Cambridge, NY. 6th July 2024. The corn is flourishing. It changes the landscape. . Clouds boiling on the horizon yesterday should have clued us in about the sort of day it would be. But we went out for a short while... . Early clouds b…
Cambridge, NY. 6th July 2024. The corn is flourishing. It changes the landscape.
.
Clouds boiling on the horizon yesterday should have clued us in about the sort of day it would be.
But we went out for a short while...
.
Early clouds broke up, but we soon went off the idea of sight-seeing because of the oppressive heat and humidity.
The car being air-conditioned, you would think we'd be immune to high temperatures.
While it is a blessing to be grateful for, staying home is better.
.
Still, I tell myself there are aspects of summer to enjoy!
Driving up this steep hill I always feel we are climbing right into the sky.
A few times, in my aviation days, I was lucky enough to sit in the cockpit for take-off. How I loved the sensation of rushing into the clouds.
.
As a teenager I yearned to take flying lessons, but it was beyond my means.
Subsequently, I realised that I would never have been able to cope with all the moving parts while simultaneously communicating over a radio.
.
A visit to a control centre on Long Island convinced me of that fact!
It was mostly the idea, I think, of being responsible for so many lives that daunted me.
.
Controllers who manage emergency situations have to be able to remain calm and focussed and deal with a developing situation that their input is likely to significantly affect.
There are few jobs as stressful, I think, yet one seldom hears about air traffic controllers unless they go on strike.
.
Our flight from Seattle in 2018 may very well have been my last, travelling being too uncomfortable and airports being so stressful.
In the unlikely event I should ever be tempted...
.
Have you ever checked out Flightradar24.com?
Birds never seem to collide, no matter how many are in a flock, but they are guided by innate intelligence.
After WW II, aviation became a part of everyday life. We take it for granted.
There are accidents, but they are really very few and they are soon forgotten by anyone not involved.
Many (most?) who have been involved carry on flying, such is their faith in the system.
.
One night in 1977, I was on duty at JFK when a major power outage occurred due to lightning strikes at a substation. The airport was closed for 8 hours, grounding all flights.
With everywhere in total darkness, it was impossible to disperse passengers and even if the crew could have gone back to their hotel, they were hardly going to climb many flights of stairs to hot, dark rooms.
.
Fortunately, it was only our last flight that was affected. The passengers and crew remained on board and after many hours, they departed.
In the terminal we had emergency lighting, but the control tower was mostly out of commission. There were no aviation accidents, so whatever the back-up system was, it worked.
.
Air traffic controllers are unsung heroes.
How unnerving it must have been to be flying in to New York and suddenly see all the lights go out.
Strangely, I never saw a single report or reference to that unique experience.
Of course we had no internet or instant news.
.
The crime spree that ensued in those dark hours was the big news.
A friend happened to be driving in Brooklyn when the power failed. He progressed very slowly and after a while he noticed many people on the move. Furthermore, many were carrying television sets, never mind that they were unwieldy in those days!
.
When it was all added up, 4,500 arrests had been made. 1,616 buildings had been looted and the total damage was estimated at $300 million which in 1977 was significant!
This could have been an anniversary post as the black-out occurred on the night of July 13th-14th, but ideas occur when they will.
.
My personal memories of that night don't amount to much. I do recall one of my colleagues going to her locker to fetch out a bottle of wine. In later years that would have been a firing offence!
Our Duty Manager was solicitous of our safety and drove several of us to the parking lot, urging us to drive home with care.
.
It was a time before management was taken over by the corporate exclusive interest in the bottom line.
It's nice to be able to remember that there once was such a time.
No comments:
Post a Comment