Imagine meeting your soul mate and discovering that he or she gets up as soon as the aircraft arrives.
Hello HIVERS!
I am certain most of you, if not all, have had the opportunity to travel by plane.
“Mabuhay! Welcome to Philippine Airlines! This is the pre-boarding announcement for flight PR 187 bound for Manila. We are inviting passengers with children or any passengers requiring special assistance to board the plane now. Please have your boarding pass and ID available. Final boarding will begin in 10 minutes. Thank you!“
I am sure that you are familiar with that announcement, aren’t you?
If you’re not from the Philippines, I’m pretty sure the announcement is more or less the same.
Tell me, what or how do you feel when you hear that announcement?
In my case, I get mixed emotions—excited first and then annoyed!
I'm excited because the announcement reminds me that I’m leaving the corners of our chaotic city very soon, so I just really have to keep my patience! I imagine stepping into a different space and meeting and spending time with people whose mindsets are totally different from the people I usually encounter in our place. Plus, I will be eating several dishes of food. That is liberating for someone who could not go out often because of a lot of limitations.
However, our fellow passengers begin to flock when they hear the pre-boarding announcement. I get annoyed seeing the scrum! Why is everybody so anxious to board the plane before they absolutely must? Okay, a few reasons.
Some say to find a seat sooner to settle in, but nowadays seats are purchased in advance and are already assigned! So, there should be no worry that someone will take their seats!
Some say to ensure room in the overhead compartments. Why??? If all overhead compartments are filled in, flight attendants will do something about their carry-on luggage.
So what? To make sure they don’t miss the in-flight safety demonstrations, OR, they probably don’t want to miss the perfect snack. A small cup of dark coffee or water matched a very small pack of Happy Peanuts!
See, we are all about to spend nearly one and a half claustrophobic hours together on a flying piece of tin, so why do they add 10–20 minutes to that ordeal? Not to mention lining up on the tube.
My initial reaction would usually be, “Oh my gosh, not paying attention! Or, “not following instructions!” but it is difficult to believe that they do not understand the announcement. Most travelers are professionals going to another city for a transaction, but why are they behaving in such a manner?
Since they do not acknowledge that they should board only if they are accompanied by small children, the elderly, or both, I now believe there is some psychology to this!
No matter what the age, education, or profession, human behaviors are revealed upon hearing airline announcements, and mind you, they don’t just do this when boarding, even when disembarking.
“Mga binibini, ginang at ginoo, kalalapag po lamang natin sa paliparang pandaigdig ng Ninoy Aquino. Mangyari po lamang na manatiling nakaupo at nakakabit ang sinturong pagkaligtasan habang ang eropolano ay hindi pa ganap na nakahinto.” (English translation: Ladies and gentlemen, we have just landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. (Please stay seated and secure your seatbelts while the jet is not completely stopped.)
Imagine that is already in Filipino, but man, you will still see them immediately stand, open the overhead compartments, get their stuff, then stand even when the plane is still running!
What a pain in the eyes!
Is this an impulse or an attitude? Will you still be excited about your soulmate?
