With the new Airplane horror film, Airborne out on DVD this coming Monday (30th), you could be forgiven for thinking that horrors in the air are purely fictional. You’d be gravely mistaken. Airborne has everything you could possibly ask for from a horror film; it’s scary, funny, original and has a stellar cast including, most notably, Mark ‘Luke Skywalker’ Hamill (the one and only!) along with a plot that will have you keep guessing right to the end, as you hang on the edge of your seats with pure excitement. Flying is a dangerous idea, as illustrated by Airborne‘s living dead, psycho killers and nerve-shredding climax. So, what better time than now, to take a look at some of the scariest and creepiest airplane-related horrors that have stained paranormal studies…
Gone Without A Trace
Exactly 75 years to this month (2nd July), one of the most well-known flight disappearances shock the world. Amelia Earhart was a renowned author and aviation pioneer who had an incredible career setting new and incredible achievements. However, whilst attempting to travel around the world in her trust airplane, she completely disappeared. Never to be seen or heard of again. No wreckage has even found! The mystery of Amelia Earhart and her fascinating and dedicated life has enthralled people around the world right up to this day. What happened? Nobody truly knows. Of course, this is just one of many airplane-related disappearances. Countless aircraft and boats have thought to have disappeared over the Bermuda Triangle with no certain explanation.
Is It A Bird? Is It A Plane? No, It’s A… UFO?!
By looking at the number of UFO sightings by pilots over the decades, you’d be quite amazed by the sheer amount! From lights suddenly appearing, to metallic looking ships tailing and flying along side aircraft, these sightings are not as rare as you may like to believe. In fact, a quick study of the UFO files released by the British government (all of which can be viewed on the National Archives website), these alien reports were treated with respect and understanding, rather than being fobbed of as sheer crazy due to the amount of reliable witnesses. A famous example of this occurred in 1986 during the flight of a Boeing 747. The pilots were amazed to see two white and yellow lights that seemed to follow the aircraft on the left, in front and underneath. According to one of the pilots, the UFOs began to move erratically,”like two bear cubs playing with each other.” Rather than appearing as red blotches on the radar, strangely they showed up as green – a colour associated with light rain. Sightings were especially frequent during the Second World War, in which this unidentified alien sightings were nick-named Foo Fighters (no, not the band!). Reports are still happening all over the globe right to the present day. Is it a natural phenomenon? Perhaps its some inhabitant of the skies we’ve yet to discover? Maybe the Nazis are behind it? Or could it really be a visitor from beyond the stars?
Gone Today, Here Tomorrow
Another one of the most peculiar airborne anomalies is the sightings of aircraft from yesteryear. Many people have claimed to have seen an aircraft in the skies that no longer is in flight. From Fighter Planes from the First World War and even Zeppelins. The most widespread explanation for this bizarre sightings is one which blames the theory of time slips. A theory that suggests every now and then, in the right place, there is somehow a glitch in time allowing the present to mix with the past. Other examples of this include members of the public seeing huge battles from centuries past right before their eyes to finding themselves in a Roman colosseum surrounded by people from the past, whilst taking a stroll through the woods. This has long been a popular theme in fiction, with many films (and episodes of The Twilight Zone) playing with this incredible idea.
Ghost Planes
Perhaps the most spookiest mystery of all, which is bound to get your nerves tingling, is the various tales of ‘Ghost Planes’. We all have heard of ghost ships, so why not ghost planes?! The many tales and apparent sightings often follow a similar structure and each share similar points. The majority of these tell of a group of aircraft returning to base…all except one. No one knows what has happened to them. They’ve completely disappeared – a little like Amelia. A few days later a loud noise is heard from the skies. To every-one’s shock, it’s the missing plane! It’s completly in ruin – a total wreck. After a rough landing, people rush over to the smashed craft, only to reel in horror as they find no pilot inside. Nothing. Not a soul. Very spooky indeed!
So, as you see, the skies are laden with unsolved airborne mysteries that have the power to terrify even the most hardened of minds. If you fancy catching a fun, exciting and heart-thumping slice of entertainment set on-board a plane, then look no further than Airborne! Staring Mark ‘Skywalker’ Hamill and Game of Throne‘s Julian Glover. Check out the trailer;
erratically,"like two bear cubs playing with each other,"
Airborne is out on DVD on Monday (30th July!)
