This was the first business trip in a year for a virtual person like me. I was leaving Helsinki on Sunday, June 25. As when I was entering to terminal a amazingly short queue was waiting for me, but at the registration there was no eticket info found about me by using regular ID. Using my passport I was identified without a problem.
Prior to security check I did put all my items into my laptop case. I personally was surviving the security gate without a problem, but my case was not. However I had to unwear my jacket nevertheless I had emptied all the items. The security person was asking whether I have got a laptop and of course I had. I had to remove the laptop and screen it again.
Then the check-in was planned to start at 15:30, but at that moment, there was no plane arrived at the gate. I saw the captain and his crew laughing at about the issue.
Then about 15:45 the plane arrived and the leaving time was put at 16:05 indicating at least 30 min delay. Then at 16:07 I was finally sitting at my seat 15D, but not exactly, because someone asked me to change the seats. He was separated from the rest of the family and therefore asked me to be seating at 12C, so there I started to seat.
Of course this was an aisle seat and all the seats were occupied. The person who were going to be seated next to me was trying to fit her luggage into the shelf without a success, so the luggage was placed into the feet. Prior to that the person was seeking some items in one’s bag for some minutes stopping others going at the corridor.
Then the captain started his speaking:”All others things are ok, but baggage circus causes some more time and trouble than expected”. After a while then one hostess was announcing that we have extra baggage, so all the persons that do have a baggage should go outside the plane for identifying their baggage.
So those persons went out from the rear for identifying the luggage that was theirs and then coming back to their seats from the front door. Finally I was wondering why no-one was asking to really identify their baggage , so I was just raising my luggage to a luggage man without checking the baggage card.
We were leaving the gate at 16:40 45 mins delayed.Then a gummy the not-the-best quality sandwich was served and after 20 mins some juice was served, of course I was eaten the sandwich already. I was starving. Luckily with this airline this all was free. Once I paid 5 EUR for a sandwich that was having a mould in it at one flight. Earlier I was wondering while persons were barbequeing, but not any more after that sandwich.
During this flight, when I was asking for a coke, I was not having it, but after asking for it a second time I got. Then a cup of coffee was served and of course I was having the last cup of the coffee pot tasting horrible like a plastic and rotten luxury not a good experience for a coffee-liking Finn as I am, but I do need coffeine.
We landed about one hour late at our destination. I needed about 20 minutes to walk into the baggage belt and wait for another 20 minutes when the baggage arrived. Then I have heading to the car hire where a summer trainee was trying to fix the printer and seek for a while the keys. After a 10-minutes walk I was finally finding my car, but the car was blocked with other cars, nevertheless I survived with 3 or 4 forwards and backs onto the roads.
My friends perhaps this is not a unique experience, so why to fly so often collecting airmiles for flying even more…