Flight or Fright

I was away on a business trip to Kuala Lumpur yesterday and decided to travel by Fireflyz because Subang Airport being the closest to KL compared to LCCT or KLIA and also for nostalgic reasons being the first International Airport in Malaysia as it brought back memories of the past.
Anyway I am not writing about airports but of a fantastic merry go round trip that I had during my return flight from Subang to Penang. The flight was scheduled at 8.20 pm and they were reliable as they were preparing to take off on time and it was I guess a 60 sitter Fokker plane. I found my seat number and sat down reading the NST of the day which I have not been doing since Nov 2007. It has been ages that I read the main press media for reasons known to most and one being for their “un-biased “report with utmost professionalism.
I am not going to talk about press freedom either, coming back to my story. There I was enjoying a pleasant trip back to Penang to see my other half as I have told her that I should touch down by 9.20pm and she assured me that she’ll be at the airport to pick me up. After 30 minutes in the sky the trouble started as the weather was becoming bit rough. The plane went through some turbulence and I was ok for now in this rainy conditions it is normal for planes to go through turbulence more so a for a Fokker. I was very wrong as it began to shake more and flashes of lighting could be seen outside and the weather began to take a bad turn when we were about to reach Penang. It was raining heavily with the plane shaking left to right, up down and realized that the plane was surprisingly going faster than normal. The turbulence was getting worst and the plane was fast descending and all of the sudden I saw Penang Airport on my right and it appeared very close. I thought that the pilot would land the plane but had my doubts with the speed the Fokker was going and it was descending at the middle of the runaway which is not normal. To my shock the plane just took a violent thump on the runaway and took off again swaying left to right. Just like in the Hollywood movies and I heard people let out a loud cry with curious heads looking either at each other or through the window. I guess at this very moment when the plane took a thump our entire life history would have flashed before us. My first thought was what will happen to my family if something were to go wrong? Who would take care of them? I do not even have a will that could administer my so called “assets” not to mention the debts? The tall tale of Michael Jackson’s will issue came to my mind? Wondered what difficulties would they go through? The legal vulture and predators would do a scavenger hunt on my loved ones. My god! Did I become more religious at the moment, I don’t think so, I became more of a realist as I became more rational in my understanding of religion and god. I did not lost faith in religion nor trying to be religious but merely questioning the very existence of god? When man looses all direction in life and I reckon he turns to god for an answer. Could god be just “hope” that mankind wants to believe in as he does not have answers to many of his life questions? It became unquestionable belief called “faith” that keeps him going in life.
I could see that many may have embraced their faith or become reborn Christian, Hindus, Buddhist Muslims or whatever faith that they’ve lost. The lady sitting beside me was kept her eyes locked close while clasping both her hands together like saying a prayer and I looked around and I saw some anxious faces that looked pale even in the dimed light of the aircraft. The plane was lifting higher and higher into the sky and I thought that it is going to turn back to do another attempt to land , that’s when the pilot announced “ due to bad weather we have to turn back to Subang airport”! His voice was no assurance to all of us and the passengers let out their frustration with a disapproving moaning sound. Million questions pumped through my head, my heart beat was faster than usual as if I am doing my exercise. As a seasoned practitioner of breathing technique I was trying to calm myself by taking deep controlled breath, technique which I learn to handle myself during stressful or anxious moments. Little did I know that my heart had its own agenda of not listening to my breathing technique as it continued to pound faster! It was another one long grueling hour ride back to Subang with more curious faces all around. When we landed in Subang, it gave us a big relief and we were told that they are not sure when we can board the flight again. I could see everyone of the passenger clinging on to their hand phone upon reaching the terminal updating their loved ones of their experience and some of them were very descriptive with their gestures. I wonder if their mobile phone has any features that can show their gestures while they were talking, any way mine doesn’t? After waiting while the announcement came asking us to board the plane again and I could see a group of people were talking to the attendant and I guess that they are not willing to board the plane and possibly asking for a refund. I boarded the plane and this time I was very calm indeed and the flight was alright for 30 minutes in the sky but the turbulence started again until we reached the Penang airport. This time around I could see that the plane flying was lower compared to the earlier trip as I could see the housing and street lights below. The flight was slowing down and hovering slowly towards the airport with the island slowly become visible. The plane descended on the runaway with much anticipation as I think the passengers probably not hoping for another round trip experience. Finally I reached Penang safely at 11.40pm and my trip from Subang to Penang took about 3hours rather than mere one hour. What an experience guess, I’ll be writing my will after all!