Dear Dr Ski
Firstly let me put an end to these disparaging rumours that the poor unfortunate shown in the photograph bears any resemblance to yours truly. Clearly the rather overweight, elderly gentleman in the sixties ski gear has been carted by the chairlift and that brings us to the question of Health & Safety on the slopes. 
For years the local Austrian Lifties have made a National Sport out of creating all sorts of carnage for the unsuspecting holiday skier. Let's be honest the chairlift came as a Godsend after many of us had diced with death on the near vertical, polished pathways of the dreaded T-Bar, sometimes referred to as the Drag Lift.
I think it's fair to say that most modern chairlifts are pretty easy to negotiate, albeit that the Lifties still take every opportunity to catch us out, one of their current favourites is to set the chair height for someone who is about 4ft 6ins, which is OK for our mate from Spec Savers but downright dangerous for the rest of us. There are, of course, still one or two of the old fashioned chairs still in use like the one photographed here, the technique employed is to wait for a suitable subject, such as our elderly friend, and then accelerate the lift at the point of impact, launching the innocent pensioner into the Bondai.
How embarrassing is that? In my view it's got to stop before someone gets seriously injured.
Yours in a fit of pique
Herr Dresser

Liebe Herr Dresser
One shouldn't giggle when seeing such a dreadful accident but I have to confess that here at the PIS there were those in our Technical Team who failed to see the seriousness of the incident and like yourself literally fell off their chair. Sorry, did I say 'you', I meant the poor old sod in the gardening gear.
The short answer to your question is 'Yes, it's about time the authorities made more of an effort to ensure safe transport up the hill for the over 70's'
Having said that I have an eye witness report on this particular incident and it seems highly likely that the poor old chap was distracted by the sight of a passing skier, seen pictured here, so in this instance we cannot lay the blame entirely at the feet of the Arlberger Bergbahn and it's operatives.


Yours in stitches

Dr Ski