Travel disaster

Uh oh...tell them you're a VIP...

Robert,

This is such a short post.....shouldn't this be on twitter? :)

Has anything unusual happened?

Ugh, that is almost unbelievable. I had a similar situation a few years ago.

Are you carrying any liquids?

Oakland is my least favorite airport in the US.

Robert, this is exactly why you *need* a private jet.

Scoble, that's not a disaster, that's an inconvenience. At the end of the day there are far more important things in life. Spend the downtime doing something relaxing and productive, like posting what actually happened :)

We were in the same boat yesterday morning - missed our flight due to the long lines. Meanwhile, all the news was talking about was the stupid storm that turned out to be nothing - no mention of the airport line disaster. And no mention on the Oakland airport web site or the Southwest website. Oh, and to cap it all off, some of the baggage check stations were unmanned.

We're supposed to fly out tonight - bummer that it's still that bad.

I still haven't gotten to the counter. Sigh. They blame it on computer failures, holiday travel, construction, and lack of gate agents.

Robert,
It would be a great help if you could let us know how long it took to get through baggage check + security once you make it through.

Big mistake not flying out of SFO. You should have asked me :-) Even San HO is better.

Kevin: I switched to Continental and made it right through. It's Southwest that's all messed up.

Francine: we've flown out of Oakland dozens of times without much trouble at all until today.

this doesn't bode well for CES trip to Vegas.

Have a safe trip; your mission is a worthy one...

Eddie: it's only Oakland and only Southwest. If that matches you, get there three hours early.

CES from San Francisco area is a real PITA, by the way, cause they always oversell flights to Vegas.

Yes, that matches me. *sigh*

Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans, to miss both night and day…..

Have a great trip Robert,
...from our community to the National conversation.

Robert, I love your blog and your sense of humor, but...

Help a democrat? Sounds like you need help. I wish more people would vote Libertarian. Edwards is no better than the rest of his ilk. Bush is likewise no better.

This country needs a political overhaul. Tort reform. SMALL, VERY SMALL government. Quit blowing money on fighting muslim terrorists in a country that will be our next Vietnam.

Support the Libertarian party, Robert. At least they make sense. Look at all of the lies the Democrats and Republicans spit out every year. None of them come true. No help is ever forthcoming. Ever.

Vote Democrat if you want:

- legalized baby murder
- tax hike
- social programs that serve only to line pockets
- possibly elect a raging socialist
- our country handed over to the UN wholesale

Vote Republican if you want:

- stupid lobbyists and illegal deals (Dems too)
- lower taxes
- everyman for himself
- continued wars and too many people dying

Vote Libertarian if you want:

- a tiny government
- very low taxes, just enough to get the job done
- a stronger economy (neither the Dems or Reps have what it takes)

Robert:

Info for next time - unless the rules have changed in the last two months, in Oakland, you don't have to go through security for the terminal you are traveling from. The Southwest line is ALWAYS terrible, so I enter through Terminal 1 security and take an immediate left to walk over to Terminal 2. Much quicker.

Have a great trip.

The worst part of CES I've encountered is the lines OUT of Vegas after the show. I've seen 1 hour security lines at 11:00 at night, even worse during the day.

Try to fly off hours when you leave CES.

Oh yea, the other CES tip is keep your baggage tags with you when you pick up your bags in Vegas. I think they often require the tags before you leave the baggage area to prevent against thefts.

Maybe we should get a CES Tips Wiki running...

Robert, it may not help your mood, but travel delays and cancellations are going around. On Christmas Eve, US Airways/America West canceled our flight from San Jose to Las Vegas, and didn't give any reason or solution. We ended up taking a Southwest flight 7 hours later - thank god for wireless Internet at the airports!

Merry Christmas, Your Flight Is Canceled
http://www.louisgray.com/live/files/christmas_f...

Read my lips: Never step foot into the airport unless you have the airlines 800# programmed into your cell phone's address book. When the flight is canceled and 150+ people head for the ticket counter, you call the 800#. You will be rebooked long before you make it to the counter. I did this last Spring with American and was upgraded to 1st class on the next flight. When I hung up, there were still 50 people in the ticket line ahead of me.

Regards,

Glenn

Read my lips: Never step foot into the airport unless you have your cell phone. Then read Glenn's lips.

@19, Doug, while I agree with your sentiments, we are still a long way from a viable 3rd party. Hell, Libertarians can barely get elected dog catcher in Mayberry. So, until they can start winning convincing numbers locally they will never be taken seriously nationally.

While you're there Robert ask him what his plan is response is to the recent Concord Coaliion's "Fiscal Wake Up Tour". I want to know every candidates response to this message and plan and I would like to see it well documented. Thanks!

http://www.concordcoalition.org/

A race between Rudi and John would hopefully be a debate of positive ideas. We'll see what we actually get.

Robert,
At least you weren't at SJC today, the power went out around 10:30 and didn't come back on till after noon, so no boarding a plane without the skyways powered up, and with the wind it meant no stairs.

I caught up on some sleep, though. :)

I'm not a US citizen, and don't live in the US, so I tend to stay out of public debates on US politics. So, I hope all the US people here forgive me for intruding...

@19 - "(Banning) Legalized baby murder"? "(Keeping) raging socialist(s out of power)"? "Very low taxes... (but) enough to get the job done"?

You think these are serious political policies? They sure don't sound like it.

As an outsider, it seems like the optimal algorithm for deciding how to vote in US elections is actually pretty simple. Here it is:

If you earn less than $300,000 per year, vote Democrat. Else vote Republican.

VISION - GOOD GOVERNMENT for GREAT public policy.

In short, good government, not privitization.

Blessings

Oakland airport note: The concourses connect. If the lines are really long at the Southwest concourse, you can go over to the other concourse for security even if you're flying SWA!

Its kind of way too late but I hope the rest of your trip was a success.