Author's Note: It should be noted that the trip from Newfoundland to Iceland was barely within range of the Lear Jet 23. However, the flight was not that uncommon even in 1966. The Lear Jet 23 was based on a design of a Swiss jet fighter that never went into production. The safety record of the 23 was not as good as later models. Four of them crashed in the first year of production in a run of 104.
Chapter 38: A Flight to Paris
Jane had expected a commercial air flight, what she didn't know is Maura owned a Lear Jet 23 from her father's estate. The dark Italian need not have worried about luggage restrictions. Now all the terrified young woman had to do was not panic at 30,000 feet or whatever height this awful small jet flew at.
The tall Italian examined the size of the jet they were about to board and then looked at its larger commercial cousin. The difference did not instill much confidence in the aircraft they were about to embark. The white plane with blue trim stood about 12 feet high with a wing span of about 40 feet and 45 feet long.
"Ahhhhhh…Maura, honey…ahhhhhh…is this…ahhhhh…plane…ahhhhhh…safe," asked the nervous brunette as she shuffled toward the business jet, "I mean…ahhhhh…couldn't we like…ahhhhhm…take…I mean wouldn't a bigger…ahhhhhm…plane…ahhhhhm…be like better?"
The honey blonde smiled, she knew how difficult it was for her sweetheart to admit fear of any kind. So, the confident young woman hooked her lover's arm and guided her toward the jet as she replied, "We are not going straight to Paris on this jet. We are going to hop over there in stages. First we are going to New York. From there we are going to Newfoundland, Canada; then we will fly to Iceland. At that point, we will proceed to Dublin, Ireland and finally to Paris. The longest stretch is from Newfoundland to Iceland, about three hours, give or take a few minutes. We have refueling layovers and a longer layover in Newfoundland."
Maura didn't want to tell her frightened girlfriend that they were staying in Newfoundland for an extra three hours in order to get favorable tailwinds to conserve gas, as the leg from Newfoundland to Iceland taxed their fuel reserves. With their light load, they had a comfortable margin of error, but by using the tailwinds, they were increasing that margin.
Jane had confidence in her young partner's ability to run numbers and to know everything that was going on so she asked secure in the knowledge that the brilliant blonde would know the answer, "How long is the whole trip?"
The poised young woman patted the obviously scared older girl on her arm and reassured her, "I have calculated that the entire flight with layovers should take approximately 18 hours and 25 minutes. I could give a more accurate assessment when I find out all the atmospheric variables, but I can't be more than ten minutes off in either direction."
They were stepping up into the doorway of the personal aircraft. Jane had to duck her head a bit and that made her even more nervous. The interior was beige with five dark brown seats, four captain's chairs in two back to back rows in front of one bench seat that could seat two people. The control panel and two pilot chairs were separated from the passenger seats by only some support beams.
The pilot and co-pilot were making some final checks and had yet to board the aircraft, as the two young women sat down and buckled into their seats. Maura had a picnic basket belted to the seat behind her. There were no cabinets or places to store any food, so the honey blonde brought sandwiches and three thermoses of New Orleans style coffee with chicory, like Jane liked.
When the pilot and co-pilot entered the plane, the older of the two informed the couple, "You're luggage has been stored and we will be taking off as I can get clearance from the tower. We are running right on schedule, so I don't see any problems. We will be encountering some slight head winds going to New York and a bit less to Newfoundland. However, all the indications are we have nice tailwinds heading into Iceland and Ireland. The Paris leg is the shortest leg, but will have the spottiest weather."
Maura reached for her brunette girl's hand and said, "He is the most experienced pilot money can buy. The pilot has over 300 hours on Lear Jets and the co-pilot over a hundred."
Jane wasn't quite sure weather that was a lot, but her young lover seemed quite impressed. The co-pilot announced, "We will be cruising at 48,000 feet with a cruising speed of 440 knots. We should be in New York in two hours and twenty-two minutes. Remember to set your watches ahead one hour for the change in time zone. We are scheduled for a one hour and twenty minute layover to take on fuel. Dinner has been arranged at the VIP lounge for your convenience. Please take advantage as our next two stops have very limited facilities. Thank you."
The doubtful brunette squeezed the delicate hand of the younger teenager, lightly. The Italian's fears had not overridden her reason and knew that the tough hood could hurt the softer blonde by accident. The younger teen leaned over and whispered, "You can hold tighter than that. I can take more than you think."
The resilient fighter squeezed a little harder and said, "Tough is not what you can dish out; it's what you can take and still get up. I know you're tougher than you look, but there is no need to prove it to me."
The jet began to taxi and Maura felt a little more pressure and grinned reassuringly.
***SE***
The flight to New York was uneventful. The sandwiches were saved for the longer leg to Iceland, but the first giant thermos of coffee was used to give the passengers and each of the two pilots two cups. Everyone but Maura refused cream or sugar. The caffeine was much appreciated.
One small bit of turbulence over the North Carolina/Tennessee border caused a moment of panic for the anxious Italian, but nothing else of consequence happened. Jane never removed her seat belt. Maura removed it four times, twice to give the pilots their coffee and twice to recover the cups.
Again, the frightened Italian gripped her girlfriend's hand for dear life as the twin engine jet descended for landing. There were a couple of small bounces as the jet landed and the squeal of the tires caused a tightening of the tall brunette's grip. However, the aircraft soon was just rolling on the runway, like a large city bus.
The jet came to a stop and the engines were shutdown. Someone from the ground crew opened the cabin door and the pilots asked their passengers to disembark. The couple was met by a woman in a tweed skirt with a short sleeved yellow blouse with a matching scarf. The twenty-something year old woman smiled, "Welcome to New York. I'm from the New York office of Isles Fashions. If you will follow me, I'll take you to the VIP lounge where you can freshen up and eat dinner. Mrs. Isles has met your request Miss Isles and three pizzas from Brooklyn have been delivered. As per instructions, one has been given to the crew and the other two are waiting for you in the lounge. Is there anything else I can help you with?"
Maura and Jane were following the brisk pace being set by the overly efficient woman. Maura replied, "I have an empty coffee thermos on the plane. Please have someone retrieve it and fill it with some dark roast."
The young woman nodded her acceptance of the instructions as she opened the door that lead to the interior of the La Guardia terminal.
***SE***
As it turned out, weather conditions had worsened over Newfoundland. The expected front was coming through several hours later than predicted, which meant that the tailwinds they were expecting would not happen for another twelve hours.
So Maura decided that they would have a ten hour layover and get some sleep in a nearby hotel. Rooms were arranged by the efficient little assistant, who was really getting on Jane's nerves. The independent Italian hated suck ups; especially suck ups that were hitting on her girlfriend. What made it worse was the innocent younger woman didn't notice.
Maura and Jane found their carry-on bags in the room when they arrived. The effective older woman opened the hotel door and handed the tall brunette a key and pushed her way into the room. The blonde assistant flashed a smile and scanned the blonde teen with an appraising blue eye. The action was not lost on the more experience teenager. The attractive blonde queried, "Miss Isles, can I help you unpack? I would be happy to do anything you want. I am eager to please you in any way I can."
Jane answered for her young love, "I bet you are. Maura and I are quite capable of helping each other. We really don't need you. But thanks for the offer. Good night."
The strong brunette pushed the older blonde from the room and into the hall. Making a big show to close the door, the dangerous Italian glared at the blue eyed trollop and explained, "That young woman is fourteen and she is my girlfriend. So, I would suggest you tone it down or send someone else to help us in eight and a half hours. Because, if you come back and hit on her again, I will hit on you and it won't be the same. Do you get my drift?"
The blonde assistant looked into those hard brown eyes and swallowed. All she could do was nod her head in understanding and retreat clumsily down the hallway. Jane used the key to enter the room and found Maura smirking on the king-size bed, "Do you chase her off?"
Jane frowned at being busted and nodded her head up and down shyly. The honey blonde laughed, "I was wondering how long it was going to take you before you went off on her. I mean she was so graceless about it. You know you never have to worry about me cheating on you. I am just too crazy about you to do anything that would jeopardize what we have."
Jane ran and jumped on the bed next to her young lover and pulled the younger girl into her arms and said, "Have I told you, today, how much I love you?"
Maura shook her head no. Then found her mouth being invaded by a delicious tongue. They battled tongues for a bit, until Jane broke contact and said, "That was good night. We need to get some sleep."
Maura pulled the dark brunette to back into a close embrace and said, "We can spare ten minutes or so to neck can't we?"
Jane giggled, "You wish is my command, Miss Isles."
***SE***
Jane didn't sleep that well, breaking off the petting was her job. And it left her unsatisfied, while the honey blonde, who had multiple orgasms from self inflected arousal, slept soundly. It wasn't that the tall Italian didn't have her own manually induced orgasms, but the older teen knew what they were missing and it was hard not to go the next few steps.
However, the chocolate-eyed teenager had made a promise to the young girl's mother and more importantly one to herself. So, the dark Italian was going to keep all her promises and wait until Maura's sweet sixteen.
***SE***
Nearly, fourteen hours later, the Lear Jet was landing at Ernest Harmon Air Force Base in Stephensville, Newfoundland, Canada. In a few more months, the United States Air Force will be turning over the airport to the Canadian government, but for now, the airport was being run by the US Air Force.
So with only a stop to refuel the plane and refresh the people, they were off again for the longest and most dangerous leg of the flight. Reykjarik, Iceland was near the limit of their fuel capability. Additionally, there was an extra hour of flight time. There was no room for much error.
The Lear Jet 24 was just being released with its longer range, but slower speed. It will make this run much safer. Though the Lear Jet 23 was more than capable, the navigation of this leg needed to be spot on. Maura knew this, but didn't tell her very anxious girlfriend.
As it turned out, the experienced crew was more than up for the task and the nice stiff tailwinds had provided an excellent cushion. So, proper preparation prevented a piss poor performance once again.
***SE***
The next leg to Dublin Airport actually had a little drama. Due to some unrest generated by the IRA (Irish Republican Army), the twin engine jet was diverted to Heath Row Airport in London. Fortunately, the business aircraft had the fuel necessary for the change.
When the plane landed at Heath Row, the crew requested a layover long enough for some rest. The extra hour to London had made them have over eight hours of flight time with no sleep. So Maura rented two more rooms and told them they had twelve hours. It had been nearly twelve hours since they had last slept and the young blonde figured everyone could use a rest.
***SE***
It was a well-rested crew that made the less than one hour flight from Heath Row to Paris-Le Bourget Airport in Paris. Again a representative from Isles Fashions was waiting for the couple. Maura and Jane both personally thanked the two pilots and Maura instructed their contact to see that both men received an all expenses paid holiday while waiting for them to return home.
The honey blonde didn't know that the men would be busying for much of that time refitting the aircraft as part of its standard prevented maintenance or that both men had family here and would have very little in the way of expenses.
The middle aged business man, who worn smart tailored three piece suits, ordered a porter to get the couple's luggage off the jet and take it to the Ritz Paris, where they would be staying. The balding man escorted the energetic young couple to their waiting limousine and instructed the driver to take them to the hotel.
The hotel staff was waiting for the pair of VIP's. They had been told that Constance Isles's daughter and her new catalogue model were arriving. The night manager greeted the pair of lovely young women himself.
He informed them, "Your luggage has not arrived. Your suite is ready. It has adjoining rooms with individual baths and a shared living room. Your mother had outfits delivered for you this afternoon and they are waiting for you. You may freshen up. Your reservations in the dining room have been arranged. If there is anything I can do for you, you have but to ask."
Maura thanked the man as he opened the door to their suite. Jane entered the room and had difficulty catching her breath.