I don't get to experience a lot of big-city action, even for living here in Calgary, so on the occasion I get to fly, I love it.
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I Hate Flying
- Thread starter dsnort
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I used to love flying until I had to get my joints replaced. I've had serious arthritis since 24 so I've had some body parts removed and replaced with metal. The alarm alway goes off. I have medical documents but am always pulled out of line and treated like a terrorist. It's no fun anymore, but it's the fastest way to get there so when we travel we arrive at the airport three hours early.
I wish there was a way to get prescreened in order for small children to stop pointing at me and crying. Honest, I'm not going to do anything but hobble to my already uncomfortable seat. Heavy sigh
I wish there was a way to get prescreened in order for small children to stop pointing at me and crying. Honest, I'm not going to do anything but hobble to my already uncomfortable seat. Heavy sigh
I hate flying, but for phobia-related reasons.
I am currently house sitting for my family who are all on vacation in Hawaii for the next few weeks because I won't fly.
I am currently house sitting for my family who are all on vacation in Hawaii for the next few weeks because I won't fly.
I soooo agree. I love flying through pressure drops. Like being on the Tower of Terror. I actually logged around 30 hours flying a Cessna and would have love to have continued that.
BUT, I hate the airport routine, the baggage wait and pray, and annoying seat mates.
How is flying a single engine piston related to going through a commercial air terminal and flight?
That seems to be the problem with this thread. Everybody is complaining about going through TSA checkpoints and riding on jets, but nobody has mentioned how much fun it is to actually do the flying yourself!
So now I am wondering...yeah....so does sushi......
(sorry, i just felt like saying that
Is that sushi as in a Japanese food or is that sushi as in me?
haha, that was the point
it could mean food, it could mean you, or it could mean both! (i really didn't mean it anyways, just a joke
)
Really? iGary loves flying.
I don't mind flying, although I don't get around to it often. Haven't had any major problems before.
I don't mind flying, although I don't get around to it often. Haven't had any major problems before.
That's a clear violation of the fourth amendment (unreasonable searches and seizures). Was that in Canada or the US?
Really? At least in my area Amtrak is a last resort. They're completely unreliable. It's not unusual for a 2-5 hour train ride to be delayed over 24 hours. It's ridiculous.
Really? iGary loves flying.
Man, I miss iGary.
As for myself, I hate flying. It's a phobia thing, as well as the inner ear imbalance, for me. I can't be on a plane without feeling sick.
Canadian border. Yeah, it didn't smell right to me, but I wasn't going to start complaining lest they decide that's grounds to detain me. (There has been a lot of media attention here about an Ottawa woman who was detained and jailed somewhere in Georgia for no good reason...) I have not bothered to check what Canadian law says about that.
I can only assume it happens to a lot of people given the sheer number of reports I hear on the radio about people being caught with whatever incriminating goods at border crossings.
Flying has never been bad for me. United and Frontier have hubs here in Denver, so I don't think I've ever had to connect to anywhere in USA. Plus, the new airport we built a little over ten years ago is still state of the art; large security screening facilities, no criss-crossing runways, and all the ticketing agents and security screeners are quick as bunnies. Call me biased, but Denver International Airport is by far the best airport in the country, and one of the best in the world.
As for the airlines, I detest United. They will cram as many people into a plane as possible. Plus, I always get on some stuffy old 757. Frontier is better because they fly A320's and have seatback TV's. Foreign arilines are by far much better airlines. I flew Singapore Airlines last year, and they were everything an airline should be. Our nonstop from LAX to Singapore was cancelled, but they immediately called all the passengers down and got us on flights and gave out candy. There was one that connected in Taipei, and we didn't get on the first leg, but we did on the second, and almost 20 hours later, the same candy I had in LAX was waiting for me on my seat.
As for the airlines, I detest United. They will cram as many people into a plane as possible. Plus, I always get on some stuffy old 757. Frontier is better because they fly A320's and have seatback TV's. Foreign arilines are by far much better airlines. I flew Singapore Airlines last year, and they were everything an airline should be. Our nonstop from LAX to Singapore was cancelled, but they immediately called all the passengers down and got us on flights and gave out candy. There was one that connected in Taipei, and we didn't get on the first leg, but we did on the second, and almost 20 hours later, the same candy I had in LAX was waiting for me on my seat.
I have flown hundreds of times, I think.
I have only been significantly delayed (ie: more than 30 minutes) 5 times (guesstimating), and the airline once lost my luggage after a 3 hour delay.
Otherwise, my flights have been quite nice.
I have only been significantly delayed (ie: more than 30 minutes) 5 times (guesstimating), and the airline once lost my luggage after a 3 hour delay.
Otherwise, my flights have been quite nice.
i c.haha, that was the point
(i really didn't mean it anyways, just a joke
Back to the topic, you know you are flying too much when the flight crew starts calling you by your first name and asking about the family by name.
This happened 6 years ago, but its a good read:
http://www.citypaper.net/articles/101801/news.godfrey.shtml
http://www.citypaper.net/articles/101801/news.godfrey.shtml
I have flown hundreds of times, I think.
I have only been significantly delayed (ie: more than 30 minutes) 5 times (guesstimating), and the airline once lost my luggage after a 3 hour delay.
Otherwise, my flights have been quite nice.
OK, I will now tell my United nightmare, at least as best as I can remember. I ought to save this post later, for posterity.
I live in Ottawa, Canada. A few years ago I arranged with a number of my friends to travel to Atlanta, GA for a weekend conference in November. We were expected to show up at the conference for dinner Thursday.
We thought we'd save money by driving to the States and arranging domestic flights instead of paying for an international flight. So we left Ottawa at about 2:00am on Thursday (remember, this is after already having a normal day since waking up on Wednesday morning).
Made the drive to Syracuse, parked at the airport without major issues (we were stopped at the border crossing for about 30 minutes, but that's another story.. let's just say when you have a vanload of 5 people of assorted ages and ethnicities, none of whom are related and none of whom own the van -- I borrowed it from my parents -- entering the US at 3:00am, the Border folks ask questions.)
Flew from Syracuse to Dulles and felt like we were entering a whole other planet. The whole airport was sleepy -- except for the United terminal, which was a sea of densely-packed people. Chaos. The PA was going like mad -- flights, arriving, leaving, cancelled -- I SWEAR one flight was announced as delayed because they couldn't find the pilot.
Sure enough, to our disbelief, our flight to Atlanta was unceremoniously announced cancelled. Apparently bad weather in GA. We lined up at the customer service counter and got put on another flight. We were told there was also a Delta flight leaving later that night, and they offered us an incentive to take it, but since we were in a rush we decided to take the first available flight -- it would leave in about 4 hours.
So we waited. And waited. And waited. And finally they called our flight number. It was ... delayed. Another few hours.
By this time it was clear we were not going to arrive in time for dinner at the conference center, so we lined up at the desk again and got us food vouchers to eat yummy airport food instead of the catered buffet we would be missing. We didn't even have time to find a real sit-in restaurant, so we got our $20 voucher's worth in packaged sandwiches, pizza, bottles of juice, chips, etc.
And then we waited. And waited.
Finally, we board the plane.
And wait, because take-off was delayed. Another hour.
Finally, we flew 99% of the way to Atlanta.
I say 99% because we actually saw the airport out the window. But we didn't land. Apparently the weather was too bad and the pilot couldn't make the final approach. It wasn't for lack of trying. In fact, he tried three times. He made the approach, descended, revved the engines, .... aborted, turned away, made a circle, and tried again. Three times.
Finally we were told that we were diverting to Charleston, SC.
(This was about midnight Friday morning at this point).
So we arrive in Charleston in the dead of the night, and the airport is virtually deserted, except for us. Our luggage is left on the plane. We are told that we will wait here for a while... and then be flown back to Dulles!
Furious, a bunch of us passengers asked why couldn't we get a flight to Atlanta. We're so close. No can do, apparently. Bad weather, you know. Well, what about a bus? After much waiting, they come back with good news: We're going on busses. Go grab your luggage, and we'll leave soon.
Great. Let's go grab our luggage.
Uh oh.
My luggage is not with us in Charleston, South Carolina.
Most of the other folks got their luggage. I didn't. I don't think anyone in my little entourage got ours.
I forgot to mention that by "bus" what they really meant was "airport shuttle van". Five or six of them. For a planeload of folks. We were cramped, and it was a long drive in freezing rain. The driver of my van was such a stereotypical southern redneck that I was half wondering if my reality really was this ludicrous or if it was all just in my imagination. After all, I had now been awake for almost 48 hours. I bought a toothbrush when we stopped for gas and a potty break, thinking I would be living in these clothes for the next 3 days at the conference, or at least until they find our luggage.
Finally, FINALLY, at 6:00am on Friday morning, 14 hours later than scheduled, and 28 hours since we left Ottawa, we arrive at the airport in Atlanta. The first thing we do is go to register a claim for lost luggage.
And what do we find when we arrive at the lost luggage office? Why, all of our luggage, neatly stacked and awaiting us.
It had arrived last night. On the Delta flight.
I will never fly United again.
Ah, the beauty of the Contract of Carriage. You've probably never read it, but it's all that fine print on the inside of your ticket jacket. When an airline in the US sells you a ticket, all they are selling you is a promise to get you from point A to point B. The contract of carriage does not promise to get you there on time, nor does it promise to get you there on an airplane.
Isn't life great?
It's interesting that you didn't fly Delta in the first place. The Atlanta airport is their hub, so they should of had plenty of flights available.
Oh well, better luck next time!
Wow, I did not know airport immigration (overseas or US) could do/did that! I've never heard of this before; is the selection random or based on a "suspicion"?
Anyways, surprisingly I haven't had too much trouble at US airports, though everytime I go to Europe, specifically Italy, the airlines somehow loose my luggage and send it to the wrong plane/airport.
Duff-Man says...I love flying - that feeling of being in the air, the power of the jets on take-off....what makes me nervous the most is the possibility of missing connections - it is my worst fear when it comes to travel and thankfully I have never had a problem. Last autumn I had flights that went Victoria-Vancouver-Toronto-Amsterdam-Vienna-Moscow and made every connection - a small miracle...one problem and the whole house of cards would have come crashing down.
I hope I have not jinxed myself though - tomorrow I must fly Victoria-Vancouver-Seattle-Denver-Albuquerque....fingers crossed....oh yeah!
I hope I have not jinxed myself though - tomorrow I must fly Victoria-Vancouver-Seattle-Denver-Albuquerque....fingers crossed....oh yeah!