Shortest notice for a Major trip
 

I got an e-mail at noon today (weds) asking me to be in Pristina, Kosovo by Friday night. I am now booked to leave Rochester Tommorrow night at 7 pm.

This is the shortest notice I have ever had for a major trip (i.e. more than a short hop). Usually I get at least a week. Wondering what others' experiences are.

BTW, All my shirts are at the dry cleaner! Can you get size 18 neck dress shirts at LHR during a three hour layover?

In February 2001, I was at LAX airport checking in for a CX flight to HKG when I got a call to tell me to head to LAS instead for a different project. Told the CX agent I wouldn't be flying today, walked from TBIT to Terminal 5 and boarded the 737 to Vegas instead.

I've had plenty "how quickly can you get to the airport" calls. Don't know what count as 'major' trips, though: these were intra-European flights.

On another occasion, I've been in AMS for a day-trip, only to be asked to stay the week. No can do - stuff to do that evening in LON, and clothes to wash & iron... Which led to the slightly ridiculous situation of going to the ticket counter at AMS in the evening, asking for a ticket from LCY to AMS for the next morning...

I've had several "catch the next flight" calls. All domestic US...one where the lead partner on the project said "Don't even go home to pack - just buy a couple of outfits on the other end and expense them."

Those were the 1990's. http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...orum/smile.gif No wonder the airlines were profitable. I'm in the same line of work now, and we don't operate quite like that anymore.

I had a two day notice for a 2 month trip to Australia.

There was a thread I started 2-3 years ago, but which I couldn't find in the archives about the shortest notice for a flight.

I recounted my co-worker getting stopped by our department secretary as he came in to work at 8am the day he returned from vacation with instructions to return home, pack, and take the limo that was going to take him to SFO for a Hong Kong flight in a couple of hours. My own shortest notice was due to a decision during a Tuesday late afternoon meeting to fly to Seoul asap, which happened on Thursday.

IIRC there were several posters in that thread who routinely got notices to fly with no notice so they kept packed luggage in their car.

3 days notice for 6 months in Japan.

"Power down your laptop and head for the airport, you need to be in Boston", while on a trip to Toronto - that's international, right?

This brings back memories of a holiday in Thailand.

I made the mistake of switching my phone on, to see if I had any messages. Sure enough, up pops a message... I needed to go direct from my return (overnight) flight to Amsterdam.

It was interesting seeing the reaction as I turned up in shorts and t-shirt...

Just at the end of October:

I woke up on Saturday morning with voicemail messages from my parents. My father suddenly needed to be in Bangkok by Thursday morning. Ended up buying a ticket for him to leave on Monday.

- Pat

If you happen to be going through DTW, go to brooks brothers across from the main WC. I am sure you should be ok in LHR.

Don't know if this counts but I've been to JFK and DFW (from London) this year on trips I decided I was going to do only a couple of hours before.

Also went to MEL 24 hours after deciding I was going, would have gone sooner but that was back in the days before the ETA and a trip to Australia House was necessary to get a Visa.

Spike

Two days, when having gone out to HK, got a phone call to say I wasn't coming home, I'd to go to China for a meeting. First time to China, to sort through all the visa paper work.

jer - are you a journalist? Journalists often have short notices to fly to major world events.

I know that (Stimpy chime in here) a number of times many of us have been on board a plane with the doors not shut yet and recieve a call to get off the flight, un-check in and go board a plane to a different city.