There’s nothing quite like the nonchalant, we’ve-seen-it-all-before attitude of white South Africans. Especially when they’re piloting a 12-seater UN plane which, mid takeoff, has ‘technical difficulties.”
I was on my way to Bocaranga, IRC’s second field site quite near the Cameroonian border. This was to be my first experience with UNHAS (United Nations Humanitarian Air Service) and I was quite excited about the whole thing…well, until my two South African pilot friends decided at the (very) last minute to return to the airport after an unsuccessful trip down the runway. One pilot popped a window and stuck his head out to better chat with the Central African technician on the tarmac. “Hey,” he called out in his South African English accent, “Do you guys have an air compressor or something?” The technician knit his brows in concentration and said, “No, we don’t have any compressors here. But maybe you could just try to turn that knob there? Yeah, that one.” At which time the pilot glanced at his passengers and told us we’d better get off the plane. Half an hour later, we tried to take off again without success (which is kind of a scary thing btw!) and the flight was eventually rescheduled.
But the best part was the next day when we were boarding the plane and our country director asked the pilot, “So, everything ok this time?” He says, “Yeah, if we’re lucky.” Great. Fantastic even.
Picture this UN puddle-jumper, with a random selection of humanitarian aid workers from a smattering of NGOs. The plane wasn’t full, and the pilots moved some people around to adjust the weight distribution. A pretty white girl boarded and an African guy, apparently her colleague, asked the pilot, “Can she sit next to me?” The South African looked at him, then looked at her and said, “No, that wont work.” Then he stopped, as if reconsidering and asked, “Wait, you want to sit next to her, eh?” “Yes!” replied the passenger. “Ah. No.” Said the pilot adding, “You can hold her hand later.” And with that, we were off!
In fact, this was my first time in a plane that landed in the middle of nowhere. I learned a lot about planes during my short 1.5 hour flight. First off – planes have horns! We in fact made use of this function as we landed hard on a strip of bumpy dirt to encourage the villagers to get the hell out of the way. Secondly, I apparently get air-sick as I found out in our 20-minute circling descent. At least I got some great pictures! Check them out on Facebook…
But there’s nothing like a good UN plane to make you feel like a true aid worker. Especially with the gaggle of children who crowded the makeshift airstrip, coming to see the bizarre plane-landing spectacle. And actually, if my flying experience didn’t do it for me, maybe my 10-hour car trip home will do the trick! That, or it will convince me to consider a career change. Ideas anyone??
(Note: That 10-hour plane trip was actually 12 hours and I don’t know if I’d say it allowed me to cultivate my aid-worker image so much as it made me want to beg the Chinese to please please please pave the roads in this country!)
No comments:
Post a Comment