Geeks on Planes

Can you imagine having this view and hearing the constant drone of airplane engines for over fourteen hours, only to stretch your legs for a bit before getting on board and doing it again? For some people out there it may sound like a nightmare scenario come true but for others it may be a small slice of heaven. For the few, the proud, the geeky who are truly into aviation, air travel is still a thing to be savored. Seasoned air travellers and frequent business flyers may scoff at that outlook but it doesn't matter. For some people the thrill of air travel is truly in the journey. So where does the fourteen hour part come in? Well, United began its inaugural flight non-stop to China which is their new route and in order to join in on this historic moment, a small group of flyers took two days out of their schedules to make the journey.

Some people may be there smacking their foreheads and wondering what in the world possessed these people to take such an arduous journey if all they're going to do is get there and then come right back. For these people, it largely stems from the desire to be a part of something historic. These people wanted to be a part of the first flight from Dulles to China and then be the first passengers from China to Dulles. There's no medal and other than these bits of news references to them, there's probably never ever going to be any other mention of them anywhere else. It's a way of getting your fifteen minutes of fame and then slowly fading out of the public eye. But again, these people aren't doing it for the fame, they are doing it for their love of aviation and air travel.

In a way it is quite refreshing to hear about people like this. Though I am not as far gone as some of these folks, I do get a kick out of air travel. Sure the journey can be long, tiresome and boring as hell if you don't have anything to do, but it's definitely something I enjoy undertaking. It's good to hear about people who enjoy air travel because in recent years, there has been an increase in the number of complaints and problems with the airline industry. Costs are up and services are down. I mean when is the last time anyone not flying overseas was given a meal? Before you rush to comment and leave responses to the contrary, I do not count an extra bag of six pretzel sticks as a meal. Air travel these days can sometimes seem like glorified FedEx service with everything except a box for us to sit in though the seats on some airlines are certainly small enough to feel that way.

Our boarding pass is our packing slip; our seat assignment is our place in the transport. If someone is interested in tracking your progress, you can use any number of systems to track where in your journey you are at any given time. Just look at some of the incidents that happened earlier this year. I grant you that the weather and circumstances in most cases were more than what could be expected but to leave passengers stuck on a plane for eight or ten hours is too much. Just to put it in contrast though, don't forget that the pilots were stuck in their seats too, and if you think your seats are cramped, just imagine sitting in the driver's seat of your car for ten hours straight. I'm sure they stayed there either due to FAA and Homeland Security dictums or due to the desire not to be pummelled by irate passengers.

In spite of all these things and more, to read about a group of people who enjoy the journey inspite of the hardships is heartening. It makes me feel that my enjoyment of the journey is shared by a small group of others. We're usually the ones smiling and awake throughout the journey; not because we are nervous flyers but because we don't want to miss a thing. Some of us dedicated airline geeks upgrade to premium seats in the plane and are literally pampered all the way from one side of the world to the other. That being the case, what's not to like? I mean, before you completely dismiss these guys as raving lunatics think for a moment. These guys are taking two days off and basically sitting in luxury recliners which also become beds; they have their pick of movies, they can choose from a variety of meals and are racking up more miles in one journey that many travellers will accumulate in numerous jaunts across the States. Plus the fact that they'll also be able to get some authentic Chinese take-out at the airport, what's not to like in that?