Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Of smooth landings and the little things


After flying in and out of Manila for so many times (more than I ever imagined I'd be doing), I've decided to dedicate a blog post to the people who make air travel [more often than not] convenient for everyone.


Smooth landings = great pilot

I often think that if a pilot is good, a smooth landing is imminent and from the many times I've flown with Cebu Pacific this year, I have come to a generalization that Cebu Pacific pilots are good when it comes to touching down the runway. Someone actually mentioned that Filipino pilots are known for their smooth landings - yey for the Pinoy pilots. :)


Little things do matter

From the many times I've been on a plane, the instances I'm seated on the window seat are just a handful. Just two weeks ago in our NAGA-MLA flight, I got the chance to sit on the window seat (because the person beside me wanted the aisle seat instead of his window seat) and just before our plane started moving I looked out the window and what I saw made me smile. :)


I was wondering why the ground crew were all standing in line just a few meters away from the plane and why they didn't enter the airport after finishing all the pre-flight checks. turns out, it was their SOP to all line up and wave goodbye to the departing plane and all the passengers in it. It's such a minute detail, but it matters to me and maybe to other passengers as well. That simple gesture made me feel that it was more than a routine for the ground personnel, it's a way of showing the passengers that it's more than just a business - it's a service. :) So to those who have qualms about flying, try sitting in the window seat and just when all doors have been closed and the fasten seat belt sign has been switched on and your plane is about to depart, look out the window and you'll see a bunch of friendly faces bidding you good bye and wishing you a safe flight. :)


Here's a grateful shoutout to the men and women who keep the airline industry afloat both literally and figuratively!
***Photo credits go to briancarnold.wordpress.com (found through google images)

1 comment:

  1. A smooth flight is always a good thing. I've had good flights and really bad flights. My last flight on American Airlines, it was nice of them to put everyone on the flight up in a hotel for the night when our connecting flights were missed & then re-booked.

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