It was about a week before our unexpected Florida trip, we were on one of our usual after dinner walks when we spotted a red and grey airplane in the air. I love planes, I love to fly and I love to travel and all those are understatements. Since I had not been on a plane for past 9 months, I looked at it longingly and blurted out, when will get to fly with you. Saumya, my first born shares my love of airplanes, flying and traveling besides many other things. She asked me what plane is that and I said ‘northwest’, now part of Delta. Her response was so its not ‘kingfisher’, I want to sit in a kingfisher. And we had some discussion about its color and what she likes about it but nothing came out strikingly special.
Fast-forward to the day of our Florida trip, we were sitting in our seats, Saumya next to the window and guess what she says, ‘Mamma, it’s not a kingfisher’. I was shocked that rather than being excited about the flight and the trip, she was bummed that it was not a ‘kingfisher’. I told her that they don’t have kingfishers here; she took it as a cold fact and asked so when can we sit in one.
I don’t remember our exact conversation then but I do remember my thoughts later, I was very surprised; Saumya took her first flight at the age of 2.5 months and have sat in multitude of different airlines since but her affection for Kingfisher and her aversion for the big blue plane (Boeing 747, KLM) are remarkable. I think the reason for her not liking the big blue plane is very clear, she has to watch whatever they are playing on the big screen and she doesn’t get to pick the cartoon she wants but I haven’t been able to figure out what is so exceptionally good about the ‘kingfishers’ besides their very inventive advertisements that she hasn’t been exposed to yet. Don’t get me wrong, their service was very good, food was delicious, they were very sensitive to kids’ presence but I think a lot of it depends on the crew and experiences vary.
Whatever it is, may be the fact they served dinner to kids before they did to the rest of the flight, the fact that she was carried up and down the plane in the arms of a steward (most domestic flights in India still board and deplane on the tarmac like the olden days and passengers are transported to the airport building through a bus) or that she was provided with puzzles and crayons besides the regular television option, but Mr. Vijay Mallya did something right that clicked with a four year old and has stayed with her for more that nine months. Good Job Mr. Mallya, now you just need to start flying to this part of the world. And thank you for a wonderful experience…
As far as I am concerned, as long as I get to fly, I don’t mind if there is television or food on board. I am okay with carrying my own bottle of water and flying my own plane if it gets to that but I just wish to continue to fly as long as I live…
A little side story, I worked in the aeronautics department for a few months and got plenty of opportunities to fly around in little planes. The reason I choose to work there was that of course I love to fly but also that my dad is an aeronautical engineer. Anyways, so flying in the little plane often involves sitting with the pilot in the cockpit and during one of such journeys, the pilot let me control the plane and that excitement of being able to fly on my own and letting the plane turn where I wanted to still lives with me. Thinking about those moments still gives me a rush of adrenaline… it was a very fine experience… just wanted to mention it…
A couple of pictures that I took from air...
Lake Superior at Duluth...
St.Paul from mid air...
Fast-forward to the day of our Florida trip, we were sitting in our seats, Saumya next to the window and guess what she says, ‘Mamma, it’s not a kingfisher’. I was shocked that rather than being excited about the flight and the trip, she was bummed that it was not a ‘kingfisher’. I told her that they don’t have kingfishers here; she took it as a cold fact and asked so when can we sit in one.
I don’t remember our exact conversation then but I do remember my thoughts later, I was very surprised; Saumya took her first flight at the age of 2.5 months and have sat in multitude of different airlines since but her affection for Kingfisher and her aversion for the big blue plane (Boeing 747, KLM) are remarkable. I think the reason for her not liking the big blue plane is very clear, she has to watch whatever they are playing on the big screen and she doesn’t get to pick the cartoon she wants but I haven’t been able to figure out what is so exceptionally good about the ‘kingfishers’ besides their very inventive advertisements that she hasn’t been exposed to yet. Don’t get me wrong, their service was very good, food was delicious, they were very sensitive to kids’ presence but I think a lot of it depends on the crew and experiences vary. Whatever it is, may be the fact they served dinner to kids before they did to the rest of the flight, the fact that she was carried up and down the plane in the arms of a steward (most domestic flights in India still board and deplane on the tarmac like the olden days and passengers are transported to the airport building through a bus) or that she was provided with puzzles and crayons besides the regular television option, but Mr. Vijay Mallya did something right that clicked with a four year old and has stayed with her for more that nine months. Good Job Mr. Mallya, now you just need to start flying to this part of the world. And thank you for a wonderful experience…
As far as I am concerned, as long as I get to fly, I don’t mind if there is television or food on board. I am okay with carrying my own bottle of water and flying my own plane if it gets to that but I just wish to continue to fly as long as I live…
A little side story, I worked in the aeronautics department for a few months and got plenty of opportunities to fly around in little planes. The reason I choose to work there was that of course I love to fly but also that my dad is an aeronautical engineer. Anyways, so flying in the little plane often involves sitting with the pilot in the cockpit and during one of such journeys, the pilot let me control the plane and that excitement of being able to fly on my own and letting the plane turn where I wanted to still lives with me. Thinking about those moments still gives me a rush of adrenaline… it was a very fine experience… just wanted to mention it…
A couple of pictures that I took from air...
Lake Superior at Duluth...
St.Paul from mid air...
No comments:
Post a Comment