15 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
15 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

Airports Suck - A real story right now.. im sitting in one on a 7 hour delay :(

by temlawn
13 replies
  • OFF TOPIC
    • |
So what else do you do.. this is my little post right now.. live and true.

So got up today at 4:45am for my $2,170.60 1st class flight home..

Get all packed up...
Drive to the airport..
Got there 2 hours too early. Thinking the airport in St. Joe Mo. was going to busy to my surprise there were only a handful of people in it, some dance troops who had a competetion and a few other people.. I mean this place was very nice, but dead..

Wait 2 hours....

Get through security which was very easy, no problems there...

Board the plane 1st and get front row and sit next to this older guy. Im pretty social so I strike up a conversation.. Guy used to own a satellite communications co. then sold it to lockheed martain..

Pretty cool... so far so good...

Get to Denver. Int. about 30 minutes early... again no biggie... so I goto the counter and check to see if the flight has boarded yet. The girl behind the counter says that the plane is down due to maintenance so goto the counter over there ---> 3 rows down...

So I do.. again not a biggie.. im pretty easy going...

Next lady says nope.. there is no problem with the plane. I tell her the lady over at the other counter said there was a delay due to maintenance, she checks.. nope not a problem.

So I start to get a little peeved.. "So your saying that the lady over there says its delayed and your saying its not" these people work for the same company not 150' apart.

Guy next to her checks... yup its delayed. Ok... so for how long? I ask.

Flight leaves at 6:50pm... mind you its 11:10am right now..

Ok classic... so they give me my new boarding pass and I go sit for about an hour trying to access the net to no avail.

Now what.. ive only got 7 hours left:confused:

Heck lets go have a smoke.... nope not in this airport.. now peeved and nick fit... oh... its on!

LOL... found this guy from maintenance who told me., "Yes, just go over there and upstairs they have a smoking bar/lounge" - so I do...

Again im pretty social so I order a bud light, this dude next to me starts to chat and proceed to tell me how he just got out of the army, is unemployeed, is pretty drunk, has 5 dui's and his plane was delayed also..

Second drink comes...

Now hes talking about getting stoned, bla bla bla... invites me to the parking lot to smoke a big fattie....

Im like um no dude im going to have to pass on that one - "But have fun and good luck getting back through security"

Ive got kids, a hell of a job, a nice biz, and have been straight as an arrow for around 20 years now.(kinda)

So I leave....

Go downstairs, walk around, walk around some more, go back to the gate to make sure that the plane is still going to arrive and the engines haven't fallen off...

Go over to the hard as heck benches/seats and try to take a nap.. to no avail..

Ok now im starting to get a little pissed. I paid some good money over 2 grand, and I didnt pay it to sit on my ass for 7 hours...

So I go over to the lady at the counter and ask here to make sure the flight isnt totally booked because if it is I can catch it soon enough and be in a nice hotel room, not sitting in some hard as hell seats and walking until my feet kill me..

She says yes, your fine... so im like.. "Dont you give some comps or something like for lunch or anything"

She is like --- "For What?" - I tell her for making me sit in this place on my ass for 7 hours instead of 30 minutes like im supposed to...

She says "Oh":confused:

Now im not being rude, but my brain is thinking "For what? are you fricken serious.. nah, I just come to airports and sit on my butt for the fun of it"

So I get it!!

An amazing $10 food voucher! Whoo Hoo!!! Have you seen the prices for food these days in airports..lol... $10 bucks, hell im in hog heaven I can now supersize my fries!! Whoopie ....

Anyway.. so eat, then im thinking "Crap ive got like 4 hours left still"

What now? People watch.... ok that was fun for like 30 minutes..

and back to have a drink and a smoke again..

So I walk in and sit next to this young guy, seems educated, clean cut.. ok no biggie....

Later to find out this guy just got back from spain to learn spanish..

Im thinking "Ok cool" no biggie...

Then what do you think the dude does... starts talking about weed!

Im like you have to be ****ting me..lol....

Different person same conversation.... ok beer down, im out..

So after configuring my laptop to get the connection I check emails, and login to the warrior forum to see what is going on in the world...

And here I sit and Ive still got an hour and twenty one minutes left....

My conclusion... Airports suck!:rolleyes:

P.s. Using the Phrase "The airplane is grounded for maintenance" for 7 hours.. doesn't make us feel very confident either.. airline people
  • Profile picture of the author seasoned
    Originally Posted by temlawn View Post

    So what else do you do.. this is my little post right now.. live and true.

    So got up today at 4:45am for my $2,170.60 1st class flight home..

    Get all packed up...
    Drive to the airport..
    Got there 2 hours too early. Thinking the airport in St. Joe Mo. was going to busy to my surprise there were only a handful of people in it, some dance troops who had a competetion and a few other people.. I mean this place was very nice, but dead..
    It IS a good idea to get there 2 hours early. WHY?

    1. You NEVER know what may happen.
    2. The FAA recommends it.
    3. They may throw you a CURVE!

    Get through security which was very easy, no problems there...
    ***LUCKY***

    Board the plane 1st and get front row and sit next to this older guy. Im pretty social so I strike up a conversation.. Guy used to own a satellite communications co. then sold it to lockheed martain..
    Standard fare for first class! You know what first class is? I'll tell you:

    1. The seats are closest to the cockpit.
    2. They are usually different.
    3. The people tend to be rich, in good jobs, consultants, frequent flyers, or ones that were next on the upgrade list.

    EVERYTHING else VARIES!!!!!!!

    Pretty cool... so far so good...

    Get to Denver. Int. about 30 minutes early... again no biggie... so I goto the counter and check to see if the flight has boarded yet. The girl behind the counter says that the plane is down due to maintenance so goto the counter over there ---> 3 rows down...

    So I do.. again not a biggie.. im pretty easy going...

    Next lady says nope.. there is no problem with the plane. I tell her the lady over at the other counter said there was a delay due to maintenance, she checks.. nope not a problem.

    So I start to get a little peeved.. "So your saying that the lady over there says its delayed and your saying its not" these people work for the same company not 150' apart.

    Guy next to her checks... yup its delayed. Ok... so for how long? I ask.

    Flight leaves at 6:50pm... mind you its 11:10am right now..

    Ok classic... so they give me my new boarding pass and I go sit for about an hour trying to access the net to no avail.

    Now what.. ive only got 7 hours left:confused:
    You ALWAYS want to wait AT LEAST 30 minutes at an airport between flights! It will generally take at least 15 minutes to go to the other side of the airport, and your plane may be far away.

    Some airlines/people like to LIE! If weather causes a problem, or air traffic control at EITHER airport yells the two magic words "ground stop", the airline can "legally" tell you to GET LOST!!!!!!!! If it is due to an equipment error, THEN they may owe you....

    1. A lunch voucher(generally $10 or more)
    2. A dinner voucher(generally $15 or more)
    3. If you have to stay the night, a hotel voucher.
    4. Possible breakfast voucher(about $10, IIRC)

    Free passage on the next available flight. Please note, they strive for about 120% occupancy. LUCKILY, they ALSO force people to reserve 3 weeks in advance, so some drop off, and they hold back some seats till the end, etc... I have been on flights that took about a WEEK to resolve, and have been delayed almost 2 days.

    Obviously, they HOPE they can tell you "It was WEATHER". I was on one flight! SAME TIME, SAME PLANE, SAME DEPARTURE POINT, SAME ARRIVAL POINT, SAME NUMBER, SAME GATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They told HALF of the flight that it was EQUIPMENT, and they had ALL costs covered! They told the OTHER HALF that it was WEATHER!

    Little did they know that we would TALK, and that some hotels were owned by the SAME people and used the SAME van!

    I was in the group told it was WEATHER, and forced to pay. I ended up in the hotel van going to MY hotel with people going to ANOTHER hotel. TWO PROBLEMS!!!!!

    1. I met them at the gate, and knew they were on the same flight.
    2. They talked about the meager accomodations, etc... that the airline PAID FOR!

    I checked, and they were on MY flight, and treated differently! I wrote a NASTY letter to the airline. THEY sent me a check for about $65 and said "Sorry for the inconvenience!"!

    Heck lets go have a smoke.... nope not in this airport.. now peeved and nick fit... oh... its on!

    LOL... found this guy from maintenance who told me., "Yes, just go over there and upstairs they have a smoking bar/lounge" - so I do...

    Again im pretty social so I order a bud light, this dude next to me starts to chat and proceed to tell me how he just got out of the army, is unemployeed, is pretty drunk, has 5 dui's and his plane was delayed also..

    Second drink comes...

    Now hes talking about getting stoned, bla bla bla... invites me to the parking lot to smoke a big fattie....

    Im like um no dude im going to have to pass on that one - "But have fun and good luck getting back through security"
    AGAIN, ALL STANDARD!

    Go downstairs, walk around, walk around some more, go back to the gate to make sure that the plane is still going to arrive and the engines haven't fallen off...
    LOVE IT!

    Ok now im starting to get a little pissed. I paid some good money over 2 grand, and I didnt pay it to sit on my ass for 7 hours...

    So I go over to the lady at the counter and ask here to make sure the flight isnt totally booked because if it is I can catch it soon enough and be in a nice hotel room, not sitting in some hard as hell seats and walking until my feet kill me..

    She says yes, your fine... so im like.. "Dont you give some comps or something like for lunch or anything"

    She is like --- "For What?" - I tell her for making me sit in this place on my ass for 7 hours instead of 30 minutes like im supposed to...

    She says "Oh":confused:

    Now im not being rude, but my brain is thinking "For what? are you fricken serious.. nah, I just come to airports and sit on my butt for the fun of it"

    So I get it!!

    An amazing $10 food voucher! Whoo Hoo!!! Have you seen the prices for food these days in airports..lol... $10 bucks, hell im in hog heaven I can now supersize my fries!! Whoopie ....

    Anyway.. so eat, then im thinking "Crap ive got like 4 hours left still"

    What now? People watch.... ok that was fun for like 30 minutes..

    and back to have a drink and a smoke again..

    So I walk in and sit next to this young guy, seems educated, clean cut.. ok no biggie....

    Later to find out this guy just got back from spain to learn spanish..

    Im thinking "Ok cool" no biggie...

    Then what do you think the dude does... starts talking about weed!

    Im like you have to be ****ting me..lol....

    Different person same conversation.... ok beer down, im out..

    So after configuring my laptop to get the connection I check emails, and login to the warrior forum to see what is going on in the world...

    And here I sit and Ive still got an hour and twenty one minutes left....

    My conclusion... Airports suck!:rolleyes:

    P.s. Using the Phrase "The airplane is grounded for maintenance" for 7 hours.. doesn't make us feel very confident either.. airline people
    ALL NORMAL!

    Steve
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5842114].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author temlawn
      Hello Steve,
      Thanks for the great response.. looks like you are a "Seasoned" flyer.
      Have a great weekend!
      Thanks


      Standard fare for first class! You know what first class is? I'll tell you:

      1. The seats are closest to the cockpit.
      The only seat in front of me was the cockpit door and a wall so im guessing I got that one right.
      Signature
      100,000 Visitors $4.95
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5844708].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author seasoned
        Originally Posted by temlawn View Post

        Hello Steve,
        Thanks for the great response.. looks like you are a "Seasoned" flyer.
        Have a great weekend!
        Thanks




        The only seat in front of me was the cockpit door and a wall so im guessing I got that one right.
        Yeah, I didn't finish that thought. First class USED to ALWAYS:

        1. Get on first.
        2. Get drinks and a snack even before the flight.
        3. Get meals if in the air around lunch or dinner.
        4. Be treated better.
        5. Have larger seats.
        6. Have seats were some non absorbant material, often leather but sometimes vinyl.
        7. Get items for free that others had to pay for.

        The entrance to the plane is sometimes behind first class, so I couldn't say they were the first seats on the plane.

        Anyway, on the bigger airlines, I don't think there is ONE that EVER has a first class like they did even 10 years ago.

        And YEAH, I fly a LOT! I may have seen it all. I once followed a lie from inception to conclusion.(They had NO idea I was near, and listening to the plans!)

        Steve
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5845025].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author salegurus
    My worst airport is ATL Hartsfield.
    I dread flying in and out of that airport,
    staff rude and unfriendly.
    Almost seems like they go out of their way
    to make your flying experience as unpleasant
    as possible.
    Signature
    Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.

    ― George Carlin
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5844777].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author seasoned
      Originally Posted by salegurus View Post

      My worst airport is ATL Hartsfield.
      I dread flying in and out of that airport,
      staff rude and unfriendly.
      Almost seems like they go out of their way
      to make your flying experience as unpleasant
      as possible.
      ATL IS pretty bad, but I think Ohaire is the WORST! You have the size of ATL, the lack of conveyor belts, the disorganization *****AND***** traffic controllers that will scream "GROUND STOP" if a kid spits water on a window!

      BTW Midway comes in second, but I guess it is equivalent to ATL.

      Staff is USUALLY rude from whatever area. My FAVORITE ANECDOTE, I BELIEVE it ws UNITED, was all the people(AIRLINE WORKERS) that had CHAOS written on their shirts. It was professionally done, not handwritten. Sounds bad, huh? Well, there is MORE! HERE is how it was written!

      Create
      Havok
      Around
      Our
      System

      OK, some foreigners, and people that don't know airline speak, might not understand that. Let me translate....

      [Hey everyone, REMEMBER!.....]
      Create means "Do what you can to cause"
      Havok means "trouble, delays, frustration, Customer complaints"
      Around means "in and around"
      Our means "our employer's"
      System means "airport, airline, airplanes."

      SO, this shirt was airline speak for "Hey everyone, REMEMBER! Do what you can to cause trouble, delays, frustration, Customer complaints in and around our employer's airport, airline, airplanes."

      WHY? Well, they were all in related unions! They could NOT be fired or hurt in any way without ALL walking out, and they wanted a RAISE! They tried to get the customers to demand that the airline do something so the union members would get a raise.

      That was the MOST obvious signal. I once noticed a ribbon all pilots were wearing, and asked a pilot what it meant. Want to know the answer? He said it indicated that THEIR union was in agreement with the flight attendants! If the flight attendants walked out, the pilots would ALSO. And that was just a little ribbon with NO writing!

      I don't know how much airline attendants get paid NOW, but it WAS like twice minimum wage, IF they worked 100%. And they STILL strike! It IS unskilled, and they DO get free trips, can often stay at decent hotels and get decent meals for free. They ALSO have a pension, and TONS of free time.

      Steve
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5845174].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author 100k
    Get a life.....

    Go talk to other travelers instead of going online.
    Signature

    Rent this space.

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5845154].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author seasoned
      Originally Posted by 100k View Post

      Get a life.....

      Go talk to other travelers instead of going online.
      Maybe he would listen to you if yu followed your OWN advice!
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5845190].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author JForsberg
      Originally Posted by 100k View Post

      Get a life.....

      Go talk to other travelers instead of going online.
      Well, he did. But they went weed.


      @topic - big bummer! I've flown about 4 times my life. 1st was with a Hercules Denmark > Greenland, sailed back with a navy boat. 2nd, small 1 propeller across the polar circle. 3rd and 4th Denmark<->Malaga - no problems there. Slightly boring waiting for the planes, and highly overpriced vendors. The only place with decent prices, was the tax-free, and they sell candy and booze. Not really any great dinner options there (especially not for less than 10$)

      Those 7 hours could've been used more effectively if you had some project to work on which could be done off-line.
      Signature

      Rocking a new project at Kan Leve Uden, focusing on everything for a lovely night.

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5845243].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author seasoned
        Originally Posted by JForsberg View Post

        Well, he did. But they went weed.


        @topic - big bummer! I've flown about 4 times my life. 1st was with a Hercules Denmark > Greenland, sailed back with a navy boat. 2nd, small 1 propeller across the polar circle. 3rd and 4th Denmark<->Malaga - no problems there. Slightly boring waiting for the planes, and highly overpriced vendors. The only place with decent prices, was the tax-free, and they sell candy and booze. Not really any great dinner options there (especially not for less than 10$)

        Those 7 hours could've been used more effectively if you had some project to work on which could be done off-line.
        WOW! I flew a plane SAS California to copenhagen. COACH was much like first class is today! I then flew copenhagen to tirstrup(Sorry if I spelled the name wrong. An english speaker would pronounce it like tears-dr-up. THAT was perhaps the smallest plane I ever flew. The airport seemed like a BUS STOP! The pilot fueled th plane at a pump. NEITHER flight was bad. That WAS 23 years ago though.

        The WORST part of the whole trip? Realizing I might have to wait HOURS, and lug luggage around because a stupid SALES PERSON tried to play travel agent. When I told her I needed to fly to tirsdrup, she had NO idea what I was talking about. At the time, I didn't even know that copenhagen was ACTUALLY "Kobenhavn uh" AKA "copenhagen island"! Sorry for the BAD misspelling, but I don't have a danish keyboard and am not sure the forum can handle it anyway.

        Steve
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5845302].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author salegurus
      Originally Posted by 100k View Post

      Get a life.....

      Go talk to other travelers instead of going online.
      Like Seasoned i suggest you follow your own
      advice BRA... :rolleyes:
      Signature
      Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.

      ― George Carlin
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5845360].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author paul_1
    It only means you got 7 hours to work if you have your laptop with you... otherwise read something or just keep thinking or maybe write a novel...
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5848547].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author temlawn
    7 hours to work if you have your laptop with you
    Oh yes, I was working, updating things... and my laptop always goes with me everywhere. You will never ever find me without my laptop. I keep a backup copy of everything at home on a 500gb external, along with 3 other laptops and a main desktop, along with 2 very high end dedicated servers. Im flying again tomorrow morning.. ive got another 2.5 hour layover in denver. Ill keep you posted on how it goes. Yes, flying years ago was more of a luxury. People used to dress up and it was a classy thing. Today.. its more of a pain because everybody is in such a rush.. even being first off the plane there were people trying to push their way up to the front and the door wasnt even opened yet. Im like chill out people if you go out now your going to drop like 8 feet to the pavement..lol.. I thought it was funny, most just looked at me like I was crazy.

    Get a life.....

    Go talk to other travelers instead of going online.
    Oh I do.. Im from a little town and most people are extremely friendly. Have you ever just said "Hi" to a random person your sitting next to in an airport and started small talk..lol.. my god they think either your nuts, or your the devil
    Signature
    100,000 Visitors $4.95
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5850932].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author temlawn
    So far so good. You want to know the best thing about having an int. business. Sitting in an airport and making money. I just made $3400 in the last hour.. im not bragging, im not going to tell you what im doing... but god this is fun.

    Its not always like this, but when you check your emails and you have a couple payments totaling a couple grand and you were 10,000 ft. in the air. Yes, its a nice feeling.

    Some people wonder why we all do this.. this is one of the perks

    So far nothing to exciting though, we board in about 44 minutes, the people have been pretty nice, nothing too weird except this dude sitting behind me looks like the terminator with his dark glasses on..lol...
    Signature
    100,000 Visitors $4.95
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5856860].message }}

Trending Topics