Note added on 9/20/06: Let me clarify. This post refers to commercial airplane designers and owners. RT owns a plane and flies regularly - and I fly with him often. And he should definitely NOT be shot. (Can you guess that he saw the title of the post and ask, “I should be shot?”)
Well, not literally. But REALLY! The way airplane seating is designed is criminal! Have you traveled by plane lately? The planes have seats so crammed together that you literally cannot stand up in front of your seat. Even average-size people can barely fit in the narrow seats. And even if you fit in the seats, you can’t rest both arms at the same time because you share an armrest with the person next to you.
Tuesday night coming home, I had an experience I have never had before in traveling by plane. I was in a middle seat. RT was on one side by the aisle - and some guy I didn’t know was on the other side by the window. It was 3:00 in the morning. We had been traveling for about five hours. It was hot. It was cramped. Lots of people were sleeping, but I just couldn’t go to sleep - I was too uncomfortable.
I started feeling sick, and I knew I couldn’t stay in my seat. It wasn’t a rough flight, and I hadn’t eaten anything that would make me feel ill. However, the stuffiness, the lack of sleep, the cramped quarters made me ill. The only way I could move at all was to try to stand - bending from the waist - ask RT to let me out of the row (he had to move out into the aisle to let me out) - and side-walk out of the row and up and down the main aisle of the plane. I walked from one end to the other thinking that a little exercise would make me feel better. It didn’t.
I went into the bathroom and just stood there for a minute - and surprise! standing in a plane lavatory didn’t make me feel better. So I then went out and asked the flight attendants if they had something that would help. The ONLY positive part of the plane was the flight attendants. One of them got me some ginger ale, and the other went to find a cold cloth for my forehead, and they had me sit down on a stool in the galley. I sat there for about a minute and suddenly I knew that it was imperative that I get to the lavatory immediately.
Within a minute I was in the lavatory, but there weren’t any air sickness bags in there! I looked everywhere! I couldn’t use the toilet because. . . well, I was having to use it for another aspect of my general stomach upset. The only solution was to throw up in the sink. As any air traveler knows, the lavatory is so cramped that using the toilet and the sink simultaneously is not an impossible task. (Caution - gross description is next) So I threw up in the sink -over and over and over. But, horrors! It wouldn’t go down the drain - too chunky, I guess. So I had a sink full of upchuck. Have I completely grossed you out yet? When my stomach was thoroughly wrung out, and I was practically hanging onto the sink in exhaustion, I knew I couldn’t leave the bathroom that way. What to do? I finally used a mountain of paper towels to clean the sink - throwing the used ones into the trash and grabbing more. I think I cleared them out of paper towels. Being the fastidious person I am, I stood there and worked at it until the lavatory was as clean as I could make it.
When I emerged from the lavatory, I felt much better, although still shakey. The flight attendants had gotten RT when I made my mad dash for the bathroom. So he was there waiting for me. I went back to my seat, kept the cold towel on my forehead - and actually dozed off a little before we landed in Chicago.
I place the ENTIRE blame for that experience on United Airlines and their stupidly cramped airplanes. Long flights are nothing more than an exercise in endurance. It’s criminal!
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September 8th, 2006 at 6:58 pm
Poor baby! I hope getting off the plane solved the problem with the stomach ills. As far as the crowding goes, a long flight is absolutely an exercise in endurance! I cannot imagine how a person with long legs, or a person who is significantly overweight, or a person with circulatory problems survives a flight longer than a couple of hours. And I do not know how anyone sleeps on a plane — I never can. There is almost not enough room to read or do puzzles even.
September 9th, 2006 at 7:50 am
I absolutely agree. The airlines are more interested in making a buck than in the comfort of their passengers. The seats are smaller than they used to be so they can get more seats in the plane thus more paying customers! We are fortunate that most of the time when we fly to Venezuela the plane is not full and we get a row of three seat to ourselves. That helps a lot. I hope the flight from Chicago was better.
September 9th, 2006 at 3:24 pm
Poor baby. I am proud of you for cleaning up after yourself. I can just see you upchucking as you cleaned. I am sure you did not have a drop of anything in you when you finsihed.
But we all are paying , not only for the terrorist attacks but for the many people who travel, throw trash on the floors, steal everything that is not mailed down, etc. Our country is in serious trouble and being uncomfortable in travel is one of the minor problems
September 9th, 2006 at 5:51 pm
I agree. Long flights are miserable. Flying is miserable.
Carol - I HATE long flights for just those reasons!
I’m glad you got home safe and sound and everything turned out so well (minus the sickness on the flight).
BTW - the story about upchucking really kinda destroys the image of the fairy tale - just thought I’d let you know that! lol
October 3rd, 2006 at 11:54 am
Flying in the US, Canada or Europe is always miserable. Especially if you have a baby. It can take 15 minutes of arguing with the TSA to allow them to bring your baby’s food on (and this as after they “relaxed” the rules).
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Economy class on Singapore Airline’s non-stop from Newark to Singapore is far far nicer than First Class on any American or European carrier.
I’m not sure why the experience has to be at opposite ends of the spectrum. On Singapore they changed my baby, gave out toys, helped carry items on-off the plane for us, had a snack area, and the entire experience was wonderful.
On a recent Delta flight they accused me of being a liar in the line, yelled at one passanger loud enough to make her cry, and I thought the FA was going to tackle one passenger for trying to use the bathroom while the seatbelt sign was on.
I’ve never been incarcerated in my life, but I have to imagine that it must be a lot like being on a Delta or US Air flight.
I’m not sure why, with seats so crammed, security so tight, and so many delayed flights they have to go out of their way to be extra rude and nasty to each customer.
Two days ago I purchased a bottle of water in the sterile area of the terminal. The NWA flight attendant saw it in my back pocket and demanded it so she could throw it away. I understand they need to provide the illusion of security to make some passengers feel comfortable, but, couldn’t she at least ask for the bottle in a friendly way?