I Waited 42 Years For This Flight!

I have been flying for 42 years that I can remember. I don’t remember my first flight into Uranium City, but I remember almost all the rest. We have come a long way in 42 years! I started to think of all the planes I have been on and decided to make a list, so here goes:

• DC-3 (first flight I remember into Uranium City)
• DC-4
• Twin Otter
• Gruman TR2 (Dad owned it.)
• Citabria (Dad owned part of one.)
• Cessna 152
• Cessna 172
• DC-8
• DC- stretch 8 (Went to the Boy Scout jamboree in PEI in one of these; the stewardess and I traded uniforms on the way home.)
• DC-10 (the flying coffin)
• L1011
• Dash – 7
• Dash – 8
• King air
• Queen air
• BA 146 (the jet fighter of the commercial world!)
• A Saab, but I don’t remember what type
• MD-80
• Airbus A 310
• Airbus A 320
• Airbus A 330
• 727
• 737
• 757
• 767
• 777

But I have never been on the classic Boeing 747, until today!

It is a bit like taking a ride in a '69 Volkswagen bug--classic, fun, but enough to make us glad the transportation world has moved on. No TV in the seat backs, no outlets for this laptop, old-style washrooms (not wheelchair friendly). Not major problems but little inconveniences that make a difference.

My flight today started out like something from a bad movie. No one would follow the instructions. The steward asked for specific rows to load but instead everyone rushed the gate. Once on the plane, it got no better. People brought on suitcases bigger than my checked bag as carry-on! (I hate people like that!) The flight attendants started pulling bags, and then everyone got cranky. A lady asked to switch seats with me as there seemed to be some disagreement between seat mates in her row. I moved to prevent a war, and in the end it was a good move; the flight attendant removed one of the people from our row and left us with a free middle seat! That's good karma!

Thanks to Dr. Ray, I slept soundly for about 4 hours on this flight waking just in time for breakfast. There was a brief moment of panic when I could not find my glasses and couldn’t look for them until I found them to look for them--you see the problem! The young lady who asked me to switch seats with her found them in the aisle and returned them to me unscathed. I do have a second pair with me, but you look a bit funny wearing dark glasses at 6 a.m. unless you are in Las Vegas!

I have never before been in an airport that offered tulip bulbs for sale! The airport in Amsterdam is very clean and modern. One thing that all airports need more of is plug-ins and free internet. Calgary is doing a pretty good job of improving this, and Las Vegas is not bad, but for the most part this is still a big failing of airports and this one is no exception.

My next flight, to Delhi, should be another leg on the path to hell. It is right full and 8 hours long. I get in just after midnight and have a 6-hour wait.

Reaching the gate, I notice that the second flight is also a 747, go figure, two in one day! I resolved that at one point during this second flight I would go where no poor man has gone before: up into the second storey turtle deck. I waited for about 6 hours. At that point in the flight, the attendants tend to be gaggled together in a remote corner of the plane hoping no one rings the bell. I got up for a suggested stroll and walked the entire planes aisle system (just about the right amount of activity for me). At the apex of my trip was the forbidden stairway to heaven. No one was looking, so up I went. No wonder rich people like the 747! It is like stepping into a different world, and, because they have their own floor, us peasants don’t have to file past them to get to the back of the bus, where we belong.

I have toyed with the idea of putting “fly in first class” on my new bucket list, but I just couldn't enjoy it knowing how much extra it costs. I have compromised. The first item for my new bucket list is “Be upgraded to first class for free.” I think I will need to talk to my sister. This happens to her all the time!

'Til then, pray from me. I am going to need it on this trip!