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John D.
Moderator
Username: John_d
Post Number: 3898
Registered: 06-2003
Posted From: 95.208.80.143
| | Posted on Saturday, January 30, 2010 - 05:33 pm: | |
True Lester, the early researcher gets the (cheap) worm. |
Lester Green
Advanced Member
Username: Rtgreen5
Post Number: 253
Registered: 03-2007
Posted From: 69.143.223.11
| | Posted on Saturday, January 30, 2010 - 05:15 pm: | |
John D: My only point was that a little ordinary research, possibly outside of this web site, could have saved Glenn @$600. As you obviously know as a master of computer usage (I used your sage input on how to purchase my Garmin 275T), just a quick search for discounted airline tickets on a computer screen would have yielded him this information. |
John D.
Moderator
Username: John_d
Post Number: 3889
Registered: 06-2003
Posted From: 95.208.80.143
| | Posted on Friday, January 29, 2010 - 07:26 am: | |
Lester,
I suspect Glenn may not even use this board and therefore was unaware of the Hawaiian Air option (just as Roger was at the time). I don't think it's a case of he ignored the advice and failed to avail of the less expensive option. |
Lester Green
Advanced Member
Username: Rtgreen5
Post Number: 251
Registered: 03-2007
Posted From: 69.143.223.11
| | Posted on Thursday, January 28, 2010 - 01:43 am: | |
Roger: Thanks for the report. I was struck by the fact that Glenn, despite the numerous times that we have advised Space A travellers to Hawaii, to consider Hawaiian Air; failed to do so. They are reasonable and they fly from Sacramento,Oakland and other West coast airports, so Glenn could have flown from the Travis area as well as from Southern CA. Yes, I have seen those $150 flights and that was what we did when we found out that Space A to K-Bay or Hickam was backlogged. Well, I guess that United needs the business and Glenn helped subsidize them. This a is just an example of inadequate research. |
Laurie Dressler
New member
Username: Sheena
Post Number: 2
Registered: 06-2008
Posted From: 63.168.66.191
| | Posted on Wednesday, January 27, 2010 - 11:39 pm: | |
Sounds like you had a great time in southern California despite the weather. And we had a wonderful time talking with you on the trip east. Thank you so much for the ride at NAS JAX -- we made it to Key West and don't need to make that drive again. Well, once, to get back to the mainland, but another time we'll wait for a flight! Thanks again for your help. |
Edgar Inocentes
Senior Member
Username: Traveler88
Post Number: 454
Registered: 01-2005
Posted From: 209.242.132.226
| | Posted on Wednesday, January 27, 2010 - 08:08 pm: | |
Roger, it's nice & sunny here in SD now. Sorry that you had to experience the rain last week, but SD really needed the water.
Great report! |
Roger Curry
Senior Member
Username: Rcurryastro
Post Number: 763
Registered: 05-2008
Posted From: 76.123.106.110
| | Posted on Wednesday, January 27, 2010 - 04:53 am: | |
Last week I took a space-a trip from NAS Jax to NAS North Island and back.
The flight left on Monday and was a C40A from the North Island squadron. We left about 9 a.m. and flew first to MCAS Beaufort, SC (my first fly-in to that base). We had an excellent low approach (the pilot took us down to 1000 feet for the last ten miles or so). We picked up a small number of Marines there and continued on to NAS Norfolk, where the plane remained overnight.
I was able to get a room at the Gateway but it was the older building that was miles away from the terminal. I was able to get a ride both ways with the terminal duty driver.
Our flight from Norfolk to North Island on the same plane started about 9:30 a.m. and we arrived about 11:30 a.m. local at North Island. The driver that picked me up at the plane was kind enough to drive me over to the Auto Shop next to the Exchange where there is a Hertz rental counter.
Hertz did not have an economy car on base but said they could get one in about two hours. I used that time to get some lunch at the Food Court and browse through the Exchange and Commissary. While I was at the Exchange, a very strong thunderstorm blew in. Luckily I had taken my umbrella because of a light rain. Trying to get back to the Auto Shop it was difficult walking into the wind and my umbrella inverted on me.
My car had arrived and was a Toyota Prius. I drove to the Gateway and was told that there were no rooms available. I was referred to the Naval Amphibious Base but they had no rooms, either. Some of their rooms had been water-damaged by flooding. They suggested I call 32nd St. There were a couple of rooms left at 32nd St. but they would not take my information for a reservation. I was told it was in-person only and first-come, first-serve, one night only.
While waiting at the Gateway to see if any rooms would open up after 6 p.m. (there were none), I met up with fellow SPATs Jim and Nancy from Washington State, near Seattle, and Glenn, who has lived in Australia for the last 30 years. Jim and Nancy had a reservation at the Navy Lodge and Glenn and I decided to go there to share a room rather than risk going all the way to 32nd St and not getting one. Jim and Nancy and I were able to get reservations at the Gateway for Wednesday (for Jim and Nancy) and Wednesday through Friday for me. Jim and Nancy were trying to get back to Washington and were expecting to go out on Thursday morning on a flight to Whidbey.
Glenn had come down from Travis where he told me that there were over one hundred SPATs trying to get to Hawaii and very few seats coming open. He knew of a flight that would go from Travis to Hickam and then continue on to Australia the next day. He thought he would have a better chance getting on the flight in Hawaii than at Travis. He opted for a commercial flight from San Diego to Honolulu and called United for a reservation for a one-way flight that cost $745. It was not until the next day that I found out he could have gotten out on Hawaian for $160 one way.
Jim and Nancy did not have a car so we did things together while they were there. On Wednesday, we drove out I-8 and had lunch in Alpine at a very nice European cafe, then continued across the Laguna mountains for sight-seeing and photography until we had crossed the pass and were on the downside. Bad weather was threatening and we decided to try to beat it back to North Island before we got caught in a heavy downpour.
By the time we arrived at the Gateway it was raining pretty steady. We did decide to go out for dinner that night and went to a micro-brewery steak house near the base.
The weather continued to be bad with gale-force winds, flooding, hail in some places, snow, and mudslides. The trees on base were shredded and probably a couple of dozen uprooted in the storm. Jim and Nancy went early Thursday for their flight and they boarded it but the flight never took off. They were able to extend for a night at the Gateway. They elected to stay Friday night at the Navy Lodge and take a commercial flight to Seattle since it looked like it would be late the next week before they would be able to get a space-a flight up there.
We went out on Friday to walk along the road by the beach to the Hotel del Coronado, the grand wooden hotel built in the late 1800's that has been hosts to presidents, kings, and movie stars (Some Like It Hot was shot there). There was a lot of beach erosion due to the bad weather, the worst rainfall that San Diego has had at one time in many years.
On Saturday morning I was able to get out on a C40A that was going to NAS Jax and NAS Key West. It was nice to have a direct flight back and we made good time with the tail wind. Another spat couple, John and Laurie, from Washington State provided conversation and friendship before and during the flight. I drove them to the Gateway at NAS Jax when we arrived.
NAS Jax is abuzz in activity related to the Haiti relief. There were two 747's cargo planes on the apron and a C-5.
It was a nice trip but would have been much nicer if the weather had behaved.
Fly safe,
Roger in Jacksonville, FL |
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