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Getting to Bonaire: F.Y.I. How early should you arrive at the airport?
Bonaire Talk: Getting to Bonaire: Archives: Archives 1999-2005: Archives - 2002-01-01 to 2002-10-27: F.Y.I. How early should you arrive at the airport?
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Beth Comeau on Friday, February 15, 2002 - 8:42 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Just an F.Y.I.,

I dropped my parents off at Logan Airport on Friday morning. (we do not leave until Wed) the lines were unbelievable but AA agents kept walking thru the lines asking people what flight they were on. If the flight departed within the next 60 minutes they were moved to the front of the line. It was very loud and hectic and many people never saw or heard the agent. The end result was that several people reached the checkout counter less than 30 minutes before their flight (despite having arrived at the airport two hours prior to departure). The airline would not let them on the plane because the FAA regulations mandate 30 minutes for domestic flights and 40 minutes for international fligths. The passengers stomped and complained but to no avail. They were not allowed on the plane.

My advice is to pay attention and make sure you meet the 30 or 40 minute deadline. Also it is very frustrating standing in line as they keep putting people on earlier flights in front of you. Patience helps. Some of the passengers who were bumped were flying first class. The lines in first class were long as well. Mostly due to passengers processing upgrade certificates.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Stan Bair on Friday, February 15, 2002 - 4:52 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Heading to Bonaire in mid September for the first time. Is ALM really that bad? I live in central Florida and the direct flight is appealing. Any suggestions on how soon to book a flight? I have reservations at the Plaza and looks like more good than bad reviews there. Thanks, Stan

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Mike Eberhard on Friday, February 15, 2002 - 5:03 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

We have taken three trips to Bonaire, in three years, and found each time a delay in Curacao. Besides being apprehensive about waiting, it is really not a big issue. We found that waiting out the flight instead of "trying to find out what is going on" worked for us. We had better luck coming back as we flew AA CUR/MIA. They eventually get you there. Have a good time! By the way, is your direct flight out of Orlando, Tampa or Miami?

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Stan Bair on Friday, February 15, 2002 - 5:26 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

The flight is from Miami, looks like the only direct flight from Florida. Air Jamaica connects in Montego Bay. After my gear being lost for 2 days on my last trip to Roatan I figure it stands a better chance going with me and not on to Europe. Thanks

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By DARLENE ELLIS on Saturday, February 16, 2002 - 9:16 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Alm also likes to leave luggage behind. We had a suitcase that we didn't get for two days as well as 25 other people on the flight. We missed our first sunset in Bonaire because of the hassles. None of our luggage made it home on the return flight till three days later!! That wasn't too bad though because you didn't have to pick it up and go thru customs because they told you before you left the plane that they left it behind. This was in February of 2001 but I know it happens all the time with them. Just make sure you have the necessities in your carry on.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By C Poteet on Saturday, February 16, 2002 - 5:57 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Stan -

You might consider American to San Juan then American Eagle to Bonaire.

We used American DFW-SJU-BON in mid-January and not only was no luggage lost, but also all legs of the trip landed ahead of schedule! And if AA keeps its 9 am depature from BON for SJU, it is a very appealing schedule providing you can make your connections upstream.

We stayed at the Plaza in 1999 and again in January 2002. The service has improved significantly and overall I think you will be pleased. It has one of the few nice sand beaches on the island and shore entry is possible even without booties (which is most certainly not the case for 98% of the shore entries on Bonaire - take booties!)

If you like your nights quieter, try to get a room as far from the beach bar as possible. It tends to be a bit noisey at nights. If you can tolerate a lagoon view, those rooms are quiter than the ocean views because of the location of the beach bar.

You're going to love Bonaire!

Chas.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Gordon Brown on Sunday, February 17, 2002 - 2:56 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Stan,

Yes, ALM is that bad. Read:non-existant. Go American either through San Juan and American Eagle, or go from Miami to Aruba on American and take the jumper.

The reason you lost your luggage going to Roatan is because you probably went TACA, right? They don't know how to use the computers to handle baggage, and chances are they put a Belize tag on your luggage, or something to that effect. They sure don't mind serving the Scotch though.

I'm in the aeromedical business and could tell you some real horror stories about third world airlines. American Airlines is rude as can be and don't think outside the box, but their flights are reliable. A little word of advise:
If you find yourself in Miami stick cause a flight like ALM is "postponed", don't believe it...it's cancelled cause the plane broke where they can't fix it. Ask for a voucher immediately for your tickets and run, don't walk to the nearest American Airlines counter......I actually had to book my own Dash 8 from Aruba to Curacao once!

Gordy

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Gordon Brown on Monday, February 18, 2002 - 3:18 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Beth,

Sorry, looks like poor airline service sidelined your thread. Here are some facts:

The FAA doesn't mandate times before a flight. Beware, airlines use that line to shuck the blame for many a bad company policy. Believe me, I'm a commercial pilot. The FAA doesn't regulate airport security either, news flash? If you want the specific FAR's (Federal Aviation Regulations) for these issues, email me and I'll forward them to you. gordon@wave.net

Here's the best rules of thumb based on 1,300,000 miles last year alone:

For international flights arrive at least 2 hours prior to departure. This, despite all the "increased security" hype.

For domestic flights arrive 1 hour prior to departure.

Now, a few hints:

If your flight departs Bonaire, or anywhere else for that matter, at say 6:00am and the airport doesn't open until 5:00am, the two hour rule doesn't apply, for obvious reasons.

If you get into an abnormally long line and you suspect you won't make your boarding time (cause the guy in front of you has 8000lbs of scuba gear to check to Chuuk) start looking anxious and grab one of the "brousers", people in your airline garb who look like they are cruising for problems. Tell them you are going to miss your flight and they will move you up. If that doesn't work, go to the first class check in line and get the counter help's attention that way. Sounds crude, but if you miss your flight from Bonaire on say, ALM, you are hosed for sure.

Of course none of these time constraints apply if you don't have either a paper ticket in hand or an e-ticket with a printout from the airline of your itinerary.

Gordy

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Beth Comeau on Monday, February 18, 2002 - 5:39 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Gordon,

Interesting info regarding the FAA. Although AA was very strict on the 30 minute policy, despite the loud grumbling of serveral passengers. The ticket agent kept quoting "new FAA guidelines", so it is good to know that it is AA imposing the 30 minute cutoff and not the FAA.

Could the airport (i.e. Logan) impose a check-in deadline that the carriers must follow?

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Linda Richter - NetTech on Monday, February 18, 2002 - 9:16 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

The Massport (Boston's) website says to arrive 2 hours before a domestic flight and 3 hours for International.

And this quote about baggage:
"Most airlines will only accept checked baggage up to 30 minutes prior to departure time."

Maybe the new guidelines about xraying and checking the checkin bags are causing delays getting the luggage to the planes.

--------
I ran into a couple in Miami that had made the mistake of waiting in line outside at the curb to check their bags. They claimed they had arrived two hours prior but it took 1.5 hours to get through the line. (hard to believe based on what I saw and experienced that day) At this point, they were denied boarding because of the half hour rule. Somehow it took another 20 minutes for them to get themselves inside to the checkin counter where they did not have to wait in line.

The airline agent checking the passengers in line seemed greatly relieved to hear we had 2.5 hours before our flight. Many people were trying to fly internationally but arriving only 1 hour before flight time. Easily a dozen passengers were routed ahead of us to make their flights.

-----
The airlines will not checkin a person not physically standing in front of them to compare to the ID. Jake was dropping off the rental car so the agent proceeded to checkin the kids and I but not Jake. She checked him in when he got there a couple minutes later.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Gordon Brown on Tuesday, February 19, 2002 - 5:06 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Beth,

The Airport Authority would have a tough time imposing a time limit any different than other locations, although it's been tried with things like noise abatement, approach procedures, etc. Each time a municipality tries that they get sued.
This is not to say they won't try with all the knee jerking that has been going on in the aviation industry. They can, with impunity, make all the recommendations they want to, and most of the cattle will go along, albeit with a lot of mooing. ;-)

The new security requirements handed down to the airlines indicates a variety of methods that can be used to screen "all checked bags". They are vague and include x-ray visual inspection, even sniffing dogs. Fact is, what will probably happen is a combination of all the above. However, if all they have is a dog standing by the conveyer sniffing each bag as it goes by, that's all they need to do. Remember that if anything gets past, it's the airlines responsibility. They are usually much more cautious for liability reasons. Most of the delays are for bags that they find suspicious and pull off to inspect. That holds up the whole planeload.

Don't even try to check your bags at the curb. Most airports have abolished that practice (i.e. by Skycaps) Not to mention things disappearing. So who do you blame then? I lost a camera and cell phone to checked bags and knew just who stole them when I got to Mexico, cause I could always see my bags. (It was the handler in L.A.)

The time recommendations I listed above are for extremely experienced travelers. If you are unsure and want to err on the conservative side, show up earlier. My folks just get sick of showing up 2-3 hours early and then sitting at the gate for 1 1/2 to 2 hours before the gate attendant even shows up.

Gordy

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Megan Davies on Sunday, March 3, 2002 - 4:35 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

I just returned from my annual vacation to Bonaire and I wanted to pass on some advice regarding American Eagle out of Bonaire. I arrived at 5:00am for the 7:00am (along with another couple). The couple I was with got bumped, and the only reason I didn't is because I was traveling solo. Bottom line, doesn't matter if you have a "reserved seat" - it appears to be first there gets a seat. 4 people on my flight had been bumped from the flight the day before. Go figure. Also, if you arrive to Bonaire via American Eagle out of San Juan, do not be surprised if you do not get all your luggage, the size of the plane cannot accommodate all the luggage. Your luggage will arrive the following night. Hope this helps!
Megs

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Ken Brown on Sunday, March 3, 2002 - 7:21 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Megan,

I thought the AA counter doesn't open until 5:00am? Are you saying that almost everyone was already in line before 5am, even though the counter was closed? (I'm asking as our flight out of Bonaire is the 5am American Eagle flight, so I'm very interesting in your advice.)

Thanks,

Ken

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Jake Richter - NetTech on Monday, March 4, 2002 - 1:48 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Ken,

When I left Thursday for Boston via San Juan, and got to the airport at 5:10am, the line was already quite long. Only had another dozen people after me. No one got bumped, and it was a very full flight (fullest I've ever seen), but better safe than sorry - show up at 5am or even a bit earlier, just in case (although being bumped in Bonaire is not the worst thing that could happen to you :-) ).

Jake

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Ken Brown on Monday, March 4, 2002 - 11:44 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Thanks, Jake. We'd been planning on getting there at 5am, but considering what you & Megan have said, and given that our plane leaves at 6:15 (this isn't until June), I think we'd better plan on a little less sleep that night.

Ken

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Jake Richter - NetTech on Monday, March 4, 2002 - 11:49 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

I'd forgotten about Daylight Savings. That's right, starting early April the flights leave Bonaire an hour earlier, so that also means that the counter staff and lines should start an hour earlier (otherwise the plane would never get off the ground in time), so plan on being there at 4am for a 6:15am flight!

Jake

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Ann Phelan on Monday, March 4, 2002 - 11:57 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

The Delta (Air JA) at terminal (C) at Logan is still a zoo ( I flew to Orlando Fri. night) but the good news is they call all flights as needed while you wait in a mile long security line so no one missed flights. So in my case since I had nothing to check I could have arrived 30 min. prior as I would have just advanced up to the security check in prior to boarding. Orlando was a piece of cake. No wait aside from my 2 hour wait at the gate due to getting to the airport 2 hours ahead of departure.

The concern I have is the continued news of the AA prob in BON. It seems people are still getting "bumped" when they seem to be at the airport in a timely manner. And then, have to pay the difference of fares when re booking flights out on alternate days. What is the problem in BON? Are they overbooking? Is weight a problem? When I flew out the 25th with friends my friend's luggage arrived in SJU on a later AA flight that same day. I had no idea AA flew two so it seems they are operating several planes out on one day? Can someone explain? Also, when the time changes to 6:15 AM dep. in March will the check in be open at 4 AM? It was not in Oct. Hmm..I am suspect to these problems.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Linda Richter - NetTech on Monday, March 4, 2002 - 12:11 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

That concerns me too. I don't understand why someone that is bumped would have to pay any money unless there was something else going on.

Looking at the AA schedule I see two flights on Mondays - one at 7am and one 9am. I think this is only on certain days not daily but I don't when exactly.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Megan Davies on Monday, March 4, 2002 - 1:33 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Ken-
We were originally told to be at the airport (by the agent in Bonaire) by 4:00 am for the 7:00am flight. I talked to a few folks who had taken friends to the airport for that same flight and they told me getting there at 5:00am was fine. Well, you know my story, and I asked several people what time they arrived, all of them said between 4:00 and 4:15, and that the counter was open. It is quite ridiculous if you ask me - but just remember- all the hassle is worth the vacation in beautiful Bonaire. I already have my reservations for next year!
Have a great trip
Megan

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Dave Blackmore on Monday, March 4, 2002 - 10:23 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

We found out the hard way that American Eagle has consistently overbooked its flights. Last Saturday, 1/March/2002, we arrived at the airport at 5:00am for a 7:00am flight. After standing in line for two hours, going through security, and being told that we would be able to get on the plane, we were quite surprised to find there were no seats available when we finally got to the ticket counter. It appears they had overbooked our flight by 12 passengers. To make matters worse,
1) There was only one American Eagle flight for the day.
2) That particular flight was the only one for the day to San Juan from Flamingo Airport (the location of our first connecting flight)
3) Other alternative flights were either a) not able to get us to our final destination in one day, or b) were too cost prohibative ($3,000 + for one-way fare).
4) Also, the last eight passengers did not even get motel and food vouchers because they got to the airport security line "too late" (around 6:15am) They were stuck at the car rental waiting for the agent to open at 6:00am. We were the "lucky" passengers to get free room and board courtesy of American Airlines.
5) Two of the 12 passengers already had assigned seats, but that wasn't good enough to get on.
5) The ticket agents at Flamingo Airport admitted that it was very common for flights to be overbooked.

On Sunday, American had two airplanes and everybody, even the guy how showed up at 6:50am, was able to get on a plane. Go figure!

So the lesson is to:
1) Check early with the airline and find out if your flight is overbooked.
2) Get there early enough a) to get through airport security, and b) in order to beat your fellow passengers to the ticket counter.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Ann Phelan on Monday, March 4, 2002 - 10:32 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

This is NOT RIGHT. What can be done? I think this whole matter is absurd. My friend got their at 6:15 and was denied boarding and had to pay 300+ to fly 7 days later. The other days would have cost him 500+! He arrived later as he had only a carry on.

I think I am going to alert TCB and perhaps IATAN. This is BAD PR for AA and leaves all travelers feeling uneasy.

Annie
Cape Cod

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Glen Reem on Tuesday, March 5, 2002 - 1:36 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Each person who has problems should report them directly to AA, preferably direct to the President, with copies to other relevant people.

Is there now a resident AE person on Bonaire/at the airport?? The AE departures were disorganized in the beginning until AE assigned a person from Puerto Rico to the island to supervise the Bonaire staff; this sounds a bit like 'island time'. This may also be at least an indirect result of AA trying to divest itself of it's Caribbean AE parts. That is not a pleasant prospect.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Josie on Tuesday, March 5, 2002 - 2:54 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

I was talking to an agent at the airport yesterday, and she said the airport opens at 4 am for the 7 am flight, and she recommended being there before 5 am to be sure...

Bill and Alan had no problems when they left two consecutive Wednesdays ago. Alan arrived at 4:55 and Bill at 5:20. However, I think that when I leave, I'll plan to arrive at 4:30 (How I HATE that thought!)
Josie

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By michael gaynor on Wednesday, March 6, 2002 - 9:06 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Josie Keep your car after you check in and then stop over for coffeee. Boarding is not until 6:30 AM

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By michael gaynor on Wednesday, March 6, 2002 - 9:08 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Josie Keep your car after you check in and then stop over for coffeee. Boarding is not until 6:30 AM

 


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