Cait Cable

Imagine his Life beyond Thirty-Six Cait Cable

Based on true life events, I was inspired to write this memoir following two plane crashes of the same make within six months of each other. It was the Boeing 737 MAX 8 which crashed in Ethiopia and Indonesia. It brought back many memories of the plane my father was killed in - the Martin Mariner - in December 1959. The sixth to crash within a matter of several years - three in one year. Only after that crash did the Dutch Government decide to ground the fleet and admit their bungle. The result is this memoir of a young Dutch naval officer, Jan Arie as seen through his eyes and others, like his grandson, daughter and colleagues. Even though dying young in a plane crash, aged 36, Jan Arie has lived a worthwhile and interesting life. Born and raised in what was then the Dutch East Indies, Jan Arie talks about what life was like for him during WWII, as a pilot flying from Ceylon, the Cocos Islands and other places. Through letters we learn about how his parents and sister survived several years in a Japanese concentration camp on the island of Java, Indonesia. We learn about Jan's early marriage to the love of his life and the three children his wife bore. Then finally, his last year takes him to what was then Netherlands New Guinea where he is the victim of a plane crash, a Martin Mariner. Jan Arie's grandson provides the history and reveals the repercussions his death had on his loved ones left behind. His needless death. We also hear from one of the survivors of that crash in terms of how he saw what happened and the effects on his life.