Alaska - SeaTac Airport Vortex
Systems under Stress, Never-ending Mental Duress and our first Trail Angel of the Skies
Our long awaited day of departure from the norm on April 14th 2023 was on two wings instead of two wheels. The prayer portion - well, that was met with an unexpected test and several lessons.
Lesson 1: Preparation is Key until the Universe changes the Lock
We purposefully chose a non-stop flight from Seattle to Fairbanks to ensure all our gear would arrive at our destination; even adding AirTags to our bike boxes and a couple bags to allay our worst fears. Handing over not just our lives, but our boxed up home, to the “mass public transit system of the skies” required faith in people and systems way beyond our comfort level. The day before our flight the Russian ash cloud from the Shiveluch volcano had made the national news cancelling flights throughout Alaska. Yet, the next morning our flight status was still showing “on time”. In our nervous excitement to actually start our life long journey, we let ourselves believe it was no longer a concern.
Lesson 2: Never trust “the System” especially when weather conditions run amuck
All was going according to plan, as we arrived at the gate to board our noon flight, when we got the fateful announcement - Flight Cancelled. The ash cloud was still a risk. A mad dash through the airport to Customer Service and we were promptly re-booked onto the next flight with assurances our bikes/bags would be transferred to our new gate. Having no other information to gauge the likelihood of our next flight also being cancelled, we checked the departure board and discovered cancellations across Alaska and Montana that morning. We could only hope that by evening the skies had cleared enough. Just to be “safe” a couple hours before departure of flight #2 at 6pm, we decided to check our AirTags. Aghast, it appeared our bikes were sitting on the bag claim side of the airport and our bags were still at the original gate. The gate agent (our soon-to-be first, and most important, Trail Angel) confirmed our worst fears - our bikes were mistakenly sent to bag claim, and we had to recheck them through security. Despite our efforts to comply, we then watched the bikes only briefly visit our new gate before heading off to another terminal. Keeping one eye on our “FindMy” app, and the other on the bag crew below us, the realization set in - we had lost control over our home on wheels. The bikes were now joy-riding the tarmac and our bags still had not moved. As the boarding group phonetics ended, we had only briefly identified one of our boxes landing on the conveyor. Panic took over just as “our agent” reappeared amidst the final boarding calls. In rapid fire, we relayed the gravity of our situation, pointing to the scattered dots on our phones, hoping for a way to restore some sanity and control. Before our eyes, “our agent” rose to Trail Angel status - rebooking us on flight #3, she vowed to track down our bikes and our remaining bags to get them personally re-tagged and send us a text before she went home.
Lesson 3: Always take photos of your checked bags and write on each bag tag receipt the bag it belongs to…just in case.
We had made the obvious checked bag markings on our boxes, names/addresses/confirmation code inside and out, used colored tape on the sides, but we missed putting any external identifier on our one black suitcase from Goodwill. Thankfully we made a last minute decision to use a TSA lock. Our Trail Angel/gate agent gave us some gentle schooling on bag checking 101 for world travel. In my overwhelm, I replied “that’s assuming, we ever fly again.” She knowingly reassured us that did not have to be the case, and within an hour had successfully found our bikes and bags, sent us photos, and continued to track them even after she left the airport. If not for her, we would probably still be at the airport searching for our belongings.
Lesson 4: When you hear a Customer Service person utter these words “I’m just trying to help you”.....remember to Trust your Gut!
Hours no longer had any time value, we were airport zombies waiting for yet another round of boarding group phonetics, eating snacks that were meant to be enjoyed mid-flight, huddled between rows of other weary travelers now draped across seats and lying underneath. Flight #3 was to depart at 9:55pm, until it wasn’t. Initial boarding calls had barely started when we heard - Flight Delayed. A second pilot had to be found. Enter the Twilight Zone - we were numb after frantic hours of bag chasing - it didn’t matter to us when the plane left, as long as we, and our bikes/bags, were aboard. Per our agent’s last text, we needed one more confirmation with the gate agents for flight #3 to assure both bikes were loaded on the plane, as she had only seen a partial update. After an hour or two, it was time to check our fate. The second pilot was now at the gate discussing moving up departure to within the next hour. The agent at the door willingly checked all our bag tags, confirming all were showing status of “boarding” for flight #3. We tried to feel relieved, but one of the bike AirTags still didn’t look like it was close enough to our gate. As the boarding process started, an unsettling feeling grew. How were we to know for sure both bikes would make the flight? We tried to check the bag tag for the bike again as we approached the door, and were redirected to the desk. Making the request again, now to the agent at the desk, the response we heard was beyond comprehension. “ALL your bikes and bags are to be on the NEXT flight.” I questioned the agent again, “How could I have just checked with the other agent minutes ago, and they were to be on THIS flight?” It was then, we heard the words uttered that tell all, “Im just trying to help you”....followed by “Do you want me to rebook you on the next flight, or not??” And “no, we can’t contact the baggage crew to check whether your bags are on this flight, because our ‘system’ shows they’re on the next flight”. To say, we had no words left, is an understatement. Still in disbelief, we were instructed, if we want to confirm our bikes/bags are indeed on the next flight, we would have to go to that gate to check. Contrary to any shred of logic, we rebooked for flight #4 and raced to the other gate across the terminal. Frantically, explaining what had just happened, we were somehow gifted an agent that knew B.S. when she heard it, and immediately contacted the baggage crew at the other gate. Instantly we heard, “NO, those bags ARE on flight #3”. The next and only thought was RUN! Exasperated, I threw my carry-ons down at the closed boarding door for flight #3 and began pleading “Who can get us on this flight?! We have to be on this flight!!” Nivaun commandeered an agent at the desk, got us seats together, and we miraculously boarded the plane. Slumped in our exit row seats, we watched all our AirTags update to “with you”. It was finally over! Although it felt like we had made ourselves a target trying to transport our home on wheels, we learned from our seat mate, he and others had suffered the same fate with just one checked bag. No longer feeling alone in our 12 hour ordeal, the Captain announced we had to wait for a manual count of the baggage to complete their payload pre-check; the bag scanners were “down”. My last thought before passing out on Nivaun’s shoulder was, Mother Nature will always reign supreme - Airport software/systems be damned! At least we would now get another chance to witness Nature’s power on our own terms!