** ANTARCTICA - 2002 **
** Chapter ELEVEN **
** THE FLIGHTS BACK HOME **
This is the 24 June 2005 edition
of this page.
17 December 2002 (cont)
The guidance of the bus-driver served us very well with both the load-carrying and the
actual guidance through their 'system' - plus the interpretation of the language differences
and our requirements!
Our 'check-in' was at about 18.00hrs - but the queue moved at a ZERO pace! Later, it emerged
that ALL the girls on the desks were TRAINEES!! I thought of them (subconsciously) as total
'prats'. (Not because they were girls but just because they were SO USELESS!!)
I reqiuired to go STRAIGHT THROUGH to HEATHROW via MADRID - getting an 'aisle seat'
for the LONG HAUL intercontinental flight, - and a window seat for the European leg. The girl (and
my guide) pretended to understand - but it all came out "arse about face" - i.e totally the wrong way around!!
The girl (when I told her) changed the 'long-haul' flight-boarding card, - and when I complained she said that the
guide had told her that it could be reversed when I got to MADRID!! Great - but, with STRAIGHT THROUGH, there
should be NO NEED to 're-check-in' when I get to Madrid!! There, I just 'transfer'.
On the plane, I got a seat on the SANTIAGO - MADRID leg at 40J - in the back-row of a VERY long AIRBUS
A-340. This was due for take-off at 20.00hrs (as Flight IB7322), an Iberian Flight a 'LAN Chile' alias of LA704.
Once 'on-board', there seemed no hurry to leave!! 'Push-back' from the Terminal was at 20.55hrs, with 'taxying'
starting at 21.03hrs. The 50second take-off run was from 21hrs12m16secs until 21hrs13m 06secs, - and the forecast
was for a 12hrs30mins flight to MADRID.
In the SANTIAGO waiting area (with its 'overpriced food') and on the flight, I met and chatted frequently with a
multilingual Dutch Lady (an older girl really) who comes from AMSTERDAM. She is seated in 37L and wants to
practice her 'English' with me and have company an this long, lonely voyage! (Whilst with Ron, at the SANTIAGO
airport, I had spent the remaining CHILE cash, and received $2 (U.S) from Ron's refreshments.)
I was only too pleased to help this wonderful Dutch lady. No, 'keen' is the word! It was clear to me that this aircraft,
an advanced form of the A-340, had FAR more than the 'usual' to amuse ourselves with on this 12-hour-plus flight.
The paperwork, in the net-pocket in front of me, was read by me in the long wait for takeoff - and showed their
'facilities' with the INDIVIDUAL 'workstation' of amusements in front of each passenger. The LANCHILE airline
had provided us, individually, with a MANUAL (called LanPremiere) to understand these facilities.
In the past, I had been bored on Spanish Airlines due to my lack of meaningful communication (I don't understand
Spanish!) - but this time it would be pleasureable due the presence of:
(a) this bilingual manual (English & Spanish) - and
(b) the Dutch girl a few seats forward of mine!
The English on this 'manual' was sub-titled 'How to navigate your screen' (both for the Airbus 340 and the
Boeing 767R) and showed that it has a menu of:-
(a) On-board Cinema (videos) [with listings]
(b)On-board Music (selectable Audio) [with listings]
(c)On-board Games [again, pages of listings]
The LANPREMIER brochure was an 'excellent guide' to the en-route facilities at EVERYONE's seat
and screen! My particular favourites were the Videos, the Audio for the music, the GAMES for personal
amusement and the FLIGHT DATA - all from their well-structured MENU SYSTEM! I had, eventually,
used most parts of this system before our 'all-too-soon' landing. This provided an EXCELLENT time
enroute, even without the brilliant presence of my DUTCH lady friend. She, as I found out during my several visits to her,
was intent and happy to just see EVERY video before the journey's conclusion!
My early entries to the menu system, today, were to the AUDIO, the GAMES and the FLIGHT DATA-
and I 'packed it in' at about 24.30hrs to try and get some sleep - or at least some "shut-eye"!
18 December 2002
The overnight enroute trip on flight LA704 for SANTIAGO and MADRID, on an AIRBUS A-340,
was exciting and interesting with each 'seat-unit' packed with individually selectable choices of entertainment being
made from the menu. Before 00.30hrs, I had used some AUDIO selections from the channels.
FLIGHT DATA channels were also used, as were several GAMES channels. I practiced thigs like SOLITAIRE,
BLACKJACK, POKER (with their 'pretend money') before getting some more shut-eye. The last promise (or
prediction) of the MADRID landing time came at 13.35hrs. I need to advance clocks and watches by FOUR
HOURS en-route.
I was visited by (and also visited in her seat) the DUTCH girl/woman for friendship and communication whilst we
were travelling.
I had more GAMES in the early morning, - and the remainder of the A-340 flight to MADRID (before and after
early lunch and breakfast refreshments). As we approached MADRID, it was clear that we'd be an hour and a half
late behind its 13.00hrs arrival schedule. Panic (or something like it!) set in as we rushed to an aircraft that SHOULD
have 'taken off' ALREADY!! This A-340 flight had covered 7033miles.
-------------------------------------
I got into an airport bus - and after being shouted at with "Why are you so late?" at the next Terminal - I had to
respond rapidly with " - your own bloody aircraft has arrived an hour and a half late!" That airport bus took me a long way (about 2 miles)
onto the airfield to catch my A-320 to Heathrow.
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(The travelogue will continue in the next edition.)
EMail (?) to: Roy's Location.
Return to 2002's Index-page
or return to Antarctic index-page
or return to Roy's home page for full
list of books/travelogues either finished or under preparation.