My Fighter Pilot Story- Memories

Since Shabbat, I guess, because I first saw news of it after we did havdala, the news here has been full of the fantastic flying skills of an Israeli fighter pilot.WATCH: POLICE SECURE REMAINS OF ISRAELI JET THAT WAS SHOT DOWN.  http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/WATCH-Police-secure-remains-of-Israeli-jet-that-was-shot-down-542205

This brings me back to one of the most surprising experiences I've ever survived. It happened during the 1991 Gulf War, when as a reaction to US President Bush The Elder's threats to Iraq, Iraq bombed/attacked Israel. To this day, I can't figure out how we became the target instead of the United States of America. 

The initial conflict to expel Iraqi troops from Kuwait began with an aerial and naval bombardment on 17 January 1991, continuing for five weeks. This was followed by a ground assault on 24 February. This was a decisive victory for the coalition forces, who liberated Kuwait and advanced into Iraqi territory. The coalition ceased its advance and declared a ceasefire 100 hours after the ground campaign started. Aerial and ground combat was confined to Iraq, Kuwait, and areas on Saudi Arabia's border. Iraq launched Scud missiles against coalition military targets in Saudi Arabia and against Israel.

Those of us who were living in Israel at the time were frequently woken in the middle of the night by sirens to alert us of possibly approaching enemy missiles. And we then would have to run into a shelter or whatever room in the house had been prepared as a "safe room."

The military experts insisted that there was a chance that chemical weapons would be launched at us and gave very complicated instructions on how to properly seal the room. I must admit that I didn't follow it exactly. We, davka, chose our bedroom because it has an ensuite bathroom. I wasn't frightened enough to equip the room with the recommended buckets. When a siren went off, the kids would just pile into our room, and we'd all sleep, somehow, together.

It didn't take long to discover that Shiloh wasn't a target. Suddenly Shiloh filled with friends and family of neighbors looking for a safe place to stay. Tel Aviv and its suburbs sustained damage, and miraculously there was nobody in Israel killed by a direct hit, if my memory is correct. But when one of those missiles hit a base with American soldiers, about two dozen of them were killed. That's how dangerous those missile potentially were.

My husband and I had been invited by Herut, Great Britain to be the honorary guests and speakers at their big weekend convention in Bournemouth, scheduled long before, about three weeks into the war. Since it was quiet in Shiloh, we didn't change our plans. Our oldest daughter scheduled vacation from her National Service in Kiryat Shemoneh to stay home while we were away, and we went off on an all expenses covered vacation to England for a few days.

During that war, only El Al was flying in and out of Israel. Ben Gurion Airport was smaller than it is today, and since there was virtually no incoming tourism to Israel and so few flights, things were pretty quiet. It really was a treat for us to get away, even though we didn't think that we were escaping a war.

The flight began on schedule with the usual instructions and buckling in. Then the plane began to move and then ascend into the sky. Suddenly it took a very sharp turn. Never before or after that did I experience such an ascent. Apparently the pilot noticed a missile coming at us and took avoidance action saving us all, Baruch Hashem, thank The Good Lord.

At that time, pretty much all El Al pilots were trained in the Israeli Air Force as fighter pilots.

Bereavement Upgrade

Apparently there was a time, and there still are a small list of airlines, when it was possible to get a discount on flights when off to a funeral of a close relative. The travel agent who booked the flight to and from my mother's funeral didn't get me it or mentioned the possibility, but the new agent I've been using did.

My original booking was for a seat towards the very end of the plane, about row 57, but at the gate my boarding pass was taken away and a new one issued for First Class. In the end I found myself in the first row of Business Class which is just as good, as far as I'm concerned.

On the El Al plane I flew on, both of those sections had the same fantastic seats. They were fully adjustable from seated to fully reclining. I was most comfortable in the "relax" position with my feet higher. There was a slight difference, from what I could see, in the food, but in all honesty Business Class was all I needed.

In First Class, each row is separated for more privacy.

On the trip back, I was in a regular row/seat. B"H, the seat next to me ended up unoccupied, which is always nicer.

And as you know, I'm now back home sitting shiva for my brother until Thursday morning.

Food on The Plane, Good Menu on El Al

This last trip to the USA was the first I had flown El Al for a number of years.  For various reasons, recent trips to and from the states had been British Airways, Delta, United Continental and US Air.

I must admit that El Al has the least comfortable seats, most crowded and so soft that the slightest touch on my seat by other passengers makes me jump and worse.

But there is one thing I missed on all those other flights, even when being more comfortable and enjoying the sometimes better free entertainment, the MENU. 

El Al's regular and special kosher meals include salads, vegetables and sometimes fruit, too.  You also have a choice of kosher meals on El Al.  On other airlines, it's either kosher or not.  You can't choose between a kosher meat/poultry, fish, vegetarian or fruit option. 

Here are some pictures I took of the food served on my way to from "natbag" aka Ben Gurion International Airport to JFK International Airport.  I must admit that the food was one of the only good things about that flight.  It wasn't pleasant.  Actually, the fault wasn't El Al's...

 

 

To Fly or Not To Fly?

No, this isn't a debate between the best way of going from New York to Miami, Chicago, Boston or LA.

It reminds me of the "new immigrant rights," which probably still are given to olim chadashim. You don't pay taxes on certain consumer items. In our day, many immigrants bought new cars, which they could barely afford to maintain, because they got a hefty discount. Even today, you can take lots of cabs for what it costs to own a car.

Back in New York, my mother complains of stores which send out periodic gift certificates for less than any item on sale in the store. So, the only way of using it, is to spend money.






Yes, I'm talking about those El Al frequent flyer points. There's no way I'll have enough points for a free flight, so in order to use the points, I have to spend a lot of money. And in a couple of months, I'll be losing points. They "evaporate," get deleted.

New York! New York! 2007, #1

I took about 232 pictures this summer, during my two and a half week visit to New York. They all fit on my 2 megabyte memory chip in my Cannon 620, 7.1 mega pixel camera. Even more impressive, I never had to change or recharge the four rechargeable AA batteries. And the batteries are so, bli eyin haraa, strong that they're still lighting up the camera, even after copying to the computer and deleting the pictures from the camera. Yes, I do recommend the camera, and I bought it in Jerusalem just before last year's trip. That means that Israelis should buy it locally, better service for sure, and the price was almost the same as in New York.

There were good and bad things about the trip in to New York.

I went El Al on a 4pm flight. It landed late the same day in New York. A cousin picked me up and took me to my parents. After unpacking a bit, I went to sleep and slept all night, sort of. I didn't wake to wake up until a perfectly decent hour. But that's getting ahead of the game.

The Ben Gurion Airport is enormous. Unless someone has medical problems which forbid walking, you should take advantage and walk around a lot before boarding the plane.



They have a cute section for kids to play in.



Yes, it's very, very big!


While waiting to board, which we did almost an hour late, lots of people dovened mincha, prayed the afternoon prayer.



In the air, what a sight! Though it didn't make up for the very crowded seats. There was hardly room to get up or sit down, and all of my pouches strapped to my waist, made me as big as a pregnant woman carrying twins, full-term! At least the food and service were fine.



The sun set. With such gorgeous views, it was worth getting up and peeking through the back windows. You know, it's very healthy to walk around in the plane. Don't sit too long.



I wish it was that easy to find my suitcase.



And I hope to get a full night's sleep tonight!