I need help...

okay here is the story I got on a flight today at around 5:30 pm and was on my way back to Manila (Capital of the Philippines), this was supposed to be a 1hour and 30 minute flight. It was stormy outside and I could see lightning out the window,there was almost zero visibility. On our final approach to land I looked out the window and saw that we were low and I can still see water, this was unusual and I thought we were gonna ditch then suddenly the plane went nose up on full power with flaps fully extended and gears down. I love to play flight simulators and I know that it puts a lot of stress on the wings since its not designed to do that. Then it hit me, good thing I have a light on my person that has an SOS (Fenix L2D-Q5). I never carry lights on me on flights and this was the first time. Now... I think I need help since I put more importance on the use of the light than on my personal safety.:sick2: Talk about near death experience!!

After the aborted landing we were diverted to another airport and had to wait there till the storm clears and 5 hours later I am safely back home...:thinking:

Glad you made it okay. I went through a similar experience recently and it was very scary.

Every little bit of extra preparation helps, especially a flashlight.

You know you're a flashaholic when flashlights are the first thing that comes to mind in a life or death situation. I almost got lost in the woods once and the first thing that hit me was I didn't have my normal lights so I would only have enough power for 4 nights! If I'm still lost in the woods after 4 days I probably would have more serious problems.

I hope I never find myself in a situation where the SOS mode actually does come in handy.

Nice to know you're OK. I would freek out if I looked out a plane window and saw the ocean.

arjay said:

On our final approach to land I looked out the window and saw that we were low and I can still see water, this was unusual and I thought we were gonna ditch then suddenly the plane went nose up on full power with flaps fully extended and gears down.

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Glad you landed safe!!!


Personally, I think having something like the flashlight in your pocket coming up to your attention in such a situation, helps you to relax a little bit. It reminds me of an interesting story: you can see stressed/panicked mothers holding their kid in one arm and gripping the cell-phone in the other hand... it gives them security as well!

Thanks for your concern guys.:grouphug:

Actually the light made me relax a bit, I was thinking that if the plane did crash (Knock on wood) and if I did survive, the light would greatly increase my chances of being rescued since it would be easier for the rescue planes to spot me on the vast dark ocean.

Also after we were diverted and have safely landed, the captain explained everything and told us that they decided to divert since we only had 30 minutes of fuel left. Calculating that the airport we have just landed was approximately 20 minutes away, we only had 10 minutes of fuel left till we were bingo fuel!:shakehead A few minutes later I saw the captain inspecting the wings of the aircraft an Airbus A320-200 with a cheap eveready flashlight. I was amazed that the plane did not have better lights on their emergency kit, judging by how much planes cost, I don't think adding a 100$ light on their kit would be a problem.

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arjay said:

... it puts a lot of stress on the wings since its not designed to do that.

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Or maybe it is - you and the plane survived! :twothumbs

Sounds like you dodged a bullet. I'd say it's time to treat yourself to another light. Or maybe buy a lottery ticket.

Geoff

Flying Turtle said:

Sounds like you dodged a bullet. I'd say it's time to treat yourself to another light. Or maybe buy a lottery ticket.

Geoff

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Good idea Geoff I think I'll do just that, buy a lottery ticket I mean and then if I win I'll buy more lights.

arjay said:

Good idea Geoff I think I'll do just that, buy a lottery ticket I mean and then if I win I'll buy more lights.

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I'm glad that you're O.K. :thumbsup: Let us know if you hit it big with your lottery ticket :buddies: