每日口說挑戰【CNN10】數以千計的班機被取消 - 2021年10月12日 (Thousands OF Flights Cancelled | October 12, 2021)

主持人 : Leila

Welcome to CNN10 for October 12th.
Today's news:
1. Southwest Cancels More Than 1800 Flights, Stranding Thousands
2. Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta Fills Skies For Nine Days

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【CNN10】數以千計的班機被取消 - 2021年10月12日 (Thousands OF Flights Cancelled | October 12, 2021)

The mystery is that Southwest's explanation has been partly denied by the Federal Aviation Administration, and the speculation is based on timing.

神祕的是，西南航空公司的解釋已經被聯邦航空管理局部分否認，而猜測是基於時間。

句子選自此影片：【CNN10】數以千計的班機被取消 - 2021年10月12日 (Thousands OF Flights Cancelled | October 12, 2021)

學習重點

1. mystery神秘的事物，難以理解的事物，謎

mystery

[ˋmɪstərɪ](n.)神秘的事物，難以理解的事物，謎

2. explanation解釋；說明；給出的原因

explanation

[͵ɛkspləˋneʃən](n.)解釋；說明；給出的原因

3. speculation猜測；推測，推斷

speculation

[͵spɛkjəˋleʃən](n.)猜測；推測，推斷

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Leila4 年前

[TRANSCRIPT]

Welcome to the CNN10 news report. I'm Leila.

::Southwest Cancels More Than 1800 Flights, Stranding Thousands::

The largest, low-cost airline carrier in the world, Southwest, experienced a domino effect of flight cancelations over the weekend of October 9th and 10th. With more than 730 planes in its fleet and 54,000 employees, the mysterious cancelations led people to speculate over the reason behind the operational mess. Some travel industry experts and lawmakers point to a pilot walkout, but Southwest denies that, pointing instead to air traffic control and weather issues. An interesting point to note here is that a third party, the Federal Aviation Administration, got involved by issuing a rare statement saying that neither air traffic control nor weather was a problem over the weekend.

No matter the reason, passengers have said they don’t think they’re getting the whole truth. With just over 800 flight cancellations on Saturday and more than 1,000 on Sunday, thousands of people were left stranded without hotel rooms–passengers and flight crews included.

In a memo to its employees, Southwest described a ripple effect of problems made worse by the post-pandemic cuts to flights and staff.

Pilots from Southwest have also spoken up to debunk online rumors that they may have been protesting the airline’s recently announced vaccine mandate for employees. In a union statement, the pilots said they had no official or unofficial actions during that time and chalked up the mess to Southwest mismanagement.

::Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta Fills Skies For Nine Days::

Over 650 hot air balloons rose up into the sky over Albuquerque, New Mexico from October 2nd to the 10th. It was the annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, that’s 'festival' to the non-Spanish-speaking crowd. The Balloon Fiesta has been turning heads toward the desert skies since 1972. This year over 860,000 attendees gathered to watch pilots from around the world fire up their hot air balloons.

The nine-day festival features several events, including the Special Shapes Rodeo on Thursday, October 7th, when all kinds of creative, non-traditional balloons were brought out, both amusing and odd, from giant bumblebees, frogs, and unicorns to happy-looking inanimate objects. Though the best, in my humble opinion, was the gun-slinging armadillo cowboy, you’ll have to check out the video to see the incredible variety and find your own favorite.

The events of each day start before sun-up with "Dawn Patrol", when a few balloons ascend into the dark morning sky and float to designated landing zones first as a safety precaution for the rest. Then the rest of the balloons fire up in what is called "glow-up". At this year’s Special Shapes Rodeo, "Airabelle" the cow got the honor of first to fly. Balloons traditional and not are launched in waves, filling the sky with hundreds of balloons at once–a wondrous and colorful sight that can be seen from highways and local neighborhoods for kilometers around.

And now, our Sentence of the Day:

The mystery is that Southwest's explanation has been partly denied by the Federal Aviation Administration, and the speculation is based on timing.

Let’s look at some vocabulary from the sentence:

mystery
KK[ˋmɪstərɪ] IPA /ˈmɪs.tɚ.i/
something strange or not known that has not yet been explained or understood
i.e. How the massive stones were moved here from kilometers away is still a mystery.
這些巨大的石頭是如何從數公里外運到這裡的，仍然是個謎。

explanation
KK [͵ɛkspləˋneʃən] IPA /ˌek.spləˈneɪ.ʃən/
the details or reasons that someone gives to make something clear or easy to understand
i.e. Did the judge offer any explanation for his unprecedented ruling in the case?
法官是否有對他在此案作出前所未有的裁決而作任何解釋嗎？

speculation
KK[͵spɛkjəˋleʃən] IPA /ˌspek.jəˈleɪ.ʃən/
the activity of guessing possible answers to a question without having enough information to be certain
i.e. Rumors that the movie screen couple is about to marry have been dismissed as pure speculation.
銀幕情侶將結婚的傳言已被否決，這純屬只是猜測。

Today's CNN10 video left me with some gray-area questions. Out of America within the first ten days of October come two stories about flying–one in which things went up and the other in which things stayed grounded.

Who really is to blame for Southwest’s mass of flight cancellations? Were we to find out, would the public be satisfied with the answer? Will the public demand punitive or conciliatory actions or will this blunder fade away from the collective memory?

After being canceled in 2020, is the return of the annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta a sign that people are ready to resume traditional outdoor gatherings?

These are the questions that come to my mind as I consider the gray area. I’m Leila, and that’s the news for now.