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| -Short Attention Span Theater- |
| Air traffic controller advert written in Braille |
| 2008-07-10 |
| Although '20/20 vision' is a requirement of the position at St Mary's airport on the Isles of Scilly, the application form is offered in both Braille and audio format. But the operators of the airport say they are merely adhering to equal opportunity guidelines to avoid accusations of discrimination. The airport, operated by the Council of the Isles of Scilly, is seeking a fourth air traffic controller and offering a salary of up to £36,000. The advertisement states that applicants must have excellent vision in order to guide aircraft safely into the hilltop airport, which is often fogbound. Yet at the bottom is the note: "If you require this document in an alternative language, in larger text, Braille, easy read or in an audio format, please contact the Community Relations Officer." A spokeswoman for the Council of the Isles of Scilly said the wording was included on all job adverts "to ensure that potential job applicants know that they can access information in a format to suit them." All air traffic controllers have to meet international standards and pass a medical, including a stringent eye test. However, the move was applauded by Bill Alker, from the Royal National Institute for the Blind. "We welcome the Isles of Scilly's Council for their good practice and would hope more employers do the same," he said. Keri Jones, the controller of Radio Scilly, said the note had attracted widespread ridicule. "We have had loads of calls about it and people generally find it quite funny," she said. "The islands are always at the cutting edge of innovation, so it would certainly be something for Scilly to have the world's first blind air traffic controller." |
| Posted by:mrp |
| #7 Bigjim, It looks silly, but they don't have to have two production lines. |
| Posted by: Eric Jablow 2008-07-10 21:42 |
| #6 I thought the bumps around a woman's nipples were Braille for "suck here". |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2008-07-10 17:20 |
| #5 Ya know what we need? Braille strippers... |
| Posted by: tu3031 2008-07-10 16:19 |
| #4 Reminds me of a guy who should freak people out by driving to a drive-up ATM and then proceed to read the Braille with his fingertips. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2008-07-10 15:37 |
| #3 I've always wondered why drive up ATM's have braille on their keyboards. |
| Posted by: bigjim-ky 2008-07-10 14:55 |
| #2 Reminds me of an old joke: Airline passengers were aghast when they saw the pilot coming down the gangway with dark glasses and a red and white cane. Worse yet, the co-pilot had a seeing eye dog. Nonetheless, the plane taxied out to the runway and started to take off. As they approached the end of the runway, the passengers screamed in terror. At the last minute, the plane took off. The pilot turned to the co-pilot and said "You know, Bob, one of these days they're not going to scream loud enough, and we're all going to die". |
| Posted by: Glusock tse Tung9010 2008-07-10 14:30 |
| #1 Is the UK turning into one giant Monty Python skit? |
| Posted by: Swamp Blondie in the Cornfields 2008-07-10 13:56 |