Scooter
Oct 25, 99, 3:00 pm
On a whim, I decided to go to Miami. Well, it wasn’t quite like that, but still close enough. About a month ago I found an attractive fare on AA to MIA from SAN (via DFW). I didn’t really have to talk myself into going, as Miami is one of my favorite cities. Heck, I had nothing planned for that particular weekend, it was a cheap fare…and there were a decent amount of AAdvantage miles involved! Anyway, it’s better than staying home and doing nothing.
The itinerary:
23 OCT SAN-DFW MD-83
23 OCT DFW-MIA MD-11
24 OCT MIA-DFW MD-11
24 OCT DFW-SAN MD-83
Yep…just a quickie. But I actually love trips like this, as I have a really short attention span. I do secretly have to admit though, that as I write this on the Monday after, I’m rreeeally tired. A weekend trip up north to SFO/PDX/SEA is one thing, but the run to MIA and back was a little draining. Still fun though…
23 OCT SAN-DFW MD-83 seat 11A:
This was an 11:30am flight, so I was happy that I got to sleep in a bit before I had to make a run for the airport. Had a nice breakfast, took care of some last minute business things, and I grabbed a cab for the short ride to SAN (I live 5 minutes from the airport). Check in was a breeze (no waiting), and then made the short walk down to gate 25. It was a short wait, and the boarding began right on time. I was actually amazed at how smooth and quickly the boarding process took. It was a completely full flight, but everyone stood back until their row was called. Maybe people are finally learning? Nah…too good to be true (as I would later observe in DFW). We were all quickly aboard, and I found myself seated next to what appeared to be a very nervous woman. She said nothing at all for the entire flight, and she just stared straight ahead clenching her purse tightly. I think she slept for a little while, but she didn’t look comfortable. Anyway, the flight was completely routine (Bistro ‘meal’ and all), and I fell asleep an hour into the 2.5 hour flight. I remember waking up after what seemed like I had been sleeping for 4 hours, only to find that it was more like 45 minutes. Ugh. I was in economy hell (TIGHT seat pitch), and I really wanted off the plane. Questions like, “why did I decide to do this?” started floating around in my head. Oh well. I was on my way to Miami, so that kept my spirits up a bit. We arrived in DFW right on time.
23 OCT DFW-MIA MD-11 seat 30D
I had an hour layover in DFW, but I found my connecting flight to be out of terminal C (we arrived in A). I decided to stretch my legs and walk instead of taking the inter-terminal train, and it felt good to have the blood circulating once again. BUT – by the time I got to the connecting gate, I saw that there had been a gate change to terminal A. Dammit. So now I had to walk back to nearly where I started from, with the departure time coming near. Still, I avoided the connection train thinking that exercise is a good thing. I made it to the new gate with time to spare. Ah, the joys of filling an overbooked widebody from a small gate. Chaos. On first call, everyone rushed the gate…and the gate agents never said a word. Funny thing is, they NEVER said a word. So it was a free-for-all into this waiting MD-11…I stood back with a few other people in complete amazement as we watched people board. The rush eventually cleared, and I stepped forward and got on the plane. This was my first MD-11 flight, and I didn’t like what I saw as soon as I stepped inside. 2-5-2 seating. Nasty, especially for people such as myself seated in one of those middle ones. Actually the seating pitch wasn’t all that bad, as this was an aircraft configured for international travel (it was to continue on to Buenos Aries after MIA)…still not fantastic, but better than the MD-83 I just got off. Another routine flight, except for the fact that we sat on the ground for 45 minutes while they loaded cargo into the belly of the plane. Ugh. Why is it that these ground delays happen to me whenever I’m in a middle seat? Anyway, we were in the air as soon as the cargo was loaded, and we made up a little time in the air on the way to MIA. Along the way, a choice of a meatloaf sandwich or chicken Caesar salad was served. I had the sandwich. Bad choice, but the salad looked just as bad. Great flight attendants and service though. On the ground about a half hour late. Oh yeah…the MD-11 sure makes nasty noises as it is slowing down on the runway. It didn’t sound like a healthy aircraft.
Had a great evening in MIA, went to the beach for the morning and early afternoon, and back to the airport by 3pm for a 4:55pm flight.
24 OCT MIA-DFW MD-11 seat 31A
MIA sure is a fun place to people watch. I think it may be the biggest melting pot of cultures anywhere in the world. More than LAX. More than LHR. More than JFK. Anyway, it’s an interesting place to walk around in.
I grabbed a quick bite before checking in, and made it to the gate with about a half-hour to spare. Another MD-11, another full flight. Boarding was much smoother this time, and I found myself wedged between the wall and a rather large individual occupying the seat next to me. I was packed in, that’s for sure. To make things worse, the afternoon sun was just at the perfect angle to completely blind AND cook me if I had the window shade open at any amount. That was a bummer, as the view going over the west coast of Florida could have been spectacular. An interesting happening – there was a guy in business class who’s wife was sitting right behind me…twenty minutes into the flight, the guy comes out from the front of the plane offering the guy sitting next to his wife his seat up front. Wow. Needless to say, the guy didn’t hesitate for an instant. Why can’t I ever be that lucky? ;-) Anyway, another bad meal choice – steak and cheese sandwich or chicken salad. Had the salad, was hungry again a half hour later. Flight arrived into DFW right on time. More bad MD-11 noises after touchdown.
24 OCT DFW-SAN MD-83 SEAT 29B
Just another full/boring flight. Bistro ‘meal’, good service, and exactly on time. Though it was kind of interesting that it was my first time ever that we pushed back from the gate under our own power. Ah, the smell of jet exhaust. I’ve heard people talk about it, but I’ve never seen it or experienced it until then. Arrived into SAN on time, grabbed a cab for home, and immediately went to bed.
All in all, great service on AA. No complaints, and I’ll be looking forward to my trip with them to JFK in about two weeks from today.
-Scott
The itinerary:
23 OCT SAN-DFW MD-83
23 OCT DFW-MIA MD-11
24 OCT MIA-DFW MD-11
24 OCT DFW-SAN MD-83
Yep…just a quickie. But I actually love trips like this, as I have a really short attention span. I do secretly have to admit though, that as I write this on the Monday after, I’m rreeeally tired. A weekend trip up north to SFO/PDX/SEA is one thing, but the run to MIA and back was a little draining. Still fun though…
23 OCT SAN-DFW MD-83 seat 11A:
This was an 11:30am flight, so I was happy that I got to sleep in a bit before I had to make a run for the airport. Had a nice breakfast, took care of some last minute business things, and I grabbed a cab for the short ride to SAN (I live 5 minutes from the airport). Check in was a breeze (no waiting), and then made the short walk down to gate 25. It was a short wait, and the boarding began right on time. I was actually amazed at how smooth and quickly the boarding process took. It was a completely full flight, but everyone stood back until their row was called. Maybe people are finally learning? Nah…too good to be true (as I would later observe in DFW). We were all quickly aboard, and I found myself seated next to what appeared to be a very nervous woman. She said nothing at all for the entire flight, and she just stared straight ahead clenching her purse tightly. I think she slept for a little while, but she didn’t look comfortable. Anyway, the flight was completely routine (Bistro ‘meal’ and all), and I fell asleep an hour into the 2.5 hour flight. I remember waking up after what seemed like I had been sleeping for 4 hours, only to find that it was more like 45 minutes. Ugh. I was in economy hell (TIGHT seat pitch), and I really wanted off the plane. Questions like, “why did I decide to do this?” started floating around in my head. Oh well. I was on my way to Miami, so that kept my spirits up a bit. We arrived in DFW right on time.
23 OCT DFW-MIA MD-11 seat 30D
I had an hour layover in DFW, but I found my connecting flight to be out of terminal C (we arrived in A). I decided to stretch my legs and walk instead of taking the inter-terminal train, and it felt good to have the blood circulating once again. BUT – by the time I got to the connecting gate, I saw that there had been a gate change to terminal A. Dammit. So now I had to walk back to nearly where I started from, with the departure time coming near. Still, I avoided the connection train thinking that exercise is a good thing. I made it to the new gate with time to spare. Ah, the joys of filling an overbooked widebody from a small gate. Chaos. On first call, everyone rushed the gate…and the gate agents never said a word. Funny thing is, they NEVER said a word. So it was a free-for-all into this waiting MD-11…I stood back with a few other people in complete amazement as we watched people board. The rush eventually cleared, and I stepped forward and got on the plane. This was my first MD-11 flight, and I didn’t like what I saw as soon as I stepped inside. 2-5-2 seating. Nasty, especially for people such as myself seated in one of those middle ones. Actually the seating pitch wasn’t all that bad, as this was an aircraft configured for international travel (it was to continue on to Buenos Aries after MIA)…still not fantastic, but better than the MD-83 I just got off. Another routine flight, except for the fact that we sat on the ground for 45 minutes while they loaded cargo into the belly of the plane. Ugh. Why is it that these ground delays happen to me whenever I’m in a middle seat? Anyway, we were in the air as soon as the cargo was loaded, and we made up a little time in the air on the way to MIA. Along the way, a choice of a meatloaf sandwich or chicken Caesar salad was served. I had the sandwich. Bad choice, but the salad looked just as bad. Great flight attendants and service though. On the ground about a half hour late. Oh yeah…the MD-11 sure makes nasty noises as it is slowing down on the runway. It didn’t sound like a healthy aircraft.
Had a great evening in MIA, went to the beach for the morning and early afternoon, and back to the airport by 3pm for a 4:55pm flight.
24 OCT MIA-DFW MD-11 seat 31A
MIA sure is a fun place to people watch. I think it may be the biggest melting pot of cultures anywhere in the world. More than LAX. More than LHR. More than JFK. Anyway, it’s an interesting place to walk around in.
I grabbed a quick bite before checking in, and made it to the gate with about a half-hour to spare. Another MD-11, another full flight. Boarding was much smoother this time, and I found myself wedged between the wall and a rather large individual occupying the seat next to me. I was packed in, that’s for sure. To make things worse, the afternoon sun was just at the perfect angle to completely blind AND cook me if I had the window shade open at any amount. That was a bummer, as the view going over the west coast of Florida could have been spectacular. An interesting happening – there was a guy in business class who’s wife was sitting right behind me…twenty minutes into the flight, the guy comes out from the front of the plane offering the guy sitting next to his wife his seat up front. Wow. Needless to say, the guy didn’t hesitate for an instant. Why can’t I ever be that lucky? ;-) Anyway, another bad meal choice – steak and cheese sandwich or chicken salad. Had the salad, was hungry again a half hour later. Flight arrived into DFW right on time. More bad MD-11 noises after touchdown.
24 OCT DFW-SAN MD-83 SEAT 29B
Just another full/boring flight. Bistro ‘meal’, good service, and exactly on time. Though it was kind of interesting that it was my first time ever that we pushed back from the gate under our own power. Ah, the smell of jet exhaust. I’ve heard people talk about it, but I’ve never seen it or experienced it until then. Arrived into SAN on time, grabbed a cab for home, and immediately went to bed.
All in all, great service on AA. No complaints, and I’ll be looking forward to my trip with them to JFK in about two weeks from today.
-Scott