#been around for what... five years? six years atp? an extremely long time basically

[sleuth-mila-young]

🔍 PROMO 🔎

A black screen awaited any viewer who dared to tune in. Judgement here was long gone, it being passed onto the unrighteous. A sizzling, static noise struck the shadow-filled display, absent of any empathetic touch.

...!

"OW!"

A shriek of pain interrupted the solitude.

To follow the yelp, a long, quiet rustle was audible on the other end. Though whatever waited on the other end wasn't visible, the panicked, hurried sounds spoke for them all the same. Rustling and rummaging hissed through the blackened screen. The mental picture could easily be put into your mind.

...After a minute or two of agonizing and awkward waiting, the camera finally took focus, colors flooding the screen. What stood in plain view was a short gentleman with tanned, bronzed skin and short, black curly hair. They smiled sheepishly, smoothing back their hair and brushing off their suit. "...It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." They nodded politely, putting a gloved hand on their heart. "We don't know each other yet, but... I hope we will come to. I'm Mila Law Young, a detective at the Royal Court Agency."

"For a back of a better word, I have gotten wind that thing's have been... risque, around these parts, wouldn't you say? An assortment of crime running in these dark, shaded backstreets, hiding under our noses... And I simply cannot live with the idea that innocent civilians are getting mixed in the middle of it."

"So... that's why I'm here!" Mila beamed, grinning from ear to ear. "To protect and serve! To get to the bottom of these terrible sins that are haunting our youth! Whatever you need, please don't hesitate to contact me. Please remember that I'm a resource, an ear to listen, and, hopefully, a friend."

The sleuth bowed, looking up with a wink. "...I'm at your service."

@ask-a-gremlin @ask-shslpianist @ask-miu-iruma @a-perfect-wish @scxrs-will-fade @roguesinger @ask-the-ultimate-cosplayer @photographic-misery @obsolete-journalist @demons-for-darling @candy-cocktail @ultimate-class-rep @depths-of-hope-and-despair @devoted-nychta and anyone else not tagged! feel free to jump in/ignore!

#mila young 🔎 #ask blog #oc askblog #original character #mila is a long established oc #been around for what... five years? six years atp? an extremely long time basically #many people know them well and have a long history with them! used them in two kgs and countless one off rps #they may or may not be referenced! but mostly im looking to start a new beginning with mila #so i thought why not bring them over to tumblr? i followed so many askblogs back in the day might as well make my own! #big shout out to the new story discord group who really encouraged me to make this. love you all 💜 #please feel free to interact -- even if you havent been tagged! #multifandom muses too are welcome. anyone and everyone is welcome! #even if mila has danganronpa styled sprites i wanna int with as much people as possible! #smell you all later 💞 #mod sherb 🍨

[ofacesandvolleys]

"A lot of people have to slow me down"

Tennis pro Alexander Zverev on his rapid rise to the number three in the world rankings, his relationship with Germany - and books by Stephen Hawking.

Interview by Gerald Kleffmann for Süddeutsche Zeitung on November 11, 2017

Alexander "Sascha" Zverev became the best German tennis professional at the age of 20. In the world rankings, the player from Hamburg comes in third, and this season he won tournaments in Montpellier, Munich, Rome, Washington and Montréal. Zverev will be competing at the ATP finals in London from Sunday, with the top eight players taking part in 2017.

SZ: Mr. Zverev, recently the German player Julia Görges revealed a secret: She likes to make tax returns and would have worked in this area if she hadn't become a tennis player. Sascha: Well, I don't like to do that (laughs). SZ: Your passion is the game "Escape Room", where you have to solve tasks to escape from a room. Sascha: Oh, yeah. That's what I love. Wherever I can play it, I'll make an appointment. I do it everywhere, in America, Australia, France. We are usually a group of players, but my Physio Hugo is often there, too. SZ: What fascinates you about this game? Sascha: Logical thinking. I like the fiddling, combining, the strategic approach. You come into a room first and you have to find things. For example, a red cross and a blue triangle and a black something. Then you'll have to connect everything together according to a specification. You have to work a lot with numbers, there's some math to it. Recently at the tournament in Vienna I played it five times with my fellow players.

SZ: Do you have to compete in your leisure time as well? Sascha: Always. If there's no competition, I get bored. No matter what I do. Also on a day off I have to do something with competition. It's part of my personality. When I'm with my brother Mischa (ten years older, also tennis pro) it's always the case that we play for something. The winner then makes fun of the loser. SZ: Ambition is the engine of your sporting career. You made it to the ATP Finals in your fourth year as a pro. How do you assess your qualification? Sascha: For every player who makes it to the finals, it's like a small tribute. You're one of the top 8 players of the year, not just one for two or three weeks. For me it was also special to qualify as a third player after Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. SZ: You were supposed to start this week at the premiere of the Next Gen Finals of the under-21s in Milan. You skip it because of London - you have become too good in your age group. Why did you make such a development in 2017? Sascha: The development has a lot to do with the years before. In the three years before, I did off-season every time, only trained and worked a lot physically. I have to be ready to keep up with the best players and also to win against them. These basics have been seen this year. Of course I'm glad about my titles. But in tennis, you have to have a short memory. Whether you win or lose, if you win a tournament this week, you'll have to play another tournament next week. You can be happy for a day or two, but then you have to be ready again. I'm happy every time I get to play in a big tournament. I consider it an honour. SZ: You come from a tennis family, your Russian parents were top players in the former USSR, your brother Mischa is currently 32nd in the ATP ranking. And yet your family sometimes seems mysterious, partly because your father, who is also your coach, hardly speaks in public. Who are the Zverevs? Sascha: That's not so mysterious. My parents came to Germany from Russia in 1991. Because of the political situation. My father had played 13 years for Davis Cup. He played two or three tournaments abroad and was not allowed to travel for six months. That wasn't easy for him. While he had to stay at home, the others played in Grand Slams. It was no different with my mother. My mum gave birth to Mischa at the age of 20, and for her career it was difficult. In Russia my parents had a good standard of living, my father was quite famous. But in Germany, they started from scatch. They had an one-room apartment and worked for a tennis club every day. That's how it began. And now we are where we are. SZ: When you internalize what your parents Alexander senior and Irina gave up for their sons: What do you think about it? Sascha: I'm aware of what they have done for us. It absolutely helps me to stay on the ground. I know you have to go through something to get somewhere in life. That is why I want to use every opportunity to become better. I am infinitely grateful to my parents. Without my parents, I wouldn't be the player I am. No matter which coach I have, for me, my dad is one of the best coaches in the world anyway. He has two sons who play completely different games. I'm the fast baseline player, I try to play aggressively from the baseline. Mischa is a left-hander and goes to the net at every possibility. Our dad designed our game the way he thought it was right. We both became top 30 players from ranking position zero! SZ: Is he a typical tennis father? Sascha: Of course he can be strict. But he's more of a quiet man. He'd never start screaming. In tennis, parents sometimes have control over their children's life. They want control over their personal lives, over friends. He's very smart. He understands he's the tennis coach. And my personal life is my personal life. If he were to take part in everything I would go nuts someday, completely nuts. (laughs). He understands because he played tennis himself. That's why it works so well with all of us. SZ: Haven't you ever felt any pressure? Sascha: Not a bit. My father never said,"You've got to do this and that! You have to do this and that! He never forced me to play tennis. Instead he has to slow me down. A lot of people have to slow me down. Also Jez, my fitness coach. I'm someone who doesn't want to take a day off after a disappointing defeat. I'm not feeling well. I want to suppress that with work. My team often understands better than I do that my body needs a break. Even if I don't like to hear that. SZ: You're an emotional player. Some rackets must have been destroyed. Do these feelings sometimes get in your way or does this impulsiveness helps you? Sascha: I show my emotions automatically because I am completely in a match. I think that if you don't show any emotions in tennis, you also signal that it's not so important to you. I want the audience to see how much I want to win every match. I'm not going to tame my emotions. They're part of me. SZ: When you play against Grand Slam champions like Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal, you appear to believe in a chance. Is this fearlessness given to you or can you learn something like that? Sascha: It's a mixture of both. The first time I played Federer, I was nervous too. He was always my idol. I wanted to play against him all my life. But the second and third time it became easier for me. It is important to me to draw the right conclusions from experiences. They were always big matches against him. I played the semi-final of Halle against him in 2016. The final of Halle. Or the Montréal final. (2017) SZ: You almost humiliated Federer there at 6:3,6:4. Why aren't you intimidated by such moments? Sascha: I've been familiar with tennis courts since I was a kid. I have already travelled with my brother and got to know the facilities, the surroundings. I always wanted to play on the biggest courts. Even as a boy. That's what I enjoyed the most. I used to have the feeling and still have it: When I work hard in the gym and nobody sees how I work there, I want to show it on the court how much I have worked. And you can only do that on big courts. SZ: As the new number three in the world ranking, you are now directly behind Federer and Nadal. Apart from their athletic performance - what impresses you about them as personalities? Sascha: That both of them are normal people. Roger's nice to the players, he's not out of touch. He has a very good sense of humor. Not everyone always recognizes this, because Roger likes to make the same face. He's incredibly funny in private. Rafa as well. SZ: How important is it to be loved? Federer and Nadal are literally approaching love. Sascha: I want to be loved, of course - but by the people who know me. I want to be remembered later as a good person and not just as a good tennis player. Sometimes, in order to achieve my sporting goals, I have to make decisions that are not always easy for the media and fans to understand. However, these decisions are important for the long view ahead. SZ: That you skip the Davis Cup relegation in Portugal was a big topic: it has irritated some people. You promised months ago you want to play, and in the end it was said that your manager advised you not to play. Sascha: I just can't play every time. My season is long. But I have already said: I will play Davis Cup in Australia at the beginning of February, after the Australian Open. In Australia, I'm definitely going to play, whether I lose in Melbourne in the final or in the third round. And if we win, I'll definitely play the Davis Cup until the end. SZ: Like most top players, you have become a global player. You practice in Florida, live in Monte Carlo, travel around the world. How do you see yourself in this international cosmos? Sascha: I see myself and feel completely German. I love Germany, I love Hamburg. If I could be somewhere my whole life, it would be Hamburg. I grew up there. I do not hope that people don't see me as a German. I just can't be around that much. We play in January in Australia, then in the US, in Europe, again in the US, in Asia. We're never just in one place. I moved to Monte Carlo because of better training conditions in winter and because many other players are living there. There are a lot of extremely good training partners there, and many hard courts. My brother lived there before me, now we have apartments right next to each other. My parents also live there. Monte Carlo is a very good place for tennis. It was a tough decision, but it was also a smart decision. SZ: What is striking is that you sound more comfortable in English. When you won in Washington, you gave a very charming speech. In German, the people sometimes experienced minor irritations, according to the motto:"How did he mean that now?" Sascha: That's probably because I rarely give interviews in German because I'm rarely there. In tennis, English is the language. When I come back to Germany after a long time and play in Munich, for example, I am sometimes afraid of myself. Not that I'm forgetting the german language. But as an interview language, I'm more familiar with English. But I don't have a problem giving interviews in German. Or in Russian. SZ: How much Russian do you have in you? Sascha: We speak russian every day in the family. My parents don't want me to forget it. I also speak Russian with my brother. It's good for me that I can speak several languages, and I'm now trying to learn French as well. I have a French physio who doesn't stop talking, never, no matter what time it is. But back to Russian: Everything that has to do with my parents and my brother is very interesting to me. We help each other, I also give back advices and experiences to Mischa. I'm also interested in other things. SZ: Like what, for example? Sascha: What was before our world. What was before us. I'm very interested in space. How it came about. I'm a little crazy about these things (laughs). SZ: Tell us more about it! Sascha: I'm interested in what's behind our knowledge. That's why I read Stephen Hawking. I'm fascinated by how people like him think. I read a lot about these topics and watch documentaries. For most people on the tour this is boring, so it's hard to find someone to talk to about it. I am generally interested in science, in nature. I'm interested in how water creatures turned into terrestrial creatures. How the bodies changed, the breathing, how beings suddenly crawled ashore. But to make sure there is no false impression: I don't read three hours about it every day. It's just a whim. SZ: You've made many good decisions, and working with second coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, a Spaniard you brought in this year, is working well. Nevertheless, third parties often express themselves and give advice. Recently, former professional Henri Leconte said you should give yourself more time to be successful at Grand Slams. You've never reached a quarter-finals there before. Sascha: Of course, I hear some things from the outside, but that doesn't count for me. All that matters to me is what my team says. I'm also very honest with myself.  SZ: Leconte didn't mean it in a negative way. More in the sense that you're too hard on yourself. Sascha: I'll always be hard on myself. I will always be harder to myself than any other human being. I'll always try to show my best tennis. Being the best at things I have under control.

#translation #tennis translation #Alexander Zverev #Sascha Zverev #interview translation

[bolachasgratis]

NOS Primavera Sound 2019: printable timetables, our preview and playlist

It doesn’t matter how conservative or liberal you are: people are naturally resistant to change, especially if the previous form of what’s changing was so dear to them. We get it: “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. Judging by the tone and content of most comments we can find online about this year’s Primavera lineup, both in Porto and Barcelona, folks ain’t happy about “the new normal”. Yes, some of the biggest pop artists in the planet have claimed most of the spots with the big font in it. Yes, there’s a shortage of loud, extreme music we often found at the long gone ATP stage, and every year there are less and less historical, cult indie rock bands reforming for a Primavera performance. But, other than that - tiny specks on a lineup of over 120 bands in Barcelona and over 60 in Porto - has it really changed that much? Is the Primavera DNA gone? (Was there really a “Primavera DNA” to begin with?)

We don’t think so. In this year's preview of NOS Primavera Sound, we’re looking back on our ten years of going to Primavera festivals (since our debut in Barcelona 2009, we only missed it in 2011). We identify five pillars of what we think makes a typical Primavera lineup - and reflect on what’s new and what’s missing. In the end, we can say we’re actually more excited for this years’ edition than we’ve been in the past three or four years. 

Our preview playlist (which you can find below) features 33 artists, and we tried our best not to include the very obvious ones. 

Download the timetables (always subject to change): Regular PDF / Mobile PDF / Customisable Excel file

The historical indie rock bunch (and a couple of reunions) 

This lineup has got Built to Spill performing “Keep it Like a Secret” (Thursday, 19:50). It’s automatically good just for that reason, even if it was a late addition after a cancellation. It’s got the first ever Guided by Voices performance in the Iberian Peninsula (Saturday, 20:45) and a rare appearance by cult hero Liz Phair (Friday, 22:00). It’s got Low still fresh out of their most lauded album release of the past fourteen years (Saturday, 23:20). What about reunions? We get it, everyone expects so much of a festival where bands like My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive or Pavement have first performed after long periods of retirement. Stereolab (Thursday, 23:20) were one of the most inventive, genre-defining and influential bands of the 90s and return to the stage after a ten year hiatus, and the Basque band Lisabö (Friday, 19:15), who has released in 2018 their first album in eight years, was once one of the most powerful post-rock/hardcore bands in Europe. And, you know... the real reason why we never, ever miss a single NOS Primavera Sound edition is the fact that it’s the most likely place in Europe to be able to witness a rare sighting of the best live band in rock music. Let’s all raise a toast to Shellac (Friday, 21:00). If they weren’t in the lineup, yes, we would think Primavera is gone. But, as long as Albini, Trainer and Weston are with us, can we really say the festival is not what it used to be?

Up-and-coming indie singer-songwriters 

Some of them we’ve seen and talked extensively before on our NOS Primavera Sound and Vodafone Paredes de Coura previews. Courtney Barnett (Friday, 19:50) played for a half-empty tent before we all hit the jackpot with her debut LP and was one of our biggest highlights of that year. Lucy Dacus (Saturday, 18:50) and Big Thief (Saturday, 19:15) played two of our favorite shows at last year’s Vodafone Paredes de Coura. They’re both competing for our attention this year, along with Tomberlin (Saturday, 19:00), who is also playing in the same time slot and appeals to the same fanbase, which makes us a bit sad to miss the others. Even if we think this was a scheduling mistake, it’s still an indicator of how good this lineup is. And you’ve still got Snail Mail (Saturday, 20:30), hopefully with a full band, when you’re done with the gig of your choice. Just before Barnett on Friday we’ve got two songwriters who released two of the most exciting albums of 2019 so far. We have missed Aldous Harding (Friday, 17:45) every time we had the chance to see her (either due to cancellations or her being placed in tiny venues in festivals) and we’ll try not to fuck it up this time around. We'll probably skip Nilüfer Yanya (Friday, 18:50) since we’ve seen her play with her band in a tiny anarchist venue less than a month ago, but you shouldn’t. And, if you don’t care about Jarvis Cocker (sacrilege) don’t miss the only male songwriter in this list: the Canadian songwriter MorMor (Thursday, 21:25) has released a superb EP earlier this month.

Unique, experimental-ish contemporary artists

There’s always space on a Primavera lineup for some of the best performers we’ve been seeing in the past few years that don’t really fit in any big boxes. Synth-heavy Let’s Eat Grandma (Thursday, 23:45) is not only the best band name in the lineup, it’s one of the most exciting new acts coming out of England in the past few years. Spoken word queen Kate Tempest (Saturday, 22:30) is debuting her new album ahead of its release later in June and shall compete for your attention with Tirzah (Saturday, 22:00) and Rosalía (Saturday, 22:10), the hottest artist out of Spain in God knows how long. Later on, Swedish singer-songwriter Neneh Cherry (Saturday, 23:30) presents her much lauded recent LP Broken Politics. Experimental rock outfit Jambinai **(Friday, 18:00) are known for using traditional folk Korean instruments to produce some of the sharpest sounding post-rock these days, while Shabaka Hutchings brings four drummers to his Sons of Kemet XL** (Friday, 20:20) jazztravaganza.

Nobody’s taking your guitars away

Playing a bit softer or harder, we’ve already listed tons of guitar music above. Yes, there’s less heavy music than a few years ago, but was that really ever a defining quality of a Primavera lineup? Still, besides all the indie rock bands we mentioned before there are a few more options for guitar-heavy partying, from returning experimental-ish hardcore behemoths Fucked Up (Friday, 22:15) to upcoming Aussie punk rockers Amyl and the Sniffers (Saturday, 21:00). Although very different from each other, Hop Along (Saturday, 17:45) and Viagra Boys (Saturday, 18:00) will compete for your attention in the beginning of the last day of the festival.

The indie/alternative big guns

You wouldn’t set up a 30,000 capacity festival where the headliners are six indie singer-songwriters with two records under their belt since 2016, right? We know we wouldn’t even though that’s basically half of what we listen to. Pulp’s Jarvis Cocker is back with his new project JARV IS (Thursday, 21:00), which is apparently “primarily a live experience”, mostly limited to festivals. We don’t know what to expect and we don’t want to read about it beforehand. Can we still be surprised sometimes, is that too much to ask? It’s been over a decade since we last were excited about anything related to Interpol **(Friday, 23:45), but reports from Barcelona and All Points East tell us at least 2/3 of the setlist is composed of Antics and Turn On the Bright Lights songs, so there’s that. Later that night, **James Blake (Friday, 01:00) is back with a new album that we didn’t care to listen to, but we thought his past two concerts we saw in festivals were way more interesting than his records, so we’ll probably give him a shot. On Saturday we witness a rare European show by Jorge Ben Jor (Saturday 19:50), the MPB giant who rarely performs outside Brazil, before the neo soul queen Erykah Badu (Saturday, 00:30) takes the stage as the closing big act of the festival.

The new normal

Yes, something changed at NOS Primavera Sound over the past couple of years. But did it change for worse? This was a festival that, despite running until the early hours of the morning, lacked an electronic dance music programme that was as consistent as its daylight and prime-time programme. This has changed last year with the introduction of new stage Bits, and has considerably improved this years when it comes to DJs. Yaeji (Thursday, 03:00) has released some of the most non-obvious house hits since 2017. Together with Peggy Gou **(Thursday, 01:30), **Helena Hauff (Friday, 04:30), SOPHIE (Friday, 02:30) and JASSS (Friday, 00:00), the Korean-American producer and DJ is the flagbearer of an experimental, female-fronted, fresh sounding clubbing scene that not so long ago was pretty much nonexistent in Primavera. Producer Yves Tumor (Saturday, 01:00) brings another side of the same scene with his full band; Modeselektor (Saturday, 23:45) are hardly newcomers and have performed in countless editions of Primavera, both as Modeselektor and Moderat. 

But maybe that’s not the addition of a good clubbing programme with a stage dedicated to clubbers that’s really bothering a seemingly substantial part of Primavera’s typical festival goers. Maybe it’s the fact that most of the big slots in the lineup - even though those represent only 10% of the festival’s lineup - are occupied by big, guitarless, not-really-indie acts. But can we really rule them out and say they’re not “Primavera artists” based on their (lack of) artistic merit? Of course not. It’s been seven years since Solange (Thursday, 00:30) has released “Losing You” and stopped being referred to as simply “Beyoncé’s younger sister”; we are yet to find a bad review for her latest two albums. Hip-hop ends up being underrepresented this year, compared to past editions, with the likes of Danny Brown (22:20), Tommy Cash (23:25) and Allen Halloween (22:15) all competing for your attention Thursday night, and newcomer ProfJam (Friday, 17:00) getting an extra early slot the next day. But what’s really grinding people’s gears is the presence of one of the most important artists in the world today. Colombian J Balvin (Friday, 22:15) is one of the most important regaetón singers today, and, through his many collaborations with English-speaking artists, played an instrumental role as the genre definitely took over Western audiences and became the most popular genre of pop music worldwide, toppling the long dominance of hip hop, R&B and EDM. Literally every song on his setlist is a major hit. All killer, no filler. Can you really say the same about any other artist in the lineup (except Shellac, of course)? Name one.

Our playlist this year has 66 songs by 33 artists. We couldn’t make it shorter, it’s still impossible to see all those artists, and we could definitely add some more. Do you still think this is a subpar lineup? It’s not.

#nos primavera sound #live #j balvin #built to spill #jarvis cocker #allen halloween #solange #modeselektor #yaeji #sophie #yves tumor #jorge ben jor #rosalía #fucked up #amy and the sniffers #interpol #james blake #viagra boys #hop along #sons of kemet #kate tempest #let's eat grandma #nilufer yanya #aldous harding #big thief #lucy dacus #snail mail #jambinai #low #stereolab

[jacewilliams1]

Jumpseating to Europe… maybe

I was a 900-hour Part 135 DC-3 copilot, working for Kitty Hawk Air Cargo out of Dallas/Fort Worth, based at Willow Run Airport in Ypsilanti, Michigan. It was my first commercial pilot job, and I was in aviation heaven. I’d come over all the way from Ibiza, Spain, where I lived, to build my hours to eventually head back to apply for the Spanish airlines.

Little was I to know then how aviation would absorb my life for the next 26 years, but that is another story, a story about the world of short-, medium-, and long-haul worl-wide flying in everything including the DC-3, Bae ATP, Fokker 50, and Falcon 20, B 737, A 320 and 330, not to mention the VLJ Embraer Phenom 100.

It was winter 1990, and heavy snowstorms blanketed the whole East Coast of the United States. We had just landed N302SF back in Willow Run after a five-day stint flying all over the country, including a shipment to Peterborough, Canada, battling ferocious winter headwinds and night IMC approaches to innumerable slippery, uncontrolled fields to deliver overnight FedEx and UPS packages, and charters carrying car parts for the likes of Ford and GM.

Later that day, sitting around in our rest area with my captain, Mark, and our chief pilot, Tej, shooting the breeze and sipping crappy coffee, Tej told us he had come unannounced from Fort Worth to ferry 302 back to Meacham Field for scheduled maintenance. He told us we had four days off, maybe six days at the most.

That jumpseat is a great way to travel – if you make the flight.

I jumped at the chance to go to Spain, deciding right there on the spot to jumpseat that evening to JFK and then jumpseat with Pan Am or TWA to Madrid. It meant a short visit with my wife and son.

I had not been home for nearly a year. To say my family lived a sacrificial existence was to put it simply. This wasn’t quite as simple as driving across the state of Michigan. But hell, I was young. I packed a small kit and got on a Delta flight out of Detroit Metro to Dayton, Ohio, where I hoped to jumpseat on the first flight to JFK.

Killing time in Dayton while waiting to board the Pan Am flight, I sat talking with a Pan Am 727 first officer, also jumping to New York. We got so involved in our conversation we missed the boarding call over the airport’s PA system.

When I realized suddenly the boarding gate hall was empty, we ran over to the boarding gate and convinced the agent to let us in and barely made it on board. My heart was thumping. Damn! It was close! As we approached New York we had to divert to La Guardia. The stress was unbearable. Tick tock, tick tock. We jumped in a taxi and drove through snow-collapsed New York to JFK.

Heavy snow was falling at JFK. I only had about 20 minutes to make my way through the confusing maze of terminals to reach the Pan Am flight dispatch office, locate the aircraft and crew flying to Madrid and pray for their sympathy to take me.

Short of breath and totally stressed, I reached dispatch and asked for the captain of the flight to Madrid.

“Crew’s already left for the plane, son,” a sympathetic elderly dispatcher informed me. “They’re at gate 141.”

I grabbed my bag, thanked him profusely and ran, trembling with fear I might not find the gate on time.

I ran madly through the hallways, up then down, left then right, back-tracking when I took a wrong turn. If I missed the flight to Madrid, then I might as well turn around and head back to YIP. Finally, I saw the gate. Phew! Boarding had not yet began.

Flashing my company Kitty Hawk ID, the gate agent politely gave me access to the Madrid-bound 747. Those were the days before extreme vetting. I said hi to the flight attendants in the doorway and explained my situation, climbed the stairway to the upper deck and walked forward to the stunning cockpit.

The crew were briefing the flight. I noticed a fourth person beside the two pilots and flight engineer. I waited for a lull and the captain looked back at me.

“Hey fella!” He greeted me, and then continued, as if reading my eyes and mind. “If you’re looking for a jumpseat, sorry, but this is a line check flight. No jumpseaters.” My heart sank.

“But, hang on,” he said. “The guys next to us are going to London. Maybe try them?” He got on the company frequency and got the other captain’s attention.

“Hey Steve, got a jumpseater DC-3 pilot here, needs to get over to Europe. Can I send him over?” A minute passed and I wiped my sweaty brow. The captain broke out in a smile.

“Get your butt over there, kid! He said it’s ok, he’ll let ya tag along.”

He wished me luck. I thanked him, telling him I’d likely need it, and tore down the stairs and out of the plane and raced over to the identical Pan Am 747 destined for London Heathrow. I was so stressed I could hardly speak. All I could think of was getting home. My nerves were shot. The thought of having to go back to YIP, and not using the four days to see my wife and son, was devastating.

Traveling in style – if they let you on.

I reached the cockpit door and stood in silence while the crewmembers briefed the flight. Steve, the captain, was an old geezer with pure white hair and a thin body. The three were huddled in deep conversation. I had to force myself to keep my mouth shut until they finished. I knew better than to disturb them. The tension was overwhelming. If Steve turned me down, I’d have to go back to Michigan. A major blow. No, please no!

There was stony silence. It was now or never. I’d been rehearsing my opening speech since leaving Metro, but I went blank. I felt instant panic. They stared at me, waiting. I just had to talk my way to London. What happened next still astounds me.

“Afternoon, ladies.” I blurted out. What the hell did I just say? My heart fell to my feet. Why in the world did it occur to me to use those words? Of all the stupid things I could say.

There was a weird moment while they looked at one another in disbelief. Oh God, could I have screwed myself in a worse way? I’d surely get my butt kicked out of the flight deck and off the plane. Ladies? I was red-faced with embarrassment.

To my utter surprise, the three flight crew broke out in hysterical laughter. I was leaning against the cockpit entryway, feeling a total ass. The captain got out of his seat and came up to me, a big smile on his face.

“Hey kid, just relax,” he said. “Man, what a great line! Haven’t heard something like that in 42 years on the line. Get comfortable, you look like you need a rest! Want a coffee or something?”

What? I could hardly believe my luck! I exhaled a breath of relief. I was going to make it to London after all!

Getting from London Heathrow to Barcelona was my next headache. In Europe they practiced a very different approach to jumpseating, much more complex than in the United States. But I was on my way, and I absorbed the pilots’ every word, every action taking place in the front office of that magnificent 747.

We took off, climbing higher into the winter night for the nine-hour crossing. I must have fallen asleep because when I woke up, we were in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The flight engineer and co-pilot were snoozing. Steve was flying. He was an inspirational figure. The old geezer, in all respects, reminded me exactly of my old Pan Am Clipper posters depicting a middle-aged, seasoned, blue-eyed pilot, with peppered hair neatly cut beneath his hat with its coveted scrambled eggs on the bill, with Pan Am wings spread proudly across his breast pocket.

Steve carried that look of confidence and professionalism I hoped to achieve someday. I was in awe of the sky god. He ordered coffee and told me he was retiring after the return trip to JFK. He’d flown everything – US Navy fighter pilot, 38-year veteran at Pan Am. He’d had enough of hotels and funky time zones, claiming that at his age, the challenge and fun were basically gone. He was looking forward to retirement. Said it’d be at least a year before he ever left his ranch outside Dallas.

But boy, he loved the DC-3. I told him all about my Part 135 cargo-pilot lifestyle as a bonafide freight dog, and how much I missed my family. We shared story after story until overhead Ireland we started our descent towards London, still a long way off. The copilot was awake by then and he was a funny New Yorker.

Just another day in London.

London ATC was flooded with in-coming flights. Weather was low, with light drizzle and fog. Steve flew steady, as if driving his pickup on Sunday at the ranch for all the effort he seemed to apply, his grip relaxed on the yoke. The copilot handled the radio and had a bitter exchange with a controller over his strong accent. A deep Scottish accent.

“Yeah, well you guys ought to learn to pronounce English properly. I’m American, and we speak English.” I admit I was embarrassed by the exchange.

“Copied Pan Am XXXX. Guess that sums it up, eh mate?”

Before the copilot could reply, Steve shushed him.

“That’s enough. Not a good time to get into a discussion.”

We were cleared for the ILS. Steve flew precisely on the localizer and glideslope. The rain called for wipers and as they swept back and forth we caught occasional glimpses of gray ground and square buildings. The runway appeared above minimums and Steve planted the jumbo firmly on the wet tarmac. He reversed the engines and we shuddered and swayed as the giant plane decelerated. I looked at Steve. There wasn’t the least sign of effort on his face. He took the tiller wheel and we soon parked. I was in London!

Now, getting to Barcelona and on to Ibiza and my waiting family was ahead, but nothing would stop me!

The post Jumpseating to Europe… maybe appeared first on Air Facts Journal.

from Engineering Blog https://airfactsjournal.com/2019/10/jumpseating-to-europe-maybe/