I cannot believe that in the past several days, I have read 4,600+ posts on this issue. I feel compelled to follow this thread.
I've always been fascinated by the logistics of how FedEx can move packages around a good part of the world overnight. This forum has actually provided some really interesting info on how the whole process works.
I was originally on of the 9/19 expected delivery date people. After 3 yesterday, the delivery date dropped off and the package was still moving around Memphis.
I looked this morning and, as im sure many others, the tracking updated to "at local sort facility" in Memphis and "shipment information sent to FedEx." Prior to this, there was no destination on the tracking info.
Forgive me if this is obvious to everyone else, but I'm just trying to piece together how this works. My guess would be that Verizon pays FedEx to use storage space in Memphis. FedEx flies the phones in from china and a certain number of each model are stored in Memphis, Elizabeth, etc... Mostly in Memphis. To track them for Verizon, each individual phone is issued a tracking number even though, for example, all the black 32GB are stacked in a staging area. In this way Verizon knows how many of each iPhone 5 it has available for the preorder.
Once we put our preorders in, we are assigned one of these "generic" tracking numbers, which actually doesn't have delivery addresses yet, it just allocates the inventory. Verizon sends us the tracking info with the, as yet generic tracking number and we wet ourselves and follow the package for 4 days (guilty as charged).
Then, as has happened today, since delivery is supposed to take place tomorrow, Verizon has verified credit card info, etc and they send the delivery info to FedEx - this happened to mine at 5:46 this morning. FedEx will spend today sorting that huge pile of phones into the cans for each individual hub. By tonight they will be sorted and on planes going to different parts of the country.
Mine will be on FedEx flight 1465 from Memphis to Fort Myers Florida. It leaves at about 2:30-3am in Memphis and gets to KRSW at 5:30-6 in the morning. Then the packages are distributed to the local hubs and are on trucks for delivery by around 8:30. This blows my mind!! A package makes it from Memphis, TN to my door in Florida in about 9 hours.
So this is my theory. It also explains why some people get their delivery dates pushed up. There were x number allotted for 9/21 delivery and they were in the giant pile in Memphis. But then you have credit card failures, deposit issues, cancellations, etc... This frees up some of the initial batch and allows for people originally with a 10/5 delivery to move to 9/21.
Again, this must be painfully obvious to most but I'm a finance guy so I'm just putting this all together. Any thoughts, opinions? Anyone that actually knows want to chime in?
Well that occupied 20 minutes of the next 28 or so hours until my phone gets here.
Funny when I excitedly informed my girlfriend of this breakthrough development this AM all she said was "yawn". Hmp. 
