Being that this is one of the last ideal weekends to do a mileage run, I'm curious to know if anyone is doing any fun mileage runs this weekend. How crazy are you getting this year?

I needed about 11k for Platinum (first time!) and debated whether or not it was worth it... Being the sucker for flying that I am, I decided to go for it. This afternoon, I leave for my PHL-IAH-SMF-IAH-PHL-IAH-OAK-IAH-PHL run! I will be spending my Friday evening - Sunday afternoon airside! :)

Anyone else?

Wow, sounds like a fun filled weekend ^

I thought about doing one but being shipped off to Denver screwed things up. I need a job that works like a consulting firm and not a "we'll bail you out when you screw up" firm. :rolleyes:

Getting upgraded on 7/8 segments didn't hurt either... :) Although those West coast - IAH redeyes are always rough no matter where you are sitting!

Don't need the miles for CO, but in a few weeks I'm flying IAH-DFW on AA (just because I haven't flown AA since I was a freshmen in high school back in 1989), DFW-LAS on Champion Air (because I want to fly a 727 again), DFW-LAX on UA (because I need a few miles on UA), and LAX-MCI-MKE-ATL on YX (because I've never flown YX, have a bunch of miles there I need to convert to Hilton HHonors points thanks to the Diners promo but I have to actually fly YX before they'll let me do the conversion, and because I need to get to ATL that day to spend New Year's with the boyfriend). Oh, and I'll get my last night needed to renew my status with Marriott at the LAX Renaissance. So while this crazy trip does nothing to help my OnePass account, it's pure fun for me, plus helping pad my Marriott, Hilton, and UA balances. And it adds a new airport, several new routes, and a couple of new airlines to my FlightMemory. :p

Hmm... and you think us consultants don't have to do that too?

Crap. Now I've just jinxed myself. It's been a while since I've had to do one of those visits. $10 says before the end of the day one will appear on my schedule...

Well, I'm considered a consultant, but my job consists more of solving internal problems than solving problems for our clients (what I was hired to do ;))

This, tied with the fact that we promise more than we can deliver and then wonder why we are under the gun, irritates me. Oh, and we don't have a great IT structure in place so when I travel I get cut off from most of my work. <start sarcasm> It's fantastic! </ end sarcasm>

How did you book the Champion Air flight? I'm intrigued now.

If you go to the Champion Air website, they have a link to the travel agency that handles many of their bookings. I was able to book it online through them.

Of course I'm a little worried about what the experience will be like, never having done a charter. I've intentionally given myself a very long layover at LAS to allow for several hours of delays getting there, just in case. And based on what a friend who used to work for UA several years ago when they were handling the ground services for FunJet Vacations charters out of IAH, the charter crowd can be a pretty clueless group of travelers. But hey, it's an adventure, and just about the only way to fly a 727 in this country these days. The main downside is not getting any miles for that one segment.

The last time I flew a 727 was on delta in the mid 90's. The interior was straight out of the 70's one seat was gold, one was red and one was green. And there was this yellow flower pattern over everything seats, walls, and carpet.

I almost discoed down the aisle.

ssullivan - Here's something for you to read about Champion Air:

http://www.startribune.com/business/12184321.html

As for the 727s, I've been on plenty of AA ones. But I also remember riding them quite a few times within Taiwan in the 70's with the aft stairs. I thought that was very cool.

Yep, I knew they were in trouble, due to NW and the NBA pulling charter business. That's part of the reason I booked that flight. Might as well catch a last 727 while I can.

I Will Never Complain About CO Y Again!
 

Today I had the misfortune of flying a non-transcon DL 757-200 toward the back. OMG. And you thought CO's standard Y pitch was tight! DL says the seat pitch in Y on this plane is 31", but as bad as CO's 31" pitch on the 757s and 737s is, DL's 757-200 is far worse. It may be the design of the seat, as DL still has the plane's original late 1980s seats, which are super thick, and have several round horizontal bars in the back of the seat, which my knees and shins were pressed up against for the entire flight. But just walking down the aisle the seats look very close together. And, it's all made worse by the very wide armrests, which significantly reduce seat width.

I haven't flown in one of DL's new Y seats yet, but it certainly has to be an improvement over what they've got on some of the 757s now. The funny thing is that I've flown a DL 757 before in Y, in a non-exit row, and not been any more uncomfortable than I am on CO. But today was absolute misery, on par with sitting in a window seat on a CRJ.

Of course this could have been avoided if DL would just recognize my SkyTeam Elite Plus status on the reservation!

I was on CO #399 on Sunday night and had an "interesting" experience on arrival into Denver. The seatbelt "ding" came on as we arrived at the gate and everyone was up, then an FA comes on the intercom and tells everyone to sit down. Surprisingly everyone listened to her. Two police officers walk on and ask for a girl that was flying with one of the three soccer teams on our flight.

From what I could gather she had tried to use the F lav but apparently had some words with either a F customer or the F FA (couldn't make it out). She "freaked" and text messaged a friend who called her dad (or something). The parents called airport security and them escort her off the plane.

Doesn't make much sense but that's what I could understand.

Soccer team??
Well young people are not always the most stable individuals.

Colorado isn't exactly known for having stable kids...either parents kill them first or they go on suicidal rampages.

:td: Not something to joke about at all...