If you know me well you will never believe me if I said I woke up at 6.45 a.m. on a Sunday but if I add that it was to meet a certain Laila you might find it credible. Yes guys, its true, I did get up that early. I was all excited and looking forward to my date with Laila. Not being a morning person I had proposed an evening date but Laila being Laila didn't seem to like going out in the rains.
Being a Sunday morning I reached our rendezvous point soon and spotted a bevy of beauties all lined up looking nice and charming. This was a blind date and I had never seen Laila. Before you let your imagination run wild I better tell you that Laila is a microlight aircraft parked at Jakkur airfield in Bangalore.
I must have visited Bangalore umpteen number of times but for the first time I decided to get out of the “visit relatives, visit malls and visit temples routine” and do something really 'hatke'. My solo trip exploring Coorg last week (the subject matter of another post soon) was now being followed up with a 30 minute flying experience.
Having successfully cajoled the autorichshaw guy to take me to Jakkur airfield I arrived much ahead of the appointed time in order to get a feel for the place and make the experience longer than the scheduled 30 minutes. I tried calling Vinitha, the pilot, in order to locate the hangar where the aircraft was parked. There was no response and I started walking towards Jupiter Aviation (the place she had asked me to come to). As I approached the hangar I saw a lady sitting outside reading a book and told myself why isn't she answering my calls? As I approached her I asked if she was Vinitha and she said she had just come to visit her friend Vinitha.
I looked around at the neat little flying machines parked in the hangar and was enjoying the greenery and the cool breeze (after the rains) when a red Palio pulled over and a young man walked towards the hangar. We exchanged pleasantries and I learnt that he too had come to fly. We got talking as we waited for Vinitha to come back. Girish (the Palio guy) was a confirmed flying enthusiast and had done over 11 hours of real life flying and many hundreds on his simulator. Spend a few minutes with Girish and you are convinced that barring the touch and feel experience, technology has been successful in simulating everything else! I am sure that in the coming years the touch, feel and smell barrier too will be broken by technology.
As we were talking we spotted the counter part of 'a blue eyed boy',--> 'a brown eyed girl' walking towards us. It was our pilot Vinitha. She waved a friendly hi at us and was full of energy and enthusiasm. She looked exactly like someone running on 100 octane fuel. Behind her came Laila ambling along daintily, guided by a lone flyer who was completing his sortie (loosely used here-for want of a better term!). After brief introductions I was asked to familiarise myself with Laila who was totally dressed in white and together with her white wings she really looked like an angel, the only difference being the replacement of the halo by a 60-80 hp engine.
Once the aircraft was refueled and ready to go I sat inside with just enough room for a person of my frame. The ‘microtight’ cockpit made me feel happy that for once, being tall was not a virtue. Vinitha took her seat with the confidence of a seasoned pilot and gave me all the instructions reserved for newbies. We reached the runway and were ready to be airborne. Small aircrafts give you the thrill no big aircraft can ever give and it felt like being inside a small car which was able to fly. We had a smooth take off and within minutes were cruising at an altitude of 600 feet. The unrestricted bird's eye view of Bangalore was beautiful and for the first time ever I truly felt like my name (the bird Garuda). No prizes now for guessing why I enjoy all forms of flying.
After a few minutes Vinitha asked me to get a feel for the controls and I realised how sensitive Laila was and how aptly she was named! A slightest movement of the stick and rudder control would send her swaying in the breeze. After dancing over Bangalore for about 25 mins it was decided to give her some rest so we started our descent and had a safe landing at around 0850 hours.
Girish was waiting for his sortie but before he could take off I managed to click some pictures for my scrap book. As Girish took off I proceeded to find the place where I was told I could have some tea. I entered a training cum conference room where Varsha, the lady I first met at the hangar, was happily reading her book. Little did she suspect that the peace and tranquility she was enjoying would forever be shattered by my jibber jabber and banter. Her book reading time was over and her valiant attempts to silence me by offering me tea and some biscuits proved futile. Little did she know that I was the undefeated tea and biscuit champion who devours biscuits as quickly as others breathe fresh air. The 30 minute wait for Girish and Vinitha to come back saw us discussing everything right from politics to business and careers. Although a marketing person by profession she was the 'Jill of all trades' and would rather enjoy a bit of everything that is nice and interesting. Her husband is a die hard cyclist though and owns a high end bike franchise. So, if you or anyone you know is interested in cycling or buying mountain bikes then do visit his cool site www.bumsonthesaddle.com
Finally, there was hope for Varsha as Vinitha and Girish came back from their sortie. I had another cup of tea courtesy Vinitha. I was refueled and now had two more guys to target. I have often been told that I come across as being so familiar at the very first meeting that it has the potential to scare a lot of people. My bluntness doesn’t help either. No such problems here. Who could possibly scare someone who drives on the roads of Bangalore everyday and someone who has completed hundreds of flying hours? In fact, my loyalties to Mumbai and Bangalore were put to test. I couldn’t let either of them down. Mumbai, where I was born and brought up and Bangalore (read Karnataka) where I am originally from, have both given me so much in life. The ladies had a good time pulling my leg about my Karnataka connection!
Vinitha showed no signs that she had just come back from two sorties. She was as spirited and fresh as she was in the morning. She is probably one of the most enthusiastic 'plane Jane’s' you will ever meet. Don’t be fooled by her petite frame, there is more to her than meets the eye. Girish proved to be a one-track mind guy. His only track was to find a way to own a microlight and fly in every aircraft parked at Jakkur! Seriously though, he’s a cool dude who also happens to be an avid trekker. He has probably visited the Himalayas as many times as you and I visit multiplexes to watch movies.
Varsha, who was reading the book “PS I love you” was probably thinking “PS I’ll kill you” even as Girish and I stole more of the quality time she had planned with her buddy. Her prayers were finally heard and Vinitha decided it was time for them to leave and grab something to eat. Girish was kind enough to offer me a lift back home. I also parted with three red Gandhis and my wallet felt microlight too.
All in all, a wonderful Sunday morning and a BIG THANKS to Vinitha, Varsha and Girish for being so generous and hospitable to a complete stranger.
Those of you reading this, if you think I’ve managed to do the impossible – not meeting an IT guy in Bangalore, hold that thought. Girish runs a software firm and Varsha’s husband is a software engineer by profession!!
Being a Sunday morning I reached our rendezvous point soon and spotted a bevy of beauties all lined up looking nice and charming. This was a blind date and I had never seen Laila. Before you let your imagination run wild I better tell you that Laila is a microlight aircraft parked at Jakkur airfield in Bangalore.
I must have visited Bangalore umpteen number of times but for the first time I decided to get out of the “visit relatives, visit malls and visit temples routine” and do something really 'hatke'. My solo trip exploring Coorg last week (the subject matter of another post soon) was now being followed up with a 30 minute flying experience.
Having successfully cajoled the autorichshaw guy to take me to Jakkur airfield I arrived much ahead of the appointed time in order to get a feel for the place and make the experience longer than the scheduled 30 minutes. I tried calling Vinitha, the pilot, in order to locate the hangar where the aircraft was parked. There was no response and I started walking towards Jupiter Aviation (the place she had asked me to come to). As I approached the hangar I saw a lady sitting outside reading a book and told myself why isn't she answering my calls? As I approached her I asked if she was Vinitha and she said she had just come to visit her friend Vinitha.
I looked around at the neat little flying machines parked in the hangar and was enjoying the greenery and the cool breeze (after the rains) when a red Palio pulled over and a young man walked towards the hangar. We exchanged pleasantries and I learnt that he too had come to fly. We got talking as we waited for Vinitha to come back. Girish (the Palio guy) was a confirmed flying enthusiast and had done over 11 hours of real life flying and many hundreds on his simulator. Spend a few minutes with Girish and you are convinced that barring the touch and feel experience, technology has been successful in simulating everything else! I am sure that in the coming years the touch, feel and smell barrier too will be broken by technology.
As we were talking we spotted the counter part of 'a blue eyed boy',--> 'a brown eyed girl' walking towards us. It was our pilot Vinitha. She waved a friendly hi at us and was full of energy and enthusiasm. She looked exactly like someone running on 100 octane fuel. Behind her came Laila ambling along daintily, guided by a lone flyer who was completing his sortie (loosely used here-for want of a better term!). After brief introductions I was asked to familiarise myself with Laila who was totally dressed in white and together with her white wings she really looked like an angel, the only difference being the replacement of the halo by a 60-80 hp engine.
Once the aircraft was refueled and ready to go I sat inside with just enough room for a person of my frame. The ‘microtight’ cockpit made me feel happy that for once, being tall was not a virtue. Vinitha took her seat with the confidence of a seasoned pilot and gave me all the instructions reserved for newbies. We reached the runway and were ready to be airborne. Small aircrafts give you the thrill no big aircraft can ever give and it felt like being inside a small car which was able to fly. We had a smooth take off and within minutes were cruising at an altitude of 600 feet. The unrestricted bird's eye view of Bangalore was beautiful and for the first time ever I truly felt like my name (the bird Garuda). No prizes now for guessing why I enjoy all forms of flying.
After a few minutes Vinitha asked me to get a feel for the controls and I realised how sensitive Laila was and how aptly she was named! A slightest movement of the stick and rudder control would send her swaying in the breeze. After dancing over Bangalore for about 25 mins it was decided to give her some rest so we started our descent and had a safe landing at around 0850 hours.
Girish was waiting for his sortie but before he could take off I managed to click some pictures for my scrap book. As Girish took off I proceeded to find the place where I was told I could have some tea. I entered a training cum conference room where Varsha, the lady I first met at the hangar, was happily reading her book. Little did she suspect that the peace and tranquility she was enjoying would forever be shattered by my jibber jabber and banter. Her book reading time was over and her valiant attempts to silence me by offering me tea and some biscuits proved futile. Little did she know that I was the undefeated tea and biscuit champion who devours biscuits as quickly as others breathe fresh air. The 30 minute wait for Girish and Vinitha to come back saw us discussing everything right from politics to business and careers. Although a marketing person by profession she was the 'Jill of all trades' and would rather enjoy a bit of everything that is nice and interesting. Her husband is a die hard cyclist though and owns a high end bike franchise. So, if you or anyone you know is interested in cycling or buying mountain bikes then do visit his cool site www.bumsonthesaddle.com
Finally, there was hope for Varsha as Vinitha and Girish came back from their sortie. I had another cup of tea courtesy Vinitha. I was refueled and now had two more guys to target. I have often been told that I come across as being so familiar at the very first meeting that it has the potential to scare a lot of people. My bluntness doesn’t help either. No such problems here. Who could possibly scare someone who drives on the roads of Bangalore everyday and someone who has completed hundreds of flying hours? In fact, my loyalties to Mumbai and Bangalore were put to test. I couldn’t let either of them down. Mumbai, where I was born and brought up and Bangalore (read Karnataka) where I am originally from, have both given me so much in life. The ladies had a good time pulling my leg about my Karnataka connection!
Vinitha showed no signs that she had just come back from two sorties. She was as spirited and fresh as she was in the morning. She is probably one of the most enthusiastic 'plane Jane’s' you will ever meet. Don’t be fooled by her petite frame, there is more to her than meets the eye. Girish proved to be a one-track mind guy. His only track was to find a way to own a microlight and fly in every aircraft parked at Jakkur! Seriously though, he’s a cool dude who also happens to be an avid trekker. He has probably visited the Himalayas as many times as you and I visit multiplexes to watch movies.
Varsha, who was reading the book “PS I love you” was probably thinking “PS I’ll kill you” even as Girish and I stole more of the quality time she had planned with her buddy. Her prayers were finally heard and Vinitha decided it was time for them to leave and grab something to eat. Girish was kind enough to offer me a lift back home. I also parted with three red Gandhis and my wallet felt microlight too.
All in all, a wonderful Sunday morning and a BIG THANKS to Vinitha, Varsha and Girish for being so generous and hospitable to a complete stranger.
Those of you reading this, if you think I’ve managed to do the impossible – not meeting an IT guy in Bangalore, hold that thought. Girish runs a software firm and Varsha’s husband is a software engineer by profession!!
