PDX-ATL-MCO-PDX
Oct 5, 1999, 5:09 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,178
PDX-ATL-MCO-PDX
I know I've still got an active report from LAS last week, but here's a new one...
Trip Report - 10/5-10/10/99
Arrived at 7:10 for an 8:35am flight. No one in Medallion line, so checked in there. I was able to switch my seat from 1C to 1E, so I had no bulkhead wall in front of me & could stretch my legs.
This flight is an L1011-500 and it was full. Only about 4 empty seats in back.
I had booked with a Syswtemwide upgrade, then called at the 72 hour mark to switch to E-certs…NO. Asked at the counter if it could be changed to E-certs - YES! I just love saving those SWU's, but always wonder if something really changes or the Medallion CSA just doesn't look hard enough. Beckles….any idea?
CRC to get coffee & WSJ for the flight, no one there. A lot of people from a Hawaiian Airlines flight came in about 10 minutes later. Hawaiian uses CRC on day-of-departure for their elites. Got to gate just as they began to board, area was jammed with people. Got aboard & saw Dave, a PDX based FA that I've flown with before, was one of the FC FA's. We chatted for awhile, he took my breakfast order in the galley and the female FA told me I needed to sit down! He told her it was OK, he knew me. She made a face & walked away??
I did have a chance to look at the pax manifest & am happy to say there were no non-revs in FC. The interesting note about the FC cabin was there were 9 FF's (no Medallion status), 5 PM/MM's, 7 GM's and 3 FC/FO's. What was curious was there were at least 3 GM's in the back. Could it be they didn't try to upgrade, or waited too long to request it? They surely could get upfront over the FF's, I would assume. As far as I know, an FF is just a regular SkyMiles pax with no elite status.
Door closed at 5 minutes prior to pushback & we were on the way. Pilot came on & said we had major tailwinds today and he was using a different flight plan, so combined we would make up time from the scheduled flight time. (Last time I took this flight about a month ago, it was 4:22 flight time) Today's flight time was 3:47, and we had steady 65-75 mph tailwinds all the way with ground speed of 615-635 mph. DL gives 2,176 miles for this flight, pilot said actual miles were only 1,950 (which seems low if you look at it on the map).
Breakfast choices were: Fruit, cereal and yogurt; omelette w/zucchini & corn (that's a new one for me); pancakes w/turkey sausage. Chose the p'cakes…they were great. Served with raisins and chopped pecans on top, along with a warm fruit compote and a terrific banana nut muffin. I almost never drink while flying, but decided to treat myself today & had 2 Mimosa w/breakfast, and finished with coffee. After they took the tray away, I promptly fell asleep and woke up as they were starting to serve cheese & crackers, about 45 minutes before landing. Arrived at 3:45pm instead of 4:10…a very smooth & uneventful flight.
Arrived at T-2 so I didn't need to take the train to Baggage, but it is a long walk. My bag came out fairly fast & I grabbed the shuttle to Dollar. They were out of full-size/luxury cars, so my upgrade was no good. Got a Chrysler Cirrus (first time). Not a bad car, a bit smaller than I'm used to, but it drives & handles well. Drove the 20+ miles to the Courtyard and my room key was waiting for me.
Staying at the Courtyard by the airport tomorrow night, early flight to MCO on Thurs. Next segment of the report probably from Orlando on Thurs. or Fri.
Hey Hammertoad, are you home this week? I'm heading your way…
Trip Report - 10/5-10/10/99
Arrived at 7:10 for an 8:35am flight. No one in Medallion line, so checked in there. I was able to switch my seat from 1C to 1E, so I had no bulkhead wall in front of me & could stretch my legs.
This flight is an L1011-500 and it was full. Only about 4 empty seats in back.
I had booked with a Syswtemwide upgrade, then called at the 72 hour mark to switch to E-certs…NO. Asked at the counter if it could be changed to E-certs - YES! I just love saving those SWU's, but always wonder if something really changes or the Medallion CSA just doesn't look hard enough. Beckles….any idea?
CRC to get coffee & WSJ for the flight, no one there. A lot of people from a Hawaiian Airlines flight came in about 10 minutes later. Hawaiian uses CRC on day-of-departure for their elites. Got to gate just as they began to board, area was jammed with people. Got aboard & saw Dave, a PDX based FA that I've flown with before, was one of the FC FA's. We chatted for awhile, he took my breakfast order in the galley and the female FA told me I needed to sit down! He told her it was OK, he knew me. She made a face & walked away??
I did have a chance to look at the pax manifest & am happy to say there were no non-revs in FC. The interesting note about the FC cabin was there were 9 FF's (no Medallion status), 5 PM/MM's, 7 GM's and 3 FC/FO's. What was curious was there were at least 3 GM's in the back. Could it be they didn't try to upgrade, or waited too long to request it? They surely could get upfront over the FF's, I would assume. As far as I know, an FF is just a regular SkyMiles pax with no elite status.
Door closed at 5 minutes prior to pushback & we were on the way. Pilot came on & said we had major tailwinds today and he was using a different flight plan, so combined we would make up time from the scheduled flight time. (Last time I took this flight about a month ago, it was 4:22 flight time) Today's flight time was 3:47, and we had steady 65-75 mph tailwinds all the way with ground speed of 615-635 mph. DL gives 2,176 miles for this flight, pilot said actual miles were only 1,950 (which seems low if you look at it on the map).
Breakfast choices were: Fruit, cereal and yogurt; omelette w/zucchini & corn (that's a new one for me); pancakes w/turkey sausage. Chose the p'cakes…they were great. Served with raisins and chopped pecans on top, along with a warm fruit compote and a terrific banana nut muffin. I almost never drink while flying, but decided to treat myself today & had 2 Mimosa w/breakfast, and finished with coffee. After they took the tray away, I promptly fell asleep and woke up as they were starting to serve cheese & crackers, about 45 minutes before landing. Arrived at 3:45pm instead of 4:10…a very smooth & uneventful flight.
Arrived at T-2 so I didn't need to take the train to Baggage, but it is a long walk. My bag came out fairly fast & I grabbed the shuttle to Dollar. They were out of full-size/luxury cars, so my upgrade was no good. Got a Chrysler Cirrus (first time). Not a bad car, a bit smaller than I'm used to, but it drives & handles well. Drove the 20+ miles to the Courtyard and my room key was waiting for me.
Staying at the Courtyard by the airport tomorrow night, early flight to MCO on Thurs. Next segment of the report probably from Orlando on Thurs. or Fri.
Hey Hammertoad, are you home this week? I'm heading your way…
Oct 5, 1999, 6:12 pm
#2
Join Date: Apr 1999
Location: SFO
Programs: No status anymore. Former CO PLT, NW PLT, AS MVP
Posts: 502
hehehe...shadow, you and I write such similar reports. If it weren't for the different airlines and handles, nobody'd be able to tell our reports apart! 
So naturally, I have to compliment you on a great report now.
------------------
Michael
OnePass Platinum
So naturally, I have to compliment you on a great report now.
------------------
Michael
OnePass Platinum
Oct 5, 1999, 10:25 pm
#4
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kirkland, WA
Posts: 6,932
The pilot may have meant 1950 nautical miles, which is generally the unit used in avaiation. A nautical mile is approximately 1.15 statute miles, or for your trip 2242, close to the 2176 crow-flies miles quoted.
Oct 6, 1999, 7:26 am
#6
Original Member and FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kansas City, MO, USA
Programs: DL PM/MM, AA ExPlat, Hyatt Glob, HH Dia, National ECE, Hertz PC
Posts: 16,579
Switching SWU -> SMU
The inventory changes, that may sound lame, but that would seem to be the explanation.
SWU -> G class
SMU -> V class
If there is a V class seat available, they can switch you, if not you can't. That's not to say some agents may not try to circumvent that, but I'm not sure they can. At MSY a few months ago the woman next to me tried pulling this, except she made her reservation with a SWU without actually having one to use and was trying to use SMU's instead and the computer wouldn't let the novice agent do it and she got the supervisor and the supervisor explained the situation to the customer ... the customer seemed annoyed, but it was the customer's own fault for trying to cheat the system.
The inventory changes, that may sound lame, but that would seem to be the explanation.
SWU -> G class
SMU -> V class
If there is a V class seat available, they can switch you, if not you can't. That's not to say some agents may not try to circumvent that, but I'm not sure they can. At MSY a few months ago the woman next to me tried pulling this, except she made her reservation with a SWU without actually having one to use and was trying to use SMU's instead and the computer wouldn't let the novice agent do it and she got the supervisor and the supervisor explained the situation to the customer ... the customer seemed annoyed, but it was the customer's own fault for trying to cheat the system.
Oct 6, 1999, 8:06 am
#7
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Rochester, NY USA
Programs: Hilton - Diamond, IHG - Platinum
Posts: 1,424
Shadow, Is it possible that the FF's in FC were there as a result of using miles? I don't have any preferred status in any program, but since most of my travel (which is mostly leisure) is transatlantic, I usually accumulate a reasonable number of miles. Add to that the Diner's club miles, Visa miles, etc, I usually come up with enough miles to "buy" a decent number of upgrades. I would probably show up in a manifest as just an FF.
Oct 6, 1999, 1:33 pm
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,178
Larrude, that's a good possibility. Also, I know there were 2 couples going on to Italy & France. If they booked in BC, they may have gotten a comp on the domestic leg to FC.
BTW, just went in a checked my DL account. Not only was I able to switch from SWU to certs, they never took any certs (3) out of my account! That's not such a big deal though, since I usually have more certs than I can use in a year. I can't tell you how much money I've saved since switching from UA, and not having to buy upgrades.
Hammertoad, I'll send you an e-mail...
BTW, just went in a checked my DL account. Not only was I able to switch from SWU to certs, they never took any certs (3) out of my account! That's not such a big deal though, since I usually have more certs than I can use in a year. I can't tell you how much money I've saved since switching from UA, and not having to buy upgrades.
Hammertoad, I'll send you an e-mail...
Oct 6, 1999, 1:47 pm
#9
Original Member and FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kansas City, MO, USA
Programs: DL PM/MM, AA ExPlat, Hyatt Glob, HH Dia, National ECE, Hertz PC
Posts: 16,579
What class did your flights show as, V or G (it will show as YV or YG, where Y is the coach fare you paid)?
It sounds like the agent left it as a SWU and just didn't collect your cert (which will often happen).
As a GM on DL I can't imagine ever paying for an upgrade ... I have 28 800 mile segment upgrades and 4 systemwides right now, enough to last me quite a while ...
It sounds like the agent left it as a SWU and just didn't collect your cert (which will often happen).
As a GM on DL I can't imagine ever paying for an upgrade ... I have 28 800 mile segment upgrades and 4 systemwides right now, enough to last me quite a while ...
Oct 6, 1999, 4:52 pm
#10
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,178
Beckles, it was a YG, so I guess you're right.
I just checked & I've got a total of 30 certs in my account, using 1 tomorrow for MCO, but should get 8 more after I return from this trip. Also have 4 SWU's, since they didn't take 1 for this trip.
I just checked & I've got a total of 30 certs in my account, using 1 tomorrow for MCO, but should get 8 more after I return from this trip. Also have 4 SWU's, since they didn't take 1 for this trip.
Oct 6, 1999, 6:31 pm
#11
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,178
Thought I'd do this little addendum before I leave for MCO tomorrow…
I'm staying at the Courtyard at ATL airport, literally on the edge of the property. All around me are DL buildings; Corp. HQ, Technology Center, Credit Union, etc. I went out to gas up the rental car before my flight in the morning & asked the guy for a good place to eat. After going through 'what kind of food do you like', etc., he told me to go 2 blocks down Virginia Ave. on the corner. A lot of the DL people eat there.
If looks were a factor, I would have not even stopped. But there it was, a sad looking rundown old building with a lot of cars, so I went in to….K.C.'s Flying Pig Bar-B-Que("under new ownership" it said on the sign). I was definitely in the minority, because I wasn't a DL employee. This is where a lot of the mechanics, baggage & ramp people eat, as well as corp. types that work 2nd shift. The guys that come in with their knee guards around their ankles are a dead giveaway.
Place your order at the counter, go sit at tables with mismatched chairs & plastic checkered tablecloths, and wait for them to call your number. There is no ambience, but there sure is great BBQ, and the cole slaw is to die for. Great people watching place too, especially listening to some of the conversations all around (can't help but hear it). Come to think of it, there is an ambience. It's just down-home good country cookin'.
I don't want to see how they make it, or where they make it. That might scare me. Just one small suggestion. The guy who takes your order…don't look at his teeth! I think he was the understudy for Billy Bob Thornton in Sling Blade…
More to follow…hoping to meet with Hammertoad & possibly Vulcan in MCO.
I'm staying at the Courtyard at ATL airport, literally on the edge of the property. All around me are DL buildings; Corp. HQ, Technology Center, Credit Union, etc. I went out to gas up the rental car before my flight in the morning & asked the guy for a good place to eat. After going through 'what kind of food do you like', etc., he told me to go 2 blocks down Virginia Ave. on the corner. A lot of the DL people eat there.
If looks were a factor, I would have not even stopped. But there it was, a sad looking rundown old building with a lot of cars, so I went in to….K.C.'s Flying Pig Bar-B-Que("under new ownership" it said on the sign). I was definitely in the minority, because I wasn't a DL employee. This is where a lot of the mechanics, baggage & ramp people eat, as well as corp. types that work 2nd shift. The guys that come in with their knee guards around their ankles are a dead giveaway.
Place your order at the counter, go sit at tables with mismatched chairs & plastic checkered tablecloths, and wait for them to call your number. There is no ambience, but there sure is great BBQ, and the cole slaw is to die for. Great people watching place too, especially listening to some of the conversations all around (can't help but hear it). Come to think of it, there is an ambience. It's just down-home good country cookin'.
I don't want to see how they make it, or where they make it. That might scare me. Just one small suggestion. The guy who takes your order…don't look at his teeth! I think he was the understudy for Billy Bob Thornton in Sling Blade…
More to follow…hoping to meet with Hammertoad & possibly Vulcan in MCO.
Oct 6, 1999, 7:02 pm
#12
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: JFK/LAX
Posts: 1,436
Probably some of the FF's in F were actual full fare F customers. On a recent LAX-JFK in BizElite (BE) with only one empty seat, next to me when I checked the manifest it read 1 PM/MM, 1 GM, 4 FO, 1 NRSA. The rest were FF or had nothing next to their names. Shocked me as that's out of 47 pax. But maybe BE is really catching on--as it was suggested some of the FF's were connecting int'l pax.
the scribbler.
when I checked the manifest it read 1 PM/MM, 1 GM, 4 FO, 1 NRSA. The rest were FF or had nothing next to their names. Shocked me as that's out of 47 pax. But maybe BE is really catching on--as it was suggested some of the FF's were connecting int'l pax. the scribbler.
Oct 6, 1999, 7:48 pm
#13
Join Date: May 1999
Location: New York City
Programs: UA MM-1P, Hilton Life Diamond, Marriot Life Gold, ICH Spire
Posts: 4,080
shadow: Most of the truly great barbecue places seem to have a bald headed guy with few teeth wearing an undershirt stained with blood and grease.
Oct 9, 1999, 10:09 pm
#14
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,178
Thursday 10/7/99 ATL-MCO
Returned car to Dollar & arrived about 1 hr. before flight. Departure from Gate A12, which was convenient since it was right next to the CRC. Got my coffee & paper, went to desk to ask if there was any way they could change return flight from SWU's to segments. They told me it was too early to do since it was before 72 hours. Told her I would be on the plane at the 72 hr. mark, so I could'nt call & could they do anything. She told me to leave my ticket with her & she would try. About 10 minutes later they paged me to the desk & told me 'no problem' to switch to e-certs. Nice!
Flight was on an L1011-1 with 32 FC seats, I'm in 3E. Flight was full, actually overbooked but I didn't volunteer. Lots of kids on flight, starting holiday weekend. Flight was just a bit over an hour and they served a full breakfast (cereal, fruit, yogurt, bagel). Smooth & quiet, arrived on time in spite of some heavy thundershowers in MCO.
Baggage was fast, on the Hertz bus to the lot about 1 mile off site. My name wasn't up on the board, so I went inside to find out why. They told me my CC in profile was expired (why didn't the web-site tell me that so I could update it then). Gave them new #, got a Taurus & headed to the Courtyard.
This C'yard is only about 2 months old, 6 floors & pretty nice. Problem was it was too early to check in because they were full the night before & were short on housekeeping help. Come back at 2pm (this was at 11:15am). Went to Conv. Ctr. to help with set-up of booth, then left for airport run to pick-up a co-worker. Got back to C'yard at 2:30, check in no problem, nice room but the hallways were ice cold. Went to Kinko's to get some order forms & a poster printed, and while there I got a call from Hammertoad. Made tentative plans to meet on Friday after the show closed.
Met up with another co-worker back at hotel & we decided to eat Tex-Mex, so we went to Church Street Station to Amigo's. Food was OK, but had 2 great Margaritas. Wandered around the area for awhile, but finally decided we were all tired, so called it a night.
10/8/99
Trade show opened at 9am, and was extremely busy. At 2pm, my boss informed me we had dinner plans with a client at 7:30. Since the show ran until 6pm, I wasn't going to make the meeting with Hammertoad. Called & left him a voice mail that we'll have to try again some other time. He did e-mail me back & agreed we'll have to try again.
Also got an e-mail from Vulcan, who was in town for a family matter. Told him there wasn't a chance we could get together due to my busy schedule. To both Hammertoad & Vulcan, sorry we couldn't get together while I was in town.
Our business dinner was at Straub's Seafood, on Colonial Ave. (Rt. 50). Excellent meal, lots of good food and wine. Appetizers were especially good...coconut shrimp, tuna tips (chunks of tuna w/creole mustard dip), mussels and crab legs. We were all really tired after dinner, so just back to the C'yard for a nightcap and a chance to check e-mail and F-T.
10/9/99
Show was busier today than yesterday, went by very quickly. Beautiful day but very humid. Show ended at 5pm, we packed up & were out by 6pm. Back to clean up for a 7:30 business dinner at Charlie's Steak House. Charlie's is allegedly one of the top 10 steakhouses in the US (see list in any airline magazine). Big place, very crowded, but we were seated within 15 minutes. Had a great wine (Frog's Leap Merlot 1995), loads of appetizers (great escargot, 'gator bites and peel & eat shrimp), a huge salad bar and a great Filet. Dessert of Key Lime Pie and cappuccino finished it off nicely.
Back to C'yard to pack for trip back to PDX on Sunday morning….
[This message has been edited by shadow (edited 10-10-1999).]
Returned car to Dollar & arrived about 1 hr. before flight. Departure from Gate A12, which was convenient since it was right next to the CRC. Got my coffee & paper, went to desk to ask if there was any way they could change return flight from SWU's to segments. They told me it was too early to do since it was before 72 hours. Told her I would be on the plane at the 72 hr. mark, so I could'nt call & could they do anything. She told me to leave my ticket with her & she would try. About 10 minutes later they paged me to the desk & told me 'no problem' to switch to e-certs. Nice!
Flight was on an L1011-1 with 32 FC seats, I'm in 3E. Flight was full, actually overbooked but I didn't volunteer. Lots of kids on flight, starting holiday weekend. Flight was just a bit over an hour and they served a full breakfast (cereal, fruit, yogurt, bagel). Smooth & quiet, arrived on time in spite of some heavy thundershowers in MCO.
Baggage was fast, on the Hertz bus to the lot about 1 mile off site. My name wasn't up on the board, so I went inside to find out why. They told me my CC in profile was expired (why didn't the web-site tell me that so I could update it then). Gave them new #, got a Taurus & headed to the Courtyard.
This C'yard is only about 2 months old, 6 floors & pretty nice. Problem was it was too early to check in because they were full the night before & were short on housekeeping help. Come back at 2pm (this was at 11:15am). Went to Conv. Ctr. to help with set-up of booth, then left for airport run to pick-up a co-worker. Got back to C'yard at 2:30, check in no problem, nice room but the hallways were ice cold. Went to Kinko's to get some order forms & a poster printed, and while there I got a call from Hammertoad. Made tentative plans to meet on Friday after the show closed.
Met up with another co-worker back at hotel & we decided to eat Tex-Mex, so we went to Church Street Station to Amigo's. Food was OK, but had 2 great Margaritas. Wandered around the area for awhile, but finally decided we were all tired, so called it a night.
10/8/99
Trade show opened at 9am, and was extremely busy. At 2pm, my boss informed me we had dinner plans with a client at 7:30. Since the show ran until 6pm, I wasn't going to make the meeting with Hammertoad. Called & left him a voice mail that we'll have to try again some other time. He did e-mail me back & agreed we'll have to try again.
Also got an e-mail from Vulcan, who was in town for a family matter. Told him there wasn't a chance we could get together due to my busy schedule. To both Hammertoad & Vulcan, sorry we couldn't get together while I was in town.
Our business dinner was at Straub's Seafood, on Colonial Ave. (Rt. 50). Excellent meal, lots of good food and wine. Appetizers were especially good...coconut shrimp, tuna tips (chunks of tuna w/creole mustard dip), mussels and crab legs. We were all really tired after dinner, so just back to the C'yard for a nightcap and a chance to check e-mail and F-T.
10/9/99
Show was busier today than yesterday, went by very quickly. Beautiful day but very humid. Show ended at 5pm, we packed up & were out by 6pm. Back to clean up for a 7:30 business dinner at Charlie's Steak House. Charlie's is allegedly one of the top 10 steakhouses in the US (see list in any airline magazine). Big place, very crowded, but we were seated within 15 minutes. Had a great wine (Frog's Leap Merlot 1995), loads of appetizers (great escargot, 'gator bites and peel & eat shrimp), a huge salad bar and a great Filet. Dessert of Key Lime Pie and cappuccino finished it off nicely.
Back to C'yard to pack for trip back to PDX on Sunday morning….
[This message has been edited by shadow (edited 10-10-1999).]
Oct 10, 1999, 10:03 am
#15
Commander Catcop
Join Date: May 1998
Posts: 10,259
FOUR PAWS UP Reports as usual Shadow. It seems you had a busy time.
RichG: Not all great BBQ places have that disgusting looking man behind the counter.
IN the greatest city in the world, NYC, there is a place in SOHO called Tennesee Mountain that has well groomed people cooking and serving great BBQ. I thank Boomer for introducing me to this place, an unusual place amid the growing number of chic boutiques and fashion models strolling around the place. (Quiet Lion will attest to this.)
RichG: Not all great BBQ places have that disgusting looking man behind the counter.
IN the greatest city in the world, NYC, there is a place in SOHO called Tennesee Mountain that has well groomed people cooking and serving great BBQ. I thank Boomer for introducing me to this place, an unusual place amid the growing number of chic boutiques and fashion models strolling around the place. (Quiet Lion will attest to this.)