First air travel experience?

[USABlue]

Sadly never been :/ always drove to vacations and to see family when I was younger and a chance hasn't come up since

 

[Methuselah]

My arl fella is keen on aircraft and aviation and although he would have been skint he took me on a light aircraft flying experience from the old Ringway airport in about 1967 when I would have been about 7.
As an adult my first jet experience was Glasgow to Palma on holiday in 1981 which I thought was fantastic, of course now after more flights than I care to remember they are just a part of the holiday experience and the queuing within airports for security and passport controls I just can't be arsed with, a neccesary evil I guess.

I agree about finding your way through airports, nightmare. My eldest daughter flies all over the world, she spent 3 years working in Hong Kong and 4 years in Singapore. Several years ago I went to Ireland on a family history trace. My eldest daughter came with me and we sailed through all the checkpoints. She knew all the short cuts and how things worked. Like anything, it is all about 'experience'.

 

[SiEdmo]

I was 11 first time, to Menorca haha, just took my lad on his first flight in July to the canaries, he was 3 months old! needless to say I don't think he will remember it too much

 

[SiEdmo]

I got told by an air stewardess that planes long after the smoking still had ashtrays because it was cheaper to keep the old moulds, could be bs, she was pretty dumb

I read a story online a while back, they are actually legally required on planes, so that if someone who does smoke has somewhere to put it, as if they stuck it in the waste bin it could cause a catastrophe.....here is the relevant bit


According to the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) list of “minimum equipment” for aircraft, an ashtray in the plane toilet is still a legal requirement.

Yes, despite nobody smoking on a plane, bar a few belligerent celebrities and louts, the FAA says that lavatory doors must still be fitted with ashtrays because if someone were to have, illegally, a cheeky fag, they still need to stub it out, and it's best they have somewhere to do that rather than cause a fire by dropping it in the bin.

What’s more, if one of the aircraft’s ashtrays breaks, regulations say they must be fixed or replaced within 10 days (as long as 50 per cent of the plane’s ashtrays are operational, otherwise they must be fixed in three days).

Indeed, in 2009, it was reported that a British Airways plane was delayed because staff were searching for a “vital” replacement ashtray.

A spokesperson at the time said: “It is a legal requirement, under air navigation orders, to have ashtrays because while smoking is not permitted on flights, if someone were to light a cigarette on board there must be somewhere to safely extinguish it.”

To perfectly illustrate the dangers, 123 passengers died in 1973 on Varig Flight 820 from Rio de Janeiro to Paris after a fire broke out when a cigarette was thrown in the rubbish bin of the toilet. The cabin filled with smoke and the pilot was forced to make a crash landing in a field about 15km south of the French capital.

 

[evertondotcom]

Flew back from Tenerife after a stag do yesterday. I absolutely hate Ryan Air with a passion.

Absolutely terrible airline

 

[Foot Long Hot Dog]

I was about 10 I think and got taken up in a Cessna sat next to the pilot, probably not the best introduction to flying tbh.

 

[orly]

I got told by an air stewardess that planes long after the smoking still had ashtrays because it was cheaper to keep the old moulds, could be bs, she was pretty dumb

I hope we see you again one day buddy xx

 

[SerenityNigh]

I read a story online a while back, they are actually legally required on planes, so that if someone who does smoke has somewhere to put it, as if they stuck it in the waste bin it could cause a catastrophe.....here is the relevant bit


According to the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) list of “minimum equipment” for aircraft, an ashtray in the plane toilet is still a legal requirement.

Yes, despite nobody smoking on a plane, bar a few belligerent celebrities and louts, the FAA says that lavatory doors must still be fitted with ashtrays because if someone were to have, illegally, a cheeky fag, they still need to stub it out, and it's best they have somewhere to do that rather than cause a fire by dropping it in the bin.

What’s more, if one of the aircraft’s ashtrays breaks, regulations say they must be fixed or replaced within 10 days (as long as 50 per cent of the plane’s ashtrays are operational, otherwise they must be fixed in three days).

Indeed, in 2009, it was reported that a British Airways plane was delayed because staff were searching for a “vital” replacement ashtray.

A spokesperson at the time said: “It is a legal requirement, under air navigation orders, to have ashtrays because while smoking is not permitted on flights, if someone were to light a cigarette on board there must be somewhere to safely extinguish it.”

To perfectly illustrate the dangers, 123 passengers died in 1973 on Varig Flight 820 from Rio de Janeiro to Paris after a fire broke out when a cigarette was thrown in the rubbish bin of the toilet. The cabin filled with smoke and the pilot was forced to make a crash landing in a field about 15km south of the French capital.

Did not know that!

 

[SiEdmo]

Did not know that!

mad innit, makes sense though I suppose

 

[edge]

Went to Paris on an Echo weekend deal from Liverpool for my first flight, the airport at the French end was in the middle of the countryside , I was actually sunbathing on the grass next to the runway waiting to get a call to board, flight was good .
Worst was going to Australia , for starters got food poisoning at Heathrow, you could smoke on the plane those days, I awoke couldn't breathe it was like putting your head into an ashtray, I was used to smokers as my family smoked around me those days despite never smoking myself, but that was something else quite scary,
To top it all as we were heading into Singapore we hit a storm and dropped 600ft in seconds think being on the fastest lift you have ever been in, drinks all hit the ceiling and I had the seat belt on took a right knock to my ,already very off belly.
Some poor woman was on the bog when it happened and got trenched by the toilet water, everybody was laughing at her as she walked passed.
I haven't been the same since then despite working loading the aircraft at Manchester for a summer and being on and off them all day, a few years later.
I get really nervous flying these days, funny enough am ok once the plane is in flight and I can move about.