January 14, 2015
Time it should take to get from Frankfurt to San Francisco: 11.5 hours.
Time it took to get from Frankfurt to San Francisco: 23 hours.
Amount of time during this 23 hours that I spent on the plane: 22 hours 45 minutes.
Two words to describe the journey: No good.
We've all had our share of flight delays; sitting on the plane for an hour before taking off, missing a connecting flight, even waiting an extra couple hours at the gate before getting on. Sometimes they'll even call you before you go to the airport, so you can relax at home, which is really nice. But my last trip to Hawaii was unlike anything I've experienced. The total trip from Warsaw to Hawaii was supposed to take about 23 hours, but it took 42, with special thanks to the United flight from Frankfurt to San Francisco.
After a smooth flight from Warsaw to Frankfurt, the flight from Frankfurt to SFO was scheduled to take 11.5 hours, giving me 2 hours in SF before my connecting flight to Maui. I was to get to Maui around 7:30 pm, in time to go to Zippy's for dinner with my parents before getting a good night's sleep. How quickly things change.
I should have taken it as a sign when the older woman from Israel next to me asked the flight attendant "How old is this plane? Why aren't there individual TVs on the seat backs?" The very friendly flight attendant responded "Cuz it's OOOOLD", to which the lady said "You're telling me! Are we even going to get to SF?" Now I know that those few words don't actually physically affect anything, but there are certain things you just don't say on a plane. And just like the words "crash" or "bomb" or "spicy burritos", implying that a plane is not going to reach it's destination is probably one of them.
As usual, I fell asleep while taxiing, hoping to sleep through the first hour or two of the flight. When I woke up 30 minutes later, I looked out the window, expecting to see blue skies above and puffy clouds below. But instead I saw puffy clouds above and a still runway below. Damn, we were still on the ground. The nearby flight attendant told us that someone in the back of the plane got sick and needed a doctor. So we waited for a medic to come on the plane and take him off. That's understandable. Hopefully it was just a precaution. But because they had to search for his checked bag to remove it, it took some time. On a 747 with 400 people on it, finding a single suitcase is like finding a needle in a small hay stack. After about 2 hours, we were allegedly ready to go.
Until we weren't.
I was already assuming I wasn't going to make my connection in SF, since we were already 2 hours late, so I started telling friends in SF to expect to see me for dinner that night (and to let me sleep on their couch). I'd still get to SF with time enough to visit, eat some good Mexican food, and go for a couple drinks. I was actually looking forward to it.
But after we heard the pilot announce we were ready to take off (for the third time), we sat around for 20 more minutes, until he came back on to say that there was a small technical problem and we had to wait even longer. Another 1.5 hours later, we were still there. As we were approaching 4 hours of total delay, spending the entire time on the plane, he came back to tell us (in a very dramatic voice) what was about to happen. Because we had already been delayed 4 hours, the crew would not be able to fly all the way to SF because they would exceed their maximum working hour limit. So in the next 10 minutes, they would decide to either a) re-route to Chicago, where we'd change crew and immediately continue to SF, or b) let us off the plane since we were getting crazy and they were still waiting for approval for the re-route.
They actually told us we could get off the plane, but reminded us that if we did, it would only delay our departure even further. So basically they said "you can get off the plane, but don't get off the plane". This was fine with me, because I wanted to leave ASAP. was ready to lay down in the aisle to prevent others from getting off.
Finally, after 4.5 hours of sitting on the plane (and only 1 guy deciding to stay in Frankfurt, but without any checked bags so we weren't delayed), we finally took off for Chicago (which I must remind you is not San Francisco). At least I was getting SMSs from United telling me that we were delayed. Which was not helpful at all.
After landing in Chicago, the old crew got off, a new crew got on (which they flew out from SF to meet us), and they told us we'd be leaving in 30-45 minutes. Of course, after an hour, the cleaners were still on the plane, with no end in sight. Because we had already been on the plane for 13+ hours, the bathrooms were nasty, so it was taking longer to clean. And I was lucky to have a seat right next to them, which made the delay even more pleasant. Since we still couldn't use the toilets on the plane, they decided to let us off for 15 minutes, to use the toilets in the terminal. We were at an isolated gate with nothing else around, so we wouldn't be able to go into "civilization"; we could just to the toilets and back. During our 15 minutes of freedom, it turns out that people were more interested in finding power outlets for their phones than using the toilet. I found an outlet hiding behind a wheelchair, sat down in the chair, and made myself comfortable.
At least while I was waiting, a Bulgarian grandma who was also staying at the hotel started chatting me up and gave me her business card because she was also going to Hawaii. She thought maybe we could meet up. So I got a lady's number in a hotel lobby at 3:30 am. Some say that's a skill.
Time it should take to get from Frankfurt to San Francisco: 11.5 hours.
Time it took to get from Frankfurt to San Francisco: 23 hours.
Amount of time during this 23 hours that I spent on the plane: 22 hours 45 minutes.
Two words to describe the journey: No good.
We've all had our share of flight delays; sitting on the plane for an hour before taking off, missing a connecting flight, even waiting an extra couple hours at the gate before getting on. Sometimes they'll even call you before you go to the airport, so you can relax at home, which is really nice. But my last trip to Hawaii was unlike anything I've experienced. The total trip from Warsaw to Hawaii was supposed to take about 23 hours, but it took 42, with special thanks to the United flight from Frankfurt to San Francisco.
After a smooth flight from Warsaw to Frankfurt, the flight from Frankfurt to SFO was scheduled to take 11.5 hours, giving me 2 hours in SF before my connecting flight to Maui. I was to get to Maui around 7:30 pm, in time to go to Zippy's for dinner with my parents before getting a good night's sleep. How quickly things change.
I should have taken it as a sign when the older woman from Israel next to me asked the flight attendant "How old is this plane? Why aren't there individual TVs on the seat backs?" The very friendly flight attendant responded "Cuz it's OOOOLD", to which the lady said "You're telling me! Are we even going to get to SF?" Now I know that those few words don't actually physically affect anything, but there are certain things you just don't say on a plane. And just like the words "crash" or "bomb" or "spicy burritos", implying that a plane is not going to reach it's destination is probably one of them.
As usual, I fell asleep while taxiing, hoping to sleep through the first hour or two of the flight. When I woke up 30 minutes later, I looked out the window, expecting to see blue skies above and puffy clouds below. But instead I saw puffy clouds above and a still runway below. Damn, we were still on the ground. The nearby flight attendant told us that someone in the back of the plane got sick and needed a doctor. So we waited for a medic to come on the plane and take him off. That's understandable. Hopefully it was just a precaution. But because they had to search for his checked bag to remove it, it took some time. On a 747 with 400 people on it, finding a single suitcase is like finding a needle in a small hay stack. After about 2 hours, we were allegedly ready to go.
Until we weren't.
I was already assuming I wasn't going to make my connection in SF, since we were already 2 hours late, so I started telling friends in SF to expect to see me for dinner that night (and to let me sleep on their couch). I'd still get to SF with time enough to visit, eat some good Mexican food, and go for a couple drinks. I was actually looking forward to it.
But after we heard the pilot announce we were ready to take off (for the third time), we sat around for 20 more minutes, until he came back on to say that there was a small technical problem and we had to wait even longer. Another 1.5 hours later, we were still there. As we were approaching 4 hours of total delay, spending the entire time on the plane, he came back to tell us (in a very dramatic voice) what was about to happen. Because we had already been delayed 4 hours, the crew would not be able to fly all the way to SF because they would exceed their maximum working hour limit. So in the next 10 minutes, they would decide to either a) re-route to Chicago, where we'd change crew and immediately continue to SF, or b) let us off the plane since we were getting crazy and they were still waiting for approval for the re-route.
They actually told us we could get off the plane, but reminded us that if we did, it would only delay our departure even further. So basically they said "you can get off the plane, but don't get off the plane". This was fine with me, because I wanted to leave ASAP. was ready to lay down in the aisle to prevent others from getting off.
Finally, after 4.5 hours of sitting on the plane (and only 1 guy deciding to stay in Frankfurt, but without any checked bags so we weren't delayed), we finally took off for Chicago (which I must remind you is not San Francisco). At least I was getting SMSs from United telling me that we were delayed. Which was not helpful at all.
After landing in Chicago, the old crew got off, a new crew got on (which they flew out from SF to meet us), and they told us we'd be leaving in 30-45 minutes. Of course, after an hour, the cleaners were still on the plane, with no end in sight. Because we had already been on the plane for 13+ hours, the bathrooms were nasty, so it was taking longer to clean. And I was lucky to have a seat right next to them, which made the delay even more pleasant. Since we still couldn't use the toilets on the plane, they decided to let us off for 15 minutes, to use the toilets in the terminal. We were at an isolated gate with nothing else around, so we wouldn't be able to go into "civilization"; we could just to the toilets and back. During our 15 minutes of freedom, it turns out that people were more interested in finding power outlets for their phones than using the toilet. I found an outlet hiding behind a wheelchair, sat down in the chair, and made myself comfortable.
After getting rushed back on the plane (in order to hurry up and wait even more), we heard the phrase "ladies and gentlemen, please prepare for take off" about a thousand times. After the bathrooms were cleaned, we thought we were ready to go, taxiing out to the runway. But then they told us that there was a weight issue, and we had to go back to the gate so they could unload a few things. This confused everyone, because it was the same exact plane that flew from Frankfurt. So how did a weight issue develop suddenly? So, two more hours of sitting. In total, we stayed 4 hours on the plane in Chicago, in a city in which we should never have stopped in the first place. I wasn't even mad at this point, as it was a complete comedy of errors. Since I already knew I wasn't going to be in Hawaii that day, I stopped worrying.
Getting tired of this (GoHawks!)
Throughout the whole ordeal, at least the people next to me were entertaining, and generally the whole plane was in good spirits, considering the circumstances. The Israeli lady was hilarious. She asked the flight attendant what kind of compensation we would get for the delays. The flight attendant said "hopefully at least a cab ride home", to which the lady responded "I'm not talking about a cab ride, I'm talking about more zeroes!" In the end, they gave us a $500 voucher, and upgraded me to first class from SF to Hawaii, which wasn't too bad.
By the time we landed in SF, it was after 1 am, 11 hours late, 23 hours after we first sat down on the plane. Ironically, I was in the middle of a movie, and I wanted to finish it, so I didn't want the flight to end!
Exhausted, we had to pick up our bags, re-book our flights for the next day, and get information on the hotel they were sending us to. One nice thing about the re-booking is that they let me change the flight to go directly to Oahu, instead of to Maui. I already had a flight booked from Maui to Oahu the next day, and I was going to miss it if I took the original re-booked flight. Because they let me change it, I'd get to Oahu at the same time that I expected to before all the delays.
The United staff were all super nice and helpful at the airport, which I'm sure was difficult for them at 2 am with a bunch of grumpy, stinky people. They helped us get sorted and we finally got to the hotel at 3 am. I was ready to sleep for 4-5 hours, after which I'd have to head back to the airport. There were 5 of us that went to the hotel, but when we walked in, the receptionist said she only had 4 rooms. Of course you do. So one of the ladies, who lived in hour away, decided to just drive home instead of stay in the hotel. So 4 people, 4 rooms. Until there were only 3 rooms. After the first 3 people checked in, the receptionist typed a few things into her keyboard, bit her lip and put her finger to her temple. Then she got on the phone and asked someone on the other end "Are you sure we don't have any more rooms?" Of course you don't.
Then she looked at me and pleaded "Actually sir, could you stay in one of the rooms with the other guys? It's only for a few hours so it shouldn't be a problem, right?" Uhh, no. At this point, I expected everything to go wrong anyway, and just laughed it off. I waited another 30 minutes while she searched the system and called other nearby hotels, without any luck. I don't understand why they booked 5 rooms for us (and confirmed it with United), telling us all to come, when they only had 3. Finally, I had to settle for the "last resort". I sat in the hotel lobby (finishing the movie I was watching on the plane) and waited until someone checked out of their room so the receptionist could go clean it. This finally happened at 4:15.
Then she looked at me and pleaded "Actually sir, could you stay in one of the rooms with the other guys? It's only for a few hours so it shouldn't be a problem, right?" Uhh, no. At this point, I expected everything to go wrong anyway, and just laughed it off. I waited another 30 minutes while she searched the system and called other nearby hotels, without any luck. I don't understand why they booked 5 rooms for us (and confirmed it with United), telling us all to come, when they only had 3. Finally, I had to settle for the "last resort". I sat in the hotel lobby (finishing the movie I was watching on the plane) and waited until someone checked out of their room so the receptionist could go clean it. This finally happened at 4:15.
At least while I was waiting, a Bulgarian grandma who was also staying at the hotel started chatting me up and gave me her business card because she was also going to Hawaii. She thought maybe we could meet up. So I got a lady's number in a hotel lobby at 3:30 am. Some say that's a skill.
After about 3 hours of sleep, everything was perfectly smooth the next day, and I got to Oahu without issue. I finally arrived 42 hours after my first flight out of Warsaw, starting my working vacation, ready to make it worthwhile.
