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US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'



 
 
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  #41  
Old June 8th, 2014, 01:30 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Erilar
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 599
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'

"JohnT" wrote:
.

I find it very difficult to comprehend how the RETURN half of an e-ticket
can be "mucked up". An e-ticket is just a record on a computer system -
Amadeus in the case of BA - and it has no physical existence. It doesn't have two halfs.

Perhaps Erilar should try a few flights on Spirit Airlines in the USA or
on Ryanair in Europe. She may then have some benchmark for comparison.


In Europe itself I normally take the train. This was part of a cruise
package. No one could understand how they mucked up the return half of an
e-ticket. I even had it in my hand! Even so, what was in their computer
didn't match it. The number was correct, but someone had butchered my
name. Computers are seldom that kind of stupid.

--
Erilar, biblioholic medievalist with iPad
  #42  
Old June 8th, 2014, 02:25 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
JohnT[_10_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 28
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'


"Erilar" wrote in message
...
"JohnT" wrote:
.

I find it very difficult to comprehend how the RETURN half of an e-ticket
can be "mucked up". An e-ticket is just a record on a computer system -
Amadeus in the case of BA - and it has no physical existence. It doesn't
have two halfs.

Perhaps Erilar should try a few flights on Spirit Airlines in the USA or
on Ryanair in Europe. She may then have some benchmark for comparison.


In Europe itself I normally take the train. This was part of a cruise
package. No one could understand how they mucked up the return half of an
e-ticket. I even had it in my hand! Even so, what was in their computer
didn't match it. The number was correct, but someone had butchered my
name. Computers are seldom that kind of stupid.


OK, so it wasn't British Airways who made the mistake. The error was by
whoever booked your cruise package as you had no direct contact with BA in
the booking process. And computers are totally without intelligence. They
rely entirely on whoever programs them and/or feeds information to their
programs.

--
JohnT

  #43  
Old June 9th, 2014, 05:12 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Erilar
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 599
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'

"JohnT" wrote:
"Erilar" wrote in message ...
"JohnT" wrote:
.

I find it very difficult to comprehend how the RETURN half of an e-ticket
can be "mucked up". An e-ticket is just a record on a computer system -
Amadeus in the case of BA - and it has no physical existence. It
doesn't have two halfs.

Perhaps Erilar should try a few flights on Spirit Airlines in the USA or
on Ryanair in Europe. She may then have some benchmark for comparison.


In Europe itself I normally take the train. This was part of a cruise
package. No one could understand how they mucked up the return half of an
e-ticket. I even had it in my hand! Even so, what was in their computer
didn't match it. The number was correct, but someone had butchered my
name. Computers are seldom that kind of stupid.


OK, so it wasn't British Airways who made the mistake. The error was by
whoever booked your cruise package as you had no direct contact with BA
in the booking process. And computers are totally without intelligence.
They rely entirely on whoever programs them and/or feeds information to their programs.


No, everything was correct on the e-ticket for both legs of the trip, as
the woman at the BA counter agreed. Someone had intervened and mucked up
my name, apparently while I was on the cruise. The ticket was part of the
cruise package.

--
Erilar, biblioholic medievalist with iPad
  #44  
Old June 9th, 2014, 06:11 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Athel Cornish-Bowden
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 28
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'

On 2014-06-04 13:43:12 +0000, tim..... said:

"Bill" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 04 Jun 2014 11:59:44 +0100, Mike O'Sullivan
wrote:

On 03/06/2014 23:53, Dan Leifker wrote:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/tr...-humanity.html



Depends on the airport, but in general I agree with this article.

Not all U.S. airports are wastelands. Portland (Oregon) has one of the
nicest airports I've ever visited, and San Francisco's airport is going
through a very slow remodeling that may be a sign of things to come in
21st-century U.S. airports. The new Terminal 2 at San Francisco
(domestic travel only, sadly) is spectacular, with lots of restaurants,
work desks, shops, and seating galore.

But the article is spot on with respect to passport control at U.S.
airports, which approaches something from Dante's Inferno. When I fly
into Frankfurt or Munich, I spend maybe 5 minutes in the Passkontrolle
line. When I return to the U.S., I deplane and literally run as fast as
I can to get to U.S. passport control before the lines start to mass.

Thanks for link to article.

You're welcome. My daughter is currently living in Pennsylvania. The
only downside to returning to the UK on a visit is that she dreads the
whole US immigration experience on returning.


Everyone does.

Why do customer facing US uniformed immigration officials at
international airports carry pistols? Have any of them ever shot
anyone?


I just don't understand why they have to be so goddamned rude

It's possible to be firm, but polite.


That's how I've always found them at San Francisco in recent years
(almost the only US airport I often use for entry, though I use others
for exit). Certainly never "goddamned rude".
My wife has rather dry fingers that don't get registered by the
fingerprint machine, but rather than being rude the passport officer
produced some greasy substance.




--
athel

  #45  
Old June 9th, 2014, 06:12 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Athel Cornish-Bowden
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 28
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'

On 2014-06-04 13:40:51 +0000, tim..... said:

"Dan Leifker" wrote in message
news:2014060315532625059-daniel@dleifkercom...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/tr...-humanity.html


Depends on the airport, but in general I agree with this article.

Not all U.S. airports are wastelands. Portland (Oregon) has one of the
nicest airports I've ever visited, and San Francisco's airport is going
through a very slow remodeling that may be a sign of things to come in
21st-century U.S. airports. The new Terminal 2 at San Francisco
(domestic travel only, sadly) is spectacular, with lots of restaurants,
work desks, shops, and seating galore.

But the article is spot on with respect to passport control at U.S.
airports, which approaches something from Dante's Inferno. When I fly
into Frankfurt or Munich, I spend maybe 5 minutes in the Passkontrolle
line. When I return to the U.S., I deplane and literally run as fast
as I can to get to U.S. passport control before the lines start to mass.

Thanks for link to article.


thorough the guy must have been asleep when he left

The fingerprinting is so that they can check that you left again.


I don't remember being fingerprinted at exit, but maybe I've just forgotten.



--
athel

  #46  
Old June 9th, 2014, 06:20 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Athel Cornish-Bowden
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 28
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'

On 2014-06-06 15:10:28 +0000, Erilar said:

[ … ]

Even France?


I think that you and I have convinced her of the error of her ways and
she is now a Francophile.


I no longer have a problem with French airports, as I don't have any
interest in visiting France again.


I'm surprised at your comments. I live in France and have often entered
at Charles de Gaulle or Marseille-Provence without ever having any
problems. Mind you, I have a UK passport: it may be different for
Americans, though my two American daughters have never reported any
problems. Entering from the UK can be slow, but that has more to do
with British pig-headed about the Schengen Area, than to the French.
Going to the UK from Marseilles can also be very slow if there is a
flight going to Algeria, Morocco or Tunisia at about the same time (as
there often is).




--
athel

  #47  
Old June 9th, 2014, 07:14 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
JohnT[_10_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 28
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'


"Erilar" wrote in message
...
"JohnT" wrote:
"Erilar" wrote in message
...
"JohnT" wrote:
.

I find it very difficult to comprehend how the RETURN half of an
e-ticket
can be "mucked up". An e-ticket is just a record on a computer system -
Amadeus in the case of BA - and it has no physical existence. It
doesn't have two halfs.

Perhaps Erilar should try a few flights on Spirit Airlines in the USA
or
on Ryanair in Europe. She may then have some benchmark for comparison.


In Europe itself I normally take the train. This was part of a cruise
package. No one could understand how they mucked up the return half of
an
e-ticket. I even had it in my hand! Even so, what was in their computer
didn't match it. The number was correct, but someone had butchered my
name. Computers are seldom that kind of stupid.


OK, so it wasn't British Airways who made the mistake. The error was by
whoever booked your cruise package as you had no direct contact with BA
in the booking process. And computers are totally without intelligence.
They rely entirely on whoever programs them and/or feeds information to
their programs.


No, everything was correct on the e-ticket for both legs of the trip, as
the woman at the BA counter agreed. Someone had intervened and mucked up
my name, apparently while I was on the cruise. The ticket was part of the
cruise package.


But there is no evidence at all that British Airways were at fault.
--
JohnT

  #48  
Old June 9th, 2014, 09:04 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Mike O'Sullivan[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 20
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'

On 09/06/2014 18:20, Athel Cornish-Bowden wrote:
On 2014-06-06 15:10:28 +0000, Erilar said:

[ … ]

Even France?


I think that you and I have convinced her of the error of her ways and
she is now a Francophile.


I no longer have a problem with French airports, as I don't have any
interest in visiting France again.


I'm surprised at your comments. I live in France and have often entered
at Charles de Gaulle or Marseille-Provence without ever having any
problems. Mind you, I have a UK passport: it may be different for
Americans, though my two American daughters have never reported any
problems. Entering from the UK can be slow, but that has more to do with
British pig-headed about the Schengen Area


and thank god for that!

  #49  
Old June 9th, 2014, 09:47 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
tim.....
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,591
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'



"Athel Cornish-Bowden" wrote in message
...
On 2014-06-04 13:40:51 +0000, tim..... said:

"Dan Leifker" wrote in message
news:2014060315532625059-daniel@dleifkercom...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/tr...-humanity.html

Depends on the airport, but in general I agree with this article.

Not all U.S. airports are wastelands. Portland (Oregon) has one of the
nicest airports I've ever visited, and San Francisco's airport is going
through a very slow remodeling that may be a sign of things to come in
21st-century U.S. airports. The new Terminal 2 at San Francisco
(domestic travel only, sadly) is spectacular, with lots of restaurants,
work desks, shops, and seating galore.

But the article is spot on with respect to passport control at U.S.
airports, which approaches something from Dante's Inferno. When I fly
into Frankfurt or Munich, I spend maybe 5 minutes in the Passkontrolle
line. When I return to the U.S., I deplane and literally run as fast as
I can to get to U.S. passport control before the lines start to mass.

Thanks for link to article.


thorough the guy must have been asleep when he left

The fingerprinting is so that they can check that you left again.


I don't remember being fingerprinted at exit, but maybe I've just
forgotten.


You're supposed to find the machine and do it yourself

tim





--
athel

  #50  
Old June 9th, 2014, 09:59 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
bill
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 252
Default US airports: 'menacing, cramped and devoid of humanity'

On Mon, 09 Jun 2014 21:04:35 +0100, Mike O'Sullivan
wrote:

On 09/06/2014 18:20, Athel Cornish-Bowden wrote:
On 2014-06-06 15:10:28 +0000, Erilar said:

[ … ]

Even France?


I think that you and I have convinced her of the error of her ways and
she is now a Francophile.

I no longer have a problem with French airports, as I don't have any
interest in visiting France again.


I'm surprised at your comments. I live in France and have often entered
at Charles de Gaulle or Marseille-Provence without ever having any
problems. Mind you, I have a UK passport: it may be different for
Americans, though my two American daughters have never reported any
problems. Entering from the UK can be slow, but that has more to do with
British pig-headed about the Schengen Area


and thank god for that!


Why?

It's not as if they can stop anyone with a Schengen Area passport from
coming in.
 




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