CDG to LHR

In this case the left side was perfect, not always. We departed 2B, got a flirt with the Air Algerie Airbus, then out to the taxi way past le Sofitel, very good views from the hotel but lately it has been so expensive. My belated Christmas gift was passing Terminal 1. Ok, I think I worship the thing. I salivate at the Air Gabon 747 going to Africa, in case you didn't know. P took me on the Cameroon Air 747-300 one night which was fascinating.

I still need to get on the Air Gabon and play. They had the Untied 777in the new colors- puke, Saudi 777, Northwest's old DC-10, SASafrass, and who else? some good ones. We turn right and now I see where he is going. This is going to be fun. My beloved seatmate cuts me a break in our talking, which was fascinating by the way, and let's me look. You can see the Aerogare 2 entourage thru the trees. Oh what a mess. Tear the whole freaking thing down and start over.

We turn around, rev the engines, we recite the French national anthem, that some sarcastic soul on here refers to 'la mayonnaise', which is funny, and we go. Au revoir la belle France, mais a bientot(soon).

We go right past the big monster known as T1, some cool planes, the new radar unit they have spinning around, lift up and off the ground, over the AF cargo bases and some more special planes.

Sidenote, last trip, when we landed here on CSA from Prague in November, and yes, I may do a trip report for that, later, an Air Mauritania 727 took off. Salivate, thank you.

We fly over the banlieues of Paris, actually getting somewhat of a decent view of Paris, from the North, we had to fly over Versailles, where my neighbor lives. Over villages and some French countryside. Before long we are over the English Channel, but what the French refer to as La Manche, the sleeve. They would never give the British so much credit. Oh the rivalry is too fun. You ought to see between English Canada and Quebec, I think it is actually worse. Same God people. Makes us brothers and sisters.

We talk more, she is very interesting. I tell her about my trip.

BA comes around with a decent meal, vs. the garbage in coach. It was some kind of a salad, I seldom care for salad outside of the US and Canada, so I leave most of it.
They have a delicious what I will assume is prosciuto. yummmmmmm It is the only real food I get for a long time.

I asked for another bread roll and I get one going toward final. The usual Malvern English sparkling water, love this stuff.

The crews are friendly and sweet. But most are kind in coach or Business, just that now they have more time to take care of you. You would never get this much food on a 45 minute flight in the US, not now. Back when Air Canada and Canadiennnne competed with each other, they both would serve an incredible hot meal on the one hour flight between Toronta and Mount Real. I don't know how they did it. Us Yanks, sadly, can't do it.

Over Blighty's coastline and down we go. Some clouds but beautiful scenery with lot's of nice green fields.

When I got into the war movies, and you can thank the American sitcom from way back, Hogan's Heroes for it, this stuff made me emotional. Thinking of the pilots who visited that country where they serve sauerkraut , and then came home successfully. Hogan gets to come to England a couple of times and I do think about that here.

A couple of the pilots into London would actually mention Biggin Hill, an airfield used during the war, it was as if they were inspired or something. I loved the WW2 mentions.

We are over London, not the same view from the left hand side, but good as well. I think it is Wembley to my left and the flats, the red double decker buses, etc. It is nice now but a very sombering view when I have been away from the motherland for a while.

Flaps, descend, ok this is cool. He flies past the BA hangars, I wave to my South African planes below, touch down, and we go past T1 and then to T3. Preparing for tonight's depature we go past T3 and my beloved Silver Birds(AA) who will take me home to the Colonies.

Over to T4 and it was an incredible view all the same.

I wish my seatmate my very best and tell her to run. I am pretty sure she made it. I did give her backups with BA having a later flight into LA. She is going to Portland, not Seattle, oh and she cursed the Seattle customs people, have never done that entry point before(always pre-clear at Vancouver).

I grab some BA souvenirs, the last after 6 segments. I wish the crew a warm cheers.

Now I stay tranist. I played with going landside. The onboxious passport officer coming in a few days ago put me off that but I did take a landing card just in case. I wanted to test out the airside transfer system which I have only done once. T3 from AA to T4 BA to Amsterdam. Too tired to go play on that one.

I was amazed as to the wait while on the bus, which was parked and waiting for us, to the Flight Connections Centre. They had a separate bus to T3, but please, I have over 6 hours to kill.

We make our way past the Kenya 767 and down to the underground tunnel. Up and out near T2 and over to the FCC. Swiss, Lufthansa, bonjour Air France, and some other nicknacks. Oh, Pulkovo TU-154 from Sankt Petersburg.
Nice to look at.

Upstairs to the security area and the lines/queues are long, but doable. Strip everything down and what I do like they don't ask for your dang boarding pass. I think that is the only time in England they don't LOL. My fellow Americans are taking their shoes off and the English security people laughingly ask why? Cause Tom Ridge told us to, sir! LOL

Do the walk through the FCC and over to T1. For those who don't know, while I bash Heathrow ad nauseum, I also love it, too, I will give LHR alot of credit with the FCC. The Flight Connections Centre is a middle area where buses take you from all parts of the airport to one general processing area. Unlike most of Europe, save France, they make you clear security again and then you go to the counters for your boarding passes, etc. and then go on to your gate. You can walk to 1 and 2. Have to bus to 3 and 4 and both 3 and 4 have their own inhouse transfers areas, all very convenient and I will give the British a huge kudos on this one. They also have a direct link to the domestic flights with a passport check. Brilliant! Actually restores some of my pride in being a descended half Britt after the Hoppa and all that rubbish.

HOWEVER , you saw it coming, to make everyone clear security again is a pain in the arse and a waste of time and resources and I know for a fact that people have missed planes because of it. In fact a woman was complaining that she did miss her plane right then and there. ouch To Paris, you will live, to Africa, it bites, where planes go 2/3 days a week.

In the Amazing Race, one of Brian's addictions, it is on at the same time as Friends so forget it,
they had a loup from Brazil to Heathrow to South Africa. The 2 older ladies went right to the Virgin gate for their Jo'burg flight but had not cleared security at LHR. They did in Brazil and hadn't blown anything up in 12 hours.
gee.

Due to the rule loving nature of the Britts, the 2 ladies missed their flight to South Africa and it took them out of the race completely. They flew the next day and were walked to the stopping point in Stellenbosch. Everyone felt bad and British bureaucracy took a huge hit for that. It got all over. I suppose it kind of made the ladies heroes in a way, they tried so hard. I would curse the gate agent for eternity for something stupid like that. I believe in karma, he will get his.

They could have held the plane, manually wanded them or something, gee guys, they just came off a plane. Had they gone through Frankfurt, Amsterdam, etc, they would have made it. Why I do praise Germanic efficiency, something my fellow Jews will get after me, sorry, hey, Germany works. Frankfurt is one of the best examples of how an airport should be run, same with Zurich.

I understand from certain countries, like Iran , it might be needed. It is also insulting to other countries' security practices to rescreen. I would think they would work with all of Western Europe. The French do it too at CDG and flights were being delayed and people were missing flights because of it. Unlike the British, the French finally said scew it and waved the transfer checks, which made it doable. Anyway, there ya go.

I looked for goodies at the FCC and found nothing. AA does have a transfer desk there but decided have fun at
T3.

Over to Terminal 1.