December 23, 2006 Will That Be One Hump Or Two?

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By Russ Niles, Contributing Editor

The maintenance supervisor for Turkish Airlines lost his job, but it was a camel that paid the ultimate price for a maintenance crew’s jubilation over the retirement of a particularly troublesome aircraft. As is customary during times of great joy in Turkey, the maintenance crew was so happy to be rid of the Avro RJ100 aircraft the airline had leased for the past 13 years that they decided to kill a camel -- on the tarmac at Istanbul’s Ataturk International Airport. According to The Associated Press, newspapers carried photos of the joyous event, which is apparently in step with the tradition in Turkey of sacrificing an animal to God when wishes come true. Well quaint though it might be, Turkish officials thought the ritual slaughter was a little too old-fashioned for a country that’s trying to get in step with more modern practices as it tries to join the European Union. So Turkish Airline officials called for chief mechanic Sukru Can’s head (figuratively, of course). A picture of one of Can’s mechanics hoisting a piece of bloody camel meat on the tarmac was accompanied by a story in a local newspaper quoting Can’s explanation for the carnage. "We are happy to be rid of planes which frequently broke down without causing major headaches to Turkish Airlines," the daily Cumhuriyet quoted Can as saying after the ceremony. Turkey’s Transportation Minister Binali Yildirim didn’t share Can’s enthusiasm. “It is not possible to approve such an incident," he told the newspaper, adding that canning Can was “an adequate response.” Among the promises Turkey has made to the EU in its application for membership is a bid to stop the random slaughter of animals by imposing fines on anyone who kills an animal outside of an approved slaughterhouse.