Double Platinum: a VA & QF status run; USA & Panama City.

[24601]

“Do you want to use the shuttle bus this morning sir?” “Yes, please”…”The shuttle bus doesn’t start until 4:30 sir…” It was not long after an OMG o’clock wake up at the Hampton Inn, Crystal City near Washington Reagan (DCA) airport. My sleep-deprived brain was still busy trying to calculate how much, per hour, the room had cost. Check-in was about 11:30pm the night before. The realisation that a) I could have slept another half hour or so and b) I was going to either have get a cab or risk a rush for the 6am flight to Miami was almost too much.
I settled for the risk, the excitement of the rush; the adrenaline-fuelled dash beckoned, it’s gambler’s allure too great. For after all, this surely was part of the glamour of status-running. The thrill of the chase!

But it all started gently enough a few days and 9 flights earlier in Sydney. This was a status run with the aim of requalifying for VFF WP and moving up from QFF SG to WP.

Thursday

Flight 1: VA505 7:10am SYD-OOL. Y class, seat 3F
Early start after a busy time at work, but train trip into SYD domestic terminal was quick and easy. The lounge was bustling. Flight unaffected by the delays to MEL and BNE flights that morning. Uneventful flight, though it seemed to be full.

Flight 2: VA736 11:50am OOL-MEL. J class. Seat 2F
Flight delayed by around 2 hours so a long wait at OOL. OOL airport is so boring and the wifi in the lounge was glacially slow, so I had little option but to actually get a few hours of work done.
Had a chicken dish for lunch on the flight, which was fine. Service was ok, but not overly attentive and definitely not proactive.

Flight 3: VA239 5:35pm MEL-ADL. Cancelled.

I must preface this by saying that I may have two of the flights confused. One featured an unpleasant FA, the other an excellent professional. If I have got the two wrong I do apologize. The nasty character I describe was on one of the next two flights.

Rebooked onto another flight 2 hours later. Got 1F instead of my preferred 2F. The legroom in row 1 is poor, and I am not that tall.
Service was terrible, bordering on nasty. Don’t know what I did to the FA but she treated me like a d***head the whole time. Would attend to my seatmate but ignore me; would offer him drinks and then refills, but not me. As the seatbelt sign came back on prior to landing she stood and watched me as I packed away my laptop and straitened the seat back and felt the need, in a patronising tone, to bark “put the window shades all the way up”, a little power trip of some sort. I was obviously in the middle of taking care of everything and had my hands full. My neighbour’s seat was reclined, but she ignored it. It stayed reclined for landing. A shame, it just takes one under-skilled jobsworth to lower one’s opinion of an entire airline.

Flight was late into ADL.

Overnight ADL, Grand Chancellor on Currie.
Took a taxi to the hotel. Was “upgraded” to a “spa room”. Not sure how much of an upgrade that is. The room was huge, but it had a great big spa tub in the bedroom. That was just tacky. At least put it in the bathroom. Better still, get rid of it! The bed was very, very comfy and check-in and check-out staff and process were good. Shared a cab back to the airport in the morning as there were two of us waiting at the same time, and the other guy insisted on paying the whole fare. Thanks!!

 

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Friday


Flight 4: VA713 6:30am ADL-PER. Y class, seat 3D.
Had selected 3C but swapped with 3D who asked politely. No problem! Quite an empty flight, and ended up with a whole row to myself. It was a long enough flight that there were two tea-coffee-water-or-juice services. Flight on time and uneventful. Nice cabin crew. Passengers included a big group on their way to join a cruise, mostly elderly folk. One woman remarked, as she boarded, that it was her first time flying. She must have been in her 80s. “Down there on the right” she was told. Hopefully she found the right seat.


Overnight at Fraser Suite, Perth…or not!
Here’s a tip: even if you think you’re ever-so-clever and have a fancy spreadsheet made up with all the flights and accommodation laid out, make sure that the dates on the spreadsheet actually reflect reality! What I had forgotten as I settled into my room, pleased at having been upgraded to a great 1 bedroom apartment, was that some weeks earlier I had felt very clever at having booked an overnight flight out of PER thus avoiding the expense of a hotel.
After a pleasant day around Perth, I checked my airline itinerary for the next day to see what time I needed to leave for the airport. It turned out that “the next day” was in fact “tonight”. Yep, I’d messed up badly and had a couple of hours to get back out there. A very expensive shower, basically. Oh well..

Flight 5: NZ0176, 7:30pm; PER-AKL. C (business) class
The aircraft was an Air New Zealand 787 with flat seats. Left about 20 minutes late because the aircraft was late incoming, the pilot publicly blaming the pilot of another plane over the pa (“decided” to stay too long on the runway, forcing him to go around).
Nice flight, nice crew, comfortable seat. After a quick dinner (sorry, forgot to note what the meal was), I got a few hours sleep before an early morning arrival in Auckland. We parked at a remote stand and it was buses to the terminal. HLO, it didn’t take me long to get to the airbus stop kerbside. There was almost no queue for customs.

 

[24601]

Saturday
The layover in AKL was about 14 hours so I spent a nice day wandering around Auckland, starting with a stroll up Mt Eden to see the sunrise. It was a beautiful start to an enjoyable day that included a ferry ride over to Devenport and a very tasty lunch at a vegetarian café there.

Flight 6: NZ6, 7:30pm: AKL-LAX. J class, seat n
I chose to fly NZ for the Velocity SCs. I booked during a sale and got what I thought was a great price PER-LAX return. Outbound business class, returning in Y+. I like the way the NZ website allows mixed class bookings. Their J class is excellent and there Y+ is also good if you get the space seats. The return price was well under $4000, $7.56/SC: not at all brilliant, but not bad either for Australasian flights.

Again, I forget what meals I ate, but they were good and delivered with efficient, friendly service. NZ crew are attentive without ever being overbearing or obsequious. One FA seemed a bit out of sorts, but he wasn’t unpleasant to me or anyone else I saw, just a bit gruff. No problem.
The J seat, same type as on the 787, was very comfortable. I slept about 6-7 hours, rare for me.

We arrived on time at LAX and parked at a very remote stand. It actually turned out to be good for, although the bus ride was quite long (with great tarmac views), it delivered us directly to immigration: from the bus, through the doors, and there we were, by the kiosks. I used one of the kiosks. It didn’t like my left hand, but read my right hand fingerprints ok. I have travelled to the USA recently but this was my first visit on a new ESTA. No problem at all.

It was quick. I wish the immigration people wouldn’t ask things like “how much cash do you have on you?”. Well, almost none because like lots of people or even most people I use a credit card. Why not ask what they mean: are you carrying more than $10,000 and do you have enough money to support yourself during your visit?

Silly questions aside, I was off the plane and curbside in under 20 minutes! Moments later the shuttle bus arrived to whisk me away to the Westin LAX. I got a great price on a room at the Westin as a mystery “express deal” on Priceline. It was my first time at any LAX airport hotel, and it is massive. Despite being about the furthest away from the terminals of all the big hotels on West Century Blvd, it is still very close and only minutes on the shuttle. You could also walk comfortably in 20-30 minutes if HLO. If you stay there you could also take the Travelodge, Hilton or La Quinta/Holiday Inn shuttles a those hotels are close to the Westin but again probably HLO.

 

[Hvr]

Looking forward to hearing about the trip to PTY, Will be in the US in October seeking a few more SCs.

Well done on being a double airline elite.

 

[Major]

That's an interesting route, one that I would not have thought about

 

[24601]

Fraser Suites, Perth, 1 bedroom apartment:




Sporting view from the room:


At dawn on Mt Eden, Auckland:

 

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Some random scenes from Auckland during my layover:







mixed messages on a Devenport letterbox:

 

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[24601]

Los Angeles.

Westin, LAX



Bike path at Playa del rey


LAX from the street


Plane spotters:


Westchester Parkway runs adjacent to one of the runways. Good for running or walking near the airport

 

[24601]

Saturday 2, Sunday

Stopover in LA

I had Sunday afternoon and then Monday as free time for holidaying in LA and catching up with some friends. Monday afternoon I went for a run, catching a taxi to Marina Del Rey and then jogging back to the Westin. I cut back from the beach via Westchester Blvd, a quiet road that runs adjacent to the runway and has some great views of aircraft action. There were even some plane spotters camped at one spot with notepads, flight apps, expensive cameras and stepladders to get clear views over the chain link fence.

For anyone with a couple of hours layover at LAX, a good place for a run or walk is out from the terminals towards West Century, turn left at somewhere like Aviation Blvd, and then left again onto Westchester. You can follow it about 3-4km to the beach, Playa Del Rey and then back again. You could also keep going and circumnavigate the airport with more time. It is flat, has footpaths and bike paths, a nice mix of beach, industrial, and airport views, and glimpses of some odd and some fabulous people.

The whole area around LAX seems pretty safe for walking/jogging around. Maybe don’t go east of highway 405 after dark.

Sunday morning I took the Ocean Explorer shuttle to Manhattan Beach. It is paid for by the LAX hotels and costs $5 for a return hop-on-hop-off ticket which you buy from the hotel concierge. It stops at lots of the hotels along West Century Blvd and does a loop to Manhattan Beach near the pier and then to a pretty uninteresting and small shopping mall at Manhattan Beach. It takes half an hour each way and runs every 30 mins. If you just had a long layover at LAX, get a free shuttle to one of the big hotels then get an Ocean Explorer ticket there. It is very easy to do.

I went for another run, this time along the beachfront as far as Redondo Beach and then back again, about 16km. Very enjoyable with lots to see plus burnt some calories to make room for the American diet. Dined with friends at a Mexican restaurant somewhere beyond the 405 where I’d been advised not to venture. It was good.

In the Westin. Vast, and a bit creepy



Some fellow-guests. Shared a bus with them later on. They spoke a Dutch (?) dialect to one another as well as American. One of them had never heard of Starbucks before.

 

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LA: running along Hermosa and Redondo beaches

 

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More from the beaches very close to LAX

 

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And a tiny bit more of the beaches:

 

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And why not a tiny bit more:

 

[24601]

Monday

Flight 7: AA491 10am; LAX-PHX; 1[SUP]st[/SUP] class. Seat 1A.
It was now time to change alliances and start collecting some QF SCs. Despite waking very early, I still managed to leave quite late. The Westin shuttle was also late, it took an age to load because hoards of pax descended on it when it arrived and most of them had obscene loads of luggage with them. And of course there was very heavy traffic.

Time for some heart-pounding anxiety. Would I make it? If I missed this then the whole itinerary would be in ruins. Recent media reports featured waits of something like 4 hours for security at ORD, and not much better at LAX. What had I done?

In the end, security was very quick and pleasant. I got to may gate in plenty of time; enough time in fact to find that there is no AA lounge in terminal 6 at LAX. An AA staffer told me that “we use the Alaska lounge”. No, they don’t. But I got into the Alaska Boardroom using Priority Pass.
This flight was delayed. The screen at the gate read “now barding”, but the plane hadn’t arrived yet. Time to get a bit nervous again. Connection time in PHX was 1 hour. In the end the flight left just over half an hour late.

The flight was on a 757. First class was as expected for domestic USA First. Actually, the recliner chairs seem to be a little more comfortable or welcoming than VA or QF domestic J recliners. Service was friendly and courteous but basic, being such a short flight (1 hour). 1A on that aircraft has very poor legroom. Avoid it.

Flight 8: AA2527; 12:30pm PHX-JFK. 1[SUP]st[/SUP] class
Thanks to the delay we made it to PHX with literally a couple of minutes to spare. The gate for my next flight to JFK was luckily adjacent to the arrival from LAX. Most of the pax had already boarded. Somehow there was still space in first in the overhead bins for my bag. I was travelling HLO, lucky or there is absolutely no way I’d have made the connection.

A longer flight with a hot meal provided. I pre-ordered my meals on the AA website, and the FA had that info, confirmed I still wanted the vegetable ravioli and duly served it up. It was nice and it was substantial.

Departed 15 minutes late as a kid vomited on one of the toilet floors just before they closed the doors. Arrived at JFK on time in clear skies with great views all the way.


Flight 9: AA4404; 9:37pm JFK-DCA. 1[SUP]st[/SUP] class, Seat 3A.
45 minute flight only on an E75. I was late arriving from the (very basic) Admiral’s Club, the last one to board. They were paging me as I arrived at the gate. Of course there was not overhead space left so I had to gate check my bag. That was ok, it was my last flight of the day. In the end it was there ready and waiting when I deplaned at DCA. Probably because there was no one there to operate the air bridge when we arrived and a roughly 10 minute wait ensued.

The hotel shuttle was there just as I exited the terminal a few minutes later. In another 10 minutes I was in my room at the Hampton Inn, Crystal City. It was ok, but my stay was all too brief. It was about 11:30pm by the time I checked in and, keen to avoid the panic at LAX, set my alarm for the distressing time of 3:30am. Surely that would give me ample time to make a 6am flight?

Which brings me back to where this TR began, on the way to DCA for the 6am flight to Miami, flight #10.

 

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Flight 11: AA4434, 12:33pm; MIA-PTY. Business Class, seat 3A. Operated by American Eagle.
This flight left from an alfresco gate which meant a longish wait in the very hot sun followed by a boiling hot queue up the ramp to the E75. A very relaxed approach to safety procedures by this crew: a cursory demo at the start; window shades mostly all closed for takeoff; seatbelt sign left on for the whole flight and ignored by everyone. Friendly and efficient service however.

Great views of the Panama coast and the city coming in to land.

Arrived on time. No hassles or questions from immigration or customs. I got an expensive airport taxi, basically the first buy I saw. They were inside the arrivals hall touting. If you go outside and turn right and walk a few mintutes you should find some cheaper yellow taxis. Expect to pay $25 (yellow) or $30-35 (airport taxis, unmarked) into the city.

If HLO you could walk to the airport Crown Plaza. I saw no evidence of any other hotels near the airport. Best bet is probably to go into town if you don’t mind spending the money.

I am in PTY as I write this. Am staying at the Best Western Plus Zen hotel. It is pretty good and very close to an excellent restaurant where I just had a nice dinner: Azahar Panama.

7am flight in the morning, so another early start coming up.

 

[kermatu]

Impressive run - not to mention the fact that you are getting out and about in your brief non-travel times. I'd probably just sleep!

 

[24601]

Wednesday

Flight #12: AA960; 7:00am, PTY MIA. 1[SUP]st[/SUP] class. Seat 4B
Writing this back in the Admiral’s Club at MIA having finished this 12[SUP]th[/SUP] flight of the run, and the first of six in the next 24 hours. Currently still alert and still enjoying the adventure.

After a nice dinner I was sleepy, but still having trouble falling asleep so I took a sleeping tablet from a pack I bought at an LA pharmac_. It helped and I slept deeply for the first time this trip. I am not aware whether my alarm woke me or I just woke, but it was about the right time. A little panick when I looked at my watch and it showed an hour later than it really was. No problem though. Got a taxi back out to the airport. Taxis cost me more than the hotel room at US$35 each way. You could find a bit cheaper if you tried.

AA website wouldn’t let me check in online so I had to do it at the airport. There was a priority check in queue and I was second in line. Check in hadn’t opened when I arrived at about 5am, but soon did and I was through security in moments. There were very few people at the airport at that time.

Priority boarding is done well for all the AA flight I’ve experienced, and AA960 was no exception. My pre-ordered meal choice was noted and there. That didn't happen on the flight down from MIA yesterday. The Bose noise-cancelling headphones came into their own this morning vs the loud snorer next to me and the constant snuffler behind. Maybe I'm getting irritable from all the flying. But they were loud.

A couple of odd things on the plane, which was a brand new just delivered 737 they said.

1. Just before doors closed a woman came aboard with a boarding pass saying she was in 2A. That plane, like the others on this trip, only starts at 3A. She also wanted to change her seat and tried to do so as we taxied away from the stand. After take off she did change, moving into Y. Think she had family back there.

2. Safety!!? The man in 3E had his feet on the bulkhead which was unpleasant, but also never put his seatbelt on at any stage. He was right in front of the FAs. Oh, and he also sneezed into the pages of an in flight magazine and then returned it to the pocket..

3. No policy at all on window shades, it was a free for all.

4. Seatbelt sign was lit for the whole flight and ignored by all.

Next it is back to JFK, supposedly on an aircraft with lie-flat seats in 1[SUP]st[/SUP]. We’ll soon see.Wednesday

 

[24601]

Maybe the plan was too ambitious, but it is now somewhat in tatters thanks to a 4+ hour delay MIA-JFK. Have re-booked onto MIA-LAX direct so as to make connections on Delta out of there later tonight. I would have missed those had I just waited. Unfortunately the Delta flight gets me to the only actual commitment on this trip, so can't be missed. The 13th flight of the run, on the 13th...a superstitious person would say that was asking for something to go wrong.

The 767 bound for JFK did have flat seats, and I even got about an hours sleep while we were stuck on the tarmac before returning to the gate. It was very comfortable.

 

[24601]

AA MIA-LAX, 1st class. Seat 2D.

Rebooked onto this flight due to 4+ hour delays into JFK that rendered my original itinerary of MIA-JFK-LAS-LAX impossible with only around 60 mins connection times at each. The downside is that the change has cost me 120SC. The original AA portion of this part of the run was supposed to be LAX-PHX-JFK-DCA-MIA-PTY-JFK-LAS-LAX. Still got most of it, but annoying to lose a couple of flights.

However, at least the MIA-LAX was in "Flagship First", AA international first class on a transcon flight. The 777 had both a first class and business class section.

Got to LAX on time, about 7:20pm. Layover until 12:34am for next flight which was on Delta LAX-MSP. Spent most of that time in the Delta Sky Club, access via VA platinum. Had a shower there.

Currently in Delta Sky Club at MSP awaiting DL988 MSP-ORD at 8:56am. For some reason I can't upload photos right now. Anyway, it is a pleasant lounge with basic selection of cereals, hot oatmeal, bagels, breads, boiled eggs, juices, coffee..