Class 10 English — First Flight · Chapter 3 NotesTwo Stories about Flying
Study notes for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 3, Two Stories about Flying. Read summaries of His First Flight and The Black Aeroplane, key points, themes and…
Chapter 3 of First Flight, 'Two Stories about Flying', brings together two very different tales that share one theme — the experience of flight. The first, 'His First Flight' by Liam O'Flaherty, is about a young seagull who is terrified of leaving his ledge and only takes the plunge when hunger finally overcomes his fear. The second, 'The Black Aeroplane' by Frederick Forsyth, is a first-person account of a pilot flying an old Dakota through a storm, losing his compass and radio, and being guided to safety by a mysterious black aeroplane that no one else can confirm existed. Together the stories let you explore courage, fear, trust, technology and the human spirit. You will learn how writers build suspense, how a simple act like flying becomes a symbol of growing up, and how to read a story for both its literal events and its deeper meanings.
What you'll learn
1Describe how the young seagull overcomes his fear of flying in 'His First Flight'.
2Explain the role of the seagull's family in pushing him towards his first flight.
3Summarise the pilot's experience inside the storm clouds in 'The Black Aeroplane'.
4Identify the mystery at the heart of 'The Black Aeroplane' and discuss possible explanations.
5Compare the two stories in terms of theme, setting and narrative voice.
6Analyse how the writers create tension and suspense in each story.
7Interpret the symbolic meaning of flight in both stories.
8Use new vocabulary from the chapter, such as ledge, upbraiding, preening, derisively, swooped, curveting and banking.
Chapter at a glance
01His First Flight: Overcoming Fear
02The Black Aeroplane: Mystery and Rescue
03Courage, Technology, and Human Spirit
Detailed chapter notes
01
His First Flight: The Young Seagull's Fear
The story opens with a young seagull alone on his ledge. His two brothers and his sister have already flown away, but he is too afraid to join them. Whenever he runs to the brink and tries to flap his wings, the vast sea stretching miles below makes him certain his wings will not support him, and he retreats to the little hole where he sleeps. His parents scold him and threaten to let him starve unless he flies, but fear keeps him rooted. For twenty-four hours no one comes near him. He watches his family flying, skimming the waves and diving for fish, and he hears them taunting him for his cowardice from the plateau opposite. Hunger and loneliness begin to press on him as the sun climbs higher.
Ledgea narrow horizontal shelf projecting from a cliff
Upbraidingscolding
Skimto move lightly just above a surface, here the sea
Herringa soft-finned sea fish
02
The Mother's Trick and the First Flight
The turning point comes through hunger. The young seagull sees his mother tearing at a piece of fish and is maddened by the sight. He cries out, begging her to bring him some, but she only screams back derisively. Then she picks up a piece of fish and flies across towards him. He leans out eagerly, tapping the rock, trying to reach her. When she halts just opposite him, with the fish almost within reach, he waits a moment in surprise — and then, maddened by hunger, dives at the fish. He falls outwards and downwards into space, and for a moment a monstrous terror seizes him. But it lasts only a minute. His wings spread outwards, the wind rushes against his breast feathers and under his stomach, and he finds he is soaring, not falling. He is no longer afraid.
The mother uses food as a lure to make him take the plunge
The first fall turns into flight as his wings spread naturally
Fear is replaced by a slight dizziness and then by confidence
03
Learning to Soar and Landing on the Sea
Once airborne, the young seagull discovers the joy of flight. He flaps his wings and soars upwards; his mother swoops past him, his father flies over him screaming, and his brothers and sister circle him, curveting, banking, soaring and diving. He forgets that he was ever unable to fly and begins to dive and curve himself, shrieking shrilly. Flying low over the ocean, he sees the vast green sea with little ridges moving over it and caws amusedly. His family has landed on the water ahead and beckons him. He drops his legs to stand on the sea, but his legs sink and he screams with fright, trying to rise again. Tired and weak with hunger, he cannot rise, and his belly touches the water. He sinks no farther — he is floating. His family surrounds him, praising him and offering him scraps of dog-fish. He has made his first flight.
Curvetingleaping like a horse
Bankingflying with one wing higher than the other
The sea becomes a safe landing place, not a danger
04
The Black Aeroplane: A Quiet Night Flight
The second story is narrated by a pilot flying an old Dakota aeroplane over France back to England. It is one thirty in the morning. The moon is rising in the east behind him, the stars are shining, and there is not a cloud in the sky. He is happy to be alone above the sleeping countryside, dreaming of his holiday and looking forward to being with his family. He contacts Paris Control, which tells him to turn twelve degrees west. He checks his map and compass, switches to his second and last fuel tank, and turns towards England. Everything is going well — it is an easy flight, and he thinks he will be in time for a good big English breakfast.
The Dakota is an old aeroplane with limited fuel
Paris Control guides him by radio
The calm opening makes the coming storm more dramatic
05
Into the Storm: Instruments Fail
About 150 kilometres past Paris, the pilot sees storm clouds — huge, black mountains standing across the sky. He knows he cannot fly over them and does not have enough fuel to fly around them. He thinks of going back to Paris but wants to get home and have that breakfast, so he decides to take the risk and flies straight into the storm. Inside the clouds everything is suddenly black. The old aeroplane jumps and twists. He looks at the compass and cannot believe his eyes: it is turning round and round and is dead. The other instruments are dead too. He tries the radio, but there is no answer — the radio is dead. With no radio, no compass and no visibility, he is lost in the storm.
The storm clouds are described as black mountains
The pilot's instruments and radio fail one by one
He is completely cut off from help
06
The Mysterious Black Aeroplane
Then, in the black clouds quite near him, the pilot sees another aeroplane. It has no lights on its wings, but he can see it flying next to him through the storm. He can even see the pilot's face turned towards him. The stranger lifts one hand and waves, as if to say, 'Follow me.' The pilot thinks the other man knows he is lost and is trying to help. The black aeroplane turns slowly to the north, in front of the Dakota, making it easier to follow. The pilot follows like an obedient child. After half an hour the strange aeroplane is still there, but now there is only enough fuel in the last tank for five or ten minutes more. He starts to feel frightened again. Then the black aeroplane begins to go down, and the pilot follows through the storm.
The black aeroplane has no lights and appears only inside the storm
The pilot of the black aeroplane waves and guides him
Fuel is running dangerously low
07
Safe Landing and the Unanswered Question
Suddenly the pilot comes out of the clouds and sees two long straight lines of lights in front of him — a runway, an airport. He is safe. He turns to look for his friend in the black aeroplane, but the sky is empty. The black aeroplane is gone. He lands and is glad to walk away from the old Dakota near the control tower. He asks a woman in the control centre where he is and who the other pilot was, because he wants to say thank you. She looks at him strangely and laughs, telling him that no other aeroplanes were flying that night — his was the only one she could see on the radar. The story ends with the pilot's unanswered questions: who helped him arrive safely without a compass or radio, and who was the pilot of the strange black aeroplane flying in the storm without lights?
The runway appears just as fuel is nearly exhausted
The black aeroplane vanishes once the pilot is safe
The control centre confirms no other aircraft was on radar
08
Themes: Courage, Technology and the Human Spirit
Both stories explore courage in the face of fear. The young seagull's fear is natural and instinctive, and he overcomes it not through reasoning but through hunger and the encouragement of his family. The pilot's fear is different: he is a trained adult who takes a calculated risk and then finds himself helpless when his technology fails. In both cases, something beyond the individual's own strength makes survival possible — for the seagull it is his family and his own untested wings; for the pilot it is the mysterious black aeroplane. The stories also contrast the natural world with the human-made world. The seagull's flight is instinctive and joyful; the pilot's flight depends on instruments, fuel and radio, all of which can fail. Ultimately, both stories suggest that courage is not the absence of fear but the willingness to act despite it, and that help can come from unexpected places.
Courageacting despite fear, not without it
Technologyhelpful but not infallible
Human spirittrust, hope and the will to survive
Flight as a symbol of growth and freedom
Want the complete chapter resources?Topic notes, quizzes and flashcards for Two Stories about Flying.
Q1. Why was the young seagull afraid to fly? What made him finally take his first flight?
Show model answer
Model answer
The young seagull was afraid to fly because he felt that his wings would not support him and the sea was miles down. He lacked confidence and courage. He was finally compelled to fly when his mother pretended to ignore him and flew with a piece of fish, halting opposite him. Maddened by hunger, he dived at the fish and, in the process, his wings spread outwards and he soared. Thus, hunger and the instinct to survive overcame his fear.
Sample question3 marks
Q2. Why does the narrator say, "I landed and was not sorry to walk away from the old Dakota…"?
Show model answer
Model answer
The narrator says this because he was extremely relieved to have survived the terrifying storm. He had faced a life-threatening situation with no compass, no radio, and very little fuel. The safe landing was a miracle, and he was grateful to be alive, so he felt no attachment to his damaged plane.
Sample question3 marks
Q3. Why was the young seagull afraid to fly? What finally compelled him to make his first flight?
Show model answer
Model answer
The young seagull was afraid to fly because he felt his wings would never support him and the sea was a long way down. Despite his parents' scolding and threats, he could not muster courage. Finally, when his mother flew towards him with a piece of fish and halted just out of reach, his hunger maddened him, and he dived at the fish, which made him fall outwards and downwards. This forced him to spread his wings and fly.
Sample question3 marks
Q4. How did the young seagull's family try to encourage him to fly? What was the result of their efforts?
Show model answer
Model answer
The seagull's parents called to him shrilly, scolded him, and threatened to let him starve if he did not fly. They also taught his siblings to fly and showed him their success. His mother used a clever trick by flying with a piece of fish and halting just out of his reach, which made him dive towards her. This finally overcame his fear, and he flew. Their efforts, especially the mother's trick, led to his first successful flight.
Sample question3 marks
Q5. What made the woman in the control centre look at the narrator strangely?
Show model answer
Model answer
The woman looked at the narrator strangely because he asked about another pilot who had guided him through the storm. She informed him that no other aeroplanes were flying that night, and his was the only one on the radar. This was puzzling and mysterious, as the narrator was certain he had seen and followed another plane.
Want more questions with answers?Get the full practice set for this chapter.
The young seagull was afraid because the sea stretched miles below his ledge. When he ran to the brink and tried to flap his wings, he felt certain his wings would never support him. He had watched his brothers and sister fly, but he could not muster the courage to take the plunge himself.
What compelled the young seagull to finally fly?
Hunger compelled him. After twenty-four hours without food, he was maddened by the sight of his mother tearing at a piece of fish. When she flew towards him with the fish and then halted just out of reach, he dived at it and fell into space, which started his first flight.
What happened to the pilot's instruments in 'The Black Aeroplane'?
When the pilot flew into the storm clouds, his compass began turning round and round and then went dead. The other instruments also failed suddenly. When he tried the radio to call Paris Control, there was no answer — the radio was dead too. He was left with no radio, no compass and no visibility.
Who helped the pilot in 'The Black Aeroplane'?
A mysterious black aeroplane with no lights appeared in the storm and guided him to a runway. The pilot followed it until he landed safely, but when he looked back the black aeroplane had vanished. The woman in the control centre said no other aeroplanes were flying that night. The story leaves the helper's identity unanswered.
What is the main theme of 'Two Stories about Flying'?
The main theme is courage in the face of fear. The young seagull overcomes his fear of flying, and the pilot overcomes a life-threatening storm. Both stories also explore trust, the limits of technology, and the idea that help can come from unexpected sources. Flight becomes a symbol of growth and freedom.
How are the two stories in the chapter different?
'His First Flight' is about a young seagull learning to fly, told in the third person, with a natural setting and a happy, celebratory ending. 'The Black Aeroplane' is a first-person account by a human pilot flying at night, involving technology, danger and a mystery that is never solved. One is about instinct and family; the other is about risk and the unknown.