A day in NON-REV purgetory!

So you think that having flight benifits, and being able to travel all over the world for next to nothing is cool?  Why don't you try it sometime and see how far you REALLY get!!

Ahhhh....  Thursday morning, December 23rd.  I know,  It's the last minute before Christmas, I should have left the day before.  I checked the flights Wednesday night, and they were pretty wide open. For once I thought that I was going to be able to fly direct to RDU, instead of going clear across the country, just to go home to see my family.  So I wake up Thursday morning, and check myself in for my flight four hours prior to departure.  Unlike most other airlines, who go by seniority date for standby, ours is first come first served!  I checked to see where I was on the standby list.  I was number 14 on the standby list on a flight that only the night before had about 20 open seats.  It was now oversold, along with the one after it.  I didn't worry that much at that point though....  It was time for my back up plan...

I checked out other alternative flights, thru different cities.  It looked like Washington Regan, DC was going to be the best choice.  The flight to DCA was wide open, and the flight to RDU had enough open seats that I could get home, only about 2 hours later than the direct flight that I had wanted to get on.  It was better than sitting at O'Hare all day, hoping to get home.  I also checked the next couple of flights to RDU from DC, just to make sure that I had a back up.  Though i didnt think that I was going to need them.

The flight from Chicago to DC, was easy, almost too easy.  I even got first class!  When I got DC, that's when all hell broke loose.  I get there, and find the gate for RDU.  Out of couriosity I check the standby list to see where I was.  To my horror, I was number 9 on the flight that HAD open seats, now booked solid.  I wasn't going to get on. 

So I just sat there, and waited, and waited, and waited.  The flight was delayed, so all that I could do was just to wait around.  I heard them start to call for boarding for the flight to RDU, but I didnt hear them calling any standbys.  So out of couriosity I looked up the standby list again.  I saw that they had GIVEN someone below me a seat!  I SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN ON!  I asked the agent why she gave someone below me a seat.  She said that I didnt respond when she called my name!  I WAS SITTING RIGHT NEXT TO THE FREAKING PODIUM!  I almost started to cry, because I knew that by not getting on that flight, that at that point, it wasn't looking good for me to get home to RDU, at all that day. 

I sat back down, and noticed some non-revs sitting near by.  I asked them if they were trying to get to RDU as well, and they were.  The next several hours were spent, waiting and bonding with eachother.  What else did we have to do, except wait?  We were all in the same boat going nowhere fast!  In spite of the situation, I had alot of fun chatting with everyone!

The flights that at one time had open seats, were now full.  The USAir crews were calling in sick  in droves, and their passengers were getting rebooked on our flights!  Where does that leave me and my six new best friends?  Out of luck!  I was sooo frustrated, that at one point I had considered just throwing in the towel, and going back home to chicago!

To make a long story short, the agents finally started turning away USAir passengers, and some of us started getting on flights.  I made it on the very last flight to RDU, along with my new best friends.  The flight was delayed due to weather and ATC, so I didn't get into RDU untill 1am.  My dad got in at pretty much the same time, so I was lucky in that respect.

For those of you who think it is sooooooooo cool that I can travel anywhere in the world.  At times it CAN be, except when you want to get somewhere.  Going home for the holidays when you are flying standby is like playing Russian Roulette.  Or as Forrest would say, just like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get.  I could BUY a ticket, just like everyone else, but that would defeat the point.  For me, it's not just about getting from point A to point B, it's the adventure that I come across along the way!