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Quick Trip to Germany

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Eileen F. Willms
Junior Member
Username: Willmse

Post Number: 6
Registered: 05-2008
Posted From: 173.62.36.137
Posted on Wednesday, May 19, 2010 - 08:58 pm:   

Chris,
My husband and I (CAT VI) also had odd info when departing Ramstein the end of April. We too were waiting to get on a Maguire flt and it was delayed. Or stories are similiar, except we were manifested. We kept checking on the flight status often. One half hour after we checked another member of our party called the PAX terminal to check status and we were told they had been trying to locate us the flight was boarding and leaving! We made the flight, but were miffed at the situation as well as other info that was discerning that we received from agents there throughout the 3 days we waited for our flight to finally depart. I filled out an ICE form but have yet to receive an RSVP. Hopefully all these "bugs" will be rectified.
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Chris Schaede
Intermediate Member
Username: Schaede

Post Number: 110
Registered: 03-2007
Posted From: 69.61.176.164
Posted on Monday, May 17, 2010 - 08:51 pm:   

A quick report on a quick trip to Germany to drop my daughter off for a summer immersion program in Heidelberg.

Our small party (CAT III w/daughter in tow and a CAT VI friend) left Ohio on Saturday 8 May for Andrews AFB, MD hoping to get on a Ramstein bound KC-135 that night. We arrived to find the flight cancelled. We got two rooms on base and waited until Monday for Plan B which was either the Medivac at Andrews or the PATEX at BWI. Again Andrews evaporated and we headed to BWI for a not too encouraging (for our CAT VI friend) seat release of 33. Roll call was conducted and no CAT VIs were taken.

We made the flight and arrived at Ramstein the next morning. We found that nothing was leaving because of the volcanic ash cloud and in fact the PATEX duty pax had to spend the night at Ramstein. We quickly called back to the States and let our CAT VI friend know things were backing up and he decided not to try for that evening’s PATEX for fear getting back would be more difficult than getting out.

The return was eventful. I got to Ramstein Friday evening 14 May. No flights out that night but there was one to McGuire with a 0510 roll call the next morning. I showed up at 0430 and that flight had cancelled and the board was being updated showing one flight with a roll call at 1010 to Gander-Charleston. I marked myself present in the automated system and waited. This is where it got eventful.

A PA was made to check the list to ensure your name was on it prior to roll call. I did and my name was indeed there. Next PA is roll call delayed until 1030. Next PA check the list. Again I did and I am on it. Roll Call is then again delayed until 1100 awaiting firm seat release. A PA is made again to check the list prior to the start of roll call.

As I wandered over to the flight control counter to await the calling of names I noticed an airman closing the case with the list. I walked over to discover my name was no longer on it. I immediately went to the customer service counter and told the PAX rep what had happened and found at least two more people had been dropped.
After much negotiation and a review of the previous lists revealed we were on everyone but the final one the supervisor added us to the manifest. Everyone was at a loss to explain how we were on four previously published lists and suddenly deleted from the last.

My concern with this is the position of the pax rep was that we had done something wrong in not checking sooner. I was a little baffled because as I pointed out I checked that list three times in the 45 minutes prior to roll call and two of those times I was on it. How many times does one need to check?? Further everyone acknowledged a computer glitch but no one was initially willing to give the three of us our proper place on the list. Their position was it was essentially our fault for not identifying the glitch sooner. As I said with the help of a supervisor we were put on.

We flew to McGuire and then on to Charleston where I had a great cab ride to the airport with Horace. I got a one-way Hertz rental and was back in Cincy on Sunday.

Trip cost specifics:

One-way rental from Cincinnati-Andrews originally was $99 dollars. I kept it an extra day and turned it in at BWI and the price skyrocketed to $254.

Rented a car through Charter US & Hertz in Ramstein Village - 4 days was 155 Euro for a Ford Focus

Averaged about 32mpg on unleaded gas and the price was between 1.42 – 1.47/liter. FYI diesel is in the 1.12-1.16 range

Booked 3 nights in a Spangdahlem TLF a week in advance for $52/night

Got a Chief suite (not sure how) at Ramstein the night prior to departure for $47.50

One-way rental from Charleston to Cincinnati was $250. It would have been $120 less if I could have rented it at a location other than the airport but they were closed until Monday.

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