I was on the Alaska Airlines plane that crashed today for two flight segments (getting off in SFO) before it went down to PVR and returned, never to make it back to SFO. I am in absolute shock, and glad that I have a trip report to write, after a nice weekend in Alaska. After about a million miles in the air, I absolutely am beyond words right now.

I know how you feel as I have had the same experience twice in the past. On one occasion when I heard on the radio that the equipment I just got off of had blown a door and several were killed, I just pulled off the freeway and sat there shaking for several minutes.

Just thankful that you weren't on this one.

Eastbay1K, I don't blame you. It's too awful for words...

What an awful shock...

EastBay, I share your shock. I'm on the SEA-LAX or SEA-San Jose commute on a regular basis, and my records show I'd been a passenger on Ship 963 twice in 1999 alone... and the knowledge that the lost crew and FAs may have been hi-nice-to-see-you-again type friends of mine... doesn't bear dwelling on.

This was so close to home. It's been hard to sleep this week. And it gets harder as we learn exactly, precisely what the last ten minutes of Flight 261 were like. I love gazing down at the Malibu-to-Santa-Barbara coastline on climbout from LAX... my God. I pray for the folks lost.

Having just returned from South America I didn't hear about the incident til yesterday. While down there, I called Alaska and booked a flight for today from SNA to OAK.

When I arrived today at SNA there wasn't any joking around at the counter like there usually is. Every Alaska employee I saw had blue ribbons pinned on in remembrance. On the plane, the FA's were very pleasant, but again, no joking around.

I never thought about cancelling my flight as I have the utmost confidence in Alaska. I renewed my support for Alaska as I watched the baggage crew loading a Continental plane next to ours. They dropped a bag on the tarmac and they never noticed it til they ran it over with tractor. They brushed the tire tracks of the bag and tossed it aboard the plane.

I'm flying back to SNA tomorrow hoping the staff spirits are a little brighter. Does anyone have any ideas for a gift or something to make them feel better?

I don't know if anything will make them feel better quite yet. But I'm sure they will appreciate whatever gesture you bring. I'm still feeling very weird 3 days later. I also read an inaccuracy in a report in the Seattle paper regarding the crew earlier in the day (as I was on the aircraft) but decided its not worth even bringing it up because the crew info is readily verifiable by AS. The "funny" thing is that I really dislike the MD-80 series, and was eager for AS to get rid of them. The other thing was that I thought the service was pretty marginal on some of the segments of my trip. It all seems so insignificant right now. Friends around the country who I talk to once a year or so have called because the crash made them think of me, knowing that I fly a lot, and like AS, and were in absolute disbelief when I told them that I left that very aircraft at about 8:10 am that morning.

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[This message has been edited by shadow (edited 02-03-2000).]