Flying on Friday the 13th is a strange enough proposition for most superstitious travelers, but Flight 666 to HEL takes the eeriness to another level. According to the Associated Press, Finnair Flight AY666 made the journey from Copenhagen, or CPH, to Helsinki, or HEL, this Friday the 13th. The flight was nearly full.
“It has been quite a joke among the pilots,” said Finnair pilot Juha-Pekka Keidasto, scheduled to fly the route twice on Friday the 13th. “I’m not a superstitious man. It’s only a coincidence for me.”
Friday the 13th is considered a day of bad luck in many countries, while the number 666 is associated with the devil, AP said.
According to AP, the notion of the number 13 carrying a negative connotation is relatively new in many Northern European countries. “Less than 100 years ago, the number 13 did not have this sinister meaning; it’s quite recent in the north,” said Ulo Valk, professor of comparative folklore at the University of Tartu in Estonia. “There are 12 hours, 12 months, and in Christianity 12 apostles and this is a divine number,” Valk said. “Add one more and it brings in a certain element of chaos.”
For the crew of AY666 to Helsinki, the superstition is much ado about nothing. “It’s hopefully smooth skies,” said Keidasto. “And if there’s some passenger who is anxious about this 666, our cabin crew is always happy to help them.”
Flight 666 to HEL later landed safetly, AP reported.
Flight 666 To HEL: Travelers Tempt Fate By Boarding Eerily Named Flight On Friday The 13th
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