Student Essay - Survival – by Kim Hong Seok, Year 10, Sayfol International School

Survival – by Kim Hong Seok, Year 10, Sayfol International School

There was a boy named Carl. He was a very troublesome boy. Although his curiosity had caused lots of trouble, like the time he poked a sleeping beggar, he didn’t try to get rid his bad habit. His parents were very worried about him. One day, there was an incident which put an end to his habit, after all.

His family was very rich and his father was authoritative figure, as the president of a famous company. This could have been one of the reasons for Carl’s bad habit. One day, Carl’s whole family was going to New Zealand on holiday. Carl couldn’t help being curious even on the plane. Although they shouldn’t have, his parents allowed him to enter the cockpit, because it was obvious that he would make a fuss if he wasn’t allowed to do what he wanted. No one realised that this would cause the hazard that would happen soon. The pilots had set the plane to fly automatically so they thought it would be fine for Carl to steer the plane. Unfortunately, the thing that attracted him most was the auto-fly lever.

He couldn’t control his curiosity even though he realised that creating trouble in the cockpit could lead to very dire consequences. Without thinking, he pulled down the auto lever. Then, with a rumbling sound from the engine, the plane suddenly started going downwards! Everyone on the plane, including Carl himself, started to panic. Although the pilots tried to stop him, Carl managed to pull another lever in the middle of the cockpit, which controlled the direction of the plane. He was trying to undo his first mistake, thinking he had some kind of special ability. But it just made the situation worse. The plane was stuck in turbulent air current and started shaking! Now, everyone realised that the situation was very serious. They started thinking for a solution to this terrible situation. Then Carl remembered something he’d watched on television!

The programme was about plane accidents. He had watched an episode about a situation very similar to the one they were having. A boy had messed up the cockpit and led everyone to their death. Carl said to himself, “The difference between that case and this one is that everyone on this plane will survive!” He remembered that by releasing the steering yoke, the plane would auto-fly again. He shouted, “Leave the plane alone! Let it fly on its own!” Everyone was surprised but after hearing his explanation, they trusted him and the pilots released the steering yoke. They might have done it because they had no other choice apart from accepting death. Soon, the plane became stable and started to fly in the right direction again. His plan for survival was successful!

A few hours later, the plane landed safely at its destination. Carl’s family apologised to the airline and all the passengers. Then they left the airport as quickly as possible. After this incident, Carl never again let his curiosity get the better of him.