Am I the only one here who hates airplane travel?

[DanCa]

Hey everyone, I just got back from DC last night and I've come to the conclusion that I hate flying. I don't mind the motion of the plane, and I love looking out the window, I just hate the fact the airplane is so small and cramped. Not to mention that the stranger I usually sit next too is usually a drunk. So I just had to vent and say that I really hate flying. I was fighting anxiety attacks all the way home. Please tell me that I am not alone. Anyhow thanks for letting me vent, and I'll be posting more regularly now that I am home.

[Squatch]

1. Yes. Yes, you are.

[ProfessorGAC]

42. Funny! That's The First Thing I Thought, Too

However, it would be a lie, because i do a lot of it and i don't like it. So, Dan isn't the only one. But, i still would have given the same answer if you hadn't beaten me to it.
The Professor

[politicat]

2. I've stopped doing it.

If we have to go somewhere, we take a train.

DH is 6'3" and 250 pounds of big bones. I've had major knee problems and have some surgical metal in my body.

Both of us are outspoken activists on watch lists (he's with Vets for Peace and Iraq Veterans Against the War). We always get at least wanded twice (once at check in and once before boarding) and at least two of our bags get searched every time. (I've taken to putting notes on top that say things like "Mind the shoes" and "Please put everything back the way you found it" while DH is a bit more pissy.)

So 18 months ago, we made the decision that the expense and the hassle were not worth the effort for us anymore. I teleconference when I need to meet an out-of-state client, and he has found that the train to San Francisco is very scenic and comfortable (and if he leaves here on Saturday, he's there, well rested and ready, on Monday morning.) And it's cheaper to take the train - even with the improved roomettes rather than coach seats - than it is to fly and pay parking charges.

[Left Is Write]

3. No. I hate flying.

[KitchenWitch]

4. I hate it too!

I have extremely long legs, and invariably I get the asshole in the seat in front of me who insists on reclining his seat, so I end up with bruised knees.

[Oeditpus Rex]

5. I've flown only in small, private planes

Specifically, a Piper Cherokee 140 and a Van's RV-6A experimental. During the flight in the RV-6A, I discovered I really, really, really like having something more solid than a bit of aluminum or fiberglas beneath me.

In an airliner, there'd be that plus claustrophobia. :scared:

[Rabrrrrrr]

6. I fucking hate it, and for the same reasons you do.

Classless people with too much luggage and poorly dressed, though those are small issues, and I've rarely flown with people that annoyed me.

Mostly it's the cramped space, the dry air, the shitty food, and the often inability to get up and down all I want and wander around or use the bathroom.

The only flying I like is when I can be on a 747 - lots of aisle room on those, and lots of space to wander around, so that I don't have to worry about squeezing past a cart.

But I always fear that I'm gonna be in a "seatbelt mandatory" phase and need to use the bathroom -which I have been in, and I barely made it through.

I would rather they take out two rows or so of seats, distribute the lost ticket sales across all the other seats, and give us some more fucking room. I'd happily pay $20 or $30 more a flight to have more space.

[DanCa]

17. We are in complete agreement on this.

I also think that it should be mandatory that people take baths before they get on airlines. Honestly I don't know what smells worse, sweat, alcohol or perfume.

[Rabrrrrrr]

19. They need perfume detectors! And a policy that anyone with perfume

is denied entry into the plane.

And obviously this would be totally unconstitutional, but the airlines should have a lookout or two hanging out in the waiting area, checking passengers for boorish behavior, inappropriate dress, too much shit in their carry-on, looking the type of person who will constantly be hauling their oversized carry-on luggage to their seat to dig for books, magazines, snacks, water bottles, knitting, laptops, catalogs, lipstick, eye drops, eye liner, powder, hand lotion, more snakcs, another water bottle, put away the lipstick, oops need a pen, crap I dropped my book and now have to dig around, etc., and anyone showing improper eating technique, and pre-screen those people as "no flies".

We, as a country, need to stand up to the clueless, the bovine, and the boorish, and say "Look, we don't hate you personally, but these behaviors are no longer acceptable, not even on flights".

[jakefrep]

34. Inappropriate dress?

I didn't know flying was a balck-tie affair.

[LeftyMom]

7. I don't like it

They make the seats too damn small for me (and I'm all of 5'2) so I have no idea how other people manage. I bring snacks along, but going that long without a real meal gives me a world class headache.

It's not the worst thing in life, but I certainly don't enjoy it.

[ThomCat]

8. Yes.

I don't mind it emotionally. I'm not afraid to fly. But the changes in air pressure put me in so much pain I can't stand to even think about flying any more. It takes me a full day just to recover from a flight.

[Burma Jones]

9. I have to get quite drunk to get on a plane

[Ravenseye]

10. It depends

I've definately had bad experiences, but I've also had plenty of good ones.

Bad
-Cross country from San Francisco to Boston in the middle seat. I'm a big guy, and the guys on both sides of me were big guys. They were spilling into the aisles, and I had my arms basically crossed the whole flight. I was sore for days, and when we got served food I didnt' have enough room to manipulate the cutlery. They wouldn't move us around when we requested it either.
-On a flight from Amsterdam to Boston we weren't served any food. The people in front of us got food and they stopped at that row. They said we'd get fed from the people behind us. They got a few rows from us and then stopped. About eight of us got no food for the flight, and when they came up they apologized for running out of food and offered us peanuts. Literally peanuts.

Good
-Flight from Boston to Chicago on a Saturday morning was nearly empty, and my friend and I were on our way to a bachelor party, so we essentially got drunk with the flight crew on margaritas. They parked the drink cart by us and we all got hammered at 8 in the morning. It was great.
-Anytime getting bumped up to First Class is good, especially the one time it happened coming back from Australia.

[astonamous]

11. I don't like to fly...the pilots and steward people really get upset

when I try to open the window. I must be part canine...I have to have the window open. I can do those short little flights with plenty of alcohol on board, but you had better not be in front of me when they start letting people off the plane. I will run you over.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

12. Once loved it, now hate it

I'm old enough to remember spacious seating, edible meals, and profuse apologies and compensation if a flight was delayed or canceled.

In 1967, my family was scheduled to fly from London to Oslo on BEA (British European Airways). As we were sitting in the boarding area, an employee came out, told us that our flight would be delayed for two hours, and then led us into some sort of lounge area where they had tea and sandwiches (full-sized meat and cheese sandwiches, not little tea sandwiches) set up buffet style. Yes, because of a two-hour delay, they felt obligated to feed us lunch.

Another thing that used to happen before deregulation was that if your flight was canceled, they'd phone around to the other carriers to see if they had any space on flights going to the same destination. This happened to me a couple of times when I flew between Minneapolis and New York regularly. My Northwest flight was canceled, so they called around to the other carriers and announced that the first x-number of people who had checked in could be accommodated on another carrier if we hurried. After the first such incident, I made a point of checkng in early, and I lucked out one more time.

We learned about the new regime after deregulation when my youngest brother, flying back to graduate school in Cleveland, was stuck overnight in O'Hare with not enough cash to buy any of the food for sale and no credit cards. He would have gone hungry if my grandmother hadn't given him two of her home-baked bacon rolls to take along.

[amitten]

13. You ARE kidding, right???

I've never met anyone who likes airplane travel!

[Samurai_Writer]

14. I just got back from a weekend trip to Houston

I'm large and tall. Because of that, I ALWAYS get an aisle seat. Unfortunately, I ALWAYS also get stuck behind some guy (it's ALWAYS a guy, usually short and thin) who leans his seat ALL the way back. It's literally in my lap. These guys are always rude and always refuse to push their seats up when I ask them to. My knees are always pushed into the back of the seat in front of me, and I can't use the tray at all, so I juggle a book and drink in my hands. I can't use my laptop at all in these circumstances.

Also, the planes are always filled to capacity and always late. ALWAYS. I hate flying, but I never get enough time off to drive to where I want to go or take the train. So I am stuck with flying.

[trackfan]

15. I haven't flown since 1983, nor do I plan to fly again.

[Skittles]

16. I like airplane travel

the pre-stuff is more of a pain since 9/11 but I'll still take planes over any other kind of travel

[flamingyouth]

18. I find it's really hard on me.

I feel dehydrated for like a week afterward. And yeah, the anxiety thing is a nice touch.

If my SO didn't live 2200 miles away I wouldn't fly much at all, but since we're apart for the next three months, such is life.

Glad you're home safe and sound. Drink plenty of water and try to get a little extra sleep. I find that helps me recover. :hi:

[RevCheesehead]

20. I despise flying.

I am willing to drive 1,000 miles, rather than be cramped up in a damned cabin that's got seats way too close together in rows too close together, and be subject to security groping, removing shoes, let alone being stranded in some god-forsaken place because even in the 21st century, we're still captive to the weather, mechanical malfunctions, and overbooking.

Give me my car any day. At least when I get in it, I know when I'll get there.

[graywarrior]

21. I'd rather stick pins in my eyes than get on a plane

[Jean Louise Finch]

22. I hate it too

But I do it a lot, long hauls particularly. I am very small and have it down to a bit of a science: get on, take a melatonin, strap on the eye shades, pop in the ear plugs and curl under the blanket. I sleep like a rock. Still hate it, though.

I read this ages ago, and honestly I don't remember where it came from, but I would give credit where credit is due if I could remember. it's classic:

"Air travel these days is utterly inhuman, so it's no wonder it inspires ass-possum behavior. How are we as human beings expected to take gracefully the whole process of going to the airport, parking at the airport, waiting in long-ass lines to check in at the airport, then going to wait in more long-ass security lines, stripping off half our clothes and unpacking half our carry-ons to get through said security checkpoints, reassembling our clothing and carry-ons so that we can walk a mile and a half to the gate (or better yet, share a moving walkway with lazy ass-wits who STAND on it), only to wait around with all the other people to board.

And of course, said people turn into braying, obnoxious cattle the moment the terminal worker announces the pre-boarding process for the first class passengers, small kids traveling alone, "elite," "one pass" and "priority gold" folks and any other people who need special assistance in boarding b/c they have their thumbs up their asses. And then the general boarding process starts and in spite of repeated calls to stay seated or not block the aisles until your row is called, nobody listens because by then, why should we? We've already all been at the airport for over a fucking hour and paid too much money for fast food b/c the airlines don't feed us anymore, not that we'd want their cuisine anyway.

And then your row is called and you think, "Hallelujah!" except that you find yourself in a bottleneck on the jetway that inches forward bit by bit and the ass-chipmunks in front of you all have overly large "carry-on" roller suitcases and they end up hogging the overhead bins and putting their coats up there even though the flight attendants ask them not to. And you finally find your seat only to learn you're sitting in the middle between two people who don't know the meaning of the word "personal space" and you have to wait another 45 minutes for the whole boarding process.

And of course, the airlines call it an "on-time departure" not because you're up in the air at 5:15, but because you pulled back from the gate and are sitting on the tarmac b/c you're number 12 in line for takeoff. Then you're up in the air and you go to put your seat back but either it's broken or the jerk behind you keeps pushing his knees aggressively into you, or the person in front of you jerks HIS seat back so he's half in your lap and you have nowhere to put your drink. And because the air's so dry and nasty on the plane you realize you need serious hydration, but then, an hour later, you need to piss like a racehorse only you can't, either because there's turbulence and the captain hasn't turned off the seatbelt sign or because all three of the plane's microscopic loos are occupied. And if you are lucky enough to be able to get up to piss you have to wake up the guy next to you b/c you're trapped in the middle.

As if all that weren't enough, you get to pay an extra $5 for the privilege of watching a Freddie Prinze movie.

So, yeah, I can see how air travel might make people a little cranky."

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

23. I love flying.

Yes, security has become a hassle, and there often isn't enough leg room unless you get an exit row or first class, and some of the other passengers are likely to be smelly or boorish or creepy, but there's something awesome and magical about the state of actually being airborne. I try to get a window seat and just watch the world and the clouds. Or else I rent a Cessna 172 and do it myself, which is slower and bumpier, but even more fun. I'll fly any time I can.

[Initech]

27. Me too! In fact I get to the airport early!

Because there's so many fucked up things that you can only see at an airport - for instance, Denver has a store where you can actually buy luggage. At LAX, you can see a McDonalds right next to a Wolfgang Puck's. Las Vegas has the only airport where you can gamble. And so on.

[donheld]

24. I'd rather fly than just about anything I know

[Hosnon]

25. I dunno but for some reason I LOVE it:) nt

[Alleycat]

26. Don't mind the actual flight

however the getting to the airport so early, waiting in line after line, lugging baggage around, the plastic seats in the terminals, all this drives me crazy. Once all the before and after actually took longer then the flight itself.

[yvr girl]

28. I don't mind it actually

Vancouver has a great airport, and I've never had much of a hassle checking in. There are parts I don't like. I hate going through customs in Toronto. I hate flying through Atlanta - because my luggage gets lost about 50% of the time. I hate changing planes and schlepping from gate to gate and terminal to terminal.

I vastly prefer flying on Air Canada to any American airline and I also prefer flying overseas to within North America.

[DancingBear]

29. No, that's why I quit being an RFID Systems Architect

and started building furniture. I hated the travel, the delays, the idiots that I had to meet, etc. Air travel was like being on a Greyhound bus, only airborne.

My brother and I once had a contest to determine "The Worst Occupation." Whoever sat next to the most boring obnoxious fellow passenger (over a 6 month period) who discussed his/her job ad naseum would be the winner, and would get a free meal. We would have to prove to the other that we actually knew something about said job in order to win.

For months, I thought I had it wrapped up - I sat next to The Ultimate Salesman who told me everything I needed NOT to know about screws, bolts, washers, and screw machine products. Two days before the deadline, my brother sat next to someone who sold animal by-products, or "renderings" as they are called in the trade. It was no contest.

You don't wanna know...

[In_The_Wind]

30. I haven't flown in the past 12 years.

But it looks like I'm going to be changing that this year.

[AngryAmish]

31. As a drunk, I resent you discriminating against us.

Yes, I may smell bad, be a little "grabby" and repeat stories of childhood disappointment every few minutes but that is no reason to call me names.

[Beausoir]

32. I'm 50/50.

I despise the torture act you have to go through to actually board a plane. The bitchy counter people, the ridiculous removal of shoes routine at the check point. The seats are way too small. And for the past few years, I've noticed that the planes are actually filthy. If a restaurant were to serve food in such filthy environs, they would be shut down.

But....


I love the take off. Such great power. And it's the only way to get from point A to point B for us. We leave next week for a trip to Maui. Me, my 5 kids (all under 10), my husband and our sitter.

Aloha.

[Cats Against Frist]

33. No, you're not the only one

I refuse to fly, domestically. It pisses off my traveling companions, who just aren't into Amtrak. That said, I'd sooner eat my own hands than fly. I WILL fly to get out of the country, however, but it's a grueling, terrifying experience that requires lots of whiskey and pills. I hate it pretty much more than anything.

[LSK]

35. i have never been on a plane

It is the single one thing that scares me the most. I guess I saw too many airplane disaster films as a kid.

[swag]

36. I too hate airplane travel.

I like going to far away places quickly, though, so I guess I'm fucked.

But you are not alone.

[Deep13]

37. If God had meant for us to fly, ...

...He would have given us swivel legs that fold neatly behind our ears. Obviously, whoever designed airline seats did not have legs or knees.

[Left_Winger]

38. You're not alone, I don't like to fly either

Unless it is a transcontinental flight I find another way to go.

[underpants]

39. What's the deal with the peanuts??? One bag? I mean COME ON

I used to love air travel but that was back in the day when the stewardesses looked like models.

[noonwitch]

40. I hate it. The last time I flew in a plane, Mondale was running for Pres.

If it's east of the Rockies, I'll drive.

[huskerlaw]

41. I don't mind it at all

The pre-boarding stuff is a bit annoying...especially during the holidays, at LAX. But I digress.

The flight itself doesn't bother me a bit. Sure, seatmates can be obnoxious, but I ride the subway every day so I'm used to that.

I'm actually booking a flight to Sacramento later today. I'd much rather fly than drive the 6 or so hours. :)

[ProfessorGAC]

43. Geez, I Don't Really Know What There Is To "Like"

It's just a 575mph buss ride. There is no glamor at all. We get hearded on and off like cattle. We get inspected, our documents get inspected, we sit around and wait, etc.

There isn't anything much to actually like. It just gets us where we're going at high speed. And, i guess that advantage outweighs the bad part. But, when someone says they like to fly, i always think "Why?"
The Professor

[Radio_Guy]

44. I haven't flown in 20 years

But I'm flying from Atlanta to Chicago for my new company next month. Maybe I should make this a new thread, but does anyone have any advice?

[Dees]

45. I have flown enough for 10 lifetimes. I hate it.

I hate everything about it. Airports, luggage problems, ticketing, cramped up in a metal tube at 40,000 ft., rude everybodys, delays, bumps, cancellations, searches and security, drunks, horrible bathrooms, festival seating, prices and inability to work, sleep or do anything. I hate it and thank whatever I'm done with it.