Tour of Duty 19th September 2017 to 14th October 2017
Part V: 13th October to 14th October

I extended my hotel stay for Friday because I felt bad due to "something" that I ate the previous evening at the Hibachi Buffet next door to where I was staying. I felt bad the latter part of the previous night and all morning but I felt better later in the afternoon. I booked a flight home for the next day as no suitable trips were available. I had evening rations at Denny's. I spent the night in Houston, TX.

Saturday I awoke and got prepared and at noon I got transport to HOU. I checked in and my bags weighed 46 and 43lbs. I cleared security after a queue and did not opt out due to time constraints. Time elapsed from beginning of check in to clear of security was 25 minutes.

Southwest #4307 HOU-LAX B-737-700 Boarding Pass A55
Seat 20A Cruising altitude 38,000 feet Estimated flying time 3:00, actual 2:59
Depart: Gate 5 Scheduled 13h50, actual 13h54 Taxi: 9 minutes
Arrive: Gate 11 Scheduled 15h25, actual 15h14 Taxi: 11 minutes
Reclaim checked bags 21-25 minutes after arrival

We boarded via jetway. The plane was full. Pushback was 4 minutes late. Takeoff was to the east southeast. and I got a glimpse of downtown Houston and I saw what looked to be water damage on tops of some of the buildings. We went into and out of clouds early in the clime and there were some bumps. At 0:08 I saw Brookshire, TX, Interstate 10 and the Brazos River.

At 0:20 we passed over the south part of the Austin area and at 0:21 my drink order was taken. At 0:23 seatbelt sign went off as cruise was announnced and it was 70F and some haze at LAX and we were 30 minutes ahead of schedule but may slow down due to air traffic control. At 0:25 I got Wheat Thins and Peanuts. At 0:40 I saw Sonora, TX and Interstate 10 through breaks in the clouds. I got pretzels and cup of soda at 0:43 as we came abreast of Ozona, TX. At 0:50 I saw and we followed the Pecos River before it turned more north.

At 0:55 I saw Fort Stockton, TX to the near distance. At 1:00 I got second cup of soda. At 1:02 we crossed Interstate 20 just west of Pecos, TX and at 1:12 I got more Wheat Thins. At 1:17 I got first glimpse of the Rio Grande to the distance then there were clouds. At 1:20 the clouds broke and I saw the eastern part of El Paso, TX including the junction of Interstate 10 and Loop 375. At 1:22 I saw downtown El Paso and the Sun Bowl. I also saw Juarez and Old Mexico.

At 1:56 I saw the Tucson, AZ metro area to the south. At 1:59 I saw Picacho Peak and I saw Eloy, AZ at 2:00. At 2:02 I saw Casa Grande, AZ and the split between Interstate 10 and Interstate 8. I saw Interstate 10 near Salome, AZ at 2:19 and I saw Quartzsite, AZ at 2:23. At 2:26 we crossed the Colorado River into California airspace and I saw Blythe, CA to the south. I saw the Salton Sea to the distance at 2:33. Ifelt descent begin at 2:34 somewhere over Joshua Tree National Park. I saw the Coachella Valley at 2:39 and I saw Desert Hot Springs and Palm Springs at 2:41. I saw the Junction of California 62 and Interstate 10 at 2:42 and at 2:43 I saw Cabazon, CA and the Morongo Casino while abreast of Mt. San Jacinto.

I saw Banning and Beaumont, CA at 2:44 and I saw the Interstate 10/California 60 split at 2:45. At the same time I saw the Hemet/San Jacinto area and Diamond Valley Lake to the south. I saw Lake Perris at 2:46 and Moreno Valley at 2:47. We crossed California 60 and I saw the split with Interstate 215 at 2:48 over Riverside, CA and it was announced it was 77F at LAX. We crossed Interstate 15 at 2:50 and I saw the Corona/Norco area. We crossed California 71 at 2:51 and I saw Chino Hills and California 91 to the south. We crossed California 57 at 2:52 and I saw Diamond Bar and Brea Canyon. We crossed Interstate 605 and Interstate 5 at 2:55. We crossed Interstate 710 at 2:56 and we crossed Interstate 110 at 2:57. We crossed Interstate 405 at 2:59 and landed east to west. We arrived at gate 11 minutes early and deplaned via jetway. I got my checked bags and got transport home to end this tour of duty.

WN4307 HOU-LAX Very soon after takeoff


WN4307 HOU-LAX Ozona, TX

WN4307 HOU-LAX El Paso, TX


WN4307 HOU-LAX Lake Perris


WN4307 HOU-LAX Interstate 15, Santa Ana River and Corona/Norco area


WN4307 HOU-LAX Approaching LAX


WN4307 HOU-LAX Taxi after Landing. Construction is going on at LAX.