NEWS
Anatomy of a Plane Crash Part 3
By Neil Almond
H
ave you ever watched someone being reaction that was taking every bit of my NLP power of debriefing after traumatic events,
airlifted into a helicopter on telly? It training to keep in check - I was petrified! the importance of truly honouring and pacing
looks fun doesn’t it? Almost something We arrived after the longest 20 minute significant emotional experiences and the
you’d line up to try. Well maybe it’s just a flight of my life at MacKay hospital. And it true medicinal properties of red wine! The
question of context, but after crashing into was here that the magnitude of what we’d kinaesthetic of that night will stay with me
the ocean in a light aircraft (as reported in the experienced really started to hit. As we forever; as I’m sure will the friendship of Nina
last two editions of this fine magazine) and jumped down from the helicopter we were and Henry.
treading water for close to an hour praying for greeted by an army of wheel chairs and I didn’t sleep a great deal that night, and
rescue, the experience was somewhat different. gurneys. It was obvious they didn’t know what my numb and glazed feelings can’t have
I never realised, for instance, how difficult it is state we’d be in - that we could walk was a been helped by the righteous hangover I
to breathe under a chopper - it almost feels like great surprise. To be honest, that we were was experiencing. Ahead of us we had an
the air is being sucked out of your lungs. Nor there was a surprise; we learned afterwards immediate test of a one and a half hour
had I considered that the spray would be quite that in nine out of ten cases a plane like ours, flight back to Brisbane to try to arrange new
so painful - imagine being in a jet wash with with fixed undercarriage, would flip and roll passports. As you can imagine the idea of
someone squirting the pressure-hose directly when it hit the water, trapping the passengers setting foot back on an aircraft was terrifying.
at your face and you might come close. I also inside or killing them on impact. We were The imminent flight and the 24 hour ordeal
hadn’t ever really imagined how physically of flying back to the UK were going to take
debilitating shock and exposure could be. But every ounce of our NLP training, and with
all that said, we were being rescued and that your permission I’d love to cover that more
felt amazing. fully in the next edition of Rapport. I’ll also
The emotions were so mixed up that when save for now the incredible opportunity we
the chopper flew off having rescued the pilot had to explore the very best and very worst of
and our two co-passengers, leaving Andy and customer service in a crisis and the subsequent
I still bobbing in the water, we weren’t sure learnings about how best a company can
whether to be grateful for the delicious peace support and manage customers who’ve
and respite from the physical discomfort or experienced trauma and how NLP can
panicked that we were being left behind. play a vital role in this.
We decided to use the time to float out on It is incredible how much gold can
our time lines to 15 minutes beyond our safe come from even the darkest of events. Our
arrival back on dry land and look back on experience has been that through some
ourselves celebrating our rescue. We’d only combination of taking responsibility for
known Nina and Henry a short time, but it’s results and compassionate reframing it is
amazing how an intense experience such as possible to transform a potential turd on your
a plane crash can give you a deep knowing time line into a beautiful rose. A version of
about someone’s true character. We knew that transformation could be the book I am
they would sooner bite their own legs off
Photograph: RACQ – CQ RESCUE
in the process of writing which focuses on
than leave us behind. We knew the chopper overcoming the fear of flying - let’s face it,
would return. lucky to be alive, and the richness of life had who better to pace and lead the experience
It did. 15 minutes later it was our turn to never tasted sweeter. than someone who has them-self fallen from
be winched to safety, Andy first, then me. I After several hours in hospital we retreated the sky. I’m in the process of testing some of
won’t describe the winching process but will to a local motel which, thank goodness, the models we’ve established and would love
say that once the initial flood of relief from had been arranged for us - our brains were to hear from anyone who’d like an even better
being out of the water had passed we began incapable of such a simple act as booking a relationship with flying, or indeed anyone
to realise that the submodalities of flight had room (which when you consider that Andy who has overcome the fear for themselves and
rearranged - an involuntary version of the was at the time Planning and Risk Manager is willing to be modelled. I can be contacted
NLP ‘Like to Dislike‘ script. The last place we on the £5.5b Channel Tunnel Rail Link at neil@neilalmond.com. I look forward to
wanted to be was in the air - oh why couldn’t project is saying something). In truth the next hearing from you, or sharing the results in the
they send a boat? I suppose this is only few hours are a bit of a blur. I do however next edition of Rapport.
natural, we had of course just fallen from the remember that there were three things that
sky. But we’d always loved flying and now I I learnt that night which will enhance my
neil@neilalmond.com
was experiencing something close to a phobic knowledge as a coach - the therapeutic
6 | Summer 2009 - rapport
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