I flew with a very slight cold last year and experienced the same horrible pain you all described, but in my ears. The day after my trip I went to the ENT who said I had ruptured the blood vessles in my ear. He told me to use Afrin nasal spray on future trips should I have any congestion. To my dismay, one of my ears hasn't been the same since despite the doctor's reassurance that there would be no permanent damage.