An aborted take off! Count your blessings..

Every flight crash in the news takes me back to the winter of 2011 - an aborted take off at the last moment. Else you would not be reading this post.

I was returning from the ICAI Annual Function after being felicated for AIR 2 in CA finals, all set to board a Kingfisher Airlines flight to Mumbai. Everything seemed normal: boarding completed, aircraft taxiing, speed building for takeoff

And then, a loud thud. Screeching tires. People banging into seats ahead.

The pilot had aborted takeoff just seconds before we were airborne due to a technical fault. We did not know what was the fault.

The reactions around me were chaotic.
-Some argued with the crew.
-Some demanded a hotel stay.
-Some refused to board the replacement flight.
-A group insisted the pilot was drunk.

As for me, I sat there quietly, haunted by a single thought:
“What if this error had been discovered just a few seconds later?”
In the rush of life, we often obsess over what’s going wrong - late cabs, delayed projects, missed opportunities.

But sometimes, the worst not happening is the biggest blessing. Like the ones who missed their flight yesterday.

Every smooth landing, every ordinary day, every safe journey is a miracle in disguise.

Pause. Breathe. Count your blessings!