It defies reason, that those pilots over shot their mark at Minneapolis because they were engrossed in analyzing and discussing new routes on their laptops (CNN story). Yet in the time since, I have not heard anything to contradict their accounts.
Assuming there's some truth to their stories, it seems to me that we have a lot to learn from the episode. After all, we are in an attention economy. It is a marketer's dream to be able to engage a consumer and capture and hold attention for so long, despite reality trying to invade to the extent that it did.
Just what exactly was the nature of the conversation, given that they were so engrossed that they tuned everything else out? OK, we know they said they were discussing new flight procedures (or routes or whatever) and reviewing these on a laptop PC, but c'mon, 90 minutes of chat about this?
It is a maddening question that just won't let let go of me. It has unfortunately sapped my attention and I must now complete this post for catharsis. What could be so absorbing, dammit?!!!
I'd love to hear what others have to say. Meanwhile, here are my top guesses at what really held those pilots attentions for so long:
- The New World of Warcraft
- Barely Legal #26
- Ripped pre-release Avatar DVD
- Chargers game
- Viral Bud Light video (above, thanks Peter!)
