Tuesday 30 November 2010

It flies!

I knew I was forgetting something....

First flight in two months happened last Friday, a quick 50 minute flight to a tiny Indian airstrip called Trivandrum (actually it's called Thiruvananthapuram now because of some pathetic patriotic movement, but nobody calls it that). I flew there and I flew back and I didn't break anything or injure anyone so I think the day can be classed as a success.

Flying with the radically different SOPs was a bit disconcerting ... being away for a while dulls the senses, but then coming back to a different way of working is even more confusing, especially when the checklist is called for. Thankfully the training captain had a sense of humour and saw through the procedural errors.

The next flight was a long slog to Delhi and back. Delhi is anything but a tiny airstrip, and the new airport is quite impressive, especially the taxi routes which get rattled off at top speed. Indian radio etiquette is equally impressive, but for completely different reasons, never have I ever heard so many people step on each other so often, even in the H U G E Manilla sectors. Quite sad really.

Third day was the night flight to Bombay. A thrilling airport as every carrier from everywhere in the world is there, but also the arguably the biggest dump to pass as an international airport. The place deserves it's own post...

That will have to do for now, will write some more in the coming days probably once line training ends. 6 down, 4 to go, should be done by the end of the week.

S.

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