What do you do to pass the time on a long flight

[inpd]

Hi,

I'm starting to get excited about coming home in
a few weeks. But the trip from LAX to MEL is 15 hours
and with United, no in-flight entertainment system. Yikes

Apart from sleeping, what do you do on long flights
to pass the time?

 

[aus_flyer]

No in flight entertainment? OMG. I didn't realise United was that bad!

Nowadays, I wouldn't even fly an airline that doesn't have seatback monitors!

Do you have an iPod?

 

[NM]

In no particular order:

• Read a book
• Drink
• Wastch the movies
• Drink
• Play games on my PPC
• Drink
• Work (laptop)
• Drink
• Sleep
• Drink
• Eat
• Drink
• Visit the loo after all that drinking!
• Chat with my neighbour
• Chat up the flight attendents (oop, sorry, you said you were flying United so scratch that one off the list)

There are plenty of good things available to help to maximise the sleep time during the flight.

 

[stuandmel]

Drink, Eat, Temazepam, sleep

 

[Dave Noble]

Watch movies and tv programmes on my laptop
play scrabble n other games on PC

Dave

 

[bigjobs]

on a flight like that i would have a book, music on my laptop, and several dvds organised along with a couple of sleeping pills.

no entertainment system just plain sucks, i would change if i could.

 

[serfty]

• Drink
• Eat
• Read a (hard) copy of A Kiwi Flyer's Month of Madness Trip report.
• Prepare for landing

hmmm... Seriously
• Drink
• Eat
• Drink
• Get as much sleep as you possibly can
• Go for a walk or four around the aircraft
• Take plenty of lightweight reading material. (the weight being light, not the content )

 

[cssaus]

You haven't said what class you're flying and that can make a huge difference on that flight. UA does have inflight movies but doesn't offer the degree of inflight entertainment that someone like SIA does.

I do the LAX-SYD several times a year on UA in business and given the time that the flight leaves LAX essentially all I want to do is sleep the whole way. A couple of STILNOX usually do the trick and I find that I'm out for a good few hours.

For the night flight I don't really care for a meal (except for a breakfast in the morning). I might catch one of the movies that are showing but that's about.

Going the other way on the day flight I tend to partake in the meals and I usually manage to catch several of the movies on offer. I read and also listen to music. Might nap for an hour or two.

 

[MetroAir]

All of the above with particular reference to the drinking.

 

[NM]

My references to drinking were purely in relation to consumption of copious amounts of water, of course 8) .

 

[danielh]

I have the ability to sleep whenever I want in airplanes. If I'm bored I just close my eyes and doze until the meals arrive.

I also have my PDA to read books and play poker while listening to my iPod shuffle.

I might consider watching the movie if I had not already seen it.

Will probably play my PSP but not been on a long haul flight since I got it. I'll try it out when i fly yo LAX in mid Dec.

Regards
Daniel

 

[infoworks]

I always have my "plane fodder" - accumulated magazines that I read and leave on the plane (or tear out specific articles if needs be) - very important as QF takes soooo long for inflight systems to get going (if at all).

Read newspaper for destination and any from whare I am that I haven't read - especially IHT.

Watch movies.

Occasionally work.

Ignore other passengers.

Ask for Perrier constantly. Eat something if and when provided.

Chat with FAs, if they are friendly.

Long flights take a stillnox and sleep.

 

[clifford]

In no particular order:

• Read a book
• Drink
• Wastch the movies
• Drink
• Play games on my PPC
• Drink
• Work (laptop)
• Drink
• Sleep
• Drink
• Eat
• Drink
• Visit the loo after all that drinking!
• Chat with my neighbour
• Chat up the flight attendents (oop, sorry, you said you were flying United so scratch that one off the list)

There are plenty of good things available to help to maximise the sleep time during the flight.

Hey NM,

That's great advice.

The only way to get any sleep in Y class (and that's minimal).

The other option is not to fly Y class.

 

[NM]

Hey NM,

That's great advice.

The only way to get any sleep in Y class (and that's minimal).

The other option is not to fly Y class.

Oh, were we discussing Y . That is how I travel in J and F .

 

[JohnK]

If there is any entertainment then I watch movies or play games.

If no entertainent

• drink
  drink
  drink
  sleep
  drink
  drink
  drink
  go to toilet
  drink
  drink
  drink
  sleep
  drink
  drink
  drink
  go to toilet
  drink
  drink
  drink
  hopefully land very shortly as I cannot drink anymore

By drink I am not referring to water or fizzy drinks. Alcohol and only alcohol.

 

[inpd]

Thanks for tips on drinking

I do admit I typically have the same strategy. For the LAX-SYD
flights which leave close to midnight. I stay awake for
the main meal and then drink myself silly and generally
fall asleep and awake to find myself with an awful feeling
mouth and about to land in Sydney.

For the SYD-LAX flights that leave around noon,
I stay awake for a few movies, read a book and then repeat
the drinking portion

But alas, those days are over with a 9 month old
in tow so I must seek a new strategy.

I can't wait to see these 70+ year old flight attendants :shock:
I hope they are the "maternal, I lead my life well and am
content" 70+ year olds now the "I can't retire, life has treated
me hard so don't you" 70+ year olds!

 

[Kiwi Flyer]

I do a lot of long flights and never seem to have a problem of passing the time. I'll usually take a book (or if flying airlines without decent IFE maybe 2), but often find I am too busy to read it. For instance on my month of madness (see report above) I brought 2 books hoping to read and only got half way through the first.

Basically a combination of

drinking
eating
drinking
talking (seatmate, FAs, mates on same flight, etc)
drinking
admire scenery (not much help on the flight between Aust and US admittedly)
drinking
thinking/mind wandering (often come up with great ideas when have time to think without pressure)
drinking
newspaper/magazines
drinking
book
drinking
sleeping
drinking
some stretches
drinking
IFE (if its really bad may help inducing sleep)
drinking
toilet
drinking

 

[acampbel]

I'm surprised that no-one has confessed to having an in-flight hand-shandy.

Errr.... not that I have either, of course.


Is that my phone ringing ??? - Best be off now.


Cheers,

AC

 

[inpd]

I'm surprised that no-one has confessed to having an in-flight hand-shandy.

Errr.... not that I have either, of course.


Is that my phone ringing ??? - Best be off now.


Cheers,

AC

What on earth is a "handy-shandy"?

I once was on a Qantas LAX-MEL where some duffer
tried to get the entire Y class singing
100 Green bottles and no he wasn't drunk.
He took it quite personally, when people
wouldn't join in.

 

[BlacKnox]

I'm all for the above, minus the shandy .