Can’t wait until HyperLoop travel will make air travel obsolete. Flying anywhere is miserable these days. Better to go by auto if you can drive it in less than 3 hrs. The stupid clods at United could have chartered a jet for those four late arriving crew members and saved millions for the company. This is just common sense, which the cheap skates in charge should have considered when they offered such a measly sum to deplane.
If it took driving 3 days, I’d prefer driving than flying. East coast to west coast, I’d rather drive myself. If I can’t get there by car, I don’t need to go.
Last time we flew, it was a chartered flight but the flight attendants demanded we sit in assigned seating. Wouldn’t let us sit with our kids. It was chartered for gosh sakes. It was our @%*&^# plane. In the middle of the night, they woke everyone up to play pass the toilet roll and other silly games no one wanted to play. Both landings were horrid. Never again.
I live 80 minutes from the parking area of DTW. I have to plan to arrive at least 90 minutes prior to my flight and because TSA likes me extra special I try to arrive 2 hours before my flights in order to deal with enhanced searches and lines. A typical flight to the east coast (NYC, DC, Philadelphia) takes about 3 hours flight time, plus 20 minutes to deplane, 5-15 minutes to get to baggage, 0-20 minutes to get my bags, 10-20 minutes to get a car or uber, and another 30-45 minutes to get where I'm going. Total for a normal east coast trip is 7-8 hours. If everything goes right. If I have a connection, add another hour.
On the way back, I'm at the mercy of the airline schedule so when my meetings are done (as happened last month), I may have 6-7 hours sitting around waiting for my flight home. Round trip then in terms of sunk time is about 22 hours on average. This doesn't count the aggravation of being x-rayed, pawed, having to pay $25 for a mediocre burger and beer at the airport, being cramped next to a fat sweaty farting slob who spreads into my seat, etc.
In contrast, if I drive, I can carry a real firearm (flying, I usually just take a small .380 in checked luggage which is now prominently flagged as containing a firearm on Delta), I don't have to worry about whether my carry on happened to be with me when I traveled to my last shoot or hunting trip and still has ammo in it, I can stop any time I want and not have to wait for a bathroom, the air is clean, etc.
As a result, even before this United debacle, I was always drive if the trip was something I could drive in 11 hours or less, and occasionally I'd bump it up to 13 hours. While I am betting that United (as well as the other airlines) will be on extra special good behavior going forward for the next six months or so, I'll probably presume that I will drive if I can do it in 13 hours, which is pretty much my limit for a day of driving.
Fixed it.
Fixed it.