AA 1798
Los Angeles (LAX)-San Francisco (SFO)
Monday July 09, 2012
Depart: 8:20 PM
Arrive: 9:35 PM
Aircraft: Boeing 737-800 (N932AN)
Seat: 4A (First Class)
My flight was departing out of gate 40, which was conveniently located directly across from the lounge entrance. I exited the lounge into a sea of gate lice, just as boarding for AAdvantage Platinum was called. After fighting my way through, I made it to the Priority AAccess lane, where there were five people in front of me. The gate agent turned away all of them as they were in Group 4. When I reached podium, I gave the agent a smile as I handed over my boarding pass. She returned the smile after she saw my boarding pass and thanked me for my loyalty and wished me a pleasant flight. After a short wait in the jet bridge, I made it on board the aircraft.
Just as I could tell my IAH-LAX flight was going to be a good one as soon as I boarded, I could tell this flight was not going to be a good one. There was no greeting from either flight attendant in the forward galley. They were happily chatting amongst themselves. I’m all for camaraderie in the workplace. I used to work in retail for an extensive period of time while I was in college. In fact, I met some of my best friends during that time period. But when it came time to face a customer, I like to think that we served each one professionally, with few exceptions. The moment a customer walks into a place of business, in this case an aircraft, how they are treated at that moment sets the tone for the transaction. I’m not asking to be fawned over and escorted to my seat (a la SQ), but a simple “hello” and/or “welcome aboard” does wonders. Fortunately for me, flights like this are the exception rather than the norm.
My seatmate was already seated and on a phone call when I arrived. After she got up and let me in, I settled my comfortable standard AA 738 First Class seat, with ample storage and leg room.
Legroom shot.
View of tarmac.
As boarding progressed, the aforementioned flight attendants in forward galley continue their conversation until a passenger asked for assistance with a carry on. Only then, did they break off their conversation.
Ok…deep breath. Last flight until you’re aboard CX First. The rest of the boarding process was uneventful. We pushed back a minute or two ahead of schedule and the safety video began playing. At that point, I assume the flight attendant realize he forgot about the PDB service and came around with a tray of ice water. He offered them to passengers by wordlessly passing the tray in front of their faces. Cups were collected a few minutes afterwards. We were number 3 for take off when we reached the threshold of the departure runway, 25R. After lining up with centerline, the distinctive growl of CFM 56 engines grew progressively louder and we were soon airborne and flying into the gorgeous California sunset.
Our flight path took us due west for an extensive period of time before turning north toward San Francisco. I specifically chose an “A” seat, hoping to catch some great views of the California coastline. I was certainly rewarded for my efforts. I do apologize in advance for the blurriness of some of the photos. I had forgotten to bring my camera, so I used my iPhone 4S for all of my pictures.
About 15 minutes after take off, flight attendants came around with a drink service and passed out AA’s premium snack mix. I went with water and declined the snack mix. Refills were offered, but I declined.
We were soon descending in to San Francisco. However, the sun had set, so I wasn’t able to get any good views of the Bay Area as we approached SFO. The approach to Runway 28L was very familiar, as I had gone through SFO numerous time earlier this ear on MRs during the DEQM promos. Touchdown was a bit rough, teeth chattering even, as remarked by my seatmate. Taxi was quick to a very familiar gate 56B. I quickly deplaned and headed off to the great SFO AC for a few minutes, just for giggles, before heading to the international terminal.