Blind Pilots
On a busy
Friday afternoon, while the passengers are patiently waiting for their flight
to begin, two men dressed in Pilots' uniforms walk up the aisle. Both
are wearing dark glasses, one is using a guide dog, and the other is tapping
his way along the aisle with a cane.
Nervous laughter spreads
through the cabin, but the men enter the cockpit, the door closes, and the
engines start up. The
passengers begin glancing nervously around, searching for some sign that this
is just a little practical joke but none is forthcoming.
The plane moves faster and
faster down the runway and the people sitting in the window seats realize
they're headed straight for the water at the end of the runway. As
it begins to look as though the plane will plough into the water, panicked
screams fill the cabin.
At that moment, the plane
lifts smoothly into the air. The passengers re lax and laugh a little
sheepishly, and soon all retreat into their magazines, secure in the knowledge
that the plane is in good hands.
In the cockpit, one
of the blind pilots turns to the other and says, "You know, John, one of
these days, they're gonna scream too late and we're all gonna die."