Jazz soothes rattled nerves

Press, 23 November 1988, Page 1

Jazz soothes rattled nerves

PA Auckland A clarinetist in the band of American jazz musician, Dizzy Gillespie, struck up a tune to calm passengers after their jumbo jet struck severe turbulence over the Tasman Sea, other passengers said later. Gillespie was in the Continental Airlines Boeing 747 on Monday when it hit an air pocket. The flight was en route from Melbourne to Auckland on its way to Los Angeles. Passengers said some people were sent flying. To calm worried fellow passengers, one of Gillespie’s band members picked up his clarinet and played a tune. “It was great,” said one passenger. “He started playing and everyone started laughing. It eased a lot of the tension.” He said some passengers had hit the ceiling, “but I was too busy trying to stop my father from doing the same thing.” During the 20-second buffeting an Auckland woman said she was hit by a beer can. An airline spokesman said one woman suffered a twisted ankle and others suffered minor knocks. The pilot received no radar warning of conditions that resulted in cups and drinks flying across the cabin.