Memorable Air Travels

For a Jaffna boy born in the fifties, contemplation of air travel itself is something extraordinary.   I knew air travel is possible, but did not think about it much, and fancied it to a much lesser extent.  Travel within Sri Lanka is always by road or train.  I do however have a vague memory of going to an Airport when I was less than five to receive an aunt who was returning from India.

My first air travel eventuated in 1980, when I traveled from Colombo, Sri Lanka to Bryan-College Station, Texas, USA.  I got myself a pin-striped suit made for the travel.  Two of my uncles and a few friends came to the airport to see me off.  I could come out of the airport after checking-in to say bye to them.  The plane went from Colombo to Karachi, to Athens, to Amsterdam where we changed planes to travel to London.  I stayed over-night there and flew to Washington DC where I was a guest for a few days.  Then I flew to Houston, Texas via Jacksonville, Florida.  Finally, I flew from Houston to Bryan-College Station.  I think the reason for hop-scotching across Asia/Europe, was not the capacity of planes, but a lack of passengers.  A lot has changed since then, one could fly from Colombo to Europe, and then to Bryan-College Station without delays. 

The Boy who left Jaffna in 1980

Since it was my first air travel, I thought of collecting the boarding passes as souvenirs.  It did not take long to give up on that hobby.  During my days in the US, I traveled very cheaply by air.  A ticket from Houston to New Orleans cost me 27 dollars, and another from Houston to New York cost me about 50 dollars.  I had figured out that if I take late night fights, I could save money on air travel and hotels.

In 1987, when I migrated to Australia, I had to go from Sydney to Griffith, a sleepy Australian country-town, an hour away by air.  A friend dropped me at Sydney airport, I checked in my baggage, identified the boarding gate, and there were no one.  A few passengers gathered later, and the crew of two came along.  They told us to board the plane, probably a twenty seater, did a head count and took-off.  They were the days without security scares.

Griffith:  My Home from 1987-1996

In the 1990s, I had to travel from Canberra to Griffith in a four-seater plane, and my flight was to depart around 6:30 pm.  I was at the airport by 5 pm, and went to a coffee bar before departure.  As I sipped my coffee, I noticed two young men walking to me, both in their twenties, wearing flight jackets.  I looked up, and one of them asked if I was Prathapar.  I was dazed that someone in Canberra knew me by name.  I said, yes, and was waiting, not knowing what more to say.  One of them then said, 'Sir, when you finish your coffee, we can take off'.  I just fell off the chair, well almost.  I had two pilots waiting to fly me home, and willing to wait till I finish my coffee.  I felt VERY important, but did not want to keep the young men waiting.  So, gulped the coffee in a blink, and marched to the plane with my private pilots!

Griffith:  The land of fruits & wine

A few years later, I had to catch a 5:30 am flight from Griffith to Melbourne in a seven-seater plane.  My wife drove me to the airport around 5 am; we were expected to check in 20 minutes before departure.  As we approached the airport, the airport was dark, and we thought we were too early.  Then I saw a young woman rushing to our car, asking me if I was Prathapar, and I said yes.  She then ran to a public phone and called someone and within a few minutes, a plane landed for me to travel.  The plane had just taken-off from Griffith without me.  The departure time was changed, but I was not informed.  These were the days before smart phones.  I had a smug on my face relishing that a plane returned to pick me up, but I did notice the angst on my fellow passengers face.  

Flying into Central Asia and Caucuses had always been memorable to me.  I think it is largely because of the differences in bureaucratic processes from their Soviet era, and due to the difficulties in communication.  They hardly speak English, and I do not speak Russian. 

In 1999, I had to attend a meeting on a Monday in Tashkent, and the agency hosted me sent an invitation letter in Russian with the date corresponding to the Monday.  I submitted it to their Embassy in Islamabad to obtain my visa, and landed in Tashkent a day earlier, the Sunday, around noon.  In the visa, the Embassy has recorded the date of the meeting, and I have arrived 12 hours earlier before my visa could come into effect.  Despite the difficulties in communication, I conveyed to them my predicament, and they agreed to inform my host agency.  However, rules are rules, and I can’t be permitted to enter Tashkent without a visa for the day I have landed.  Consequently, I was DETAINED.

Samarkand:  The Home of Indian Mughal's Ancestors

A young soldier with a Kalashnikov escorted me in a full size 50-60 seater bus, to the detention center within the airport premises, probably a km away from the arrival lounge.  It was a very modern building, and one of the rooms was the detention center.  There were only two of us – my guard and me.  As we waited, I heard music coming from another room which doors were closed.  I asked the guard, what it was, and he smiled and said it’s a bar.  I tried to persuade him to go to the bar, he did not agree, but I started to walk.  He had no choice but to follow me.  The bar man opened the door; another man and a young girl were dancing to the music.  I sat on a very comfortable lounge, ordered vodka, and watched West-Indies playing Pakistan for 1999 Cricket World Cup on a very large plasma TV.  It was a pity that I was detained only for two hours or so, by when my host managed to come and rescue me. 

Mirzo Ulugbek:  A 15th Century Astronomer & Mathematician 

Again in 1999, I had to attend a meeting at Tbilisi, Georgia.  When I landed, I heard someone calling me by name within the Business Class.  My organizers have sent a Guide to take me from the plane to the hotel.  He spoke in very good English, and said he was a University Lecturer.  He collected my passport, and as we came down the stairwell (there were no air-bridge then), there was a Volvo Limousine on the tarmac for me and I was driven to the hotel.  My luggage and the passport were delivered later.  Very nice!

But the best of all was when I was a member of a University delegation led by the Vice Chancellor.  A fellow member of the delegation was from the Royal Family.  During the entire travel in Europe, I was reminded of a Tamil adage, which loosely translates into, “when rice is irrigated, the weed too gets water”.  Yes, the Royal Family member was the rice receiving the protocol she was entitled to, and I was one of the weeds, benefiting from the hospitality wherever we went.  We always flew First Class in Emirates, which offered a suite with a full-size bed, private mini bar and on-demand menu full of exquisite food and wine.  When we landed in Dubai, we were taken from the plane through its emergency exit by a limousine to a very private lounge- just for our delegation.  It was better than the first class lounge, I bet.  I do not think, I will ever enjoy a flight like that.

Sultan Qaboos University of Oman

Emirates Airbus 380 - The First Class is pure luxury

Because of airplanes and air travels, I was able to visit at least forty countries around the world.  I haven’t been to Southern America yet.  May be one day I will go there.  Having said so, nowadays, I am a bit averse to flying.  Fortunately in my current job, my flights are short duration ones, a maximum of two hours.  I do not have to catch flights in the middle of the night and do not have to land in unusual places at awkward times.