So, we flew the executive mail tube (United) to SEA-TAC last Friday, for my
nephew's wedding.

Getting up at 2 AM to leave by 3 AM, to arrive at 4 AM (two hours before
flight-time) -- only to find the United ticket counter placarded "Opens at
5 AM" -- did NOT start the day well. Still, despite flying hundreds of
hours since birth, the kids were way excited to be flying the heavy iron for
a change, and spirits were high.

Getting through security at that time of day turned out to be a non-event,
and we easily could have arrive 20 minute before departure -- but who knew?
We all felt really stupid, standing around in sock feet, but oh, well.

The flight was uneventful, in a BaE jet out of Moline (with those four
little jet engines) to Chicago (the wrong way -- thanks to the stupid hub &
spoke system), and then (after a longer-than-wanted layover) on to Seattle
in a brand, new Boeing 777. (What an awesome plane!)

Despite their bankruptcy and labor difficulties, we found United's aircraft
and employees to be professional, spotless, and on-time. Unfortunately,
despite the fact that our tickets explicitly said that we were to be fed
breakfast on the flight out, we were given a pathetic little cookie and told
that "we haven't served breakfast in coach class since before 9/11" --
whatever THAT has to do with it...

Upon arrival in Seattle we found our rental van in short order, and -- not
having any immediate family plans -- we made a bee-line for (what else?) the
Boeing plant in Renton! It was way cool to see train-loads of fuselages
heading into the plant for final assembly, and we enjoyed the "Boeing Store"
there quite a bit. While at the store the girl behind the counter told us
that we could "probably" make it up to the big plant on the north side of
Seattle for a tour before they closed for the day -- so we piled back into
the Kia (not a bad mini-van, by the way) and high-tailed it up to Everett.

Our good fortune held, and we arrived just in time to buy the last four
tickets available for tours that day.

For those who have never seen the Boeing plan in Everett, it's hard to
describe with words. Imagine the largest building in the world (by volume),
where they assemble 747s and the new 777s. The only building I've seen that
can compare is the Vehicle Assembly Building at Cape Canaveral, but as
opposed to the NASA facility, in Everett you actually get to go inside the
Boeing building, and see what's going on inside. It's a fascinating tour,
and an absolutely awe-inspiring structure. (See
http://www.boeing.com/companyoffices/aboutus/tours/ for details.)

Everything is super-sized, from the parking lots to the paint shops to the
overhead cranes. Seeing how a 747 is put together is quite an amazing
sight, and I highly recommend the tour for anyone who finds themselves in
Seattle.

Attending my nephew's stag party that night meant staying up for 26 straight
hours -- something I haven't pulled for quite a while (especially not while
laced with margaritas!) -- but it was a duty that had to be performed. To
make matters worse, we had to get up early the next day in order to hit the
Museum of Flight before the family plans began in earnest!

Despite my misery, the trip was well worth it -- this museum is fabulous!
Located on Boeing Field, north of Seattle, they have everything, from a
Concorde, to a Blackbird (with a D-21 drone!), to a real Focke-Wulf 190.
Their World War II exhibit was one of the best, most comprehensive I've seen
anywhere -- and their World War I display outshines anything I've ever seen.
In fact, I have to say that their World War I exhibit is, by far, the best
in the U.S.

In another stroke of luck, we happened to be at the museum on the day of a
big fly-in, so there was action in the sky as well. All in all, it was a
most enjoyable and worthwhile place to visit, and we ended up buying a
"family membership"-- which, at just $60, was a real bargain. That got
Mary, me and the kids in, as well as my sister and her daughter -- with two
extra guest passes to spare! (Which I subsequently gave to my nephew and
his new bride.)

Finally (and best of all, from my end), the museum gift shop stocked many
unusual and unique items that will go well in the hotel. They were
unusually well-stocked with items that ranged far beyond the usual,
run-of-the-mill "Sporty's catalog" stuff, and we were able to obtain several
hundred dollars worth of cool knick-knacks and artwork that will greatly
enhance a couple of our suites.

Heck, even the on-site restaurant was good, with reasonable prices and a
good selection.

The wedding went off without a hitch on Sunday, and we were able to depart
Seattle without difficulty on Monday mid-day. We hit some pretty nasty
thunderstorms around Denver, however, but our gigantic Boeing Triple Seven
took it all in stride. Unfortunately, after landing we discovered that the
First Officer for our next leg into Moline, IL was not able to get out of
Grand Junction, NE (supposedly because of the crappy weather), and United
was forced to cancel our flight!

Thus, we found ourselves stranded at the gigantic new Denver airport without
so much as a toothbrush, and two very unhappy kids.

Sadly, United refused to pay for the hotel (they called this a
weather-related cancellation, despite my protests to the contrary), but they
did provide us with survival kits (deodorant, toothbrush, etc.) and got us a
great discount at a nearby Embassy Suites. There are a worse places to be
stranded than Denver, and we were able to get our staff to cover an extra
day at the hotel without too much grief -- so we made the best of it.

Once we got the kids to bed, Mary and I toddled down to the bar, where we
struck up a friendship with a fellow who turned out to be an FAA employee,
assigned to VOR maintenance all over the west! Needless to say, he (and we)
had many stories to share, and the night soon grew dim and short....

Today, at the end of another long day, we FINALLY got home, after having to
fly (AGAIN) into Chicago (this time on a Canadair Challenger jet) there
being no direct flights available back into Moline. It took most of the
day to accomplish, and I was surprised to discover that I find flying the
airlines to be MUCH harder work and more tiring than flying our own plane.
The stress of laying over, sitting in too-small seats, looking out too-small
little windows and eating bad airport food, while not quite sure if you'll
ever see your luggage again (not to mention dealing with airport security
checks and cancelled flights) is just a gigantic, royal pain the butt.

Tonight, we are four tired puppies...

In the end, we could have easily beaten the airlines home from Seattle in
Atlas, our Cherokee 235. Well, except for those cumulo-nimbus clouds that
were towering to 40,000 feet over Colorado...

;-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"