Plane Stories

When was the last time you went on a plane? Did you have a good journey? Or did you have a bad one? Here is a collection of stories about people’s experiences on aeroplanes. This is the first part of a mini-series.

That Sinking Feeling

John Wilkins found out that internal flights in some east European countries can be more expensive than intercontinental ones.

I once had to take an internal flight in a country in east Europe. I won’t name names, partly because I have to return there every now and then, and partly because I don’t think they deserve a really bad name. Anyway, I checked in all right and I went to the departure gate. But before boarding, there was another check point. The captain of the plane was there and he was talking to the passengers. At first I thought he was just greeting the passengers. Then, it was my turn and I realised how wrong I had been. “You need to pay a 40% surcharge,” the captain told me in a thick east European accent. “What!” I exclaimed. “But I’ve already paid for my ticket.” “Yes, you have paid for the ticket, but this does not give you the right to a seat. You pay the 40% surcharge or you stand.” I was so furious that I just said, “OK, I stand.” And with that I boarded the plane, and I stood the whole way. Luckily it wasn’t a long flight.

White Knuckle Ride

Sandra had a really scary flight from St. Louis to Indianapolis last August.

The night I took the flight to Indianapolis was just three days after a major plane crash. As a result, everyone was a bit nervous. Just to make matters worse, there was a big storm, with rain pouring down and lightning flashing in the sky. When it was time to board, they hustled us onto the plane, closed the doors, and then told us that they had “just been informed” that we couldn’t take off because of the weather. We sat there for 45 long minutes until clearance was given for take-off. No sooner were we in the air, than the passenger area filled with smoke. Everyone started coughing and choking. Luckily the oxygen masks dropped and we were able to breathe normally. Seconds later, the plane made a number of sickening turns and steadily lost altitude. Next thing, I remember looking out of the window and seeing all these fire engines on the runway. When we landed, we had to slide down the emergency chute. The thing that made everyone really angry was that at no point did the crew say anything to us. And our attempts to speak to the captain were all in vain as he was nowhere to be seen.

Not Enough Bags

Emile Saunders had one of the most disgusting flights of his life on his way to Melbourne.

A few months ago, I was on a business trip to Melbourne. The flight was quite full, and included a party of unaccompanied minors. The flight attendants had gathered all the children together and sat them on three rows next to each other… just across from where I was sitting. I guess the flight attendants thought this would make their job easier as they could keep an eye on the eight children without much trouble. But they were wrong. Shortly after take-off, one of the youngsters rang the buzzer. “I feel sick,” the little girl told the flight attendant. The attendant quickly handed the child an airsick bag, then went to get some water. But just as she got back, the girl threw up.

And that seemed to have a domino effect, and all of the kids started vomiting, one after the other. All the attendants were running around the plane, trying to get as many sick bags as they could. Eventually they ran out. I must say it was quite funny, although it did put me off my lunch.

How Nice!

Greg remembers a very pleasant experience on an southeast Asian flight to Nepal.

I was on a flight from Hong Kong to Kathmandu which was delayed. The official excuse was the weather, but I saw a group of technicians inspecting the plane on the runway. Eventually, we began to board the plane at 11:30 pm, more than ten hours later than scheduled. While the plane taxied across the runway, our flight attendants began to give emergency instructions. “In the case of an emergency,” one of them said, “lights in the aisle will guide you to the exits.” And just at that moment the main lights went out, and the emergency lights came on. In a panic, the flight attendants scrambled for places to sit. They all found a seat except one, who was trapped in the middle of the plane. So, do you know what she did? Well, she just reached down to the nearest man, me, unbuckled my seat belt, and sat on my lap, belting herself in as the plane lifted off the ground. I must say, that was one of the most pleasant take-offs I’ve ever had.

G L O S S A R Y

to name names exp to say who is responsible to check in phr vb to register your bags at the airport before getting on the plane the departure gate n the area you go to just before getting on the plane to board vb to get on a plane to greet vb to say hello to someone a surcharge n extra money you pay for a service a thick accent n a strong, heavy accent a storm n violent weather to pour down phr vb to rain very heavily lightning n bright flashes in the sky to hustle someone exp to force someone to move quickly clearance was given for take-off exp permission was given so the plane could leave to cough & to choke vb if there is a lot of smoke, you may start to cough and choke (to force air out of your mouth) because you cannot breathe properly a sickening turn n a quick and sudden turn in the air that makes you want to vomit to steadily lose altitude exp to start going down towards the earth a fire engine n a vehicle with a water tank in it. Fire fighters drive this large vehicle to buildings on fire a runway n a long road. Planes go along it and then take off to slide down phr vb to move down an object smoothly an emergency chute n a narrow plastic object filled with air that you slide down in order to leave the plane in an emergency were all in vain exp this means: “didn’t help” an unaccompanied minor n a child who is alone on a plane a flight attendant n a person who works on a plane taking care of the passengers a row n a line of seats in an airplane I guess exp this means: “I suppose” to keep an eye on someone exp to watch someone and see if they are OK to ring the buzzer exp to press a button so a flight attendant can come to you I feel sick exp this means: “I think I am going to vomit” to hand vb to give to throw up phr vb to vomit to have a domino effect exp to cause everyone to start acting in the same way to run around phr vb to go from one place to another very quickly and in a panic to run out phr vb if you “run out” of something, you have no more of that thing to put you off your lunch exp if something “puts you off” your food, you see something disgusting and then you don’t want to eat anything to delay vb if the weather “delays” a plane, the plane leaves late because the weather is so bad later than scheduled adj later than planned to taxi n if a plane “taxies”, it moves slowly along the runway an aisle n the corridor in an airplane to go out phr vb to turn off to scramble for a place to sit exp to desperately try to find somewhere to sit to reach down phr vb to take something with your hands that is at a lower level than you are to unbuckle a seat belt exp to open a seat belt a lap n the flat area of your body between your stomach and your knees that is formed when you sit down to belt yourself in exp to close the seat belt to lift off the ground exp if a plane “lifts off the ground”, it goes up into the sky