Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.PCS 1/10/84; site ahuta.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxj!mhuxn!houxm!ahuta!ecl From: ecl@ahuta.UUCP (e.leeper) Newsgroups: net.consumers Subject: Re: Airline Experiences Message-ID: <143@ahuta.UUCP> Date: Wed, 5-Dec-84 20:54:56 EST Article-I.D.: ahuta.143 Posted: Wed Dec 5 20:54:56 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 6-Dec-84 06:55:07 EST References: <886@ihuxb.UUCP> <1455@umcp-cs.UUCP> <173@harvard.ARPA>, <6279@brl-tgr.ARPA> Organization: AT&T Information Systems Labs, Holmdel NJ Lines: 52 REFERENCES: <886@ihuxb.UUCP> <1455@umcp-cs.UUCP> <173@harvard.ARPA>, <6279@brl-tgr.ARPA> > People's Express insists on dumping you in Newark taking an otherwise > 50 minutes flight and stretching into two hours (however they are the > cheapest). Of course, for those of us in New Jersey, landing at Newark is a feature, not a bug. I *hate* having to drive to JFK (2 hrs.) for a flight that takes 1 hour (NYC to Ottawa). (The following experience is cadged from my review of the World Fantasy Convention in Ottawa. There are also flights from LaGuardia, but that's even more inconvenient to get to. There is nothing from Newark.) The first thing we learned was that in spite of the fact that Ottawa is the capital of Canada, it is almost impossible to get to. The only direct flights from New York (JFK) are via Pilgrim Air. If you want to fly a real airline, you have to fly to Montreal and then take Air Canada the rest of the way. This costs more and takes longer (in theory). However, since our flight, aboard an F-27 prop plane, was diverted to Montreal anyway because of fog, it took us 6 hours to get to Ottawa the "fast" way. (The airline bussed us from Montreal to Ottawa--a two hour trip.) ... When we got to the airport for our return flight, we discovered we would be sharing a plane with Donald and Elsie Wollheim, Peter Straub, Whitley Strieber, F. Paul Wilson, Joan Vinge, Jim Frenkel, Chris Claremont, Chris Steinbrunner, and other well-known people in the publishing world. Not bad for a plane that only holds about 40. Just as I was saying that if this plane went down, there would be a major dent in the SF/horror publishing world, Pilgrim Airlines announced that due to mechanical difficulties the flight had been cancelled! After a lot of confusion ("What do we do now?" "I don't know." "What is the loudspeaker saying?" "I can't hear it!"), we got ourselves straightened out. Most of us opted for re-booking on the next day's noon flight (the clerk said that the 7AM would be cancelled due to fog). Some went through the problem of booking flights through Montreal, either because they were sick of Pilgrim Airlines, or because they needed to get back to New York earlier. The rest of us cruised back to Ottawa and hung out at the hotel (we stayed with friends who were staying through until Monday anyway), then returned to the Ottawa Airport Monday for a remarkably uneventful flight back. So my suggestion--stick to the majors; they have back-up planes, etc. Evelyn C. Leeper ==> Note new net address: ...ihnp4!ahuta!ecl (Mail sent to my old address will be forwarded temporarily.)