U.S.

Man Fired for Spending Too Much Time on CNN Talking About MH370 and 'Shaming Canadians'

Canadian flight simulator uFly has fired an employee who appeared throughout CNN's coverage of missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 360 for neglecting his regular flight simulating duties and "shaming Canadians" in general.

By Danielle Wiener-Bronner
Saved Stories
This article is from the archive of our partner .

Canadian flight simulator company uFly has fired an employee who appeared throughout CNN's coverage of missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 360 for neglecting his regular flight simulating duties and "shaming Canadians" in general.

via CNN

uFly owner Claudio Teixeira said he'd allowed Mitchell Casado to appear in the segments, he but had to fire him because he consistently dressed like an angsty teenager on air, which reflects poorly on the company. According to Teixeira:

Even though I let him be on TV he shamed us Canadians and shamed my company with the way he was dressing like he was 15 years old... People were complaining that it wasn't professional at all ... If you go to any plane you don't see them in shorts and sandals.... 

Teixeira added that Casado had also started showing up late to his regular job, saying he's a nice guy, but that "It has to be my rules. If you don't agree with them you have to find another job."

Casado joined CNN correspondent Martin Savidge in a Toronto-based flight simulator for several hours at a time, walking him through the many scenarios MH370 could have encountered. The segments prompted a #freeMartinSavidge hashtag, which implied that the journalist was being held against his will.

Even CNN got in on the joke:

The online movement prompted CNN to do a segment on the hashtag (talk about engagement!) which called Mitchell out for his plaid shirts. CNN reporter Jeanne Moos said that "even the serious subject matter hasn't stopped a public fascination with the plaid shirts Mitchell Casado has been wearing." She that his plaid shirt even started his own Twitter account. Whoever is behind that account is apparently now desperately trying to get Casado another job:

CNN has spent a lot of time discussing Casado's career. Savidge himself profiled Casado, presumably while trying hard to cover a story that often lacked a story. He wrote:

I found him incredibly shy and modest, even by Canadian standards. Casado never wanted to be on camera. In fact, he was horrified when we at CNN suggested it. At 6-foot-2 and "gargantuan," as he puts it, he hates to see himself on camera. Yet in the cockpit he transforms, and it's clear he has a gift that exceeds controlling a jumbo jet. His eyes light up, and his soft-spoken voice rises in level and confidence. You not only know he can fly, but he makes you want to fly, too... He's a pilot for the people.

But now that Casado has been sacked, Savidge is nowhere to be found. A CNN representative told the AP that Casado is not an employee of the news outlet. We guess now he's a pilot for no people. 
This article is from the archive of our partner The Wire.