Published: Monday, November 9, 2009
AIR TRAVEL
Over-stuffed bins just the beginning
I read the Nov. 2 editorial with great amusement having just returned on flights from Seattle to Barcelona and back. One can only hope that excess baggage is your only problem.
Yes, I did take a carry-on, as well as a purse, but watched as guitars, tennis rackets, shopping bags, diaper bags and backpacks that should have only been carried by Sherpas were heaved into overhead bins, arranged and rearranged, only to be retrieved while in flight. The diagram “box” measuring the dimensions of your carry-on is ignored completely, but the metal reusable water bottle I had just purchased was confiscated. I was told that I could turn back through security to empty the 2-plus ounces of water inside or relinquish it. One look at the increasing security line helped make up my mind.
And how about the parents in Row 22, along with all of the other passengers enduring the flight from JFK to Seattle with their screaming 2-year-old — not intermittently but from wheels up to touch-down. He wasn’t missing daddy; daddy was drinking beer, eating chips and stretching in the aisle while mommy tried without success to make his “binky” seem palatable. Little “Johnny” did wear out on the vocal scale from time to time but it became entertainment to guess when he would rev up again.
Kudos to the flight attendants who tried to keep a fine line between the passengers complaints and not offending the parents. How they kept their sanity while tending to 250-plus people amazed me.
A few words of advice. If you’re going to fly soon, take hand sanitizer (not more than 3 ounces), your own little pillow, $10 to buy a chemical chicken sandwich, and a deep breath along with your sense of humor and realize that the days of flying when we got dressed up and used our “indoor” voices and manners are over.
The sight of the Space Needle and our fresh-air mist never looked so good.
Carolyn Barkley
Marysville
Yes, I did take a carry-on, as well as a purse, but watched as guitars, tennis rackets, shopping bags, diaper bags and backpacks that should have only been carried by Sherpas were heaved into overhead bins, arranged and rearranged, only to be retrieved while in flight. The diagram “box” measuring the dimensions of your carry-on is ignored completely, but the metal reusable water bottle I had just purchased was confiscated. I was told that I could turn back through security to empty the 2-plus ounces of water inside or relinquish it. One look at the increasing security line helped make up my mind.
And how about the parents in Row 22, along with all of the other passengers enduring the flight from JFK to Seattle with their screaming 2-year-old — not intermittently but from wheels up to touch-down. He wasn’t missing daddy; daddy was drinking beer, eating chips and stretching in the aisle while mommy tried without success to make his “binky” seem palatable. Little “Johnny” did wear out on the vocal scale from time to time but it became entertainment to guess when he would rev up again.
Kudos to the flight attendants who tried to keep a fine line between the passengers complaints and not offending the parents. How they kept their sanity while tending to 250-plus people amazed me.
A few words of advice. If you’re going to fly soon, take hand sanitizer (not more than 3 ounces), your own little pillow, $10 to buy a chemical chicken sandwich, and a deep breath along with your sense of humor and realize that the days of flying when we got dressed up and used our “indoor” voices and manners are over.
The sight of the Space Needle and our fresh-air mist never looked so good.
Carolyn Barkley
Marysville
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