[johnbryanpeters]

This to prime the pump, what's your story?

Arrived Orlando airport by bus 15:00 yesterday. Arrived circuitously and argumentatively in Albany at 01:00 this morning. Paid $200- for a rental car to arrive here 03:30 this morning. Slept a few hours and returned the car. Phpppttbbbpt.

 

[ALEXIS_DH]

spent 2 days (including 2001 new years eve) at the miami airport, along with hundreds of people who landed there from south america, because the airports in new york were closed because of a snow.

years later, i spent 18 hours in miami because travelocity didnt mail my tickets (i couldnt board) in time. had to bitch them for 6 hours on the phone to make them cough up the money for a new ticket.

miami´s airport gives me the chills.

 

[bean]

Not much. I watched the Delta rep write the wrong city on the tag for my backpack and throw it onto a conveyor belt going the opposite direction of my friend's bag even as I told her she was making a mistake. Did it show up at the destination airport? Of course not. Fortunately this was on the return flight from backpacking in Costa Rica. There would have been all kinds of trouble if it had happened on the outgoing flight.

 

[splat]

Well many Moons ago, flying from LA to Boston with a Transfer in Dallas ( American ) . It was a Tight connection in DFW. and Leaving LAX it seamed we waited forever on the Tarmac, well coming into DFW we are 1/2 Hr. Late aroud ( 6 pm ) . I told the flight crew of my Tight connection, They told me the plane was still there and they would tell them to hold the plane till I got there. and of course the Gate I came into is as far as you can get from the one I have So I Move as fas as i can to get to the other Gate. of course I get to the Gate to see the plane Taxiing away. Turns out ther ewere several other plans with passengers with tight connections and they thouhgt they had got ton the last one. Ok, No Biggie I've missed planes Before. when is the Next plane to Boston. 10am The next day. but they have a plane for Chicago leaving in 45 minutes and I can grab the 9:50 out of O'hare. So I do that , and they Bumped mue up to First class for the flight. we land in Chicago and of course we are late . ( what else is new with American Airlines ) and we have to wait for a gate to open up so our plane can Pull in. Turns out the Plane we had to wait for to pull out so we could de-plane was the Plane I needed to be on. I was doing well. 2 Transfers 2 planes Missed! fortunatly there was anothe plane leaving for Boston at 11:15 PM , I got that One , and Got bumped to first class again. so Finally got into Boston around 1:30 AM , and I knew there wasn't a Chance in Hell of getting my Lugage! but to My surprise My Bags made my Original flight, even if I didn't.

miami´s airport gives me the chills.

I hate Miami'a airport!!

 

[maxyedor]

I had to go to Williamsburg VA. last weekend. Flight was suposed to be leaving LAX at 12:15, there was a half hour lay-over in ATL, then I was suposed to land in Newport News at 9:35. Long story short We took off in LA at 1:50, missed my conection by over an hour, got stuck in ATL for 3 hours while waiting for the next flight, right before take-off the plane broke and we left ATL 45mins late and finaly touched down in Newport News at 2:30 AM. After all the issues they wouldn't even give me a 2nd bag of pretzels.

 

[Silver]

Going to Atlanta on Continental a few years back. Watched some jackass try to stuff a full size wheeled suitcase into the overhead. The attentive cabin crew waits until everyone else has dodged this guy and is seated to mention to him that a 2 year old could see that you can't fit it up there.

Get to Dallas/FW late, run to four different gates as far apart as possible with 20 other people, only to find our flight out is delayed from the first gate attendant that sent us on the whole wild goose chase. Flight comes in 3 hours late, we get on the plane, get delayed on the taxiway for an hour, and right when we get to the front of the line we have to go back to the gate because the flight crew would have been over their allowed time.

Fun day...

 

[vtjim]

spent 2 days (including 2001 new years eve) at the miami airport, along with hundreds of people who landed there from south america, because the airports in new york were closed because of a snow.

years later, i spent 18 hours in miami because travelocity didnt mail my tickets (i couldnt board) in time. had to bitch them for 6 hours on the phone to make them cough up the money for a new ticket.

miami´s airport gives me the chills.

I've been stuck in Miami too, what's with that airport?

 

[ALEXIS_DH]

I've been stuck in Miami too, what's with that airport?

i´ve got no clue.
the first time, it was weather. i was going to nyc, but there was a snowfall, so we landed in miami with a bunch of other flights from southamerica to nyc. sucked to spend new years at the airport, but there was so many people , a party started spontaneously at like 8pm.

 

[stevew]

They make the mixed drinks in 1st class way to weak.

 

[Westy]

Had a flight delayed 6 hours after already having a 4 hour layover in Cincinnati. During de-icing an alarm goes off in the cockpit, it seems the deicing fluid got into one of the sensors. We wait for another hour on the tarmac for them to fix the problem. Wait inline to deice for another 45 minutes. We finally take off at midnight. When we get close to home it seems the plane circles for 45 minutes. Fog is too thick to land. All other airports in the area are closed because it is too late. We fly back to Cincinnati and get off the airplane at 4:00 AM. Catch the next flight out to richmond at 7:00, get a rental car to drive the rest of the way home. I probably could have rode my bike home in less time.

 

[Old_Dude]

I used to fly a lot - 33 weeks a year. On one trip my wife decided to join me. We were returning home from Oralando to ATL. We could see the plane taxing to the terminal and it stopped ~200 yards from the gate. There was a really hard rain/thunderstorm. So, ~40 minutes later, the plane docked. Delay #1.

When we finally got on board the plane was pushed back and instead of going anywhere the pilot informed us we would be returning to the gate because of a mechanical error. We get back to the gate and we wait for ~45 minutes. The pilot announces we can deplane for an hour until they get the problem fixed. Delay #2.

Hanging around the gate area, we finally load up again and the doors close but we just keep waiting. More waiting. Then the pilot announces that someone didn't get back on the plane so they have to find that person's luggage and remove it before we can continue. So, this goes on for another 30 minutes. Delay #3.

Finally, the luggage is found, removed and the other luggage is loaded back onto the plane and we're ready to go but now a new problem pops up. The pilot indicates there is someone who is demanding to get off the plane - someone in the back of the plane - and by law, they have to let this person off, which will delay the departure one more time. You can just imagine the loud groaning from the passengers. After this announcement, two pilots and three flight attendants walked down the right aisle of the plane (L1011) to "visit" with the disgruntled passenger. In ten minutes they walked back, and announced we were finally on our way. That was delay #4.

The flight from Oralando to ATL is very short, so we couldn't make up much time - I think we got to the gate about 3 1/2 hours late.

I could write a book about air travel horror stories. Like the guy that got removed from the airport by four security guards because he went ballistic because we all had to wait for two hours for them to fix mechanical errors. I thought he was going to literally kill me because I told him to stop yelling at the person behind the desk. That was scary.

Then there were the bumpy flights. One flight in particular was truly amazing - ATL to Houston - we flew around a "cloud column" that was gigantic and you could see lightning flashing inside it. If I had to guess, it was about fifty miles wide and much higher than we were flying (~30K feet) - nearly a perfect "column of cloud".

Then, I have a zillion great stories too . . .

 

[Fool]

Stomach virus on a packed cross country flight while traveling with an infant.

 

[loco-gringo]

Talking about them all just pisses me off.

 

[valve bouncer]

I only fly once or twice a year and always with the top airlines so I have no real tales of woe. Back in 1991 due to some crazy ticket rules/bad luck I had to fly Johannesburg- Harare (2 hours), 9 hours at Harare airport transist room (definitely not a lounge- you could walk out the door and be standing on the apron, the soldiers were cool as long as you didn't wander too far). Then it was 9 hours to London, 17 hours at Heathrow, 14 hours to Singapore, run to my new plane then 5 hours to Perth. At 21 it was an adventure, now I would need elephantine doses of valium to endure it....hell I do anyway.

 

[Dartman]

Sitting next to Jabba the Hut from Richmond to Dallas.

It was a two seat section and he had to raise the arm rest to fit his arse into his seat and half of mine. Then he had to ask for the seat belt "extension". Did I mention he had a nice "liquid" head/chest cold going on.

 

[JohnE]

Flew home from Germany one year. Find out at Frankfurt that a girl I went to school is a flight attendant on my flight. She hooks me up with a glass of champagne before we leave the ground, then out of the blue I get upgraded to 1st Class! I eat, watch movies, and sleep in a (almost) real bed (First time in a month). As we are deplaning she and I are making small talk, trying to figure how I can repay her hook up. She asks if I am okay to drive home, to which I reply "Yeah, why?"
Her "How much did you have to drink?"
Me "Just the champagne"
Her "You clown, the booze was free, you should be wasted!"

Not so bad a story, I know. But its the worst I have...

 

[Boxxer]

Flew home from Germany one year. Find out at Frankfurt that a girl I went to school is a flight attendant on my flight. She hooks me up with a glass of champagne before we leave the ground, then out of the blue I get upgraded to 1st Class! I eat, watch movies, and sleep in a (almost) real bed (First time in a month). As we are deplaning she and I are making small talk, trying to figure how I can repay her hook up. She asks if I am okay to drive home, to which I reply "Yeah, why?"
Her "How much did you have to drink?"
Me "Just the champagne"
Her "You clown, the booze was free, you should be wasted!"

Not so bad a story, I know. But its the worst I have...

I was expecting a MUCH better end to that story after she asked if you were OK to drive home...

 

[Silver]

I was expecting a MUCH better end to that story after she asked if you were OK to drive home...

No kidding. What a cocktease...

 

[The Toninator]

Nope - Nicest was taking a nap in the rocking chairs at the knoxville airport last month. roxing chairs roxor.

 

[JohnE]

No kidding. What a cocktease...

10 years ago, I would have hit it. She was a little Demi Moore look alike back then. Now she looks like your little Italian aunt...the years have not been real kind.

 

[LordOpie]

A four hour direct flight from Miami, FL to Tuscon, AZ turned 16 hours because:
-- first plane had mechanical problems.
-- second plane re-routed us to ATL.
-- Third plane couldn't take off cuz crew never arrived from NY.
-- Fourth plane went to Houston.
-- Fifth plane loaded and was immediately unloaded cuz it arrived from South America, was never inspected, a box of cocaine was found at the last minute.
-- Sixth plane finally left from Houston, but instead of Tucson, took us to Phoenix. We finally said **** it and rented a car for the drive. The airline insisted that they could and wanted to take us the rest of the trip. Fvck that.


Doesn't compare to that time I sat next to the guy with XDR TB.