Flying High: Airplanes Still Amaze Me

By Marvin Druger  |  mdruger@syr.edu

 

On Dec. 17, 1903, an amazing feat was accomplished at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, by Wilbur and Orville Wright, owners of a bicycle shop.

They successfully launched the first controlled, powered flight of a heavier-than-air airplane called the Wright Flyer.

With Orville at the controls, the vehicle flew 120 feet for about 12 seconds at a maximum height of about 10 feet.

An even longer flight of 852 feet was accomplished by Wilbur Wright later that day. The Wright Flyer is on display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C.

Aviation has come a long way since the historic flight of the Wright Flyer. Humans can zoom across the world in jet airplanes; roam in space, fly to and from the moon and in 2023, a small helicopter called Ingenuity was the first craft to make controlled flights on Mars.

We don’t give much thought to jet flights today. They are commonplace.

I have a great respect for engineers who design airplanes and pilots who fly them. I also admire air controllers who regulate airplane traffic and other airline personnel who assure safety. I have experienced many memorable incidents on airplanes that earned my appreciation and admiration.

I always try to sit in a window seat behind the wing to make sure that the wing doesn’t fall off.

One time, I noticed that there was a rivet missing on the wing. When the plane landed, the pilot was greeting people at the exit. I said, “Do you know that there’s a screw missing on the wing?” He replied, “Yes. We know about it. It’s well within limits.” I wondered what’s outside limits? Two screws missing?

When I was a visiting professor in Perth, Western Australia, I had a radio program on a station known as 6NR. This was a 30-minute interview program similar to my Druger’s Zoo radio program on WAER-FM 88.3 in Syracuse. They started the programs by playing Yankee Doodle Dandy. I asked two air controllers to simulate the conversation on a flight from Perth to Sydney. They enjoyed the experience so much that they refused to give instructions for landing the plane.

On one occasion, I was in a jet plane that started racing down the runway for takeoff. Suddenly, the plane screeched to a halt. The pilot announced, “We have a problem. We have to go back to the airport to fix it. Then, we’ll give it another try.” Fortunately, the second try worked.

I was having my hair cut by Joe, the barber. He is completely bald and I told him about my recent adventure on the plane that had to abort the takeoff. Joe said, “Wow. That must have been a hair-raising experience.” My thoughtless comment was, “Yes, you should have been on the plane.” We both had a good laugh.

We were in a jumbo jet flying from Sydney, Australia, to New York. There were three seats in a row and I was sitting on the aisle. Some stranger was sitting at the window and my wife Pat was sitting in the middle seat with our baby daughter on her lap. Suddenly, the plane encountered turbulence and dropped rapidly. The flight attendants who were serving coffee were thrown toward the ceiling. My baby’s eyes popped open. I gripped the arms of the seat and thought, “This is it. It’s a long way down.” Instead of grabbing my arm for security, Pat grabbed the arm of the stranger in the aisle seat. She gripped his arm tightly until the plane bounced back to level flight. I never forgave her.

I was always terrified when a plane flew through a thunderstorm. After a very bumpy, thunderstorm flight, I said to the pilot, “Aren’t pilots scared when there is a thunderstorm?” His reassuring reply was, “No, we aren’t scared. We’re prepared.” This comment always comes to mind whenever my flight encounters turbulence in the air.

We all have misadventures on airlines. One day Pat drove me to the airport to catch a plane to a meeting in Chicago. We got off to a late start and there was a long line waiting to be checked in. I began to get anxious about whether I would make the flight. When I finally got to the counter, I was sweating from anxiety and I had that sick, sinking feeling in my stomach. “Do I still have time to make the plane?” I asked. The agent replied, “You have plenty of time. Your flight isn’t scheduled to leave until tomorrow.” I had to call Pat to drive back to the airport to get me. She wasn’t too happy about it. I had goofed again.

I had to make reservations to fly on a small commuter airplane. I said to the ticket agent, “I’d like a window seat.” The agent replied, “On this plane, every seat is a window seat and an aisle seat.” He was right.

On another occasion, a flight from San Francisco hit severe weather as the plane neared Syracuse. I grabbed the arms of the seat and started sweating as the plane lurched up and down and side to side. I could see lightning. I was sure that we wouldn’t make it this time. Fortunately, I was wrong. We made a safe landing. On my way out of the plane, I stopped at the cockpit and commented to the captain, “Tough landing.” He replied, “That was really something. Sometimes we have to work for a living.”

A wonderful experience flying is handicapped service. As I grew older, mobility issues came into play. I could no longer effortlessly navigate the long hallways at airports. So, I requested handicapped services at the airport.

An agent picked me up in a transport chair at the curb when I arrived at the airport. I was whisked through security past a long line of forlorn, impatient passengers. The agent pushed me down the endless hallway to the boarding area and up the ramp to the entrance of the plane. A stewardess grabbed my carry-on suitcase and put it in the overhead rack.

When the plane landed, an agent with a transport chair was waiting at the airplane door. He then wheeled me to the airport exit where my granddaughter was waiting to pick me up in her car. What a wonderful service!

Now, if I travel by plane, I will bring my cane (which I never use) and will exhibit a severe limp, just to get the royal treatment.