No more sleeps!
May. 4th, 2013 09:42 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tvordljAfter all the fretting i did worrying about Graham changing terminals this morning at Heathrow.... I thought he might have to get his bags off one flight and check in again at T3 which would add to the time taken to get between the terminals. That was the main thing I was fussing about because otherwise, 90 minutes is plenty of time to change terminals even for me and he walks much faster than I can. He was going down to London on Air Lingus and I didn't know if they would have a baggage agreement with Air Canada. He texted me this morning to say he was waiting for the gate to open in T3 and they'd checked the bags through. Yay! I can relax.
So I get up a couple of hours later after dozing a bit and I've just checked the airport arrivals. Guess what? His flight to Canada didn't leave on time anyway and is delayed almost an hour! He'd have had the extra time anyway but of course you don't know that until you get to T3 and he couldn't have known it when he texted me either because it would say on the flight board.
See the whole mess started when we were looking for flights. Because i freak out if i don't have enough time between flights and would rather cool my hells with extra time than worry about rushing, i always book with more than 2 hours between flights knowing i have to change terminals in Heathrow (or toronto if need be though i avoid that wherever possible. I hate having to fly past my destination to turn around and come back). We looked at the flights and there is normally an early one from Manchester to Heathrow on British Airways, 6:30 am and the flight to Halifax leaves at 11:15 or it has been lately. Sometimes it's scheduled for as late as 12:30 but hasn't for the last couple of times I've taken it. British Airways will check the bags right through to Air Canada. But as he was leaving on a Saturday, there was no early flight to London but Virgin Air had one, partnered with Aer Lingus so we booked that one. Two and a half hours, and we thought he would probably have to get his bags off that one and get to T3 and check in again. More queues that way and more time consumed. He said he'd ask at Manchester, though, just in case they did have a baggage agreement. You can't always count on it.
A few weeks after the tickets were bought and paid for, non refundable and non changeable of course for the cheapest option, he was notified that the time of the flight had changed to .... 7:20, which is about the same time as the normally scheduled BA flight!!! Agggh! If we'd known, we'd have gone with BA in the first place though you then have to navigate through Terminal 5 instead of Terminal 1 on arrival and it's bigger and busier but they would check the bags in. The one saving grace is that it is a bit smoother coming from Manchester to Heathrow over to Canada. Coming from this direction, no matter which terminal you're going to for the connecting flight, T1 or T5, you have to go through passport control as well as security and possibly get a boarding pass and it's a zoo in T5 for that. The first time I did it was this past November and it was busier than anytime i've ever been in a London airport in T5 that morning. I had 2 and a half hours and I still worried that i wouldn't get into the lounge in time. I did with about a half hour until the gate was opened but I was sweating from the crowds and line ups and wearing my winter coat. Sheesh.
Being late for anything is my one phobia. I am not one to run to the gate at the last minute as they're almost done boarding. Being late always happens when stuff happens beyond my control and that probably makes my stress worse. Mind you, when the flight from Manchester in January was unmoving for hours because of an inch of snow, after the first couple of hours when i knew for sure i would miss the connection, i calmed down. I knew i wouldn't have to rush around once i got to Heathrow. I would make my way to the Air Canada Desk and get rebooked and i knew there were always a few flights to Toronto through the day and i'd get one of them with a connection home. There's only one to Halifax, see, though i think maybe more than one to Montreal and Ottawa as well. Definitely 3 or 4 to Toronto.
Anyway, knowing Graham's bags were checked through so he wouldn't have to wait for them to come off the first plane, then get checked in again, that would save a lot of valuable time and stress (for me if not for him!) Now I can wait and watch via Flightaware's live tracker and watch the arrivals board on the Halifax airport site. One says arrival at 2:26 and the other say 2:41, possibly the later one is "at the gate" where the first one is probably touch down. I'll likely be there around 2 just to make sure though he'll still have to get his bags and go through passport control. Never mind. I'd rather be early ;))))
So I get up a couple of hours later after dozing a bit and I've just checked the airport arrivals. Guess what? His flight to Canada didn't leave on time anyway and is delayed almost an hour! He'd have had the extra time anyway but of course you don't know that until you get to T3 and he couldn't have known it when he texted me either because it would say on the flight board.
See the whole mess started when we were looking for flights. Because i freak out if i don't have enough time between flights and would rather cool my hells with extra time than worry about rushing, i always book with more than 2 hours between flights knowing i have to change terminals in Heathrow (or toronto if need be though i avoid that wherever possible. I hate having to fly past my destination to turn around and come back). We looked at the flights and there is normally an early one from Manchester to Heathrow on British Airways, 6:30 am and the flight to Halifax leaves at 11:15 or it has been lately. Sometimes it's scheduled for as late as 12:30 but hasn't for the last couple of times I've taken it. British Airways will check the bags right through to Air Canada. But as he was leaving on a Saturday, there was no early flight to London but Virgin Air had one, partnered with Aer Lingus so we booked that one. Two and a half hours, and we thought he would probably have to get his bags off that one and get to T3 and check in again. More queues that way and more time consumed. He said he'd ask at Manchester, though, just in case they did have a baggage agreement. You can't always count on it.
A few weeks after the tickets were bought and paid for, non refundable and non changeable of course for the cheapest option, he was notified that the time of the flight had changed to .... 7:20, which is about the same time as the normally scheduled BA flight!!! Agggh! If we'd known, we'd have gone with BA in the first place though you then have to navigate through Terminal 5 instead of Terminal 1 on arrival and it's bigger and busier but they would check the bags in. The one saving grace is that it is a bit smoother coming from Manchester to Heathrow over to Canada. Coming from this direction, no matter which terminal you're going to for the connecting flight, T1 or T5, you have to go through passport control as well as security and possibly get a boarding pass and it's a zoo in T5 for that. The first time I did it was this past November and it was busier than anytime i've ever been in a London airport in T5 that morning. I had 2 and a half hours and I still worried that i wouldn't get into the lounge in time. I did with about a half hour until the gate was opened but I was sweating from the crowds and line ups and wearing my winter coat. Sheesh.
Being late for anything is my one phobia. I am not one to run to the gate at the last minute as they're almost done boarding. Being late always happens when stuff happens beyond my control and that probably makes my stress worse. Mind you, when the flight from Manchester in January was unmoving for hours because of an inch of snow, after the first couple of hours when i knew for sure i would miss the connection, i calmed down. I knew i wouldn't have to rush around once i got to Heathrow. I would make my way to the Air Canada Desk and get rebooked and i knew there were always a few flights to Toronto through the day and i'd get one of them with a connection home. There's only one to Halifax, see, though i think maybe more than one to Montreal and Ottawa as well. Definitely 3 or 4 to Toronto.
Anyway, knowing Graham's bags were checked through so he wouldn't have to wait for them to come off the first plane, then get checked in again, that would save a lot of valuable time and stress (for me if not for him!) Now I can wait and watch via Flightaware's live tracker and watch the arrivals board on the Halifax airport site. One says arrival at 2:26 and the other say 2:41, possibly the later one is "at the gate" where the first one is probably touch down. I'll likely be there around 2 just to make sure though he'll still have to get his bags and go through passport control. Never mind. I'd rather be early ;))))
