I Should Fly Private

The allure of private aviation is picking your fellow travelers. I was flying this weekend for work and the experience was great, except for other travelers I encountered.  I had a connection at EWR and my flights in and out were pleasant and arrived early. The problems came from people not familiar with the Walk Left, Stand Right concept on escalators and moving walkways. Also one person next to me smelled like they boarded right after a long workout at a gym. The kids sitting behind me were also playing their iPads at full volume and their parent didn't care. I won't tolerate noise from an electronic device other then headphones.  I immediately got the parent to put a stop to it; if not I would have called a flight attendant (I've done that before to make a point that "turn it down" and "silent" are different).  Basic courtesies and manners would greatly improve everyone's flying experience; too bad they are harder to find than an early flight from Newark. 

Delivery Spots Available in 2018

Fun Photo From Portland

My flight from Portland was delayed two hours because of storms in Chicago.  I was able to explore the airport and shop without paying sales tax, then I was able to see this great sunset.  I didn't mind the extra time in Portland because it shortened my layover at SFO.

Cool Sunset on a United A319 at PDX

Denver to LA - What A View

Denver to LA is one of the prettiest flights in the world, but only for people on the left side of the aircraft.  I flew this route twice last month, both on clear mornings, and the views were spectacular.  Leaving DEN for the Rocky Mountains, there are great views of the rugged terrain of western Colorado.  The flight goes southwest down to northern Arizona and Monument Valley followed by the Grand Canyon.  Then the mountains of southern California rise and then give way to the LA area and the airport.  I was lucky and was also able to parallel landing traffic and enjoyed the long taxi around LAX with many foreign carriers to spot.

Monument Valley

LAX Landing Traffic

United's Healthy-ish First Class Meals

The turkey and egg wrap was good and the soup superb, but there's no fun in eating grapes on a plane.  Next they'll be handing out oatmeal raisin cookies rather than chocolate chip (wait, that's happening already).

The Soup and Beer Were Fun

Virgin Atlantic Doesn't Need Paint

Old news by now, but it is still funny for me to think how UK airlines can relax because Scotland voted NO and the Union Jack won't have to be repainted.

The Union Jack Will Stay

Kingman, AZ Airport - IGM

The Kingman, AZ airport is one of the scariest airports in the USA, for aircraft at least. It's one of several "bone yard" airports where aircraft are placed in long term storage or scrapped.  Most of the airliners parked there will never fly out. I flew by recently, at a safe distance from my aircraft's perspective, and felt like sharing.   

Kingman, AZ and Local Area

Save 14% With Frontier This Week

Frontier will offer a 14% discount until 11:59 pm Eastern time Oct. 9, 2014. The discount will apply to regular and sale fares for domestic travel.  Tickets must be purchased online at FlyFrontier.com using the promo code PUMPKIN. 

Big Ole Jet Airliner