Air Benin

In 1985 the company I was working for at the time got a big contract for an electrical project in Benin. The previous year, I had spent several months in Malaysia on a different project and was longing for a change of scenery. I found West Africa to be very exciting. I was spending 4 weeks at time in Cotonou, Benin.  Despite the poverty, and countless problems, I found the Beninese people to be wonderful. I made it a point to travel around the region any chance I had, even if it was for just a day or two.

In late January of 1986, I decided to take a weekend in Lagos, Nigeria. I hadn’t had a day off in almost 3 weeks. My office helped me book a round trip flight on Air Benin, Cotonou – Lagos. It was a Friday when I got to Cadjehoun, Cotonou airport. Standing in the boarding area, I noticed an older man in his late 60’s who was dressed in tradition clothes, a long robe printed with bright colors and markings. This wasn’t an uncommon sight, however the man seemed to be mumbling to himself.  When the boarding process began, everyone walked out onto the tarmac and lined up. As I got into the line, the man was standing in front of me. As we were getting closer to the door to the plane, the man turned to me and said in French, “Is it safe”. I paused for a second. “I hope so”.  As he climbed onboard, I could see he was nervous. As luck would have it, I ended up sitting in the seat next to the man. As the Fokker F27 taxied down the runway, the man was beginning to appear even more nervous. In French, I asked if he was alright. He told me this was his first time flying. I tried to reassure him that everything would be fine. Suddenly as the engines roared to life, he looked around, now panicking. I motioned to him this is normal, “normal…c’est normal”. He turned to me and grabbed my hand. I let him know this was okay. After a short takeoff, we were airborne. I thought he was going to let go of my hand, but he had other plans. I didn’t mind so much, but his grip was quite strong. Despite his strong grip, I let him hold my hand for the next 48 minutes. He began to calm down, but as soon as we began to land, his anxiety increased again. Finally, once we were back on the ground, and safely parked at the gate, he released me from his grip. The man had calmed down considerably. Once we were outside the plane, the man hugged me, and thanked me profusely. He insisted I wait for him to get his luggage. Shortly after he got his bag, he opened it and took out a beautiful wood carved talisman. I told him that I couldn’t accept it, but he insisted. He told me that it would protect me from bad things. I thanked him and we went on our separate ways.

Later that day, while exploring Lagos, I was in a taxi that narrowly missed getting hit by a petroleum truck. Since that day, I have kept this talisman with me everywhere I go. It’s my guardian angel of sorts. All from that unique encounter on Air Benin.

S. Mason

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.: 100% combed ringspun cotton (fiber content may vary for different colors)
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.: Tear away label
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GPSR information: HONSON VENTURES LIMITED, gpsr@honsonventures.com, 3, Gnaftis House flat 102, Limassol, Mesa Geitonia, 4003, CY

Product information: Next Level, 3600, 2 year warranty in EU and UK as per Directive 1999/44/EC

Care instructions: Machine wash: cold (max 30C or 90F), Do not bleach, Tumble dry: low heat, Iron, steam or dry: low heat, Do not dryclean