Y'all are most fortunate. My first flight was in a Russian turboprop, model unknown, operated (I use the term loosely) by the Czech national airline. We flew from Paris to Prague in 1960, which took many, many hours, including a long layover in the airport at East Berlin while they fixed something. No food in Berlin, either, and they stuck us in an isolated (presumably guarded) part of the airport so we couldn't infect anybody with whatever they were afraid of. The flight was by far the noisiest I have ever taken, and we were mightily miserable by the time we arrived in Prague.
It's been uphill ever since.
Peace,
Paul