. But he has to fly to the Bay Area anyway, and he's angry about it.
Our divisions, continue, friends! Can't we all just get along?
The pilot hasn't been and likely won't be identified, but a spokesperson for San Jose Mineta airport tells SFGate that they've forwarded the recording to the FAA. "This communication is very unprofessional," says airport spokesperson Demetria Machado.
Update: As KPIX reports, it's been confirmed that this was a Southwest pilot, and Southwest Airlines says it is handling the matter internally.
Also, an FAA spokesperson issued a statement saying, "FAA regulations prohibit airline pilots from talking about subjects that are unrelated to safely conducting their flight while taxiing and while flying below 10,000 feet altitude."
Photo: Dragos Grigore