Saturday, Jan 16, 2016
In preparation for my trip to New Zealand, I completed some chores at home on Saturday morning before heading to the airport.
Everything went well. The weather was very good, the roads were clear and there were no cars at the border so I ended up arriving there with plenty of time to spare. I was TSA pre-approved and there was no line at security, so I made it through to the gate in record time, which gave me time to listen to music and complete a crossword puzzle.
I had a good boarding position and got a seat in the exit aisle. The plane was scheduled to stop in Chicago before continuing on to San Francisco. Unfortunately, there was a problem with the toilets on board the airplane prior to departure and the passengers were informed that they would not be available for use until the plane reached 16000 ft. When we reached Chicago, Southwest management decided to take the plane out of service for repair, so the five of us that were continuing on to San Francisco were instructed to de-plane. However, we were allowed to get on the substituted plane before the general boarding was started and I was able to get an exit aisle seat with plenty of leg room. The flight continued without incident and we arrived in San Francisco 10 pm, approximately 4.5 hours after take-off. I got a shuttle to my hotel, checked in, and I was able to get something to eat before going to bed.
Ralf Hamm 