Thread on Airline & Travel experiences

[BYU 14]

We are heading to Italy for 2 weeks at the end of the month, splurged for sleeping pods on the transatlantic part of the flight, which I am still questioning if we should have just gone business class. The nice part of it is our son is stationed on Sicily and we are spending a week there, so I guess it balances out a bit in terms of we have no accommodation costs for that week.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by flere-imsaho

Holy crap, that's a good deal! What's the routing?

We loved our trip to NZ years ago. You're going to have a great time.

We're flying Cincy to JFK to LAX to Auckland. That's a long day plus (32 hours!), but we got upgraded to comfort+ for all flights plus we have SkyClub for the layovers. Coming back, it's Auckland to LAX to Detroit to Cincy. About 6 hours shorter than going. I don't mind.

91,600 miles (with the 15% discount) and $189 and all 6 flights upgraded. I mean, come ON! If you live closer to a big city you can probably go direct to LAX and cut out one of the flights. We aren't that lucky in the midwest. But from what I see, the award availability is pretty wide open for this kind of sale.

I also used 250K IHG points to book 9 nights - 5 in Auckland and 4 in Sydney. All I have left to do is buy a roundtrip flight from Auckland to Sydney so we can split the trip between Australia and NZ and a car rental for Auckland (I've read you can get around Sydney really well with public transportation).

This trip literally just fell into our laps. I hope to hell we can pull it off.

[Edward64]

Nice!

Got a Delta email. I'm a Million Miler (more like 1.4M) and have my lifetime Silver which doesn't mean that much.

With the changes below, I'm now a lifetime Gold. I assume I am grandfathered and this isn't just for new Million Milers. Maybe I get a free check-in now?

While Delta million miler status will be harder to earn, it’s also becoming much more rewarding, as million miler members will receive a significant boost to their elite tiers.

These changes are absolutely massive. Even at the one million mile tier, you’re going from Silver Medallion to Gold Medallion. Meanwhile Diamond Medallion only requires being in the three million miler tier, rather than the six million miler tier. Heck, the fact that you can get invitation-only Delta 360 status through the million miler program is pretty awesome as well.

[Ksyrup]

This is well-written and hilarious.

Cruising Is Elder Care At Sea

[Ksyrup]

I'd love to hear Pilotman's take on this, but I have to imagine having the off-duty pilot in the cockpit jump seat next to you suddenly attempt to shut down the plane's engines, presumably in an attempted mass murder-suicide, has to be high up on the list of nightmares for pilots. He's been charged with 83 counts of attempted murder. This was an Alaska Air flight from Seattle to SF that got diverted to Portland. I wonder how they got him out of the cockpit.

[PilotMan]

It would certainly be unexpected. Not sure there's a plan for something like that, but it could get ugly really quickly. Fuck that guy.

[Ksyrup]

How do you think they got him out? Do they still have marshals on the planes? I assume there was a struggle and they got the door opened and perhaps a combination of flight attendants and passengers wrestled him out? I'm shocked he didn't have some sort of makeshift weapon to render the pilot incapacitated, or he really botched it. Luckily.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

How do you think they got him out? Do they still have marshals on the planes? I assume there was a struggle and they got the door opened and perhaps a combination of flight attendants and passengers wrestled him out? I'm shocked he didn't have some sort of makeshift weapon to render the pilot incapacitated, or he really botched it. Luckily.

from the NY Post article (and presumably others)

The flight’s captain and first officer managed to restrain Emerson then make an emergency landing in Portland

That sounds like cockpit duo only

[Ksyrup]

Yeah I just watched a segment on it and he was in the jump seat behind the 2 seats and tried to pull the engine fire extinguisher levers. He apparently said "I'm not right" before it happened.

I'm not sure what's scarier - this incident or that he was supposed to fly a plane the next morning.

[bhlloy]

Maybe a cry for help, because as noted there’s a pretty good playbook for how to achieve this if you really want to. Very lucky this didn’t end in tragedy.

[Ksyrup]

I agree, I say as I'm sitting in the airport waiting to board the first of 6 flights over the next 6 days...

[Edward64]

I'd like to know how a gun got past TSA screening. I know there's a human element but I thought the scanning machines also automatically highlighted stuff that looks suspicious (e.g. like my fingernail clipper with the nail file).

Jeff Wilson: Washington state senator arrested in Hong Kong for carrying a gun through airport | CNN

Washington state senator Jeff Wilson was arrested on Saturday at Hong Kong International Airport and charged with possession of a firearm without a license, the charge sheet states, an offense punishable by up to 14 years in prison and a fine of more than $12,000.

The Republican state senator, whose full name is Stephen J. Wilson, said he did not realize he had packed his pistol in his briefcase while he and his wife were traveling for a five-week vacation to Southeast Asia, according to a statement posted on his website.

“It was an honest mistake. And I expect the situation to be resolved shortly,” Wilson said in the statement.

Wilson said he “discovered the weapon mid-flight between San Francisco and Hong Kong.”

He “did not realize his pistol was in his briefcase when he passed through airport security in Portland, and baggage screeners failed to note it,” the statement added.

[Ksyrup]

Not paying attention, I assume. I don't know to what extent those machines alert the person as opposed to them seeing fairly clear images that should stand out, but my wife and I did a glassblowing class on our Alaska cruise and each made a piece we brought back. Hers was a vase, mine was a jellyfish which was essentially a solid block of glass rounded and tapered at the top which, silhouetted, looked like the head of a missile or something close. It got highlighted during security screening and a guy had to unpack our bag and unwrap the entire triple-layer packaging we put it in to confirm it wasn't a weapon of some sort.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

I agree, I say as I'm sitting in the airport waiting to board the first of 6 flights over the next 6 days...

BTW, I feel for you.

My record was 3 different cities in 5 days.

[PilotMan]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

Maybe a cry for help, because as noted there’s a pretty good playbook for how to achieve this if you really want to. Very lucky this didn’t end in tragedy.

I can't speculate on the situation, but I do know that if you're in the cockpit, as an extra crewmember, which is what he was doing, that you need to be able to accept that responsibility. A cry for help, or any sort of other distress that will keep you from that, and you shouldn't be there.

[Ksyrup]

It sounds like it wasn't planned which may be the only reason it wasn't successful.

I'm headed to Vegas for a trade association meeting and then to Dallas to be with my parents for a long weekend. Gotta take advantage of work paying for the majority of the flight and adding on a stop in Dallas since my dad still isn't well enough to be transported to NC. This will be my 3rd trip there in 2 months and hopefully the 1st he's actually able to recognize me.

[Ksyrup]

This guy's statement is all over the place. He tried "magic mushrooms" for the first time, thought he was asleep, thought he was having a nervous breakdown and had been depressed for 6 months.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

This guy's statement is all over the place. He tried "magic mushrooms" for the first time, thought he was asleep, thought he was having a nervous breakdown and had been depressed for 6 months.

I was waiting to find out what mind-altering drug was involved. The whole "I'm not right' (or whatever the phrase was) that he reportedly uttered just prior to his attempt felt like it gave away what was going on.

[Ksyrup]

Flying home from Dallas and my flight from Detroit to Lexington is canceled and rescheduled for tomorrow morning. My wife says on FB she saw a message about an instrument landing system and runway lights being inoperative since last night but I don't see anything on any of the apps about issues. Maybe they are able to fly/land during daylight hours but not at night?

I didn't want to stay overnight in Detroit so I was able to chat with Delta while on my flight and rebook for Cincinnati tonight, and my wife is going to pick me up. Sucks, but best I could do. I've been gone 6 days, can't waste another half day traveling. I got shit to do. Now... Will my bags get switched to the new flight? That's the question.

[PilotMan]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Flying home from Dallas and my flight from Detroit to Lexington is canceled and rescheduled for tomorrow morning. My wife says on FB she saw a message about an instrument landing system and runway lights being inoperative since last night but I don't see anything on any of the apps about issues. Maybe they are able to fly/land during daylight hours but not at night?

I didn't want to stay overnight in Detroit so I was able to chat with Delta while on my flight and rebook for Cincinnati tonight, and my wife is going to pick me up. Sucks, but best I could do. I've been gone 6 days, can't waste another half day traveling. I got shit to do. Now... Will my bags get switched to the new flight? That's the question.

I'm sure you got the answer, but probably not. The bags go on the route they were checked. If Delta was able to get them changed then that's good on them. I know exactly how you feel about needing to get home. What you're describing is my life.

[Ksyrup]

It all worked out. Still not sure what happened in Lexington or if they are still having issues with certain equipment, but my bags got rerouted to the CVG flight, flight left early and got in almost 30 minutes early, wife picked me up and we got home about 12:15am.

Flights were coming in and out during the day in Lexington, so I'm wondering if it only affected early morning and late night flights before/after dawn and dusk. Especially with rain and fog, if their runway lights were out and other systems were down, that makes sense.

[britrock88]

Having a hell of a time booking a flight for the family online right now. A friend joked, "good thing they're better at flying planes than running IT systems."

[Ghost Econ]

Question for the group.

Background: Booking for vacation this summer and trying to decide where to fly out from. I have 2 main options and the price difference is negligible. Also, paying for it with a work bonus that's tied to a corporate card, so we have up to a certain amount anyway.

1. fly out of local airport and have a layover in Charlotte. That leg is maybe a 40 minute flight but the layover in Charlotte is 30 minutes. On the way back home, the layover is 75 minutes coming from the Caribbean. Obviously the airline wouldn't offer it if it wasn't possible to do (probably, it's American).

2. Drive 90 minutes to Charlotte for direct flights to and from the destination. We would either stay the night before or get up to drive there. If we got up, we'd get up at the same time as if we flew from the home airport.

My wife wants to just fly from home. She said she isn't worried about connecting flights. I'd prefer to fly from Charlotte just in case there's weather issues as that 30 minute layover just feels unnecessarily tight. Granted, it seems the plan from here to CLT always lands early and it's the same section, but even an hour to clear customs on the way back feels too tight. I just want as close to stress free as we can get for vacation.

What say the crowd? To layover or not to layover?

[molson]

I'd drive the 90 minutes and skip the layover. The anxiety of connections, especially short ones, just hang over me and my trip preparation, and I've missed enough of them to avoid them at almost all costs. I'd never do a 30 minute layover at all, unless it's maybe from a place that has 6+ flights a day where I'm going, and it's on the way home rather than the way to a vacation, AND it's a short flight (because you're probably getting stuffed into a middle seat if they can get you on a flight later that day).

My layovers on my way to vacations are comically long. I am more than happy to spend a few hours reading and walking around an airport as insurance against the trip being ruined. There are people who miss connections and the next flight with available seats is days later. And I STILL missed a THREE HOUR connection on the way to Greece in April. I ending up re-routing everything through a different city, had a new itinerary that I had to figure out myself and then provide to the customer service people, after it was up to me to inform them that I wasn't going to make a connection.

But you probably have to do what your wife wants.

[Edward64]

Only 30 min to get off the flight and get to new gate? I can see this if both flights are puddle jumpers in the same concourse area but even then, I personally wouldn't risk it.

I'd drive to Charlotte for the direct.

[Ksyrup]

I'd drive the 90 minutes too. This is essentially my life living near Lexington with Cincy/NKY airport about 90 minutes away. The bigger the trip, the more likely I am to book from Cincy if it cuts out a flight and/or the price difference is big enough.

I have come to not mind longer layovers. One, being older, I don't mind having time to walk around, use the restroom at my convenience, and of course, I usually have lounge access so that makes it easier, too. I try to stay away from a layover of less than 60 minutes.

For our trip to New Zealand, we were already working within some award seating parameters to get the insanely cheap prices we got, but we are having to fly out of Cincy (which is fine) and have two 3 - 5.5 hour layovers both ways. But we're going right around February 1st and who knows what kind of storm system in one part of the country screws up flights everywhere else, so I'm plenty fine with it. We'll be on planes for a LONG time, so the extra off-plane time is fine and we've got lounge access to eat for free, relax, etc. Heck, we could even shower at the Delta SkyClub in LAX if we want to.

[bhlloy]

Drive the 90 mins especially with travel post Covid. I don’t know how many flights I’ve had that aren’t disrupted by at least 15-20 mins. And the airline cares about butts in seats far more than they care about the possibility of you making your connection.

Honestly, this is one of the easiest decisions in the history of decisions.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Nobody hates driving more than I do (srsly, I have to be THE most anti-car ride person ever) ... but I'd think this leans heavily toward go to Charlotte.

The only thing that might change that, for me, is if the parking cost of driving to Charlotte turned into something ridiculous.

[Ksyrup]

You know you spend an inordinate amount of time learning and reading about credit card, airline, hotel, etc., rewards programs when you get multiple articles suggested to you about Robert DeNiro's claim that his former assistant stole 5 million Delta SkyMiles and that he values them at a ridiculous 4.3 cents per mile.

[flere-imsaho]

Drive the 90 minutes.

[Ghost Econ]

We are driving the 90 minutes. I wore her down with the, nice/simple/relaxing. We actually had some money left over that will cover a hotel the night before we leave so it's essentially a free week at a 4.5 star all inclusive in the Caribbean.

Now I'm getting the "I want to do that excursion, and that one, and..." I get when you go somewhere you need to do something, but I just want to relax and overindulge in free food and drinks, not Zipline, get robbed by monkeys and humped by dolphins.

[flere-imsaho]

Stick to your guns. Relaxing & overindulging in free food & drinks > those excursions.

[molson]

There's a lot of great non-resort stuff to do in the Caribbean and Mexico but an all-inclusive resort is not the best launchpad for that. That's a different kind of vacation.

[Edward64]

Have to assume the flight was relatively empty for it not to be noticed before 10,000 feet?

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/plane-m...-uk-passenger/

When the flight climbed past an altitude of 10,000 feet, passengers were allowed to unfasten their seat belts. A man walking toward the back of the plane told investigators he noticed the cabin noise getting louder and a window caught his attention.

"He observed that the window seal was flapping in the airflow and the windowpane appeared to have slipped down," the report says. "He described the cabin noise as 'loud enough to damage your hearing.'"

The man alerted the crew and the pilots. The aircraft got to an altitude of just over 14,500 feet before the pilots stopped climbing any higher and eventually decided to return to Stansted.

On the day before the flight, a film crew used the plane on the ground with high-powered lights directed toward the plane's windows for hours, according to the report.

"The windows appear to have sustained thermal damage and distortion because of elevated temperatures while illuminated for approximately four to five and a half hours during filming," the report found.

[GrantDawg]

Makes you want to jump on a plane to Dubai doesn't it?

For months, commercial flights above the Middle East have reported total navigation failure, incl. backup systems, after receiving spoofed GPS. Crews call it "unthinkable," an expert told us it's "highly significant" to airline safety. Via @mjgault https://t.co/tq1da7uG26

— jordan pearson (@neuwaves) November 20, 2023

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Edward64

Have to assume the flight was relatively empty for it not to be noticed before 10,000 feet?

from the article

The charter flight was heading from London's Stansted Airport to Orlando International Airport with 11 crew members and nine passengers onboard. The plane was being used for a multiday charter, and everyone onboard either worked for the tour operator or the company that operates the plane.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by Edward64

I would love to do a mini-version like this (couldn't handle 3 years).

Why I signed up to live on a cruise ship for three years | CNN
.

Apparently 3 year cruise cancelled.

Hope someone tries again.

[Ksyrup]

Perhaps they should buy a ship before marketing the cruise.

Some idiots had already sold their house in anticipation of this cruise.

[Edward64]

I have split significant travelling cash 50-50 in pocket and in backpack. The backpack is sometimes in the overhead compartment but it's in view.

Scoot passenger charged with stealing $23,000 in cash from people aboard flight | CNN

A man has been charged with theft after allegedly stealing more than $23,000 in cash from three fellow passengers while on a budget flight from Vietnam to Singapore.

I don't get how he could have done all this stuff without someone confronting him. Googling says flight time from Hanoi is about 3.5 hours so I'd think there'd be plenty of people awake.

According to charge sheets read out in court and carried by Singapore public broadcaster Channel NewsAsia, Zhang allegedly stole from three separate passengers. He reportedly took 3 million Vietnamese dong ($123) from a passenger’s backpack, and 510 million Vietnamese dong ($20,950) and a 50 Singapore dollar note ($38) from a black messenger bag belonging to another.

He also allegedly took $1,000 and 930 Singapore dollars ($700) from an envelope found in a gray bag belonging to a third passenger.

And who the heck carries $21k in cash?

[GrantDawg]

Amazing that everyone on that Airbus made it out alive:

A Japan Airlines plane and a Coast Guard plane collided. #Japan #Tokyo #Airplane #Crash #JapanAirlines pic.twitter.com/W8m6oTbf9A

— Serk@n (@elementh) January 2, 2024

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

Amazing that everyone on that Airbus made it out alive:

Yeah. When I read the early reports, I thought just bumped the other plane or glanced it with a wing. But the video showed it was much more serious, miracle that everyone on the big jet was okay.

I wonder where the mistake was ... ATC, pilot of big jet, pilot of other plane?

[Edward64]

Initial reports are saying smaller plane did not have clearance implying it was their fault for the collision.

[Edward64]

Well, this would scare the crap out of me. I'm glad I've gotten into the habit of leaving my seat belts on.

Alaska Airlines flight makes emergency landing in Portland after window appears to have blown out after takeoff | CNN

[RainMaker]

�� pic.twitter.com/Ozq2l8D6SH

— let’s try calling me ‘november’ (@AliceAvizandum) January 6, 2024

[RainMaker]

Scariest part of the aftermath video is the person who comes in and asks if anyone was sitting in that window seat.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

Scariest part of the aftermath video is the person who comes in and asks if anyone was sitting in that window seat.

There was a woman not to far from the opening that was holding a baby and had to hold it tight till they got on the ground. Can you imagine as scared as everyone else on the flight was, that level of fear?

[flere-imsaho]

You know, maybe it's time to just flat-out retire the 737 MAX.

[bhlloy]

Boeing has to be very relieved they have been considered too big to fail for quite a long time now. In many other industries they'd be dying if their current offerings were this publicly failing.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

Boeing has to be very relieved they have been considered too big to fail for quite a long time now. In many other industries they'd be dying if their current offerings were this publicly failing.

They are the third largest defense contractor, getting $23b+ a year from the DOD alone. That money is not going anywhere but up.

[Ksyrup]

Anyone have any experience with selling/disposing of timeshares, specifically Marriott Vacation Club? Or, using a service like Redweek?

My parents have 3 timeshares - 1 in Hawaii (Kauai), 1 in Hilton Head, and some Vacation Destination points which I guess is the new way to market the old "buy a week at X place." With my dad's long-term injury and the maintenance costs skyrocketing, it makes no sense to keep them. I know Marriott has a program ("exit specialists!") where they'll either buy them back or help sell them, but I'm guessing it'll be like liquidiation debt cents on the dollar. And I also know of Redweek, although I haven't done enough due diligence to know whether their fees are worth what I assume might be a better sales price than Marriott would give.

Speaking of which, my parents have a week in Hilton Head in late May already booked if anyone wants to rent it. If we don't sell these immediately, it makes sense to try to at least rent out the week that's booked that they can no longer use.