A small commuter jet was flying over Seattle when an electrical fault disabled all the radio and navigation equipment. The visibility was poor and the pilot couldn’t figure out where he was, or work out a course to the nearest airport. In the gloom he saw a building, flew towards it and began circling. He drew a handwritten sign in large letters and held it up to the cockpit window. It said, “Where am I?”
The people inside the building started scurrying about and were seen to be discussing the issue among themselves, and eventually they drew a large sign and held it up at the window. It said, “You are in a plane”.
The pilot smiled, glanced at his map, worked out his course and flew straight to Seattle-Tacoma Airport and made a perfect touchdown. While doing their shutdown checks, the first officer turned to the captain and asked him how on earth did “You are in a plane” help him determine where they were. The captain explained, “The information on the sign was technically correct but of no real use. It was therefore easy to deduce it was the building that housed the Microsoft Helpline. After that, it was easy”.
