The black aeroplane Questions and Answers Class 10

NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 3 “The black aeroplane” provide comprehensive answers to the questions and exercises given in the chapter. These solutions can help students understand the chapter better and prepare for exams. The NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 3 are designed by subject experts, and they are easily accessible online. With these solutions, students can gain a better understanding of the chapter and score well in their exams.

NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Chapter 3 The black aeroplane Questions and Answers

Thinking about the Text

Q1. “I’ll take the risk.” What is the risk? Why does the narrator take it?

Ans. As the narrator flew from Paris to England he was suddenly confronted by a huge group of dark clouds that warned of a storm. The narrator, however, was in a hurry to reach home and join his family for a cosy family breakfast. Therefore, he decided to take the risk of flying through the black clouds though he realised that the visibility would be zero.

Q2. Describe the narrator’s experience as he flew the aeroplane into the storm.

Ans. The narrator drew his Dakota straight into the huge black clouds. Inside the clouds everything around him became black. He was unable to see anything outside the aeroplane. His aeroplane, an old machine, was jumping and twisting in the air. His compass, to his fright, had stopped working and was continuously turning round and round. Within a few seconds, all the other instruments including the radio also died down.

The narrator was now without a compass or radio and above all had no idea where he was. He could see nothing around him. Suddenly, out of nowhere another aeroplane appeared. This second machine had no lights on its wings. But the narrator could see the pilot’s face turned towards him. The narrator in obedience to the second pilot started following him. With very little fuel in his aircraft, the narrator was seized by terror. But then the second pilot began descending and the narrator followed him out through the storm. Thus, he made it out of the clouds.

Q3. Why does the narrator say, “I landed and was not sorry to walk away from the old Dakota…”? 

Ans. The narrator heaved a sigh of relief and thanked the Almighty for landing safely. It had been a miraculous escape for him As he got off the aeroplane there was relief, gratitude and joy. The only thing that he found amiss was that he hadn’t been able to thank his Saviour.

Q4. What made the woman in the control centre look at the narrator strangely?

Ans. On reaching the control centre the narrator asked the lady there about the other pilot. This surprised the lady. This was because to the best of her knowledge there hadn’t been any other aeroplane up in the sky other than the narrator’s Dakota.

Q5. Who do you think helped the narrator to reach safely? Discuss this among yourselves and give reasons for your answer.

Ans. The text does not give any clue about the unknown pilot who helped the narrator fly safely out of the storm. It could be said that the pilot guiding the narrator was none other than the Almighty himself who had helped the narrator overcome his fears. Since the control tower too had no sighting of another aeroplane anywhere close to the narrator, we could say that it was a Divine Power that guided the narrator out of that fearsome situation.

Thinking about Language

Q1. Study the sentences given below.
(a) They looked like black mountains.
(b) Inside the clouds, everything was suddenly black.
(c) In the black clouds near me, I saw another aeroplane.
(d) The strange black aeroplane was there.
The word ‘black’ in sentences (a) and (c) refers to the very darkest colour. But in (b) and (d) (here) it means without light/with no light.
‘Black’ has a variety of meanings in different contexts. For example:
(a) ‘I prefer black tea’ means ‘I prefer tea without milk’.
(b) ‘With increasing pollution the future of the world is black’ means With increasing pollution the future of the world is very depressing/without hope’.
Now, try to guess the meanings of the word ‘black’ in the sentences given below. Check the meanings in the dictionary and find out whether you have guessed right.

Questions.
1. Go and have a bath, your hands and face are absolutely black____ .
2. The taxi-driver gave Ratan a black look as he crossed the road when the traffic light was green____.
3. The bombardment of Hiroshima is one of the blackest crimes against humanity____.
4. Very few people enjoy Harold Pinter’s black comedy____.
5. Sometimes shopkeepers store essential goods____.
6. Villagers had beaten the criminal black and blue____.

Ans: 1. The meaning of ‘black ’ in this sentence is that because of dust and dirt the face and hands are dark.

2. The black in this sentence mean that ‘black’ refers to an angry look.

3. The term ‘black’ in this sentence connotes a grim and barbaric occurrence that has inflicted immense suffering upon humanity.

4. Here, ‘black’ refers to dark and distressing comedy.

5. The ‘black’ in this sentence refers to the hoarding of goods by shopkeepers to sell those goods at a higher price later.

6. Here, ‘black’means that the criminal was beaten and badly beating at the hands of the villagers.

Q2.

Look at these sentences taken from the lesson you have just read:
(a) I was flying my old Dakota aeroplane.
(b) The young seagull had been afraid to fly with them.
In the first sentence the author was controlling an aircraft in the air. In the second sentence the seagull was afraid to move through the air, using its wings.
Match the phrases given under Column A with their meanings given under Column B:

Ans:

1. (c),
2. (e),
3. (a),
4. (b),
5. (d).

Q3. We know that the word ‘fly’ (of birds/insects) means to move through air using wings. Tick the words which have the same or nearly the same meaning.

Ans:

The words which have the same or nearly the same meaning as ‘fly’ are listed below:

• Swoop
• Flit
• Flutter
• Float
• Skim
• Hover
• Glide
• Soar
• Sail

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