Black Aeroplane
INTRODUCTION—
This is a mysterious story. The writer was flying his Dakota aeroplane. Suddenly, he was caught in a big cloud and his compass, radio and other instruments failed. There was not much fuel in his plane. Suddenly he saw a black aeroplane near him. The pilot in that plane guided him. As a result he was able to land safely. But he was greatly surprised when the woman at the control centre told him that there had been no other plane except the writer’s Dakota on the sky that night.
SUMMARY—
The author says that he was flying an aeroplane at 1 o’clock at night. The moon was coming up in the east behind him. Stars were shining in the clear sky above him. He was flying his old Dakota aeroplane over France, back to England. He was dreaming of his holiday. He was looking forward to being with his family.
Paris control duly acknowledged. It advised him to turn twelve degrees west.
He duly turned to that direction. Everything was going well. Paris was about 150 kilometres behind him.Then he saw the storm clouds. They looked like black mountains in front of him. He knew he could not fly up and over them.
He decided to go back to Paris. But he also wanted to get home. So, he took the risk and flew into the storm. He could see nothing outside his aeroplane. Everything was black. The old aeroplane jumped and twisted in the air. He looked at the compass. It was gone. He tried to contact Paris control. He was lost in the storm.
Then in the black clouds, he saw another aeroplane. It had no lights on its wings. He could see it flying next to him in the storm. He was glad to see another person. He was signaling to follow him. The author thought he was trying to help him. So, he followed him. He flew for half an hour. He had fuel to last for five or ten minutes. He began to feel frightened. Then he started to go down.
Suddenly he was on the runway. He looked for his friend in the black aeroplane. He wanted to thank him. But the sky was empty. He went into the control tower. He asked a woman where he was. She looked at him strangely and then she laughed. She told that there was no other aeroplane except that of his. The author was wonderstruck. He wondered who had helped him to arrive there. He was without a compass or a radio and without any more fuel in his tanks, who was the pilot on the strange black aeroplane, flying in the storm without lights.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :
1.Then, in the black clouds quite near me, I saw another airplane. It had no lights on its wings, but I could see it flying next to me through the storm. I could see the pilot’s face-turned towards me. I was very glad to see another person. He lifted one hand and waved.
“Follow me“, he was saying, “Follow me.”
“He knows that I am lost,” I thought, “He’s trying to help me.”
Question. He knows that I am ___________.
a. confused
b. lost
c. unable to fly
d. helpless
Answer. b. lost
Question. I could see the pilot’s _________ turned towards me.
a. face
b. hand
c. arm
d. neck
Answer.a. face
Question. What did he see in the black clouds ?
a. huge bird
b. rocket
c. another aeroplane
d. spaceship
Answer.c. another aeroplane
Question. Who lifted one hand and wave?
a. The Astronaut
b. The crew member
c. The Allien
d. The other pilot
Answer.d. The other pilot
2.They looked like black mountains standing in front of me across the sky. I knew I could not fly up and cover them, and I did not have enough fuel to fly around them to the north or south.
Question. Which thing was not enough to fly?
a. water
b. gas
c. fuel
d. petrol
Answer.d. fuel
Question. Name the figure of speech used in the line “They looked like black mountains”.
a. metaphor
b. hyperbole
c. alliteration
d. simile
Answer.b. hyperbole
Question. What are ‘they‘ here ?
a. black clouds
b. rainy clouds
c. stormy clouds
d. fluffy clouds
Answer.c. stormy clouds
Question. Which word in the passage means the same as ‘sufficient’ ?
a. too much
b. a lot
c. very little
d. enough
Answer.c. enough
3.Inside the clouds, everything was suddenly black. It was impossible to see anything outside the aeroplane.The old aeroplane jumped and twisted in the air. I looked at the compass. I could not believe my eyes : the compass was turning round and round. It was dead. It would not work.
Question. Why was the aeroplane twisting? It was because of
a. dark night
b. clear night
c. bright night
d. stormy night
Answer.d. Stormy night
Question. Inside the clouds, everything was suddenly ____________.
a. grey
b. blue
c. white
d. black
Answer.d. black
Question. What was turning round and round?
a. sun
b. compass
c. earth
d. moon
Answer.b. compass
Question. Find out a word from the passage which means the same as ‘turned and curved in different direction’.
a. turning
b. moving
c. twisting
d. compass
Answer.c. twisting
4.“I ought to go back to Paris,” I thought, but I wanted to get home. I wanted that breakfast. I’II take the risk’, I thought, and flew that Old Dakota straight into the storm. Inside the clouds everything was suddenly black. It was impossible to see anything outside the aeroplane. The old aeroplane jumped and twisted in the air. I looked at the compass. I couldn’t believe my eyes : the compass was turning round and round. It was dead. It would not work! The other instruments were suddenly dead, too.
Question. Which word in the passage means the same as ‘not working’.
a. dakota
b. risk
c. dead
d. twisted
Answer.c. dead
Question. What did the narrator decide?
a. to land
b. to fly
c. to wait
d. to stop
Answer.b. to fly
Question. Where did the narrator want to go back?
a. Paris
b. London
c. Spain
d. France
Answer.a. Paris
Question. It was ______________ for the writer that no instrument of the aeroplane was working.
a. right
b. wrong
c. believable
d. unbelievable
Answer.d. unbelievable
Short Answer Type Questions
Question. What difficulties did the narrator face while flying in the storm ?
Answer. The difficulties that the narrator faced were that all the instruments of his aeroplane stopped working. He could not see any thing as there were dark clouds all around. The radio became dead and the compass was turning round and round.
Question. Describe the sky when ‘Dakota’ took off from Paris.
Answer. When ‘Dakota’ took off from Paris, the sky was quite clear. The moon was coming up in the east and the stars were shining. There were no clouds in the sky. The climatic condition was ideal.
Question. A pilot is lost in the storm clouds. Does he arrive safe ? Who helps him ?
Answer. Yes, the pilot arrives safe on the runway. He is helped by another pilot of a mysterious plane. He vanishes soon after the narrator landed on the airport. The pilot of the other plane guided him to a safe landing.
Long Answer Type Questions
Question. From the beginning to the end of the lesson the black aeroplane is a mystery. How ?
Answer.The narrator started his journey with old Dakota – 088. At that time, the sky was clear. But suddenly, he found himself in the midst of black clouds. There was zero visibility, everything was black. He couldn’t find any way to escape. To his shock, the compass and the radio were dead. He was lost in the storm. All of a sudden, the narrator saw a black aeroplane and was helped by the other pilot. For half an hour he was flying behind that plane like an obedient child. There was only enough fuel in the tank to fly for five or ten minutes when suddenly he saw two rows of lights. It was a runway in front of him. He safely landed at the airport. He went to the control centre to ask who the other pilot was. To his horror, his was the only flight that could be seen on the radar. Who was the other pilot on the strange black aeroplane flying in the storm, without lights, remained a mystery till the end.
Question. How did the author come out safely from the black clouds ?
Answer.The author took the risk of flying through the black clouds. He couldn’t see anything. The aeroplane jumped and twisted up every now and then. All his instruments had stopped working. The radio and compass were both dead. Suddenly, he saw another plane with no lights on its wings. The other pilot gestured him to follow his plane and turned his aeroplane slowly to the north in front of the author’s Dakota, so that it would be easier for him to follow. The author was glad to follow him like an obedient child. After half an hour, the strange black plane was still guiding the author in the clouds. Suddenly, he saw two long straight lines of lights in front of him. It was a runaway. He was safe and landed safely out of the clouds. After landing, he went to the control room to find who was the other pilot who saved him. He wanted to thank the pilot but the pilot and his aeroplane both had disappeared. It was a mystery.
