Wednesday, February 25, 2009

BAD TRIP 21: Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer

News just in:
9 Dead in Turkish Plane Crash in Amsterdam

And just recently:
Airplane Crash-lands in Hudson River…
50 Killed as Plane Hits House Near Buffalo…
2 Dead in Fiery Plane Crash at Illinois Airport…

And many more!

A website (http://www.planecrashinfo.com/) has 5,252 accidents in its database
Aaaaargh!!!!
And my job makes me take to the skies more often than I like.

Not too long ago, Cebu Pacific gave me quite a scare.
(Think Flight 387 that crashed on the slopes of Mt. Sumagaya in Misamis Oriental in 1998, killing all 104 people on board. Waaaah!)
We were bound for Caticlan (with its too-short runway) aboard a small plane with propellers.
Not even the view of Boracay Island from my window seat could rid me of that queasy feeling from the rough flight.
Coming in, I thought the plane’s descent was a little off.
True enough, we landed with a loud thud and a jarring crash.
Everyone screamed!
Then the plane took off again!
What the hell??!
Passengers screamed even more.
A small kid yelled “Mommyyyyy!!! Are we gonna die?!!”
The plane made a sharp turn, like we’re in a rollercoaster.
Half the passengers were vomiting…kids crying.
The plane circled, trying to land again.
When we did, it was with a loud thud and a jarring crash again.
But this time we made it to the end of the runway.

Whew.