Naah, just a person who’d rather drink his G&T than wear yours. You want thrill rides, go to Six Flags. I get my fun from when Your Captain Speaking does a nice, tight, bank-n-drop to come to a lower altitude, and people have to look away from the window.
Actually, that was the one valid point in Ninja’s rant. Not the waiting-outside-alone-in-the-dark aspect, but the taxi vs. shuttle aspect.
Santa Fe is hell and gone from Albuquerque. The airport runs shuttles to SF, but the last one leaves at 10. I don’t even want to think about how much a cab would have cost. That said, I’m mildly surprised that there were no other Johnnies at the airport that night. When I returned from my sophomore spring break, they had to commandeer a second van just for us.
And on another occasion, I missed the 8pm shuttle by about five minutes, and had to sit and wait for the 10pm. Some guy started chatting me up. I was okay with that, but when he asked my name, I gave my grandmother’s maiden name and told him I attended the College of Santa Fe. My mates and I had a good laugh at the idea of his scouring CSF for one Liz Pinto.
Well, perhaps she should have scheduled a flight that was supposed to get her to ABQ earlier than 12. She would have already missed the last shuttle by 2 hrs.
She was supposed to get back to her dorm by midnight, which I believe is in Santa Fe. Which means she probably should’ve landed in Al. at 10. When the last shuttle left.
Still cutting it a bit close, that.
Boy, you people want to talk about layovers! Uff Da! Forget Philly or St Louis, Ouagadougou is the worst! Oh I have stories! Alas the plea agreement bars me from sharing what happened. Just trust me, it’s not a place to be stuck. 
Uh, partially correct. I had a reservation for the 10:45 shuttle, which left me 45 minutes of ‘delay room’.
Also, there were a couple other students from my school that night (would’ve been in the same van as two, actually). I just missed them.
FWIW - the ABQ airport doesn’t run shuttles. There are now three options: take a cab (which costs about $130). One shuttle company is $40 for a round trip to/from the airport from anywhere in Santa Fe, though they’re always late. The other shuttle company is more expensive, but they’ll make a run specific, basically, to you, so you don’t have to hang out waiting for them.
I wonder if they know the way.
When I fly, I typically have to take Delta through Cincinnati.
Let’s just say I consider the flight a success if my flight from Canton, Ohio takes off within 3 hours of the scheduled time.
E.
Yeah, my bad. I guess I’m just jaded. Missing a connection to a shuttle, if you had no other transportaion, would be a real drag. But air travel isn’t as set in stone to presume that all connections will always be made. The way I look at it, even if I’m 6 hrs late on a 3hr trip that would take 20 hrs to drive, I’m still 11 hrs ahead.
You actually prefer Northwest over any other airline? I’m… flabbergasted.
Next time - read the fucking fine print, OK?
Ordinarially, I’d take the time to explain why planes tend to either be right on time or an hour late, but never anything in between. However, I’m not sure you’d listen and anyhow, I’ve done it multiple time before and I’m getting tired of repeating myself.
I used to work for a deaf woman who couldn’t physically hear PA announcements. Nonetheless, she managed to figure out these changes and get to the proper gate on her own.
Honey, you’re an adult - or near enough to it as makes no difference. You are able to read. It behooves you as a responsible, adult human being to be responsible for your own shit, including double-checking travel arrangements, connections, and having a back up plan. Maybe you’re new to air travel, in which case - NEWS FLASH: gates change all the damned time, be sure you double check when you arrive at an airport and don’t be afraid to ask questions.
So - listen for the announcements. Double check the gate listings. Ask questions.
No, they couldn’t have told you. The flight crew on the airplane you are departing have no idea whether or not you’re making a connection, where you’re going after you deplane, what gate would be involved, or any of that stuff.
You planned an hour long layover for dinner? Guess you ARE new to air travel. That’s time to grab a hot dog or taco, but the truth is planes are frequently delayed. An hour layover is pretty damn minimal.
Lucky for you, that layover time wasn’t shortened (which can and does happen) and you had plenty of time to eat.
Yes, the airline, the pilots, the flight attendents, the air traffic control system, and the weather-control angels appointed by God all conspired to make you two hours late and inconvenience you. Boo-fucking-hoo.
You seriously expect someone to be waiting for you, personally, to explain all things when you get off the airplane, do you? Well, spunky, maybe no one there knows. Maybe it’s the weather. Maybe it’s mechanical. Hold onto your hat, girl - air traffic control might have had that airplane circling with NO explanation to pilot, airline, or anyone else. You’re not being denied information out of spite, little girl. Don’t take everything so fucking personal.
And why the fuck are YOU owed a cab ride? Have enough money to get yourself home. You hired the airline to fly you somewhere, not drive you somewhere. Read the fucking fine print - the contract twixt you and them covered only the flight portion of the trip, they are not responsible for getting you either to or from the airport after they have completed their obligation. Get it?
You can, of course, always ASK for assistance but you are NOT ENTITLED.
You are so fucking out of line with this one it’s unbelievable. Are you truly so self-centered as to think a pilot delibrately subjected the airplane to turbulence? It’s all about you, right?
Your pilots gave you the best damn ride they could. I’m fucking sorry if the weather didn’t cooperate with your princess entitlement - hey maybe that’s why your flight was delayed, huh?
Calling a pilot a “loser” and questioning his/her competency to fly due to the weather causes my arm to twitch as I suppress the urge to bitch slap your ignorant ass. You have no clue what is involved in flying an airplane, in fact your prior statements make me question whether you even have a fucking clue about travel of any sort. Sit down, shut up, and eat your fucking peanuts/pretzels/whatever the hell they serve these days.
The first time you show up somewhere and your undewear for the next week is nowhere to be found you’ll understand why this priority is in line.
Again, it’s all about fucking you. I have no doubt that if the situation was reversed you’d be bitching about the airline taking care of someone’s transportation instead of your precious luggage.
There’s this concept called “get in line and wait your turn”. If you continue to travel in the future get used to it. Why? Because you’re no better than anyone else.
Again - you’re claiming they “made you miss” the shuttle? Like, they did it delibrately or something? Hey, maybe you should have caught the fucking shuttle instead of “forlornly” going about the gates to get someone to pay for your cab ride, huh?
And spare me the “young woman” whine. I traveled to fucking EUROPE when I was 17 and female - you don’t like hailing a cab at night? Try hailing a cab at night in a foreign country when you barely speak the language, how’s that for fun, huh? But you know what? I managed to do it, without having mommy and daddy along.
Here’s what you do next time, bitch:
- Have a back up plan. ALWAYS. For everything. Because shit happens
- Have the money for a taxi from the airport to where you’re staying. Don’t spend this money on anything BUT that sort of taxi ride.
- Have a calling card or credit card or bucket of change or whatever you in sufficient amount to call a fucking cab from inside the airport. Or use a cellphone, if you have one. I’ve been through a lot of airports over the years. EVERY GODDAMN ONE OF THEM with a reception desk was willing to give you the phone number of a local cab service. Even the godforsaken, turf runways I’ve been to have a fucking phone number PASTED BY THE PHONE of a a local taxi company. If you can’t find/obtain/get such a phone number it’s because you’re not trying
Assuming this is any sort of a commercial airport, I’d expect taxis to be waiting for business outside the terminal - if it’s so busy there’s no taxi, it’s so busy you’ll probably have lots of company to wait with.
This also applies to bus stations and train stations - why? Because taxi drivers know there’s a certain amount of business to be had in such locations and they make sure their numbers are available for travelers.
OK, honey, let me explain to you a few things. First of all, it sounds like you might have had weather problem on that flight. The airlines don’t control the weather, only God controls the weather - got it? You may have been late because they flew around the really shitty weather, in the interest of keeping you as safe and comfortable as possible (remember that comfort/turbulence bitch you had?)
The FIRST obligation of an airline is NOT to get you there on time - it’s to get you there ALIVE. Do you understand that? ALIVE. If the choice is between delayed and safe vs. on time and possibly dead, they’ll opt for choice number one. Do you have a problem with “safety first”?
Second, in addition to the weather, the airlines are somewhat at the mercy of air traffic control, who tell them when to take off. Traffic control can also divert airplanes from their requested path, which can also delay you. Again, this is usually done for reasons of safety.
After all that, yes, the airline will do its best to get you there on time. Remember that THEIR employees don’t get to go home any sooner than YOU do. THEY want to be on time, too - possibly even MORE than you do.
So, again, get off your fucking high-horse and stop pitying yourself. No one is persecuting you. Learn to make back up plans, and don’t schedule anything tightly because - NEWS FLASH - transportation over large distances is subject to delays and other problems. This applies to ALL forms of transporation. Live and learn.
For what it’s worth, it’s virtually impossible to get a cab in Albuquerque. I mean, you can get one, but generally you have to call ahead of time. I don’t think I’ve ever seen any waiting at the airport, though I will admit that I wind up heading directly to the parking garage, which avoids the arriving flights level. Heck, when I’m picking someone up there (instead of being picked up), I just park in the garage and pay the buck or two. And the fare to go 60 miles isn’t exactly cheap. Still, though, I agree with most of that reply. And I still can’t figure out why NinjaChick is flying Northwest when you can fly ABQ-PHL cheaply on Southwest.