Airport Stories

Unattended Baggage, Unintended Consequences

October 6, 2009 Airport Stories

Reading about the dismal attitudes of the flight attendants reminded me of a trip home to Pittsburgh (PA) Greater International Airport. Actually getting there was not the problem, it was getting back and having to deal with incredibly obnoxious gate attendants that was the problem. There were a surprising number of gate attendants. This was [...]

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Barefoot & Passportless

September 10, 2009 Airport Stories

I was flying from Portland OR to Puerto Vallarta last November and I had a layover in Phoenix. Our connecting flight was on the opposite end of the airport from where we had landed, and we were scheduled to board in 30 minutes. We walk about 20 minutes to the other end of the airport [...]

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Grilled By Security

September 5, 2009 Airport Stories

Last year, I booked a round trip flight from Philadelphia to San Diego. I arrived at the Philadelphia airport counter with an hour to spare before take off. The woman at the counter said, “I really doubt you can make this flight since you decided to cut it so close. You better run.” I ran [...]

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Car Left Running In Front Of Airport

September 3, 2009 Airport Stories

I’ve got to tattle on myself. I used to travel by plane every week for a living in the days way before 9/11 (circa Reagan Presidency). Back then my darling husband used to drive me to the curbside check-in before going on to his job and we avoided all the expensive airport parking. One Monday [...]

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Is Airport Screening a Joke or What???

September 1, 2009 Airport Stories

I’ve been examined, metal detected, my luggage has been opened AFTER being approved by the screeners, tested for explosives, pulled out of line for nothing, delayed and made to feel like a criminal without one reasonable reason. No wonder I don’t like to fly any longer. I understand security but…. We went through an hour [...]

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Disabled And Inconvenienced

September 1, 2009 Airport Stories

This story has less to do with an actual flight and more to do with the peculiar mayhem I had to endure during a stopover in Detroit. I was flying from Hamburg, Germany to Halifax, Canada and had to change planes in Amsterdam and Detroit. I don’t fly very often, and this was only my [...]

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Scanner Loses Belongings

July 18, 2009 Airport Stories

Going through security in the Orlando airport and running late as usual, I placed a satchel containing reading material into a plastic tray for x-ray scanning; the top of the satchel was below the top of the tray. On top of the satchel I placed my eyeglasses, watch and car keys. I cleared the body [...]

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Airport Escalator And Upside Down Lady

May 7, 2009 Airport Stories

Much of the adventures of flying usually begin before you are anywhere near the plane. I was traveling from Philadelphia to Seattle. It was relatively slow in the airport. I checked in at the kiosk and proceeded to “up” escalator on the way to security. As I approached the escalator there was an elderly Hispanic [...]

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TSA Ruins Vacation

April 7, 2009 Airport Stories

My wife and I just returned from vacation. All was good except for our experience with the TSA going and coming. At the airport before we departed, my wife was forced to undergo a complete pat-down. She had surgical metal throughout her body along with a morphine pump. The scars were there. Why was she [...]

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Immigration Kerfuffle

October 7, 2008 Airport Stories

Arriving in the USA has always been a security nightmare, much worse now when, despite notices telling you that the staff guarantee a courteous and pleasant welcome (???). This certainly wasn’t in evidence when we arrived in Atlanta on a flight from Manchester UK (23 Sept 2008). We had 1.5 hours to connect for a [...]

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