Voyager0927
May 13, 07, 12:21 am
The following trip report is from a quasi-mileage run I took to MUC back in February. I found a dirt cheap fare online and figured it would be worth making a trip even though it would result in a 24-hour stay. A friend of mine was potentially slated to be in MUC at that time for work, though it turned out that his relocation there was delayed indefinitely. I guess it’s not technically a mileage run since I actually stayed overnight instead of returning right away, but it’s the closest I’ve ever come to a true mileage run on an international trip.
BOS-IAD
UA 902 / 23 February 2007
Dep. 1345 (Sched: 1350)
Arr. 1518 (Sched: 1537)
Boeing 737-300 / N335UA
First Class / Seat 2D
I used OLCI for this flight at 1353 the day before, since the UG I requested using 500s was not able to clear. Once I eventually arrived at the airport (it took the MBTA Silver Line forever to get around the airport to Terminal C), I used the kiosk to reprint my BP’s and DM card on cardstock, along with printing a receipt, just in case the international authorities wanted to see it (which has never been an issue in a dozen or so trips to Europe). I had no luggage to check, since I was only going to be abroad for 48 hours. Everything I needed was in my backpack. TSA only had two x-ray machines open, which was sufficient for the time of day, though about six pax in front of me insisted on staying where they were and blocking my way past, despite the fact that there was another wide open machine ten yards away.
Once through TSA without any annoying secondary inspections, I headed to the RCC. There were about two dozen other pax in there at the time. I grabbed myself an orange, some packaged cookies, and a cup of hot chocolate, then made use of their free local phone service to bother my significant other at work. The RCC also had soda cans, chips, raisins, coffee, tea, and a cash bar. I left the RCC after boarding for F and Seating 1 had started. Immediately, one other pax and I were paged by the GA. Knowing what it was about, I handed over my DM card, took the window seat choice from between 2C and 2D, and scooted right to the front of the boarding line.
The F cabin was roomier than I though it would be, given that there were only eight seats. There was sufficient recline room behind 2D. I hung my own coat up behind me before an FA could do it for me. Once most pax were boarded (including an NRSA FA next to me), the FA took pre-departure drink orders (I had OJ).
We pushed back early and the FA’s did the safety demo using the PA system. I listened to channel 9. ATC gave us a quick release on r/w 27 – we only needed to wait for a Challenger GA plane and an AA SP80 to land. There was a rolling takeoff with wheels up at 1358. There was turbulence on climb. The announced f/t was 1:28.
Once we leveled off, the FA started drink service. I got a screw driver, which was served with the Gourmet Supreme Mix (containing pretzel stix, almonds, rice crackers, some other stuff). It was a pretty lame snack, though that’s all I really expect on short-haul F. As we approached IAD, the FA offered me another drink. I was concerned about the time, but she said I should get it and she would throw out what I didn’t finish. So, after two strong cocktails in a 45-minute span, I was feeling pretty good about myself.
On approach to IAD, we flew a long right-traffic downwind leg to set for a landing on r/w 1R. The landing was incredibly smooth, which the FA’s commented about during taxi, and we were able to pull off the r/w after only 3000 feet. We parked at Gate C16. After disembarking, I checked the departure monitors and saw that my next flight was parked at D1.
With time to kill (though not as much as though, I went to the RCC near Gate D5. After my BP was swiped, I had to ask the lounge matron for drink tickets, since they were not immediately given to me. Her response was, “I guess so.” I found a small table near a window that was empty in a corner of the labyrinthine RCC. In addition to a beer and a cocktail, I had pre-packaged crackers and cheese and vegetable sticks with prepackaged ranch dressing.
IAD-MUC
UA 902 / 23 February 2007
Dep. 1810 (Sched: 1804)
Arr. 0847 (Sched: 0810)
Boeing 777-200 / N777UA
Economy Plus / Seat 18A
About 45 minutes prior to departure, I headed up to my gate. There was already a long line of pax queued up for the gate. While the GA announced boarding by zones, nobody came to the front of the queue. I probably should have done so, since I was in Zone 1, but I figured I would be on the plane for enough time anyway. A GA came down the line collecting I-94 stubs from pax that hadn’t yet turned theirs in. At one point, I thought I heard myself paged. I checked at the podium, only to be told that I wasn’t called and my hope for an op-up was just wishful thinking.
My window seat had a rib and only one window, so it was not ideal. It was also tantalizingly close to C. I would have killed for the bulkhead seat in Row 17. The pax in 18B actually asked the pax in 17C if he wanted to swap, so that he could be across the aisle from his companion in 18C. The man (smartly) did not take the bait. The announced f/t was 7:32. We had a short fueling delay and pushed back. The FA’s performed a live safety demo, which puzzled me, since the plane was equipped with seatback video.
We taxied to 1L where five or six widebodies were waiting in a holding area near the end. I thought they might have been waiting for their slotted release time. However, we pulled in next to them and the pilot announced that because of a radar outage NE of us, all trans-at traffic was on an indefinite ground hold. He said that he would update us at 1900. In the meanwhile, the FA’s started the movies and announced that pax anticipating misconnex should check with LH upon arrival at MUC. Finally, at around 1900, the planes started moving again. We left the holding area at 1907 and taxied onto 1L, with a wheels-up time of 1913.
Once airborne, the FA’s performed a beverage run, though alcohol was $5 per drink. Afterward, they passed out hot towels, then collected the trash, then handed out dinner. There was a beef choice and a pasta choice. I selected the beef. There were no menus, nor a verbal description of the meal, but it consisted of the following, in my own words:
Pot roast with mashed potatoes, peas, and carrots
Roll with butter
Salad with Thousand Island dressing
Chocolate cake
The roll was packaged in plastic and was still partially frozen. The salad consisted of nothing more than romaine lettuce. The entrée and dessert were very good, however. The quantity of food was satisfactory – not bad and not great. There was a lengthy wait for the second beverage run, since there was no water on the tray. My rating: 6/10.
I slept uncomfortably for 4-5 hours on the flight. A light breakfast was served 90 minutes before landing. It consisted of the following:
Fruit salad (honeydew, watermelon, grapes)
Hot croissant roll with butter and grape jelly
The fruit salad was in a plastic container in a cardboard box. The croissants were each packaged in plastic and were handed out separately. There was a beverage run with OJ, coffee, etc. When the FA’s collected the waste, they asked for cups separately and for the boxes to be closed.
We landed on r/w 8R at 0842. There was some light ground fog. The FA’s asked for MUC-bound pax to remain seated, so that those with connex could disembark. This request, for the most part, was respected. We parked at what was labeled as Gate 224 from the outside but was H48 from the inside of the terminal. There was a negligible wait at passport control, where I was asked my destination and the purpose for the trip. I bypassed the baggage carousels and walked out the unstaffed green channel and onto the S-Bahn.
MUC-ORD
UA 907 (LH 9268) / 25 February 2007
Dep. 1224 (Sched: 1210)
Arr. 1526 (Sched: 1525)
Boeing 767-300 / N662UA
Economy Plus / Seat 17A
I took the Lufthansa Airport Bus to MUC from downtown, largely because I wanted to see the autobahn. I arrived at T2 at around 0930. It was very busy at this time of day and it took some time for me to find the UA check in area. There were three CSR’s for Y, one for C, one for F, and one for elite pax. There was one line feeding into the three CSR’s for Y and then individual lines for all the other desks. Both the elite pax line and the F line had the *G logo on it. It was a poor setup, since once you were committed to a line, you needed to wait for that particular CSR, and you couldn’t go to another desk if the pax in front of you were taking a long time.
Before you reached the CSR, you had to undergo the typical inane security interview. My passport was scanned into a laptop computer and I was asked the normal questions (when did you pack your luggage, what was the purpose of your trip, etc.). The security agent was confounded by my lack of checked luggage, and verbally ensured my liquid toiletries were in the requisite plastic bag. At the desk, I asked the CSR if she could put me on standby for an earlier ORD-BOS flight. She said she couldn’t since they had already started to cancel flights at ORD because of weather (which alarmed me), but I should check at ORD once I arrived. She also gave me DM cards for an UG on the ORD-BOS flight I was scheduled to take.
Next, I proceeded to security. There were special lines for F pax (and possibly C pax), but they were not labeled as available to *G traveling in Y. It took about five minutes to clear security. The security agents picked up my freedom baggie from the tray and took a look at it to ensure there was no contraband. I went upstairs to the passport control area, which was on a balcony overlooking the security checkpoints. There were long lines, especially in the non-EU citizens line, though non-EU citizens seemed to be using the EU lines without problems.
After some duty-free shopping, I went to the LH Senator Lounge, which was very crowded. I found one of the last seats left and had a beer and a pretzel and some sausage. I stayed for only about 20 minutes before I had to leave for my gate, which was at the very south end of the terminal. I had to undergo another interview by the contract security agent hired by UA, then through another WTMD and x-ray check, the procedures of which appeared no different than at the main security checkpoint. I left my freedom baggie in my backpack and the agent asked to take it out and have a look at it.
We started boarding about 20-25 minutes before our scheduled departure. Boarding didn’t begin until the other UA flight – a 777 to IAD and onward to SFO – was gone. The plane was an old model 767 with a 2-3-2 seating arrangement in Y. Since I was booked on the LH codeshare for this flight, rather than the actual UA flight, I was unable to select or confirm my seat on ual.com. I called UA back when I booked to secure a window in Economy Plus and to my delight, it came through. We pushed back and had a long taxi to 26R. We parked for three minutes and allowed a US 767 to go before us, then took off at 1246.
It took a while for the plane to level off. Once it did, there was a drink run, then hot towels, then trash collection, and then the meal. There was a choice of chicken or pasta (ravioli perhaps) in cream sauce. I selected the chicken:
Chicken breast in dark sauce with vegetable
Roll with butter
Salad with balsamic vinaigrette dressing
Toffee ice cream
Again, the roll was packaged in plastic and the “salad” was just lettuce. The ice cream was from Britain. The chicken was somewhat bland, though I ruined it further by putting too much salt on. The salad was a joke and the ice cream was a good treat at the end. The second beverage run did not take place until well after the meal was served, meaning a long wait for something to drink. The quantity could have been better. I rate it 5/10. After the meal, the FA’s came through with coffee and tea, and later, with other drinks.
I tried to watch All The King’s Men on the in-seat video, then quickly switched to The Queen, which I really enjoyed. Midway through the flight, the FA’s handed out mini-Toblerone bars and shortbread cookies from a basket labeled “The Snackbox.” Water runs were few and far between (90 minutes plus between them).
About 60-90 minutes prior to landing, there was a second meal service. Served in a blue cardboard box with a packet of mustard, it consisted of the following:
Smoked turkey with cream cheese spread on a roll
Red paprika potato chips
Mars bar
The meal service was accompanied by drinks. I had to ask the FA what the meat on the sandwich was, since I though it may have been ham, which I don’t eat. It was a good snack and was relatively filling. I rate it 6/10.
We began our descent at 1438 and were told we would land on 27R and park at Gate M1. The purser gave a brief description of the FIS procedures and told pax not to use cameras or cell phones until they’ve cleared customs. For some reason, they make a bigger deal of this at ORD than at other airports. We touched down at 1502 and taxied around T1, T2, and T3 the long way to T5. The ceilings were maybe 500 feet and there was some steady precipitation (mixed rain and snow). We held short of M1, waiting for a flagman to guide us into the gate. After a short wait, we turned away from the gate, did a loop around on the taxiway, and parked at M4.
It took maybe two minutes for me to get through passport control, and since I had no baggage, I proceeded straight through customs, opting to use the door by the AA side of the hall, where there was no line, rather than the UA exit. After an incredulous “Where’s your luggage?” by the CBP officer, I was back into my home country. I took the ATS train back to T1.
ORD-BOS
UA 882 / 25 February 2007
Dep. 1733 (Sched: 1600, delayed until 1712)
Arr. 2049 (Sched: 1921, delayed until 2032)
Boeing 757-200 / N564UA
Economy Plus / Seat 11B
After convincing an incompetent ID checker to let me into the elite line, I cleared TSA with a minimal wait. Once in the terminal, I saw that my 1930 flight to BOS was cancelled, so going standby on another flight was now a necessity. There was an impenetrable wall of people near the podium for the next BOS flight and there was a line down the hall at the customer service center. Fortunately, I remembered that I still qualified for RCC access on the domestic connecting leg of an inbound international flight. The matrons at the main B concourse RCC didn’t understand this rule at first, but eventually swiped my BP stub from the last flight to find out that I knew what I was talking about.
At the desks upstairs, a very kind CSR put me on and gave me a DM card for the 1600 flight, which was then showing a 1700 departure, with the instructions to be at the gate 30 minutes prior to the now-scheduled departure, lest they skip to the next person on the list. (Thank goodness I only had carry-on luggage.) I got there about 35 minutes prior to departure, and immediately the GA called my name. I ran up to the podium with my DM card flailing, just as she started to go to the next person on the list. F was filled, so I couldn’t upgrade, and the best she could do for me was a middle seat in Y+.
Once we boarded, we remained on the plane for a while as they deiced us at the gate. Most of the pax were moaning and groaning about the delay, but I was thrilled, because even with the delay, I would still get home two hours earlier than planned. Eventually we taxied to 32R, taking off after a LH A340, with a wheels up time 1750. While I didn’t hear it at the time, evidently there was a loud bang just before we lifted off. The pilot came on the PA system to announce that he thought we just hit a chunk of ice since all systems were fine and it was nothing to worry about. There was a standard domestic beverage service with a bag of pretzels. I watched The Office on the overhead television. I hate the middle seat, so this flight couldn’t have ended soon enough.
We made a right traffic approach for r/w 4R, touching down at 2040. We taxied to Terminal C and pulled around the side to Gate C15. Once parked, I made a beeline for the exit. The best part was that even though I arrived two hours before I was supposed to, I still received a 500 mile bonus because of the Business1 reliability guarantee.
All in all, I was less than impressed with the experience. I’ve had better trans-at flights on European airlines. I knew that I wouldn’t be getting free booze, but I was displeased with how UA had cut back on its meal service in comparison with other int’l flights I’ve taken on UA two or three years ago. They did get me where I needed to go, and they did get me taken care of quite well during a weather situation, but all in all, the actual flight experience, while not bad, is nothing to write home about. (And yet, I just did!)
BOS-IAD
UA 902 / 23 February 2007
Dep. 1345 (Sched: 1350)
Arr. 1518 (Sched: 1537)
Boeing 737-300 / N335UA
First Class / Seat 2D
I used OLCI for this flight at 1353 the day before, since the UG I requested using 500s was not able to clear. Once I eventually arrived at the airport (it took the MBTA Silver Line forever to get around the airport to Terminal C), I used the kiosk to reprint my BP’s and DM card on cardstock, along with printing a receipt, just in case the international authorities wanted to see it (which has never been an issue in a dozen or so trips to Europe). I had no luggage to check, since I was only going to be abroad for 48 hours. Everything I needed was in my backpack. TSA only had two x-ray machines open, which was sufficient for the time of day, though about six pax in front of me insisted on staying where they were and blocking my way past, despite the fact that there was another wide open machine ten yards away.
Once through TSA without any annoying secondary inspections, I headed to the RCC. There were about two dozen other pax in there at the time. I grabbed myself an orange, some packaged cookies, and a cup of hot chocolate, then made use of their free local phone service to bother my significant other at work. The RCC also had soda cans, chips, raisins, coffee, tea, and a cash bar. I left the RCC after boarding for F and Seating 1 had started. Immediately, one other pax and I were paged by the GA. Knowing what it was about, I handed over my DM card, took the window seat choice from between 2C and 2D, and scooted right to the front of the boarding line.
The F cabin was roomier than I though it would be, given that there were only eight seats. There was sufficient recline room behind 2D. I hung my own coat up behind me before an FA could do it for me. Once most pax were boarded (including an NRSA FA next to me), the FA took pre-departure drink orders (I had OJ).
We pushed back early and the FA’s did the safety demo using the PA system. I listened to channel 9. ATC gave us a quick release on r/w 27 – we only needed to wait for a Challenger GA plane and an AA SP80 to land. There was a rolling takeoff with wheels up at 1358. There was turbulence on climb. The announced f/t was 1:28.
Once we leveled off, the FA started drink service. I got a screw driver, which was served with the Gourmet Supreme Mix (containing pretzel stix, almonds, rice crackers, some other stuff). It was a pretty lame snack, though that’s all I really expect on short-haul F. As we approached IAD, the FA offered me another drink. I was concerned about the time, but she said I should get it and she would throw out what I didn’t finish. So, after two strong cocktails in a 45-minute span, I was feeling pretty good about myself.
On approach to IAD, we flew a long right-traffic downwind leg to set for a landing on r/w 1R. The landing was incredibly smooth, which the FA’s commented about during taxi, and we were able to pull off the r/w after only 3000 feet. We parked at Gate C16. After disembarking, I checked the departure monitors and saw that my next flight was parked at D1.
With time to kill (though not as much as though, I went to the RCC near Gate D5. After my BP was swiped, I had to ask the lounge matron for drink tickets, since they were not immediately given to me. Her response was, “I guess so.” I found a small table near a window that was empty in a corner of the labyrinthine RCC. In addition to a beer and a cocktail, I had pre-packaged crackers and cheese and vegetable sticks with prepackaged ranch dressing.
IAD-MUC
UA 902 / 23 February 2007
Dep. 1810 (Sched: 1804)
Arr. 0847 (Sched: 0810)
Boeing 777-200 / N777UA
Economy Plus / Seat 18A
About 45 minutes prior to departure, I headed up to my gate. There was already a long line of pax queued up for the gate. While the GA announced boarding by zones, nobody came to the front of the queue. I probably should have done so, since I was in Zone 1, but I figured I would be on the plane for enough time anyway. A GA came down the line collecting I-94 stubs from pax that hadn’t yet turned theirs in. At one point, I thought I heard myself paged. I checked at the podium, only to be told that I wasn’t called and my hope for an op-up was just wishful thinking.
My window seat had a rib and only one window, so it was not ideal. It was also tantalizingly close to C. I would have killed for the bulkhead seat in Row 17. The pax in 18B actually asked the pax in 17C if he wanted to swap, so that he could be across the aisle from his companion in 18C. The man (smartly) did not take the bait. The announced f/t was 7:32. We had a short fueling delay and pushed back. The FA’s performed a live safety demo, which puzzled me, since the plane was equipped with seatback video.
We taxied to 1L where five or six widebodies were waiting in a holding area near the end. I thought they might have been waiting for their slotted release time. However, we pulled in next to them and the pilot announced that because of a radar outage NE of us, all trans-at traffic was on an indefinite ground hold. He said that he would update us at 1900. In the meanwhile, the FA’s started the movies and announced that pax anticipating misconnex should check with LH upon arrival at MUC. Finally, at around 1900, the planes started moving again. We left the holding area at 1907 and taxied onto 1L, with a wheels-up time of 1913.
Once airborne, the FA’s performed a beverage run, though alcohol was $5 per drink. Afterward, they passed out hot towels, then collected the trash, then handed out dinner. There was a beef choice and a pasta choice. I selected the beef. There were no menus, nor a verbal description of the meal, but it consisted of the following, in my own words:
Pot roast with mashed potatoes, peas, and carrots
Roll with butter
Salad with Thousand Island dressing
Chocolate cake
The roll was packaged in plastic and was still partially frozen. The salad consisted of nothing more than romaine lettuce. The entrée and dessert were very good, however. The quantity of food was satisfactory – not bad and not great. There was a lengthy wait for the second beverage run, since there was no water on the tray. My rating: 6/10.
I slept uncomfortably for 4-5 hours on the flight. A light breakfast was served 90 minutes before landing. It consisted of the following:
Fruit salad (honeydew, watermelon, grapes)
Hot croissant roll with butter and grape jelly
The fruit salad was in a plastic container in a cardboard box. The croissants were each packaged in plastic and were handed out separately. There was a beverage run with OJ, coffee, etc. When the FA’s collected the waste, they asked for cups separately and for the boxes to be closed.
We landed on r/w 8R at 0842. There was some light ground fog. The FA’s asked for MUC-bound pax to remain seated, so that those with connex could disembark. This request, for the most part, was respected. We parked at what was labeled as Gate 224 from the outside but was H48 from the inside of the terminal. There was a negligible wait at passport control, where I was asked my destination and the purpose for the trip. I bypassed the baggage carousels and walked out the unstaffed green channel and onto the S-Bahn.
MUC-ORD
UA 907 (LH 9268) / 25 February 2007
Dep. 1224 (Sched: 1210)
Arr. 1526 (Sched: 1525)
Boeing 767-300 / N662UA
Economy Plus / Seat 17A
I took the Lufthansa Airport Bus to MUC from downtown, largely because I wanted to see the autobahn. I arrived at T2 at around 0930. It was very busy at this time of day and it took some time for me to find the UA check in area. There were three CSR’s for Y, one for C, one for F, and one for elite pax. There was one line feeding into the three CSR’s for Y and then individual lines for all the other desks. Both the elite pax line and the F line had the *G logo on it. It was a poor setup, since once you were committed to a line, you needed to wait for that particular CSR, and you couldn’t go to another desk if the pax in front of you were taking a long time.
Before you reached the CSR, you had to undergo the typical inane security interview. My passport was scanned into a laptop computer and I was asked the normal questions (when did you pack your luggage, what was the purpose of your trip, etc.). The security agent was confounded by my lack of checked luggage, and verbally ensured my liquid toiletries were in the requisite plastic bag. At the desk, I asked the CSR if she could put me on standby for an earlier ORD-BOS flight. She said she couldn’t since they had already started to cancel flights at ORD because of weather (which alarmed me), but I should check at ORD once I arrived. She also gave me DM cards for an UG on the ORD-BOS flight I was scheduled to take.
Next, I proceeded to security. There were special lines for F pax (and possibly C pax), but they were not labeled as available to *G traveling in Y. It took about five minutes to clear security. The security agents picked up my freedom baggie from the tray and took a look at it to ensure there was no contraband. I went upstairs to the passport control area, which was on a balcony overlooking the security checkpoints. There were long lines, especially in the non-EU citizens line, though non-EU citizens seemed to be using the EU lines without problems.
After some duty-free shopping, I went to the LH Senator Lounge, which was very crowded. I found one of the last seats left and had a beer and a pretzel and some sausage. I stayed for only about 20 minutes before I had to leave for my gate, which was at the very south end of the terminal. I had to undergo another interview by the contract security agent hired by UA, then through another WTMD and x-ray check, the procedures of which appeared no different than at the main security checkpoint. I left my freedom baggie in my backpack and the agent asked to take it out and have a look at it.
We started boarding about 20-25 minutes before our scheduled departure. Boarding didn’t begin until the other UA flight – a 777 to IAD and onward to SFO – was gone. The plane was an old model 767 with a 2-3-2 seating arrangement in Y. Since I was booked on the LH codeshare for this flight, rather than the actual UA flight, I was unable to select or confirm my seat on ual.com. I called UA back when I booked to secure a window in Economy Plus and to my delight, it came through. We pushed back and had a long taxi to 26R. We parked for three minutes and allowed a US 767 to go before us, then took off at 1246.
It took a while for the plane to level off. Once it did, there was a drink run, then hot towels, then trash collection, and then the meal. There was a choice of chicken or pasta (ravioli perhaps) in cream sauce. I selected the chicken:
Chicken breast in dark sauce with vegetable
Roll with butter
Salad with balsamic vinaigrette dressing
Toffee ice cream
Again, the roll was packaged in plastic and the “salad” was just lettuce. The ice cream was from Britain. The chicken was somewhat bland, though I ruined it further by putting too much salt on. The salad was a joke and the ice cream was a good treat at the end. The second beverage run did not take place until well after the meal was served, meaning a long wait for something to drink. The quantity could have been better. I rate it 5/10. After the meal, the FA’s came through with coffee and tea, and later, with other drinks.
I tried to watch All The King’s Men on the in-seat video, then quickly switched to The Queen, which I really enjoyed. Midway through the flight, the FA’s handed out mini-Toblerone bars and shortbread cookies from a basket labeled “The Snackbox.” Water runs were few and far between (90 minutes plus between them).
About 60-90 minutes prior to landing, there was a second meal service. Served in a blue cardboard box with a packet of mustard, it consisted of the following:
Smoked turkey with cream cheese spread on a roll
Red paprika potato chips
Mars bar
The meal service was accompanied by drinks. I had to ask the FA what the meat on the sandwich was, since I though it may have been ham, which I don’t eat. It was a good snack and was relatively filling. I rate it 6/10.
We began our descent at 1438 and were told we would land on 27R and park at Gate M1. The purser gave a brief description of the FIS procedures and told pax not to use cameras or cell phones until they’ve cleared customs. For some reason, they make a bigger deal of this at ORD than at other airports. We touched down at 1502 and taxied around T1, T2, and T3 the long way to T5. The ceilings were maybe 500 feet and there was some steady precipitation (mixed rain and snow). We held short of M1, waiting for a flagman to guide us into the gate. After a short wait, we turned away from the gate, did a loop around on the taxiway, and parked at M4.
It took maybe two minutes for me to get through passport control, and since I had no baggage, I proceeded straight through customs, opting to use the door by the AA side of the hall, where there was no line, rather than the UA exit. After an incredulous “Where’s your luggage?” by the CBP officer, I was back into my home country. I took the ATS train back to T1.
ORD-BOS
UA 882 / 25 February 2007
Dep. 1733 (Sched: 1600, delayed until 1712)
Arr. 2049 (Sched: 1921, delayed until 2032)
Boeing 757-200 / N564UA
Economy Plus / Seat 11B
After convincing an incompetent ID checker to let me into the elite line, I cleared TSA with a minimal wait. Once in the terminal, I saw that my 1930 flight to BOS was cancelled, so going standby on another flight was now a necessity. There was an impenetrable wall of people near the podium for the next BOS flight and there was a line down the hall at the customer service center. Fortunately, I remembered that I still qualified for RCC access on the domestic connecting leg of an inbound international flight. The matrons at the main B concourse RCC didn’t understand this rule at first, but eventually swiped my BP stub from the last flight to find out that I knew what I was talking about.
At the desks upstairs, a very kind CSR put me on and gave me a DM card for the 1600 flight, which was then showing a 1700 departure, with the instructions to be at the gate 30 minutes prior to the now-scheduled departure, lest they skip to the next person on the list. (Thank goodness I only had carry-on luggage.) I got there about 35 minutes prior to departure, and immediately the GA called my name. I ran up to the podium with my DM card flailing, just as she started to go to the next person on the list. F was filled, so I couldn’t upgrade, and the best she could do for me was a middle seat in Y+.
Once we boarded, we remained on the plane for a while as they deiced us at the gate. Most of the pax were moaning and groaning about the delay, but I was thrilled, because even with the delay, I would still get home two hours earlier than planned. Eventually we taxied to 32R, taking off after a LH A340, with a wheels up time 1750. While I didn’t hear it at the time, evidently there was a loud bang just before we lifted off. The pilot came on the PA system to announce that he thought we just hit a chunk of ice since all systems were fine and it was nothing to worry about. There was a standard domestic beverage service with a bag of pretzels. I watched The Office on the overhead television. I hate the middle seat, so this flight couldn’t have ended soon enough.
We made a right traffic approach for r/w 4R, touching down at 2040. We taxied to Terminal C and pulled around the side to Gate C15. Once parked, I made a beeline for the exit. The best part was that even though I arrived two hours before I was supposed to, I still received a 500 mile bonus because of the Business1 reliability guarantee.
All in all, I was less than impressed with the experience. I’ve had better trans-at flights on European airlines. I knew that I wouldn’t be getting free booze, but I was displeased with how UA had cut back on its meal service in comparison with other int’l flights I’ve taken on UA two or three years ago. They did get me where I needed to go, and they did get me taken care of quite well during a weather situation, but all in all, the actual flight experience, while not bad, is nothing to write home about. (And yet, I just did!)