We’re out of water

That’s not really an announcement you want to hear from the pilot of your flight, but that’s what happened on my flight from Athens to Amsterdam recently.

The pilot came on the intercom and informed his passengers there was no water to flush the toilets or wash hands. He said that’s the first time he’s had to make such an announcement. The flight had been delayed an hour at Athens, and then we spent 25 minutes on the ground while the congested air over Europe cleared. So I’m surprised someone forgot to fill the water tank.

Water bottles were provided, but I think everyone was glad to get to Amsterdam, even if several people missed their connection due to delays. Thankfully, the flight to Cork was late in the evening, and I had time to make it to gate D6. The airport was mostly closed down with only a few shops open, and passport control was backwards which was odd but worked well enough to get us to our destination. The police there were friendly and efficient.

I have to say, one thing I love about KLM is their free WiFi that allows messaging on WhatsApp, Messenger and other apps. It was great to message my family and friends while flying. It’s something that will make me choose KLM for a connection if all other things are equal. The flight to Cork didn’t have it, but the outgoing flight a week earlier did.

I was watching Top Gun: Maverick on my phone, downloaded on the Netflix client, and it looked like my flight would land before the film ended.

It was a late flight, the lights switched off in the cabin. I was staring at the action on my phone, with headphones hiding the drone of the aircraft. I was glued to the action on my phone, totally absorbed in it. Maverick shouts at his passenger, “Hang on. We gotta get low.” during a dogfight. A moment later, I feel my flight touching down on the runway at Cork Airport, and I look up in mild panic. Talk about immersion. Thanks, KLM! Perfect timing!

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