near disaster

I’m a fan of The Far Side. Gary Larson often used airline travel as a subject. One of my favorites is a cartoon showing people on an airliner. One man has a newspaper with a headline that says something about mid-air collisions. Most of the passengers are looking out of a window with their hair […]

{ 6 comments }

Read the full post →

In 2006 my now-husband and I were flying from Dallas to Vegas. Since my “spare plane out back” adventure in 2002 I have become increasingly afraid of flying, to the point where now I’m nearly crippled with fear. But I’m on this full plane to Vegas going over the mountains on approach. The turbulence is […]

{ 6 comments }

Read the full post →

A few years ago, I took off from Albany on an AA super80.  It was cloudy and raining when we took off, but everything went as normal.   We were bouncing around quite a bit due to the turbulence of the storm, but basically everything was OK.  About 10 minutes into the flight, as we were […]

{ 11 comments }

Read the full post →

I’ve been a frequent flier for longer than I can remember.  I’ve seen just about everything, and experienced just about everything.  With that in mind, some things that I either take for granted, or just let pass, are a true hell for others.  So here’s a story about a flight from hell – one for […]

{ 8 comments }

Read the full post →

Back when my daughter was a toddler, perhaps 2.5 or 3 years old, I took a flight with her on AA from LAX to SJC. The plane was a beat up old 737 that American had acquired in its recent buyout of AirCal (the interior purple color scheme gave it away). My daughter was an […]

{ 18 comments }

Read the full post →

About 20 years ago, I was on a flight with my then infant daughter and my wife. I don’t remember specifically what aircraft we were on except that it was a UA flight on a plane with 2 aisles (so: a “heavy”). We took off in a snow storm from Hartford’s Bradley airport bound for […]

{ 6 comments }

Read the full post →

I flew Pan Am several times never had a good experience. Here is the worst: Lining up for takeoff from Honolulu, a great BOOM!! made the whole plane shudder. Never mind, we took off anyway, the airplane shuddering slightly until we lifted off. Sitting next to me was a Pan Am pilot. After we were […]

{ 9 comments }

Read the full post →

In the summer of 1977 I went to Norway with my parents to visit my father’s family. At the tender age of almost 7 I had already made this same trip 3 other times in my life, and I thought flying was fun. The trip to Norway was nothing to brag about, with TWA successfully […]

{ 4 comments }

Read the full post →

I was flying from Memphis, through Pittsburgh, on my way to ABE to attend my uncle’s funeral. I was not in a particularly cheerful mood, especially since he was my only uncle and I loved him a lot. USAir had upgraded me to 1A and the flight was uneventful, although delayed out of Memphis because […]

{ 3 comments }

Read the full post →

Frigid Flight

October 13, 2008

in Weather Stories

This was the proverbial flight from hell that put me off flying for several years. Back in the mid 80’s I was returning to Calgary from Ottawa during a long cold winter. Waiting to board I watched them de-ice the plane as it must have been at least -20C. Once on board there seemed to […]

{ 5 comments }

Read the full post →

Earthquake In The Sky

September 13, 2008

in Weather Stories

I don’t fly much, maybe two or three times a year tops. I flew to Florida this year to be in my best friend from high school’s beach wedding in June. I flew with Air Tran from Philadelphia and I had a stop in Atlanta. I should say here I NEVER have any issues at […]

{ 14 comments }

Read the full post →

My husband and I had planned a quick 3 day trip over 4th of July weekend to Las Vegas. Our flight on Alaska Airlines from Seattle to Vegas was delayed over an hour due to mechanical issues. Finally they board the plane, close the doors and were almost ready to go when apparently there was […]

{ 7 comments }

Read the full post →