Flying over I-95 S. With Germanwings Flight 9525.

~ Live & Learn

plane-window-touch

Flight departure: 6:59am. From LGA to points South.
A restless night. I’m tossing. Turning. Weary.
Up before the alarm. I shower, shave, dress, zip up suitcase.
And, bolt out the door at 4:30 am.

Good Morning.
This is Captain Greg with First Officer John.
We’ve reached our cruising altitude at 38,000 feet
We’re expecting a smooth flight this morning.

The German newspaper Bild reports that 1.5 hours of audio was obtained from the black box and shows the plane reaching a cruising altitude of 38,000 at 10:27 am local time.

The morning sun beams through the window. The sky is marked with thin wispy clouds, but otherwise steely blue. Another spectacular day on Planet Earth.

The recordings picked up every detail of the co-pilot’s actions – suggesting that he was conscious and alert. “We could hear him breathing. He breathed normally.”¹

The stewardess doles out water and soft drinks. My noise canceling headphones are feeding in Jackson Browne. Sky Blue and Black. I’m in an aisle seat 14D. The aisle is clear. My line of sight to the cockpit door is clear. The door is reinforced with a four-inch steel plate. Gray, cool, steel.

The Germanwings Flight 9525 blackbox audio indicates the captain attempted to break down his flight’s cockpit door with an ax as the Airbus A320 accelerated into the French Alps.²

The plane jiggles, but not enough to untether passengers from their iPads and magazines. Others sleep soundly, leaning on the cool aluminum hull or the shoulders of their loved ones. We’re floating at 38,000 feet on a magic carpet.

A transcript of the sounds recorded Germanwings’ Airbus A320 cockpit voice recorder shows passengers began screaming over five minutes before the plane crashed into the French Alps. Death was instantaneous.¹

149 innocents slammed headlong into the French Alps. Babies. Exchange students. Teachers. Mothers. Fathers — all won’t see another day on this planet.

According to the German newspaper Bild, a former girlfriend of Lubitz, identified only as Mary W, said he had told her 6 days ago – “One day I will do something that will change the whole system, and then all will know my name and remember it.”³

There is horrific truth in that statement Andreas. Yes, there is.

And may you simmer in your wish, with your consciousness frozen with a continuous replay of that moment.

And, may the fires in Hell lap at your a$$, in an infinitely slow burn into eternity.

Notes:

33 thoughts on “Flying over I-95 S. With Germanwings Flight 9525.”

  4. The sadness that grips our heart cannot be explained. This world searches to find solutions to such acts of violence. If every parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, brother, sister, cousin would embrace love and not power we could right this world. Teaching our children is where it must begin.

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  6. Sadly, I’m not sure anything could have been done. Mental illness is a terrible thing. What causes one to go beyond taking one’s own life but then to take the lives of 149 innocent people is beyond my comprehension. Not to mention the pain and suffering left in the wake of such a horrific act. Very powerful writing.

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  10. Your gripping, honesty reached my heart, and in my soul’s compassion, reinforcing a willingness to be sensitive & kind toward others, as everyone is dealing with some uncertainty.. I am sorry that you’ve had to experience your business commute with the added stress of the unspeakable reality of one man’s actions, with no regard to the innocent souls he was entrusted to safely transport. He also had no regard for the pain, emptiness & struggle he has caused so many people, who lost loved ones & those impacted by hearing and seeing the news accounts. I hope that Jackson’s Browne’s mellow voice gave some comfort..as you moved through time, thought and into the light of a new dawn. May God’s mighty hands hold you, at ease on your return flight. Kindly, Christie

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  11. Great, great interpretation. Horrifying. And so True. I tend to think of this crash the same way. I can never imagine what people were thinking, knowing they were going to crash. Going to die. And there was no way out of it. So much to think about. Let’s try and not think about it too much…

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    1. I agree with your comment Claudia, esp your close (let’s try and not think about it too much). (Note to Self: Claudia always manage to capture and share exactly what I am thinking)

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  12. At times like this, when darkness ‘seems’ to have gained the upperhand,
    It becomes imperarive that we keep our
    own Hearts aligned with all that is good in us.
    Each one of us have the power to raise our own vibration,
    And hence tip the scales of the consciousness of humanity towards the positive.

    Judgement about self or others
    However rightfully felt
    Tend to close down our Heart,
    And cloud our own perception.

    Beyond judgements of the mind we
    Find only Peace and Love.
    When each of us align with that Higher Self within,
    Can we truly Lead self and others
    To what is rightfully ours:
    Kindom of God
    Within.

    Here is a Sanskrit prayer for Spiritual Elevation (from Brihadaranyaka Upanishad an ancient Hindu text:
    ॐ
    Om Asato Maa Sad-Gamaya |
    Tamaso Maa Jyotir-Gamaya |
    Mrtyor-Maa Amrtam Gamaya |
    Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih ||

    Meaning:
    1: Om, Lead us from Unreality (of Transitory Existence) to the Reality (of the Eternal Self),
    2: Lead us from the Darkness (of Ignorance) to the Light (of Spiritual Knowledge),
    3: Lead us from the Fear of Death to the Knowledge of Immortality.
    4: Om Peace, Peace, Peace.

    (www.greenmesg.org; Translated by greenmesg )

    Let there be Peace within and all around.

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  14. Powerful writing Dave and I don’t think any of us are getting on a plane right now without having thoughts of this tragedy and to the many families who lost their loved ones. I keep thinking about the Pilots family, imagine knowing that it was your son who chose to do this? There is pain for everyone.

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  15. I was on a flight home Tuesday; during which I experienced a leaner (not only did he claim the whole arm rest, his arm was encroaching into my seat. I embraced the tolerant Gandhi as I leaned back 😁) and the use of the lavatory (which I will never be able to use in peace again, thank you very much! 😏). I, too, stared at the cock pit door, looking for a way in, imagining the panic the passengers must have experienced, seeing and hearing the pilot banging frantically on the door to get in; what their last thoughts were. How horrifying. It occurs to me, quite often, how we put our lives into the hands of strangers and end up fine in most situations. I choose not to think about the “what ifs” and instead trust that these strangers are concerned with my safety. Isn’t this what connectedness is all about?

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    1. Smiling (too much I’m afraid) about the leaner and the loo.

      As to the aftermath and mind-maul of the Germanwings episode, I thought EXACTLY the same thing as you mentioned. I was driving down I-95 this week and thinking – what about the driver(s) in the oncoming car or semi-truck – rested? Sane? Suicidal? Terrorist? And the second thought was life can change in a minute. In a second. Yes, we are all interconnected, for better or for worse.

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  17. This is a tragedy that will remain on our minds for a long time, especially when we sit and float at 38,000 feet…regardless of how many miles we’ve flown. Premeditated murder…so, so horrible and sad. Well written, David.

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