At Philadelphia Airport gate A6 we await a 7:00AM flight to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. The plan – a 3 hour direct flight to escape January’s winter chill, but first we had to deal with Mother Nature. The day prior to departure came loaded with an 8” dump of snow that paralyzed Philly, canceling mass transit and leaving most roads unplowed. Throughout all this American Airlines optimistically reported our flight’s status as ‘On Time.’ We debated options for getting to the airport and decided to drive. In preparation, I shoveled out our car late Sunday from its usual spot in an outdoor lot and moved it to an enclosed garage.
At 4:00 AM city roads comprised no more than partially plowed ruts. Drove along I-95 at 25 mph and had the road to ourselves. We assembled at the gate with others dreaming of tropical sun. 7:00AM came and went. We stayed. Finally, the gate agent acknowledged the ETD fantasy and attributed the delay to being one cabin crew member short. An exasperated would-be passenger’s offer to help, “I’ll push the fucking cart!” fell on deaf gate agent ears. After repeated new ETD postings the beleaguered gate agent announced a gate change – she’s done with us. Amid all of this we grabbed lunch – a decent turkey sandwich and a beer – that in hindsight turned out to be the highlight of our day. Finally, at 3:00PM we boarded at the new gate. Are we lucky or what? Once seated I immediately fell asleep. Waking 20 minutes later I found we had not moved an inch. After another half hour occupying the same spot of tarmac the pilot announced, with an apology, that with all the delays the crew had timed-out. Back to the gate and exit the plane. More apologies from the ground crew who posted a new ETD – 6:00PM.
We chatted up other would-be passengers. Some have moldered in the airport and adjacent hotels for over 2 days waiting for a flight. Crowds of stranded passengers barely standing after flight delays and cancellations clogged the terminal. At 5:00PM I called the American Airlines 800 number. The agent on the line admitted no plane to Punta Cana would leave Philly at 6:00. Two options – maybe get a late flight to Charlotte, stay there overnight and try and snag two seats on a plane to Punta Cana the next day or cancel our flight plans entirely. I figured 12 unsuccessful hours in an airport qualified as above and beyond the call of duty. I cancelled our tickets for a full refund. Drove home and cancelled our hotel and rental car reservations, too.
Tuesday – Frigid outside. Little snow plowing. No mail delivery, no trash pick-up.
Wednesday – Frigid outside. Little snow plowing. No mail delivery, no trash pick-up.
Thursday – Frigid outside. Little snow plowing. No mail delivery, no trash pick-up.You get the idea.
INSTANT NOODLES 