Airplane adventures

[dontpanicbobby]

Have you been on an airplane? Share your stories here.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

OT: Could someone hook me up with a poll? Seems like I can't create one on my phone

Subject:
Have you ridden in an airplane?

Choices:
Yes
No
So many I can't remember

 

[mikedt]

I've been in a lot of planes, and some helicopters as well. Including Hawker Siddeley 748, Concorde, Boeing 787, and Airbus 380.

Worst airline, Air Transat.
Best airline, Malaysia Airlines or Emirates.
Most used airline, Aeroflot or Air China.

I can also tell some funky stuff that went on in the US in 2008 with my credit cards been declined when trying to book Delta or Continental. Because I'm apparently on some NSA or TSA blacklist.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

I can count the number of planes (or helicopters) I've been on without taking my shoes off.

Back in the aughts I was flying off to Boston to get back home from a Microsoft MVP conference. Seattle to New York City a nice Boeing 7something. From New York to Boston was this tiny executive looking jet without any executive's jet amenities. Imagine 20 people on a Learjet.

 

[mikedt]

I can count the number of planes (or helicopters) I've been on without taking my shoes off.

Back in the aughts I was flying off to Boston to get back home from a Microsoft MVP conference. Seattle to New York City a nice Boeing 7something. From New York to Boston was this tiny executive looking jet without any executive's jet amenities. Imagine 20 people on a Learjet.

That sounds like an Embraer ERJ series plane, like a 145. It looks like a Learjet on the outside, but it's like a bus with less space, and they're 3 seats wide.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

I was jealous of the 1 seat people even though my seat mate was a Professor at the school where I worked @mikedt.

 

[rootabaga]

My first flight was when I was about 13 or 14 and I was allowed to fly alone. It was on an American Airlines 727, a venerable workhorse in those days. We took off just after sunset but caught up a little to the sun (we were flying due west) before we doglegged to the right. I loved it and have enjoyed flying ever since. It's not as much fun nowadays with all of the added security and covid-stuff, but it's still the safest way to travel a long distance quickly.

The smallest fixed-wing craft I've been on was an old gutted Beech with no cabin door and 2x4s screwed to the floor as cleats to brace against (all of the passengers jumped out long before it landed) and the largest was a 747. I've been on two helicopters, both Bell Jet Rangers (one on Maui and the other in the Denver area). I enjoy flying on the 777 so long as I'm not stuck in the middle of the middle section in coach; it's very smooth and is a real hotrod: it really pushes you back in the seat when they take off (each engine produces three to seven times as much as a 737 engine, depending on what generation you're comparing).

I've flown once since Covid hit (back to your stomping grounds, @dontpanicbobby, though we spent our time on the Cape) and am soon flying to Kauai. Fingers crossed, of course.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

You had me at two by fours in the floor. Depends on how high you fly.

 

[Deleted User]

I've been in to planes for 40 years and can list all the flights and planes I've been on, so not many.
Took some lessons in the Eighties.

I've very recently concluded flying is not anywhere near as safe as statistics imply (there's an oxymoronic sentence).

Two very good You Tube channels bring that home. There are too many variables and assumptions including pilot attitudes, weather, maintenance, ATC communications, training and engineering.

Anyway, my 3 memorable flights were to LA in 98 in a BA 747 for the first time. Didn't like it at all as the tail was constantly twitching and I had a disorder I wasn't aware of.

Rebooked the return of that extended stay from San Francisco with United on a fairly new then 777. Much better.

Love to experience the 787. Supposed to be much smoother and better air. Very different construction.

Took the Twin Otter tour over the Grand Canyon with their pretend diving and a group of Germans still eating McDonald's. 2 + 1 across. Tiny seat backs with nothing to hold on to, but a good experience, though a helicopter would have given a better view inside the canyon.

 

[Deleted User]

@rootabaga the one time I was on a 777 the middle section was pretty empty save for a lady sleeping across the 5 seats. I hadn't realised it was going to be on Thanksgiving when I re booked a return. I recall now I especially wanted the 777 for the 2 across window section after being stuck in a 747 going out.

 

[rootabaga]

You had me at two by fours in the floor. Depends on how high you fly.

Admittedly, I was a bit unnerved as I was the heaviest of the "beginners" so I was going to be first out, with the result that I was basically sitting right next to the doorless doorway. Watching the tarmac as we taxied and took off was a little surreal, and watching it slowly recede as we took off (and then watching the shadow of the plane!) from that open doorway was exciting (to say the least!).

Our "beginners" jump altitude (static line) was 3,500 ft, so no freefall or anything, but I was in control of my own canopy, which I preferred. Better than being piggybacked with an instructor, at least to me.

The experienced jumpers went on to 10,000 ft.

Overall it was a fun experience, but the landing (off a military-style chute) was pretty harsh. Came away with a sprained wrist and that, unfortunately, was my throttle hand for the longish motorcycle ride home. I did that on my 25th birthday as a present to myself, and I figured if I didn't survive it would cut down on the engraving since the month and day would be the same, just a different year.

 

[Hadron]

I'm definitely in the "lost count long ago" category, with the vast majority being work travel. Size from little turboprops to 747 (and quite familiar with the Embraer 145). KLM probably my most-used airline, though no loyalty to any. An internal flight in India and the "held together by duct tape" thing that took me from Ithaca to NY probably vying for "least confidence in the craft". Will never fly Ryanair because the boss is a tosser and won't get any of my money (see also Wetherspoons and anything owned by a Murdoch).

Not flown since early Feb, which is probably the longest period for a few decades. I expect that the break will end up being more than a year.

Given the number of flights I've done I've been quite a lucky with regards to delays (only once not travelled the day I was supposed to), lost luggage (once, for about 12 hours).

Most frightening experience: probably the time the fully loaded plane was sitting on the tarmac for too long, I asked a passing stewardess what the problem was and was told "nothing to worry about, just a computer problem" - I would have found "the pilot is having a psychotic episode, we're just waiting until it passes" a lot more reassuring! (Fortunately for my nerves they changed planes in the end).

Daftest problem: the time when the truck taking the technician out to do an engine inspection drove into the engine, requiring a new plane to be found...

 

[dontpanicbobby]

@rootabaga You jumped out of perfectly good airplanes? ✈ ✈ ✈

 

[dontpanicbobby]

CHANGED PLANES!

 

[rootabaga]

@rootabaga You jumped out of perfectly good airplanes? ✈ ✈ ✈

Of course! I wanted to be ready for the day that I needed to jump out of one that wasn't perfectly good!


Actually, that just reminded me of the first time I flew on one of those little Embraer regional jets. It was out of Sky Harbor (Phoenix) and the gate was at ground level, but it had a jetway. I watched the plane roll in and I realized that my eyeline was over the horizontal centerline of the fuselage and that's when I realized how small it was (height-wise, anyway). Then they had us use the jetway, but instead of going up from the centerpoint it dropped down to the plane. As I got to the door the flight attendant said, "Welcome aboard, please watch your head entering the aircraft." I looked at her (as I was ducking) and said, "The last time I got on a plane this small I had a parachute on my back."

She was not amused.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

@rootabaga Not Air Force then. Respect.

Only rode a C5 from Florida to Georgia while in the US military.

 

[no one]

William Shatner swore he saw me on the wing.

 

[Steven58]

Poll added per OP request.

First! "Too many times to count"

 

[rootabaga]

You had me at two by fours in the floor. Depends on how high you fly.

I just realized that could be taken another way...there are lots of people who have to be pretty high even before takeoff!

 

[Davdi]

My first flight was as a teenager in 1968 from London Heathrow to Jersey in a Vickers Viscount. Back then flying was a real occasion, and the hostess (NOT flight attendant) was a very cute 20 something brunette, handing out boiled sweets to stop your ears from popping. And they had a smoking area towards the rear of the plane (Much appreciated by my chain smoking mother).

 

[Hadron]

Oh Lord, I'd almost forgotten about smoking on planes! Packed in a little tube with the smoke being recirculated, likely to be stuck with a smoking row right behind you blowing smoke over your seat back, and if you told the check-in staff that you were asthmatic so could they please not do that half the time they'd "helpfully" put you as far from the steerage-class smokers as possible, i.e. right next to the business-class smokers...

Yeah, the in-flight service is a shadow of what it was, but at least smoking is history now. Who says there's no such thing as progress?

 

[Davdi]

When smoking was allowed, the air in planes was actually better, they took in more fresh air and recirculated less. this cost a bit in fuel 'economy', so banning smoking was a way to save a bit on fuel costs AFAIK.

 

[Hadron]

I came off enough planes coughing, wheezing or smelling of smoke that I'll give them their little saving as a price of ending that.

 

[Unforgiven]

I'm in the too many to count category. One flight stands out. I was returning from Minneapolis (I can't remember if I was flying into Hartford, Providence, or Boston as those three are pretty much interchangeable for me) and had a connection through Cleveland. While we were taxiing for takeoff in Cleveland we did the typical enter the runway, get to the center and turn along the runway. It was at this point the engines shot to full. Not the typical, gradual advance to takeoff throttle, but slammed to full and throw you back in your seat. We shot a bit down the runway (it could have been 100' or 500, you kind of lose perspective) then took a hard 90 degree left turn off the runway just as another airplane touched down where we were moments before. And like nothing happened we reentered the runway and took off.

 

[Clementine_3]

Way back when I was about 4 or so I flew on the first passenger jet that left the airport here. It was big deal, obviously, and my dad covered the event for the radio station (he was the pr guy).
Since my 2 older sisters and I weren't dignitaries we had to board from the back - those engines were loud! We flew up to and around lake Champlain then back. I remember that the stewardess was nice to us and we had a good time, I liked seeing the lake from above and didn't (as usual) like the ceremony stuff.
I've flown a decent amount since but that may have been the best flight to nowhere!