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| Passion Air plane at the tarmac, Kotoka International Airport. Photo: Passion Air |
“Chief, is that
normal?” I asked my cameraman named Richmond Tano. He sat by me.
“I was about asking you,
too,” responded Tano.
“Ajala! [comic
exclamation] And there are no stop points in the air, too,” I said jokingly.
We shared seats 11C and
11D respectively. I was just by the window. Whereas I had enjoyed peeping through
the window admiring nature― God’s handiwork― I had my intestines pacing up and
down like a drunkard trying to find his way up a hill. I was gripped with fear
when the flight attendant, who I later learnt she was called Matilda, gave an
announcement.
“Ladies and gentlemen,
we are about entering a turbulent zone. Please, fasten your seatbelts and
remain seated. Thank you,” she uttered.
The beautiful lady
believed to be in her late twenties was not entirely responsible for my
uneasiness. Yes, so I think. It was my first time aboard an airplane and I
never really knew there could be ‘pot-holes’ in the skies that could make the
big metallic bird shake.
We were en route Tamale
[in the Northern Region] from Accra aboard a Passion Air plane. It was
Wednesday, January 23, 2019 and we were headed for Bolgatanga and its catchment
areas to cover the National Food Buffer Stock Company’s takeover of some
warehouses. A sponsored trip it was.
I did not want to
appear the only villager in town, or perhaps in the skies, so I decided not to
ask anyone anything. After all, we were told to fasten our seatbelts.
The airplane moved on. A
crew member in the cockpit announced the level of altitude we were flying. All
this while, a hot cup of coffee Matilda had served me was held tightly in my
hand. I had temporarily lost appetite for it. I looked to my left. Tano had his
tightly pressed to the small board of a table that one could fold downwards
from behind the seat next to them.
“I wish we had
travelled by bus,” I said to Tano.
“Mesee,” he said in Twi; to wit; I tell you.
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| The writer, Solomon Mensah, aboard Passion Air en route Tamale from Accra |
We laughed out our
fears and consoled ourselves that once everybody aboard the plane seemed very
much comfortable, we must enjoy our flight as the voices of Matilda and that
from the cockpit had previously assured our safety.
So soon, we had moved
past the ‘turbulent zone’ and everything was so smooth.
“You don’t realise the
plane is even moving,” I said.
“Exactly. It’s so
smooth,” replied Tano as he sipped his fruit juice together with a pack of
biscuit. Mind you, he was done with his first meal of a cup of coffee.
Fruit juice is not my
favorite so when I took it from Matilda as she served us, I told Tano he could
enjoy mine too. About 30 minutes into our journey, I felt uncomfortable in my ears.
I could feel pains in my ears that at a point I cocked them with my fingers.
I think it was due to
the sound the aircraft’s engine or whatever made as it was close to where I sat.
I carefully looked around and everybody sat seemingly comfortably.
“Ah! How? Could I be
the only one feeling this way?” I asked myself. Few seconds later, I posed the
question to Tano. He felt the pain in his ears, too, but not that much as
compared to mine.
Unknowingly, a woman
who sat to my left― on the seat directly in front of Tano― had spotted me
struggling.
“Feeling pains, right?”
she intoned.
“Yes, please.”
“Okay, try yawning it
will go. You will be okay,” she told me with cock-assuredness.
I tried it and I was
relieved.
“People have
experience,” I said to Tano of the woman after thanking her. A reporter and his
cameraman in the plane, we spoke about everything. It was rather unfortunate
Tano did not have his camera on him to shoot our first flight experience.
The plane landed safely
at the Tamale Airport. I said a prayer, “Thank you God.”
Our flight was very
smooth. Straight from the airport, we headed to Bolgatanga, moved to Zuarugu
and Pwalugu and went to lodge at a guest house in the evening.
The following day,
Thursday, January 24, we moved to Navrongo and Bulsa North and South all together
with the aforementioned in the Upper East Region and took coverage of the
warehouses the National Food Buffer Stock Company was to take over its
management.
The evening of that
very Thursday, we flew back to Accra aboard another Passion Air flight. This
time, Tano and I relaxed and enjoyed the flight as much as possible. Again, the
flight attendants and a voice from the cockpit assured safety. We landed safely
in Accra a little after an hour.
For Richmond Tano, he
had heard of Passion Air before. He tells me he was the cameraman from TV3 to have shot the launch of the
airline in Accra; he had even entered one of Passion Air’s planes but that
[plane] did not move from the tarmac. In my case, it was my first time experiencing
Passion Air and, again, my first time flying by air.
Having had a successful
trip to Tamale via Passion Air, I have come to love the airline that much. So,
on Tuesday, March 5, 2019 when it happened that I had to make another [personal]
journey to Tamale from Accra, I chose Passion Air. I have downloaded the
airline’s mobile app; PassionAir. In the comfort of wherever you are, provided
there is internet, one can book a flight and pay through mobile money [all
networks] or using a Visa card. There is yet an option of paying your fare
later on.
For being aboard
Passion Air on two separate round trips, I would recommend it to anyone who
wishes to travel via flight from Accra-Kumasi, Accra-Tamale and vice versa.
Right at the check-in points at both the Kotoka International Airport and the
Tamale Airport [that I know], the Passion Air crew there meet you with smiles and
humility unlike some services in the country whose workers make you feel you
are nobody.
Aboard a Passion Air
plane, the cabin crew are equally professional. They show you smiles and
respect. On my first day I went aboard Passion Air to Tamale, I realised that their
customers’ safety is their topmost priority.
“Hello sir, please
resume your seat and fasten your seatbelt,” said one young man so politely but
sternly. I think when I later asked of his name, he mentioned David to me. A
passenger had gotten up to use the washroom but David, a cabin crew member,
would tell him to hold on as the seatbelt sign/light was on. I think that was
within Matilda’s turbulent zone and, for David, I suppose it was not appropriate
the man walked in the plane.
“Hello sir,” said David
again to the man, “you can please go now.” He told him when we had bypassed the
shaky zone.
Nonetheless, aside Passion
Air’s remarkable services, I think there are a few issues they must address.
Using the airline’s app, one after booking his/her flight would at times get a
different fare from what was originally quoted. So, when I wanted to book a
flight to Accra from Tamale on Sunday, March 10 2019, the app kept messing me
up on the fare. I had to get their toll-free line, call them and one lady I
spoke to had to book the flight for me at her end. Still on the app, I think
there should be [a]n option/button for customers/passengers to be able to share
their fight details with persons they think must know of their intended
journey.
These aside, aboard
Passion Air’s planes, I realized their public address system was not that
audible. At times, one has to strain their ears before getting what is being
communicated and the feed from the cockpit, I humbly think, has always not been
that audible [to me]. The seeming noise in the plane should be looked at, too.
Dear Passion Air, get
these issues addressed and you are good to go. Please, permit me chip in this;
would you [all airlines] agree with me that your passengers must be made to
wear the life jackets [which in Passion Air’s case we were told were under our
seats] as we board the plane than telling us to do so in case of an emergency?
Considering Ethiopian Airline’s Boeing 737 Max8 crash, was it possible any of
its passengers quickly wore their life jackets in hope that that could have
saved them in any way?
Well, I once again
congratulate your cabin crew. They are fantastic. My only suggestion is that
they should not learn from Ghana’s business news reporters who would say/write
‘the year-on-year inflation rate was …’ and expect their audience to understand
that with ease. What is year-on-year?
Whereas I understand
‘turbulent zone,’ I could not properly understand that aboard a plane. Perhaps,
re-wording that caution will do. Something like: “Ladies and gentlemen, we are
entering a zone that could mildly shake our flight. Fasten your seatbelts and relax.
The shake is normal as driving on a pot-holed road. Thank you.” Or, what do you
think?
Anyway, lest I forget;
my first flight experience teaches me two things. That, God deserves every
praise for His beautiful nature and the wisdom given mankind to do marvelous
things. And, secondly, a massive thanks to the people behind the making of
aircrafts as they really have made use of their brains.
The writer is a
broadcast journalist with TV3/3FM. Views expressed here are solely his and do
not, in anyway, reflect the editorial policy of his organisation.
Twitter: @aniwaba
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