Flyby Encounter with Sasha

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MiG 29

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 I never knew his full name, but he asked me to call him Sasha, a name reserved for only family and close friends. On a rainy day at the Abbottsford Airshow (Vancouver, BC, Canada), stood a lone Russian pilot stoically by his MiG-29, as the curious masses took pictures and walked on by.  He was in a foreign land separated by a language barrier. It is a day I will never forget.

For some reason many believed that he could speak English, and that he refused to let on. This just simply wasn’t true, as we were soon to discover. I mustered up the courage, to say a few words to him in his language. In that instant, his face broke into a warm smile, and his eyes sparkled to life. His response inspired me to overcome my embarrassment of not knowing the language well. My Russian turned out to be better than I thought, and our communications went smoothly with a little bit of patience. Also our genuine respect for each other brought understanding beyond words.  

A huge crowd suddenly pounced upon us wanting to know more and wanting to buy the shirts off their back. My innocent gesture drew a remarkable crowd that soon came to the attention of men in black suits with gold teeth. I am not sure who they were, but I think they were scoping us out. After taking a look, they seemed satisfied and left us alone. How else would I have known they had gold teeth if not for their amused smiles! The Russians were offering their wares for free, but I would have none of that. I knew they had no money of their own, because when one person asked to see what their currency looked like, they replied they had none. I made sure they had at least a few dollars in their pocket by the end of the day. I was surprised that we were not arrested when they brought out their vodka, but I guess you can get away with that in Canada sometimes. 

When others asked if they could look inside the aircraft and take pictures, Sasha was accommodating. He granted permission, but only after their air performance was over. They were scheduled to fly at a moment's notice, as soon as the weather cleared. I realized in that moment, the whole airshow was postponed temporarily due to the rain and that WE had become the show! It was just one of those exhilarating days totally unplanned.
   
When it was over, I flew my airplane out into the rain with low cloud overcast. I am sure good karma followed me for I managed to fly safely out of the darkness into the glorious skies with the sun streaming upon my face, before arriving home.