We were able to pay for nearly everyone's airfare on this trip with credit from canceled trips during the pandemic. We had to kick in a little ourselves, but not much when you consider we had 12 humans traveling.
There was a time when I did not mind flying and there was even a time I rather enjoyed it. Not anymore. From parking at the airport, to going through security, to being squeezed into seats that have enough leg room for less than average sized folks, it's not my thing.
But it's a means to an end. I am married to someone who loves to travel and she often wants to take me with her. Since I still work, a long road trip is generally not in the cards. So we fly.
And this trip was my idea. I love the Colorado mountains in the summer. Again, I didn't have time to drive, so I sucked it up and got on a plane.
The flight to Denver to eventually meet up with our family for a week was my first one since before the pandemic. It had been about two years.
Things were not that different, except for wearing masks in the airport and on the plane. And food and drink service is condensed, to say the least.
But it's still stuffy and crowded, no different from previous flights.
Wife and I had a direct flight from Nashville to Denver the afternoon of Thursday, July 1st. It was supposed to be about two and one-half hours.
But when we got to within 30 minutes of landing in Denver, the pilot advised us we would have to circle for a little while because, due to storms in the area, there were a number of planes "backed up," needing to land, and we had to wait our turn.
About 30 minutes after that announcement, the pilot advised we needed fuel (which I always love to hear from a pilot), and we still could not land in Denver, so we would go to Albuquerque.
To summarize, we landed in Denver about five hours later than scheduled. We were supposed to meet friends for dinner, and they were kind enough to postpone our original meeting time. We still made it, going straight from the airport to meet them, and we pretty much changed clothes in our rental car (don't judge me).
Younger Son and his fiance had even worse luck. Their direct flight from Birmingham, scheduled to leave at 6:30 p.m. Friday, July 2nd, didn't leave until well after midnight. They arrived at the Denver hotel where we were staying around 3 a.m.
They had similar (bad) luck going back on Saturday, July 10th. Their flight connected in Las Vegas, and the plane from Vegas to Birmingham had a flat tire. Everyone on the plane had to de-board while it was repaired, and it was another red-eye flight for the two of them.
The good news for them was they each received $200 in flight vouchers from the airline for their trouble (100 for each trip), so they have a start to their honeymoon fund (assuming they go somewhere that airline flies).
The rest of the family had relatively easy flights going and returning, as did Wife and I on our return flight.
As I said, it's a means to an end, and I suppose, considering people are back to flying in droves, all things considered, the airlines do a pretty good job of getting travelers safely from place to place. Sometimes there will be delays and I get that.
But it's still not my preferred method of travel.
5 comments:
Well, you have not changed my mind about deciding never to fly again!
Somewhere along the line flying went from making me feel somewhat special to a cow being led to slaughter. I will always try to avoid it now as much as possible but having family overseas, I can't avoid it entirely.
I can remember dealing with storm delays in the past, and it's never pleasant. I guess your flights could have been worse, but still...
Yes, sometimes it's a necessary evil. We have a promised trip that will have to take place at some point, but I'm not ready yet.
An extra five hours in the air sounds so very un-fun.
I like your description of air travel being an "ends to the means". So much for the joy of the journey. If I had it my way, I'd take a train or walk or paddle or sail.
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