Flights From Hell flies you into the crazy skies with stories about the adventures and anxieties of airplane travel.

Commercial airline travel takes us far, far out of our comfort zone. We're herded into cylinders that zip hundreds of miles per hour at 30,000 feet, subjected to security screenings, confronted with delays and lost luggage, rushed to catch connecting flights, constrained to small seats, scrunched up with strangers, and surrounded by pathogens. Is it any wonder we end up becoming a bundle of raw nerves by journey's end?

Double Double Man

May 26, 2009 Passenger Stories

A few years ago I was on a Southwest flight from Albuquerque to Phoenix. Being frequent business travelers my co-worker and I usually sit in the rear of the plane with the hope of finding a little peace and quiet. It had been a long week and we had a few things to wrap up […]

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The Pugnacious Passenger

May 26, 2009 Passenger Stories

I made a mistake of taking a red eye flight. Everyone was rude. One lady’s kid had taken my reserved seat and she told me I would have to find somewhere to sit. I called over to the flight attendant and she made the kid move. I thought the lady was going to let me […]

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Surly Seat Kicker

May 26, 2009 Passenger Stories

I was on a relatively short flight, sitting in coach behind a family with a father, mother, and a boy of perhaps seven. A few minutes into the flight, I feel a kick to the back of my seat. Kick. Kick. Kick. “All right,” I think to myself. “There’s no sense being unpleasant. Surely one […]

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Red Eye From California

May 25, 2009 Baby & Kid Stories

My 18 month old son and I arrived at the San Francisco Airport at 10PM. The flight was from SFO to ORD. We then picked up another flight from ORD to BUF. It was my first time going home since my divorce and I was already half dreading/half looking forward to the visit. The first […]

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Child’s Fouled-Up Flight

May 25, 2009 Baby & Kid Stories

About 12 years ago, when I was 12, I was excited to venture off on my own, and fly to the wondrous, cold world of Minneapolis, MN. Now, we’re not talking long flights, or complicated flights… BWI to Chicago to Minneapolis. Easy enough! But apparently not easy enough for everyone. My mom booked the flight, […]

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No Kids Under 10 Allowed

May 25, 2009 Baby & Kid Stories

I don’t know about anyone else, but I don’t think children under the age of 10 should be allowed on planes. They simply can’t sit still or be quiet. I was travelling from DC to OK City. Naturally, I got a Mom and her boy behind me. I kid you not….he kicked the back of […]

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Romper Room

May 25, 2009 Baby & Kid Stories

I had been on a whirl wind tour of the USA on work related business. I was gone for almost a month. Living out of a suitcase for that long gets old fast. Anyway, I had arrived in Chicago from Salt Lake earlier in the day. There was to be a connecting flight from Chicago […]

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Mommy’s “Drinky” Is In Demand

May 24, 2009 Baby & Kid Stories

My wife and I were on a trip to New Orleans (pre-Katrina) and were returning to Nashville on Southwest. The particular flight was booked solid and as we boarded two of the only seats that were available were at the very front, facing the other passengers. It was a short flight so we didn’t mind […]

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Good Deed For Naught

May 24, 2009 Baby & Kid Stories

A couple of years ago, my wife and I were returning from a vacation celebrating our first year anniversary. We were flying Southwest and sitting next to each other on the aisle near the back of the plane. A young family gets on the plane late and the wife and young child have seats across […]

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The Tourist Flight From Hell!

May 24, 2009 Baby & Kid Stories

I live between Denver and Orlando and had until the airline crisis always taken red eye flights into and out of Orlando. When most of the airlines cut the red eye flights, I had no choice but to fly with the ranks of the screaming kids. I have traveled a lot but not a single […]

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Name Changed To Protect The Guilty

May 17, 2009 Luggage Stories

Flight Charlotte, NC to Seattle, WA – Airline’s name changed to protect the guilty. We boarded our plane at 9:00 A M in Charlotte, NC for our short hop to Dulles in Washington, DC. We arrived and made our way to the ”American Western” terminal for the second leg of our flight. As we walk […]

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One Delay After Another

May 17, 2009 Delay/Cancellation Stories

I was on a flight home for Christmas from San Francisco to Milwaukee with a connection is Chicago. The first half of the flight went off without a hitch. I get into Chicago on time and have about an hour to kill before catching my flight to Milwaukee which is only an hour away by […]

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