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Tips for flying American Airlines
Kato
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Ten year anniversary is coming up this month and we are flying out to Fort Lauderdale, FL to celebrate. Leaving on a Tuesday and returning on a Friday, so nothing lengthy and too expensive, but with the activities planned, we will still have a great time.
We are flying American Airlines and will have a short layover in Dallas. I have not flown for almost 20 years and my wife has never flown. Looking for general tips and everything with what is allowed on the plane and what will be searched, that sort of information.
We are trying to pack a single carry on bag for each of us and then I think you also get like one small, hip bag or something as well that you can carry with you and avoid baggage fees (or lost baggage)?
Can you take shampoos and stuff? I thought they said that you could not at one point...is that still the case. She would like to take some basic bathroom stuff and make-up and what not.
I assume that there are no issues with any electronic devices on the plane as long as you leave them turned off during take off and landings? So a DS and cellphone and netbook are all ok to take with us? Can these said electronic items be stored in the carry on bag or small backpack?
We were able to choose our seats for all of the flights except one...what are the odds that we will get seated in seats that are not next to each other?
Hit me with anything please...extra travel tips, plane tips, things to watch out for...anything.
We are flying American Airlines and will have a short layover in Dallas. I have not flown for almost 20 years and my wife has never flown. Looking for general tips and everything with what is allowed on the plane and what will be searched, that sort of information.
We are trying to pack a single carry on bag for each of us and then I think you also get like one small, hip bag or something as well that you can carry with you and avoid baggage fees (or lost baggage)?
Can you take shampoos and stuff? I thought they said that you could not at one point...is that still the case. She would like to take some basic bathroom stuff and make-up and what not.
I assume that there are no issues with any electronic devices on the plane as long as you leave them turned off during take off and landings? So a DS and cellphone and netbook are all ok to take with us? Can these said electronic items be stored in the carry on bag or small backpack?
We were able to choose our seats for all of the flights except one...what are the odds that we will get seated in seats that are not next to each other?
Hit me with anything please...extra travel tips, plane tips, things to watch out for...anything.
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http://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInformation/baggage/carryOnAllowance.jsp
http://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInformation/baggage/carryOnAllowance.jsp
Edit:
Esh :x
When you get to the security screening you should be ready to take off your shoes, have your ID and ticket handy and put anything metal into the bin to send through the scanner.
You can't bring any food or drinks through security, but there is a bunch of over priced things for you waiting just on the other side, so no worries.
Arrive early, and be patient and understanding. Everyone is in a bad mood, and the tighter your schedule the more will go wrong. Murphey lives in the airport.
Just remember that it is only temporary and it will soon be over and you will be at your destination and ready to have fun!
Remove everything, everything from your pockets. Keep your ticket and ID out and put the rest of your stuff into your carry on, preferably a pocket just for this. This will make your life at security much more pleasant and quick.
And take off your belt if it has a metal buckle. I often forget about mine and then sheepishly have to take it off under the glaring eyes of the agent.
You are allowed one carry-on bag and one "personal item," such as a purse, laptop bag, or briefcase. Please do not be one of those jerkasses who thinks a carry-on is an enormous hard-cased wheeled piece of luggage that takes up 60% of one overhead compartment designed to hold bags for ten people. A smaller soft-sided bag - like the kinds that come in luggage sets and are actually intended to be carry-ons, instead of the suitcases that most people use - will hold almost as many clothes, it will be much easier to stow, and you can actually carry it instead of dragging it around by a handle. Smaller bags also fit under the seat in front of you during the flight, so you aren't stuck trying to wrestle them out from underneath somebody else's massive travel trunk when you land.
The definition of "personal item" is constantly stretching - I've seen people walk right onto planes with one giant wheeled suitcase bumping behind them, and a giant hiking knapsack on their back. But, I've also seen people forced to gate-check their second item if it's too big. Out of respect for your fellow travelers, I would encourage you to keep the personal item small. A purse is fine, a laptop bag is fine, a small messenger bag is alright, but don't be the guy with the "personal" duffel bag.
All fluids must be 3oz. or less in appropriately-sized containers, and at security, you need to place any such containers in a clear ziploc bag. It's a huge pain in the ass, especially when the security guard starts arguing with you because your approved travel-sized container is actually capable of holding 4oz., even though it's only halfway full, so unless your wife uses some super-special shampoo made of natural extracts from the milk of endangered California throatwarblers, just plan on buying basic toiletries when you get there. Makeup is less of a problem because it comes in tiny little containers anyway, but again, you will need to pull all of it out of your baggage and put it in a ziploc for inspection, so make sure it's packed on top. One other important thing to note about the fluids rule is that it applies to bottled drinks, too, so you'll need to either buy those after going through security from one of the wildly overpriced food kiosks, or bring an empty water bottle, and fill it from a fountain once it's safe to do so.
Electronic devices are fine, as long as you follow instructions on when to use them. They can be stored in either of your bags, but I'd recommend keeping them all in the same one so you know which bag to be extra-careful with. During security, laptops, netbooks, and iPads need to be removed from their bags and placed in a separate bin from your other stuff, so again, make sure it's easy to get to.
On the leg where you can't pick your seat, the odds that you will be seated next to your wife are roughly $texas to one, so, don't plan on it. You might be able to request a seat change when you check in, though, and if all else fails, you can always just ask people to swap with you.
Now, other things you should know.
First off, air travel today is a far, far fucking cry from the way it was back in the 80s and early 90s. It used to be a luxury, and was treated as such: comfortable seats, attentive staff, a choice of meals on every flight. But between 9/11, the economy, and increasing demand, flying these days is a short half step above riding the Greyhound bus from Philly to Boston at Christmas. On the vast majority of flights, you're lucky if you can get a sample-sized bag of pretzels, and on the rare occasions when meals are available, it's $10-12 for a tiny ham-and-dijon sandwich. Seats get smaller every year while Americans get larger, so space is *tight*. (Hence my pleas earlier about moderating the size of your luggage). If you or your wife are taller than average, your knees will be crushed against the back of the seat in front of you. If either of you reclines your seat at all, you'll be crushing the knees of whoever is sitting behind you. If the person in front of you moves their seat back, you will spend the entire flight staring daggers at them and wishing harm upon their entire extended family in retribution for the pain they are causing you. Unless you have the great good fortune to be short, small-boned, skinny people, flying is physically pretty miserable.
Security, however, is worse. You may have read horror stories in the news about the extent to which the TSA goes out of its way to inconvenience, embarrass, and irritate people. They're true. At best, you'll file through the line with everyone else: you'll remove your shoes, belt, and any jacket or overcoat or sweater you may be wearing, and place them in a plastic bin along with your keys and any other metallic objects you carry - watch, loose change, etc. You'll remove your netbook from its case, and place it in a separate bin; ditto with any fluids in containers. You'll lift your bags up onto the counter as well, then push everything slowly forward onto the conveyor belt. Then, as your bags go through the x-ray machine, you'll walk into a full-body scanner, raising your arms when instructed, waiting as the machine takes and stores images of your body without your clothes. (If you'd rather not use the scanner, you can request a full-body patdown instead). Finally, after shuffling along beltless and shoeless for five minutes, you're given access to your bins, and you'll scramble to get everything back on your body and in your bags while people push against you from behind.
That's the best case scenario, but there are worse variations. Sometimes they swab your hands, clothes, and bags to check for trace amounts of residue that might indicate that at some point in the near past, you came into contact with fertilizer or gunpowder. Sometimes they find a (completely sealed, in its original packaging) container of Konriko brand Creole Seasoning (ingredients: red pepper, salt, spices) in your bag, which you were thrilled to find at a Florida grocery store because you haven't had any luck getting it locally, and they grill you for ten minutes about its contents before calling over a supervisor, who demands that you open the container, then takes it away for inspection, then gives it back to you five minutes later with the top pried partway off (even though you had opened it properly) so it spills all over your clothes, but you don't notice until you get home and pull on that last pair of clean underwear and oh god my crotch is filled with hot pepper and chili powder.
Anyway.
When I was a kid, flying was always the coolest part of family vacations; now, as an adult, it's the worst. But it's often the only feasible way to get from Point A to Point B, so just do your best with it. Give yourself way more time than you think you'll need, so you don't get stressed out by delays. Co-operate with the TSA goons, be patient, stay hydrated, pack lightly, and bring snacks of your own so you aren't stuck paying $12 for a sandwich on the plane or at the airport.
And, of course, enjoy your vacation.
It's not quite this bad. I fly pretty frequently and I don't run into 1/10th of the terrible shit described here.
Also it always a good idea to be pleasant to people who can make your experience better or worse, you know, smile and make a bit of small talk if they seem amenable. Less so with the TSA people at the checkpoint: they're a dour lot, and strike me as individuals who'd give you a cavity search if you smiled at them.
Never had to deal with the FB scanner, but on returning from London last year I got selected for a pat down. After all the press re:TSA I was expecting to get molested. Dude seemed more interest in my belt than my junk.
Be polite to the staff, treat the agents as you would like to be treated, be prepared to exercise patience.
Really, it's just like being a mature person - but in an airport.
And along the same lines, don't wear overpowering cologne.
Folks, bear in mind that the OP hasn't flown in twenty years, and his wife has never been on an airplane. People who travel regularly may be used to the discomfort and the ever-increasing degree of security theater, but if the guy's last flight was on Pan Am, dealing with modern American air travel would be a shock and a half.
I'm curious about what people think I exaggerated. Almost all economy seats on American Airlines flights are 17 or 17.2" wide, with 30-31" of horizontal distance from the back of the headrest of the seat in front of you to the back of your own headrest (which, in practical terms, means about 26-28" of actual sitting space). That is a *tiny* amount of room, especially if the person in front of you reduces it by reclining their seat at all.
Security procedures are just as I described - shoes off, belt off, pockets emptied, strict limits on fluid container sizes, laptops out, body scanner or patdown, put everything back on - and they're like that for everyone. Granted, most people probably won't be subjected to the Spanish Inquisition for having a can of Creole Seasoning in their bag, but they'll still have to go through the rest of it, and it's a far cry from the way it used to be.
If you're lucky enough to be on a half-empty flight leaving from a smaller airport, then sure, flying's not that bad - having an empty seat beside and behind you so you can stretch out and lean back makes a huge difference in comfort, but I suspect a flight going to Florida during March is more likely to be on the crowded side.
I don't know, maybe I am being Doomy McGloomface over here, maybe other people are totally fine with flying the way it is. But personally, if I hadn't driven a car in twenty years, and the process that used to consist of "enter car, turn key" now had strict requirements on what I could bring into the car and how much leg room I could have and involved a body scan before I was allowed into the car, well, I'd appreciate that information.
Like someone already said, it's no different than anything else in life. The only thing that might be mildly intrusive is security. Otherwise, just follow the rules, "Yes, sir, no sir, thank you very much sir." and you'll be fine. You sound a little high maintenance.
It really depends on the person. I am a high maintenance flyer. Every one of my past 4 trips have seen me sent to some form of second screening. Be it a manual checked bag screen, random gate stop and secondary patdown, or secondary carry-on screening. Ontop of that I have to fly in the emergency exit rows, otherwise my knees will develop bruises or my hips will lock up since I have super long legs.
That doesn't make you high-maintenance, that just means you got unlucky in being picked so much.
the security process will vary depending on the airport as well; At the small-ish airport I flew out of first, TSA consisted of one guy checking IDs and Boarding Passes (who was rather embarrassed when he couldn't locate the date of birth on my out-of-state license) and two lines with standard walk-through metal detectors. the security folks seemed pleasant enough and were politely guiding people through the process, which was actually quite intuitive and simple. No line to speak of, and the body scanner didn't even appear to be turned on.
At the destination airport, which was significantly larger, there was a 20+ minute line for security followed by an understaffed and unpleasant bunch of TSA "agents". Compared to the propaganda in line ("This is bill. He's a TSA Agent. His hobbies are golf, stamp collecting, and keeping you safe.) it was really a grim reflection on the state of things. Its hard to humanize (or rather, un-demonize) people when they are standing right in front of you, grimacing, reorganizing the line because they mistakenly sent 20 people into the wrong queue. There were four xray machines and two body scanners; only three lines were running, and at two of them everyone went through the scanner, no exceptions. I went to the third one where no one was manning the scanner- the one staff member running metal-detector walkthroughs kind of just shouted at people from somewhere vaguely in-between all three lines. The guy running the xray at my line appeared to be asleep until he notified me my bag was "on the conveyor wrong" ... after I had already gone through the metal detector.
tldr: not all TSA experiences are terribad, but the scale swings heavily towards that direction given the combination of power, fear, and public "service."
Just go into the place knowing what it is you're supposed to do- see above posts or the tsa website- and you should be ok.
3DS: 0447-9966-6178
EDIT: Oh wow, it's pretty tiny.
Yes, going through the entire security rigamarole can be irritating, but blaming the TSA dude/ette that makes $14/hr to look at your obscured junk (and the junk of flabby Uncle Bill in front of you) for a bad experience will only make you feel worse.
Wear slip on shoes. Don't wear a belt. Have your laptop in a TSA-approved zip case so you don't have to take it out. Don't have liquids larger than 3oz. Keep your small liquids in your quart baggie - and remind your wife that things like mascara, lip gloss and other not-quite-liquid things in a lady's toilette also count. Don't have anything sharp (tweezers, nail clippers) or anything that resembles the constituent ingredients of Mace (cayenne and other chilies). Arrive early.
And above all, be patient and be a nice person.
My biggest regret through all my travels is not having bought or used a neck pillow, they look like a solid purchase. I can't even remember all the times I have woke up on some strangers shoulder who was also asleep. The only one I can remember is some cute japanese girl, then I rolled the other way, woke up later and she was on my shoulder...
If only we spoke a common language
This advice bears an eerie and unpleasant resemblance to the tourist information we used to see for people going on holiday in the eastern bloc in the 80s.
Flying's really not that bad. Just be a calm and reasonable person and you'll be fine. The only real annoyance for me is the no large liquids and no razers in cabin baggage rule, which sucks for when you want to bring shampoo or your shaving set. But whatever, you will survive for a week or so, just buy some small toiletries when you get to your destination. It's really not a big deal.
Be thankful you are even considering this to be a difficult situation.
Your tickets:
24 hours before the flight, sign onto AA.com, and print your boarding passes/tickets. You can change your seats here as well. When you get to the airport, use the AA terminal (the computer kiosks) to check in. This is where you can pay for bags and change seats, change flight, etc. as well. Do the same when coming home.
As others have said, put anything metal in your carry-on bag. Keep your tickets and an ID in your hand.
Bookmark Flight Tracker on your phones and/or mobile devices. Also have 1-800-882-8880 saved as a contact on your phones too.
Film is the only thing (in the general population anyway) that can be messed up by the rays.
No worries at all.
Really? Could you not opt for the pat down instead?
(Or were you told up front which lines were what, and were allowed to choose which line to go through if you wanted to avoid the scanner?)
About the genital part: I was under the impression that you couldn't opt out of having your genitals patted-down. It's either:
1. Naked body scanner
2. Pat-down including genital touching
I didn't think you could get the pat-down without the groping.
/off topic
Alright yeah you're right, my apologies. I misworded what I said.
Neither. It doesn't count as anything except weight.
When I fly on Iceland Air this Fall, they say the carry-on size allowance is not to exceed 45" total for height, width, length. Is this more for rigid luggage? I have a Chrome Bag that hits 48" for those dimensions. Is anyone honestly going to care?
It depends on how full the flight is, and whether or not your flight attendants/gate crew are jerks. I've never seen ANYONE measure that stuff, and I know for sure I've seen people with stuff that exceeds those measurements. Worse comes to worse, they'll have you check it at the gate.
Looking at the person shot, that's a pretty big bag to be carrying on.