Q. I still don't know if it's safe to fly over the millennium?
A. Go ahead - you only live once (ha ha). But then again, if Y2K (yawn) kicks in, it's one thing having your toaster explode or your vacuum cleaner going on the rampage, but quite another if you're 35,000 feet up in the air and at the mercy of some bespectacled computer geek on the ground. Despite all the major airlines issuing huge glossy brochures saying how compliant they are and all that jazz, some insurance companies are writing clauses into their contracts exempting them from claims arising from Y2K malfunction.
You'd be surprised how many headbangers have gone out of their way to book flights for the night of December 31st - it's a new type of "extreme sport" coupled with a show of bravado for many. Perhaps the only surprise so far is that, to the best of my knowledge, Hollywood has yet to put a Y2K air crash film project into production. Still, give it time.
Such is the rampant paranoia about flying over the millennium that the airline industry is now in heavy PR drive mode, and they've just played their best hand: a number of airline executives and the actual head of the US's Federal Aviation Administration have boldly announced they will be flying over the millennium. And they're quite happy to stand in front of a photographer brandishing their ticket, if you want.
A number of Y2K computer experts have also announced they too will be 35,000 feet above the Earth at the first moment of the new millennium, but the vital question remains unanswered - is someone putting them up to this, are they getting loads of dosh for their flamboyant gesture or are they just a bit soft in the head? The most high-profile person so far to book a Y2K-risking ticket is Peter de Jager, a well known Canadian technology consultant.
De Jager's move is significant because previously, in a professional capacity, he was vocal in his concerns about the airlines pre paredness to handle air traffic issues relating to the so-called millennium bug. Once he booked his midnight flight, the head of the Federal Aviation Administration followed suit.
This publicity drive to convince the public to fly over the millennium may have something to do with the industry not being able to afford a raft of cancellations over the period in question. Apart from being a major safety issue, Y2K is also a major financial issue.
Figures released by the International Air Transportation Association show that over $2 billion has been spent on "compliance measures" and this figure is roughly equivalent to the net profits generated by international routes for nearly the last decade.
Serves them right, you might say, particularly as many airlines are on record as saying that while they will be flying to the US and Europe, they are pulling many of their flights to Asian and African countries - because obviously the colour of your skin has an awful lot to do with whether you're Y2K-compliant. The general consensus is that it will be perfectly OK to fly over the millennium. The only real problems envisaged are lengthy delays, luggage going missing and general mayhem. No change then for anybody who has flown out of an Irish airport.