:: Airport Culture ::

"Air travel has opened the world to the masses in a way hardly imagined only decades ago." Suzanne Cook

Anam Ali Abbas

It's really true, It has compressed the long distances. It's a place which sometimes brings our friends and relatives closer but sometimes takes them far away from us that it feels like impossible to get them back. On one hand it might part an old mother from her only son and on the other hand, years after helps that old woman to rejoin her son. Yeah, I am talking about airports, the place which seems to be beautiful when we go to meet those who are dear to us when they are returning from somewhere; but seems horrible when this airport parts us from those we love.

Whenever I visit the airport to see off my family members or to receive my friends, I always have these strange feelings, like every object present at the airport is telling me, "I am taking away your loved ones." The flowers at the roadside, the rain water gathered at the lowered part of the parking lanes, the policeman uniformed in blue, the luggage trolleys, the airport staff, the shops, the boarding tags, cloudy patches on the sky, everything seems to give this feeling. As soon as you enter the airport you feel as if you are present at a different type of place, a nexus that on one hand is cut off from the world but on the other connects the whole world.

"In the space age, man will be able to go around the world in two hours --- one for flying and the other to get to the airport." ~ Neil H. McElroy

This statement somehow seems to be really true, keeping in view the pace with which technology is progressing; one day distance between the two extreme ends of the globe will be traversed within minutes.

Airports have their own different cultures, considering the emotional aspect and lifestyles of the airports.

I visited these world connecting airports many times to find out why airports always seem so different, why everything at the airport is different, specially the weather and the environment but never found any clue.

Probably, it's our inner feeling which makes us look at things like that when we visit places like railway stations and airports.

There is another reason which probably makes these places different, people from different cultures, regions, cities and countries travel in the same planes. Their way of talking, their reactions to different things, their gait, their outfits and the way they speak, a few dressed up in branded suits and at the other extreme, old men dressed in village style traveling through the same planes, makes you feel like you are looking at the whole world, it seems like a huddle where you put samples from all over the world.

Somehow that also serves as the reasons why airports have their unique cultural aspect, which makes them look different from any other public places in the country.

Indeed, the airport is a social arena worthy of investigation. You may feel the need of exploration by simply visiting an airport, without any reason, then you will be better able to understand the phenomenon of the talismanic effect of the airports.

Going deeper into merging cultures from both extremes of the country, whether the person belongs to the elite class or is someone from of village culture, everyone gets a different impression. A villager coming back from Mecca after performing Hajj might get a radically different idea about the airport, from the most other people. For him, the airport may seem like some wondrous heavenly body, where there are metallic birds which people from one place to another like the magical carpets used in Aainak Wala Jin. When he goes to embark for a foreign country all the members of his kith and kin accompany him to the airport. That villager finds himself surrounded by the elite class from all over the world. For him the foreign country's boundary starts when he reaches the airport. It is strange for him to see ladies serving passengers during the flight, some of these rustics get nervous and while the plane takes off, a few get nervous and call the airhostess again and again and ask, "Mairay sir mai aur kaanon mai dard ho raha hai."

On the other hand for people belonging to middle class, airports and flights can be regarded as fun. They fully enjoy going to the airport, unloading their luggage from the car, getting boarding passes, going through security check and boarding the plane. They like every moment of it. They keep on enjoying themselves throughout the flight, some of them call the airhostess again and again to ask for cold drinks.

Then there is the elite class. For them the airport is just like any other ordinary place. They use it just as a means of transport. For this privileged class, planes are just like their cars. They get out of their luxury cars with a briefcase in their left hand and a blackberry in the other, talking to their business partners. They arrive at the airport at the nth.moment before the flight takes off and after entering the plane, take out their laptops and start working. They do not need to call the airhostess for any reason, they have more important things to do.

Now let's see the other side of the Pakistani airport culture, the airport staff. They are the ones who have to face these different classes of people from different countries. Airhostesses are the most affected class, they need to listen to everyone whether the passenger is rich or poor, well mannered or ill-mannered and they have to serve everyone with a smile.

This situation is the same all over the country. Our major airports include Allama Iqbal International Airport Lahore, Quaid-e-Azam International Airport Karachi, and Islamabad International Airport. As far as my personal experience is concerned, AIIAP is seems to be the liveliest airport of the three. People seen at Lahore airport seem to be vivacious. They are never in hurry. People who come to see off their relatives wait at the airport till the flight takes off. Contrary to this at Karachi airport the scenario appears a bit different. Relatives do come with the passengers, however often not to see them off but just to drop them off. As Karachi is a metropolitan city, Karachiites are said to be living faster lives, and that can be observed by their airport culture. They are not as courteous as Lahorites are. Then we have our Islamabad Airport, where again there seems to be a difference in the scenario. Here you will usually see bureaucrats, diplomats and other high officials often accompanied by obsequious underlings and they all appear to have an air of importance. This airport's environment is quite dull. But it provides every facility which is provided by any other airport in the country. Sometimes, it seems that airports are a melting pot of various cultures as these cultures reflect the temperaments of the people from various regions.

Overall airport culture in Pakistan is interesting to observe and in a way broadens the mind. People from different regions meet and share their views, and services provided by the airport staff need to be praised. However, a few steps can be taken to make this airport culture even better, like the security system should be enhanced and the obsolete Fokker planes should be grounded wherever they are still in use as such planes can be proved fatal for many people.