That reminds me of the first time I ever got airsick.

Finnair - Helsinki to Warsaw in the '80s. I can't remember the plane but it was smaller (held about 60 pax) and it felt like we were in a sardine can.

There was a lot of turbulence and it was summertime also so I was warm to start. When they started the meal service, the smell overcame me and I was horribly sick. (I was a teenager at the time and traveling with other kids my age so I was mortified, to say the least!)

My first "solo" flight was when I was 12 years old, on a BOAC 747, in June 1972: BOS-LHR, to visit English relations. It was BA562 if memory serves. We were to have a 900p departure from Logan's small international terminal between what is now Terminals C and E (E wasn't built yet). But we were held four hours to accommodate passengers from a Pan Am LHR-bound 707 that went mech. The film was "Big Jake" with John Wayne and I joined the BOAC Junior Jet Club. I recall that there were only two seats in Y against the starboard cabin wall; it was BOAC's first year of 747 operation and it must have been before they maxed out the plane's capacity.

Before landing I was moved to a port-side window seat in F where I could look aft and see the engine turbines turning as we floated into Heathrow, and a beautiful BOAC lady took me through customs.

On my homeward flight in August, BOS was suffering thunderstorms, which must have been pretty bad because we overflew it and proceeded to DTW (DTW was an ex-BOS tag for BOAC in those days). While the plane was turned BOAC fed all the Boston passengers a full sit-down lunch in a conference room at the airport, then ferried us to BOS on the London-bound return leg. The loads were so light that this was no problem. We got to Logan about seven hours late. Mom was panicked over my whereabouts but I had had a great time.

As we deplaned I left my wallet in the seatback. It flew to London a second time, where BOAC traced me through my library card and mailed it to me in Massachusetts.

I still think the 747-100 in BOAC livery is the most beautiful airplane.

I'm thinking Hughes Airwest...

In the early 1970s, age 16, on a UA flight from FAT to SFO going to see a Giants game. About 30 minutes total flight time, IIRC on a 727.

The one-way fare, in those days of CAB subsidies, was $11

Back in 1984 when I was 14 years old, DTW to PHX and back on AA. Back in those days MOM was able to physically put me on the plane and Grandma used to pull me off! Boy this thread brings back some kewl memories. I got treated like a prince, I dont remember if they even had a UM fee back then, it was nothing special, I was signed on and then signed off, as long as Granny verfied the info..

I think my first true solo flight was YYZ-LHR. I was going to England to study abroad for a semester, and I just remember it was the lonliest feeling in the world getting on the plane, since I didn't know a soul in England.

No, I don't. It may have been from Chicago to Berlin.

Eastern Airlines RDU-LGA (when I was 7 or 8 y.o.)

The first flight I barely remember. IIRC it was a COEx BAe-146 ITH-EWR, followed by a 4 hr 25 min layover (phone agent spent about 5 minutes forcing the long connection). The second flight, my connection on a CO DC-10 EWR-LAX in a middle section row seat, was more memorable.

The headphones were $4. The FA got a little snippy when I asked for my change on her second pass through the cabin ("It's not like I'm going to leave the plane"). But they were absolutely necessary to drown out the incessant complaining from my aging granola neighbor—not your garden variety complaining either but along the lines of "These seats are too cramped! It would be against the law but the fascists control the government!" "This food is inedible! What do you expect when the airlines are in cahoots with industrial agriculture to feed us this cr@p while they line their pockets!"

After six hours next to this living, breathing, walking (but not showering) stereotype I decided 1) it wouldn't be worth going home for Thanksgiving if I had to put up with this every time, 2) first thing Monday, I was joining the College Republicans.

My first solo flight was London to Florida. My dad was working out there and I went out to join him for my 21st birthday. He and his boss came to collect me from the airport, and confidently led the way to the car park. The car was not where they thought they had left it. After 5 minutes of walking up and down, I sat down and announced: "You go find the car, I'm staying here."

They did find the car.... it was in a different car park!

About 1957, I was six. NAC (now Air New zealand) in a Douglas DC-3 From Gisborne to Tauranga. About a 90 minute flight in those days.
Thing I enjoyed most was sitting at the end of the runway while they revved up the engines several times before starting to roll. Dressed in my Sunday best and had my hair cut especially for the trip.

Mine was in 1965 in one of those http://www.postcardpost.com/cs23.jpg a DC4 from AVA

My parents send me from BOG to MTR (the old one) to visit my grand parents that lived there. They gave me some flowers for my grandma and it seems that I did not let anyone touch the flowers ( I was 4 yo )



I see I am one of the old FF here, I never knew that I would end up flying enough to qualify as Platinum on Iberia. And believe me, there is not a lot of Platinum FF on IB

I think it was sometime in early 1965 when I was 5 years old. My mom and I had flown from LBB to DAL to visit my grandmother. Mother only stayed a few days because she had to go back to work, but I stayed in Dallas a week or so and flew back to LBB on Braniff by myself. (It was called Braniff Airways back then)

I don't really remember anything about the flight, but I do remember standing at the top of the airstairs in LBB with the stewardess looking across the tarmac at a group of people in an outdoor fenced-in area meeting the flight and seeing my mother waving.

This 1950 AA ad reminds me of that particular moment. Except I wasn't carrying a doll or a little red purse.

Mike

August 19, 1980. Eastern DC-9-50, RDU-DCA. I was 10 years old, and still have the Eastern UM button. I had literally begged my mother and father to let me fly to see my aunt for as long as I could remember, and this was the day. I was so scared that I didn't want to go, but my mother made me because I'd begged so much....and the rest is history.

My memories are that the flight was scheduled for 48 minutes, the flight # was 390, and the #1 F/A was the best looking woman I'd ever seen. I got to visit the cockpit. I took the same flight the following summer, and then the next summer, I flew Piedmont Airlines. At age 13, I determined that Piedmont was a better airline, and that I wanted to be a Piedmont pilot when I grew up. Ah, the memories.

Early 70's - I was 15, went AA from BUF to ORD, Blue Line to Downtown (before the cool Blue Line Station was built at ORD - there was a bus ride involved). Greyhound to ATW. Too young to be scared, thought it was a great adventure.

About all I remember was getting on the plane after being told to sit anywhere, and tried to sit in first class, was nicely told to go to the back. Oh yeah - almost had a heart attack when the bus at ORD didn't show up to take me to the blue line (was it even called the blue line then?). Turns out I didn't change my watch from EDT to CDT.

Not sure Mrs. GopherPuckGuy would allow our kids to do the same route when they were 15.