(Last mission for the Flying Tiger Line An upcoming transition to Federal Express...!)
1988 On the way, back from Beijing, I have been asked to contact the European Headquarters located in Frankfurt. As often, my first option is to go for a good night of rest and I catch a cab to the Intercontinental downtown.
Getting off the “monkey suit”, I rush to Mayer Gustl, the restaurant close by where I am sure to find Tiger crew members. End of the year celebration is not far ahead and the city is clad with Christmas decoration. Within twenty for hours I will be back in Los Angeles for a rest period and will probably join my buddies at the” Admiral’s Dinghy”, not so far from World Way West. That bar is the best possible place to catch up on gossips and rumours, and above all to feel good in a “Tiger” environment.
It is the Friday evening watering hole for many Tigers and I simply like it.
But first things first. The next morning, I get to the airport for a meeting with the VP presiding over our European Operation. The man is very British, strict, and I feel uneasy finding myself in that office. I’d rather be meeting someone else at the “Tiger-Hi” building in L.A.
The man does not even shake my hand…what the hell is going on! “I have heard a lot about you” he says! “Both good and bad, I am told you are very independent, may be too much”
( The US Air Base in Keflavik)
True enough! At 38, It seems like I have finally found my way, travelling around the world, discovering different cultures, taking the opportunities offered to work over my own weaknesses while simply enjoying a lifestyle unlike any other.
Luckily, this man is not my boss and apparently, he just wants to pass on an offer. A year ago, the specialized newspapers within the air transport community reported financial difficulties at Flying Tigers and some restructuration had been conducted leading to the elimination of 124 general and administrative positions through dismissal and attrition.
Is it time for me to become a bit more of a diplomat?
( A DC 8 under Loftleidir livery. Looks like it is US registered and probably on lease from SWA)
“We will shortly open operation in Iceland and we are looking for someone to volunteer. Would you be interested?” I Have the feeling that it is no so much an offer but rather a strong recommendation.
Iceland? It is far away, in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and if I am familiar with Latin America, the Far East and European culture, I have never been to Iceland. For me, the name of that country is associated with French author Pierre LOTI, cod and whale fishing, wild nature, geysers and desolation. Given the situation of the company, and my incredible thirst for adventure and unique experiences, I accept the offer and catch the first flight out to Los Angeles to spend the holiday season following and extenuating period of flying in the Far-East.
(US Lockheed " submarine catcher" Orion based in Keflavik)
People at the charter division nicknamed me “Nanook “in reference to a silent movie by Robert Flaherty dating back to 1922. It will shortly be time to go, just after Christmas so in a military surplus shop I Have bought my new “uniform” made of a N3B Polar jacket, woolen trousers, gloves, and a thick chapka style headgear, all of it supposed to protect me from the freezing cold (1). Early January, I am on my way via Paris-Orly, to Iceland and the end of the Flying Tigers era, but I don’t know it yet! With all my stuff packed in a single metal trunk, I am ready to meet the Vikings for the first time!
(Icelandair B 727. Icelandair was founded through the merger of Loftleidir Icelandic and Flugfelag Island)
1989 I have left Paris-Orly behind me and after a 3H40 flight on board an Icleandair (2) B727 it is time for landing in Keflavik as the winter sun is already coming down. The Flying Tigers contract calls for regular stops in Keflavik of a B747-200 in order to pick-up farm raised salmon which will be shipped to the American and Japanese markets. It will be belly loading only, and an easy operation in a familiar and standard airport environment.
I guess it was too expensive to rent some airport office space so, through local contacts with the shipping company Samson Transport, we have found the ideal place to be used as a station office. It is a wooden shack belonging the one of the airport fuelling company. The shack is located on the bounded side of the airport and is ideally located not far away from the aircraft parking.
I have also been provided with a four wheels’ drive vehicle so things are not that bad! I have set up residence in a nice hotel close to the airport: FlugHotel on Hafnargata at number 57. Far away from the International caravansaries used during charter trips, the FlugHotel is a “human size hotel” manned by lovely people. True enough, Icelanders are sweet and friendly! Keflavik, "Driftwood bay"....what a weird name ! Is this a strange name related to sunken fishing boats? I wonder....
(A FTL Boeing 747 All Cargo)
Wind, Wind, and Wind again! The wind is so strong that every day, pilots from European companies fly in for crosswind approach training. My shack is attached to the ground through four steel cables. When the wind blows, the shack vibrates, but it is fun. A former “radioman” in the days of Seaboard World Airlines, Jim has come from Frankfurt to spend a few days with me connecting the office to the rest of the company’s network.
Through my window, I can see a mile away or so the contours of "NASKEF", the American air base hosting the 57th Fighter squadron and a bunch of P3 Orion airplanes specialized in underwater detection of sub-marines. Winter weather conditions are not favourable for the company, stops in Keflavik become rare and pretty soon, I need to find some alternate activities.
Thanks to my beeper, I can be contacted whenever needed. Thanks to my wheels, I spend more and more time outside of the airport to get familiarized with Icelandic customs and traditions as well as food and beverages!
( Eagle Air of Iceland, specialized in "wet lease" operation, including Hadj flights or civilian evacuation)
My first encounter with Brennivin took place at the bar of the Flughotel where a young barmaid introduced me to Icelandic culture. Brennivin is a clear, unsweetened schnapps that is considered to be Iceland's signature distilled beverage. It is a popular Icelandic liquor,a special-occasion alcohol shot, and the traditional drink for the mid-winter feast of Þorrablót.
It is made from fermented grain or potato mash and flavoured with caraway, and for this reason can be considered an aquavit.
Then, there was Graflax an Icelandic and generally Nordic dish consisting of raw salmon, cured in salt, sugar, and dill . Needless to say, that I became an addict to both the aquavit and the fish!
To keep busy, I create a daily routine including the spending of many hours in the engine room of the fishing boats moored in Keflavik harbour. I Love smelling hot oil and the fumes of diesel. I enjoy the company of the fishermen and never refuse a drink.
To be on the safe side, the company rotates line maintenance personnel through Keflavik should a flight be able to stopover.
(All female crew at Icelandair. Keep them flying,sisters...)
I enjoy organizing for my Maintenance colleague’s special tours of the various watering holes in the area and every now and then I provide a friendly arm to help them find the way to their bedroom in the aftermath of a Brennivin session. One of them will end up marrying a local young lady!
Iceland is a small country, people know each other, and one can leave one’s set of car keys on the ignition and be safe. The worst that may happen will be that someone will “borrow” your car and leave it on the other side of the Island. So, what? Going through the supermarket one day, I meet the Icelandic President, Mrs Finnbogadottir while she is doing her shopping and she invites me for a cup of tea at the official residence. The president has studied French in Grenoble! I cannot imagine doing this in the United States or in France.
(Early days at Loftleidir : the CL 44)
Icelandic people are true and generous! With the beeper in my pocket, I ramble around and often make long stops close to the lighthouses I find on my way. I am struck by the beauty of nature and I feel like the landscapes are talking to my soul. Strength of the wilderness, steam, geysers, sheep so close, gentleness and simplicity of the Icelanders, there are so many things for me here, things that I have not seen before, feelings that I Have never experienced yet.
Sometimes at night, I bring an air mattress and a blanket on the top of my four-wheel’s drive and lay down to watch the Northern Lights. It is just like if someone up there was shaking a thin curtain of emerald green, light pink or celestial light blue.
Icelandic culture includes stories about ghosts and other entities and some of my friends there talk about a famous ectoplasm travelling by foot along the Reykjavik to Keflavik road. When driving on this road, one is not to stop under any circumstances short of letting the ghost climb in the car on the back seat, or worse, on the passenger seat! Needless to say, that when I come back from an afternoon in the big city, I lock the doors and keep an eye on the right side of the road till I am safely back in the FlugHotel.
As spring draws closer to summer, the idea comes to me to visit one of the many mediums living in the country. Although spirituality has always interested me, I am totally unfamiliar with the paranormal although incredibly open to it. The women I meet with has been recommended by a friend and I was told that she is “reliable”.
(Typical Icelandic landscape: unforgetable light...)
The gentle lady gives me all kind of precise information regarding my life, my past, and insist of drawing my attention over my judgment mistakes and the suffering I have been responsible for. “Long ago, you belonged to a religious community” she says “and your brothers kicked you out because you did not want to follow any of the rules”. Wooooow! Could this be true?
As the days grow longer and the nights become so short, I try to learn as much as possible about the local culture, while I feel like a big change is taking place deep inside myself. I already know that when I will leave the country, a chip of my heart will stay there forever!
Already in Iceland for over six months, in love with Brennivin and Gaflax, feeling close to becoming an Icelander myself I have forgotten that on December 17th 1988, Federal Express had made an offer for the buying out of the Flying Tiger Line. “This will never be” said some.... “This will be” said others...
During my visit with the medium, the fairy looking lady had told me “You will go abroad for a long trip” although she did not specify when...
Eight years later, I would be moving to Israel to open the country to air operation and would spend altogether four and half years working in Ben Gurion airport.
But that is an other story!
© 2017 Sylvain Ubersfeld for Paris-Memoires (1) Iceland is often wrongly associated with a cold place. The reality is different: minimal temperatures in winter are close to -2°c and maximal in summer around +14°c (2) Icelandair started operation in 1937 under the name of “Flugfelag Islands”. It later merged with Loftleidir and in 1979 the name is changed to Icleandair to reflect International Operation.