Those magnificent men in their flying machines!

"Tourist?" the pilot asked. I nodded.

"Ingland, Amerika?"

"Narvegia!" I replied.

He nodded and told the copilot.

O joy! O Happiness! I was finally on the flight of a lifetime! I had read about this, and seen some videos about this flight. The only commercial flight in the world using a double-decker Antonov 2p. A plane as old as I am. I had travelled to Fergana for this reason only.

The day before, I had walked up to the airport, and after some wandering back and forth, I finally asked the only guy who looked official. "Sokh?" He nodded and started a long monolog in Uzbek. I stopped him, and started writing on my smartphone. I showed him in Uzbek. His face lit up and he started writing a reply. It said he would put my name on a list for the flights on Wednesday the 17th. I had to be there one hour before. When I would receive the tickets.

I got up way too early, eager to get going. I had booked a taxi the day before. It took me to the airport way too early. But I did not want to risk being late because of something unforeseen. The guy recognized me from the day before. I handed over my passport, and after a while, a woman handed me two handwritten tickets. I was ready!

I walked through security and came to the gate. Ah! There it was, in all of its glory!

Shortly after, we were ready to board, I was first in line, wanting to get a good seat. But an old lady in a wheelchair took precedence. Of course. No question there. But finally I could climb (literally) onboard. There were only four rows of seats. Three seats per row. And luggage in the back. I didn't carry much other than my pc-bag. I laid it in the shelf above the seat. And sat down by the window. Row 2. Best view in the plane!

Not much legroom, but the seats were soft, so no problem

Soon, the captain started the engine, and it moaned and spat into life. Spitting thick smoke out the exhaust pipes on the sides. It was magnificent! We taxied out onto the tarmac, and off we went. First, the tail lifted until we were level, then...nothing. Or at least, that's what it seemed like. I was wondering when we would take off, and looked down on the ground, only to realize, we HAD taken off. It was such a silky smooth take off. Just letting the wings lift us into the air. Ah! I smiled so much I feared I would need surgery to remove my smile. 

We lifted slowly into the sky. Leaving the ground below us. Soon the landscape changed beneath us. Mountains and arid lands. 

Then we started descending into more green areas. We were nearing Sokh. And with a sharp bump, we landed. Ah! What a machine! What an experience! I loved every second of the flight!

Embarrassingly bad selfie

What a beauty!

I waited an hour and a half before my return flight. I jumped into the same seat. My camera ready. I filmed the captain again start the engine. But this time, the old engine decided to show us who's boss. A tremendous bang shook the whole airplane and made everybody jump. The pilots included. A solid backfire in the engine. The pilots laughed, and the engine slowly revved up. Almost unwillingly. But in the end, it gave up and coughed and spat into life again. The pilots spent much more time checking all the instruments this time, before we headed out onto the tarmac. A short while later, they revved the engine, and off we went. Just as silky smooth as the first time. 40 minutes later we landed with a bump back in Fergana. We got off the plane, and my smile wouldn't go away. It may not have been heaven, but it was at least way up in the skies. 

I recorded a lot of video clips that I put into a video. More the "live" experience than mere words can depict. Enjoy!

Trip of a lifetime!