Flying is a pretty basic endeavor in my world these days. A necessary means to a particular destination. It doesn’t quite excited me anymore. In fact, I don’t particularly care for it. Having to arrive hours ahead of departure; waiting in long security lines; possible delays.. blah blah blah. Well… it’s a hassle.
I have mixed emotions when it comes to air travel. The whole concept of air travel is actually quite fascinating to me. No matter how routine it has become, I’m always amazed to find myself sitting in a capsule several miles above the earth that’s moving six hundred miles per hour. It just seems to be so unnatural, when you think about it. For the same reason, I also find it to be a bit unnerving. I always feel like so much can go wrong. Perhaps that’s my problem with it. So much can. It usually doesn’t, but what if it did? The simple fact is everything needs to go right. If left up to the forces of nature, it wouldn’t end well. From the moment I board a plane I pray that the humans flying this manmade capsule will successfully defeat these forces of nature.
Well, isn’t that a wonderful way to look at it?
I can assure you my colorful outlook on air travel has not always been so grim. In actuality it’s not even all that grim now. Yet, I do find myself thinking up this type of craziness shortly after boarding. For example, when I look out the window and see the wings bouncing up and down—I wonder what actually keeps them attached. It’s quite amazing. I’ve hung pictures on walls that failed to hold. And then there’s the massive engines suspended below the wing—just hanging. How does it not fall off that bouncing wing? And the magical question… will those engines continue to run the whole trip? I always here horror stories of people getting bad gas in their cars. I have to think planes aren’t exempt from this scenario. Just a few of my comforting thoughts while flying.
I can remember the anticipation I had for my first flight; I waited a long time for that flight. I would be a high school graduate before I found myself setting foot on a plane for the first time. The concept of flying was somewhat of a fantasy. Something that seemed so commonplace, yet something I had not experienced. Similar to driving a car for the first time. I spent the first sixteen years of my life riding in cars, only fantasizing what it would be like to be behind the wheel. I wanted to know what it was like to fly.. as a passenger that is.
The first flight I was on almost doesn’t count. Sure, I went up in a plane. Yes, it was airborne. But it was not on a commercial airliner. It was a small propeller plane. Very uncomfortable. It didn’t even have seats (though I do believe the pilot had one). I actually had to sit on the floor. It was so bad I jumped out. That’s right, I jumped out. Well… I confess, I jumped out because it was a skydiving adventure.
How this came to be is a story in itself. I was just out of high school; about to enter my first year of college. I had been working in a shore town ice cream parlor that summer—a place I had been working throughout high school. I vividly remember one particular night walking into work. The owner was behind the counter talking on the phone to her husband. She stopped me before I could pass by, handed me the phone and said, “Rich wants to talk to you.” Generally that meant he had a specific job for me to do. Most likely not too enjoyable. I figured I was going to have to clean some machine or something. I grabbed the phone and awaited instruction.
“Hey Rich, what’s up?” I asked. He replied that he was going skydiving in a few days along with his two daughters. He asked if I wanted join them. I paused for a moment, not really sure how to answer. It was a pretty random question I suppose. Not quite what I had been expecting. During my pause he continued, “it costs $175, but you will be getting an end of year bonus. That was a pretty cool way of putting it. I took a moment and replied, “sure!”
That pretty much sums me up in a nutshell. Ready for any adventure at any random moment. You’d think I was asked to go grab a cup of coffee. Wanna go skydiving in a few days? It’s $175? Ok!
I was probably more excited about going up in a plane for the first time than the actual skydiving experience. I wonder, how many people can say they jumped out of a plane their first time up? At the airport we were put through a bit of a training course. We also signed more papers than would be required to complete a real estate transaction. If I died it was very clear they would not be responsible. We signed and signed. Then we waited. It was a cloudy day and we were unable go up until the sky cleared. Unfortunately it never did. We were forced to put our adventure off for another day. We set a date for the following week.
In the meantime, Rich had informed me that someone had been killed during a jump at the same airport. Not particularly encouraging. I did feel, however, the odds were in our favor now. I mean, what are the odds it would happen twice in the same week?
The following week we made our way back to the airport. This time it was a nice sunny day. We would be jumping. We sat and awaited clearance to board the plane. As you might expect, they were anxious moments. Eventually the time came and the nerves truly set in. I was going to be flying for the first time. Then it hit me. I was going to jump out of that thing. Was I really doing this?
The plane, as you might expect, was not a luxury model. The propeller equipped plane the size of a cargo van had me wondering if it would really fly. And talk about travel classes. There were none, literally. The only seat on the plane was for the pilot. We would be sitting on the floor. This was not how I envisioned flying to be. On a bright note, I do believe it was a newer post WWII model.
Sitting comfortably on the floor, squeezed amongst the other skydivers, we became airborne. I awaited the flight attendant to bring snacks but that never happened. I did take a moment to acknowledge the fact that I was in the air for the first time. Unfortunately the windows were too high. If only there were seats I could have enjoyed the picturesque ascent. It wasn’t to be. So I thought, wonder what it looks like from up here? I would get my answer in a few moments. As the plane leveled off, the nerves had settled. Then.. the door opened. The first thing I noticed was how cold it was. On the ground it was probably 90-degrees. Up there it was freezing, and of course windy. We made our way to the door. It was a tandem jump so I was attached to a professional jumper. He assured me if things went well they would finally let him jump alone. Encouraging!
Finally it was my turn. I had one concern: that I would get to the edge and freeze. They’re video taping this, I thought. What if I chicken out? I feared I wouldn’t jump; that I would just stand there. A year prior I had gone bungee jumping in Wildwood (a shore town amusement resort that attracts a lot of Canadiens). Let me tell you, I stood on that edge a good while before I brought myself to step off. I wasn’t about to let that happen now. A voice in my head repeated, when you get to the edge, just jump.
When I arrived at the edge I discovered it wasn’t a problem. This was much different than bungee jumping. The ground seemed so close from the bungee platform. It took a lot of faith to believe something would break that fall. Skydiving was quite the opposite. We were so far from the ground there was really no sense of any immediate danger. Without hesitation I jumped. To my surprise there was never a sensation of falling. I could have been laying down on a table, looking at a picture of the earth from ten thousand feet away, a fan blowing huge amounts of wind at me… and believed it was the same free fall experience. Well.. maybe not quite. Point is, you’re face down, tons of wind in your face, and though you’re falling, the earth doesn’t appear to be getting any closer.
Going into this, I was really looking forward to the free fall portion of the dive. I will tell you the best part was not the free fall; it was the moments after the chute had opened. The free fall was neat, but as I mentioned, I never had that sensation of falling like I had expected. The earth below became slowly larger, but not quick enough to feel like I was approaching at a high rate of speed. We jumped at thirteen thousand feet. The free fall lasted roughly one minute, and it was pretty intense. There was no site seeing to be had during that time. The battle against the wind was tough. I could barely move. My arms and legs were sprawled out and the wind assured they were staying there. It didn’t take long before I struggled to breath. I didn’t expect that one. If you ever stuck your head out of a moving car as a kid you know what I’m talking about. If you never have, it’s not too late. Give it a try! Dogs, however, seem to love it.
The chute opened and completely changed the dynamic of the jump. It was an aggressive jolt, then suddenly—I was floating over the earth. This was a pleasant experience. There was no longer intense wind. I could now comprehend what I was seeing, and I could see for miles. This couldn’t have lasted long enough. We slowly approached the ground and I began to think of all the war movies I had seen seen over the years. You know, the ones where the parachuters smack down on the ground at a high rate of speed. Now I was bracing for impact. I was certain I’d break a leg or something. Yet another surprise, the landing couldn’t have been smoother. There was virtually no impact at all. He pulled down on the chute just prior to landing which almost brought our descent to a stop. We landed right in the middle of a small sandpit, bullseye!
And there you have it, my fist flight.
Airport Departure = 1
Airport Arrivals = 0
Want to read about my first commercial flight? Trust me, the experience continues:
Click here to read: “My First Commercial Flight: Ear Crisis, Ouch.” You will find out how I blew my eardrum out (well, not really… but it felt like it) and how I thought I’d never set foot on a plane again.