Our flight took us to JFK and then on to Las Vegas where we would then drive to St. George (that's where my Daddy and Heidi live). We made it to the airport just fine and our flight to JFK was really uneventful. The boys were very well behaved and I had no one sitting next to me or behind me. It was almost like I was all by myself. We got off the plane and after some difficulty finding where I was supposed to go to catch our connecting flight we made it to the gate with just enough time to grab some dinner and board the plane.
We had to sit on the tarmac for a while before it was our turn to take off. The boys were restless and had eaten their dinner so I let them watch the TV provided on the plane until we got in the air. I wanted them to wait until we got in the air so I could turn on a movie because the only show on for kids was Sponge Bob, and I hate Sponge Bob. At the time I was upset about it, but later it turned into a HUGE blessing.
After 30 plus minutes we finally took off and were in the air. There was some turbulence and I got a little anxious but tried my best to stay calm until the smell of burning plastic filled the plane. I was getting nauseous and the anxiety really started to kick in full force. Everyone on the plane were asking each other "can you smell that?" "what is it?" And the flight attendants started walking back and forth, up and down the isle and talking in whispers near the lavatory. Now I was really freaking out. One of the passengers a few rows behind me stopped one of the attendants but got no answer to what was going on, only the assurance that they would let them know as soon as they did and it wasn't something to be too concerned over. Shortly after that the Pilot came on over the PA and explained that they were aware of the smell of burning plastic and that they were doing everything to alleviate the problem. Not much later from that announcement the Pilot came back on to share that they thought the problem might be coming from one of the AC units on the plane and that they had turned it off. The smell persisted so the Pilot had the passengers feel with their hands different parts of the plane for heat. First under the chairs, near the windows and under the overhead cargo bins. No one felt heat. We were then informed that we were turning around to make an emergency landing back at JFK and that others on the ground had been informed of the situation. We were repeatedly reassured that we would be okay, but my anxiety was through the roof and I was sure that a panic attac was just moments away. I looked over at my two boys, who the whole time continued to watch their show occasionally complaining that they couldn't hear it because of the Pilots interruptions, and did my best to tell them that we were going back to the airport because the plane needed to be fixed. It took everything in me not to cry or allow my voice to crack, all the while envisioning the worst that could happen and replaying the scene from Titanic where the mother was softly telling her children a bedtime story knowing soon that her children would never wake to see another day. I think I said a million prayers during that hour in the air and as we neared the ground for landing I started to feel calmer. As we came in to land it was the most unreal experience. We hit the ground and the bakes came on and the plane stopped faster than I ever thought possible. I looked out the window to see several fire and emergency vehicles chasing us down to where we stopped. We were not allowed off the plane, instead we had to sit waiting for the okay from the fire chief. The engines and AC units were turned off. We were hot. We were still scared. We were still not sure what was going to come next.
Eventually, we were given the okay that there was not a fire on the plane but we were going to have to go back to the terminal and wait for a new plane. We had to wait for 45 minutes until we could be towed back to the gate. I was relieved to be off the plane, very shook up, and tired knowing how much later we would be getting in to Vegas. I nearly let Heidi find me a plane back to Pittsburgh but since no flight existed I figured we would wait it out. We did get on a new plane and our same Pilot and Crew safely got us to Vegas. I was even more relieved when we finally landed and then seeing my dad at the baggage claim made my fears disappear. We had made it. We were on our way to a great week... at least until it was time to come back home...
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