Pakmus plane ride.

The mysterious disappearance of MH 370 made me recollect my entire journeys on the air plane. Touch wood, no mishap and close calls but I encountered four (4) bad experiences:

1) At Heathrow, before took off, it was surprisingly delayed due to a faulty rudder. It was replaced. 2) On my way back to Subang at night from Ipoh vide a Fokker Friendship, the plane ran into a thunderstorm. The plane was shaky like crazy and lighting flashes everywhere. 3) On my way back from Singapore, the plane could not land at Subang Airport due to flooded runaway. The plane circled KLIA (under construction) for about an hour before the plane could approach Subang. 4) I was stuck in the plane at Penang Airport for several hours as Subang Airport did not give the green light to take off as Subang Airport Traffic Control Tower was handicap due to fire.

In the plane I always opt for aisle seat. Except during meal time, I choose to blanket myself and doze off. Let will be, will be. I don’t want to think about it and I leave it in the good hands of Allah and the Pilot.

To me, flying is no more a pleasure like those days. The last four (4) rows of seats were smoking seats. Now smoking is strictly prohibited. I never enjoy my meal in flight. One of the most memorable incidents was when I postpone my night flight from Subang Airport to London from the night flight to the next morning day flight. I was already at the Check in counter and I went home to sleep. At that era, night flight to London was no smoking flight.

My first ever plane ride was from Malacca Batu Berendam Airport to Ipoh on 15 May 1969. I had to overfly Kuala Lumpur as it was curfew due to 13 May incident.

While serving Kumpulan Guthrie I had the experience of flying on the Company’s Twin Islander from Sungai Besi Airport to Chenor in Pahang. When the Company switched to Bell Helicopter, I flew with Late Captain Nasir Ma Lee from Setapak Helipad to Penggerang Johore. I sat beside him like a Co Pilot and I remember he warned me not to touch anything.

Al Fatihah to late Captain Nasir Ma Lee.

Other experiences on the airplane, the Old Man had landed and venture into the following Capital Cities of the world:-

Austria – Vienna.

Bahrain – Manama.

Belgium – Brussels.

China – Beijing.

Egypt – Cairo.

France – Paris.

Indonesia – Jakarta.

Israel – Tel Aviv.

Italy – Rome.

Japan – Tokyo.

Jordan – Amman.

Hong Kong – Kowloon.

Palestine – Jerusalem.

Qatar – Doha.

Malaysia – Kuala Lumpur.

Netherland – Amsterdam.

Saudi Arabia – Riyadh.

Singapore – Singapura.

Thailand – Bangkok.

United Arab Emirate – Abu Dhabi.

United Kingdom – London.

United States of America – Washington DC.

Vatican – Vatican City.

Had been to the following countries but not the Capital Cities:-

Australia – Perth, Sydney and Gold Coast.

Switzerland – Lucerne.

Turkey – Istanbul.

Germany – Munich.

Canada - Vancouver.

Mexico - Monterey.

Vietnam – Ho Chi Minh City.

I would certainly love to go to New Zealand.

The country that I will not step again – Vietnam.

Country that I will not stop going – Saudi Arabia.

Most beautiful country visited – My own, Malaysia.

Landmark always in memory: Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

Countries that visited more than once:

Austria, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Turkey, USA, Indonesia, China, Singapore, Thailand and Japan.

Places in Indonesia that I flew to:-

Bandar Acheh, Medan, Bukit Tinggi, Padang, Pekanbaru, Palembang, Jakarta, Bandung, Jakartar,Surabaya and Lombok Island.

Places in Thailand I flew to:-

Hatnyai, Phuket and Bangkok.

Best Airline:

Malaysia Airline System (MAS).

Whatever……….this simple kampong boy who dreamt to go to Singapore finally he saw most part of the world.

As at today: 13 April 2014, there is no trace of MH 370, the debris or the black box. My doa is  with the 239 on board.