Posted: Tue Feb 08, 2005 5:11 am
"Hi crazy simmers Here is an experience I can only share with you. I have been flying for years but since I joined a virtual airline my environment has changed, I see strange looks around me, imagine my colleagues? faces when I tell them ?Sorry I can?t have a beer with you, tonight, I have to fly to Mumbai? ? most of them don?t even know where Mumbai is? With my wife it is OK (it gives her time to listen to her favorite operas) but I know she is quietly putting stuff in my tea to delay my ?early Alzheimer?. Here is what made my day: my nephew (37) is a DC10 (real) captain (yes they still fly!) working out in the Pacific for a charter company. When I told him, a while ago, that I was flying the 742 for a virtual company I saw a polite smile on his face... Last week he came to visit us and I gave him a little tour from Seattle to Seattle. Before I started the engines his smile had vanished to be soon replaced by some Ahs and Ohs... How realistic... c'est pas possible! etc. What started like a boring family visit lasted a whole evening with some go arounds, fuel dumping, engine re-starts, I was exhausted but, since then, expressions like ""is he still playing with his little planes?"" have totally disappeared from the family vocabulary! Yes I am a very happy pilot. cheers <!--emo&;)-->[img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif[/img]<!--endemo-->"