by Mark Molloy, The Telegraph, October 13, 2017
Fearless flyers will laugh in the face of superstition today when they board the last ever Flight 666 to HEL on Friday the 13th. Travelling on the “unluckiest day of the year” could save you some pounds, but a journey straight to HEL on the 13th hour of the superstitious date is one flight most would probably like to avoid.
Nordic airline Finnair has flown brave passengers from Copenhagen, Denmark, to Helsinki, Finland, on Friday the 13th since 2006.
However, today will be the last time Flight 666 flies to Hel, as the airline has decided to retire the flight number.
“Today will actually be the final time that our AY666 flight flies to HEL,” a spokesperson for the airline said.
“As of October 29, some of our flight numbers in our network will change and our AY666 flight from Copenhagen to Helsinki will change to AY954.
“In 11 years, we’ve flown 21 times the AY666 flight to HEL on Friday the 13th.”
“It has been quite a joke among the pilots,” he said previously. Thankfully, veteran pilot Juha-Pekka Keidasto says he is not superstitious or scared about flying on Friday the 13th.
“I'm not a superstitious man. It's only a coincidence for me.
“If there's some passenger who is anxious about this 666, our cabin crew is always happy to help them.”
Flight 666 is set to depart from the Danish capital at 1:20pm and is scheduled to arrive in Helsinki shortly before 4pm.
But why is Friday the 13th considered to be so unlucky? It has biblical origins and also been linked to the Knights Templar.
Psychologists have even come up with a word for a fear of Friday the 13th – paraskavedekatriaphobia.
This article was written by Mark Molloy from The Telegraph and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to [email protected].
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