Round The World and other travels
A frequent flyer's collection of trip diaries
This is: USA Road Trip 2011
Flight Log 3: UA6278
Denver (DEN) - Salt Lake City (SLC)
Despite the delay to boarding caused by a trivial-sounding 'light-bulb failure' incident, the aircraft was loaded and ready to go by 1900. We nevertheless sat on-stand until our precise scheduled departure time before making a move. A queue for the runway then ensured that a further fourteen minutes would elapse before we were able to leave Denver behind. The climb out, in a northerly direction, seemed very slow for such a small aircraft; perhaps it was a symptom of the thinner air associated with the Mile High City.
Once we had levelled out, the flight attendant announced that there would be a complimentary service of soft drinks, tea and coffee, while beer and wine would be available for purchase at USD6. Service was from the back, so I had quite some time to wait before receiving my diet coke. I had no inclination to read on this sector and was content simply to watch as the daylight faded rapidly over the Rockies. The scene was interrupted when the young women in 1A and 1D decided to befriend each other and were soon shrieking excitedly at each other, right across their hapless, mild-mannered husbands, in that ghastly Valley Girl-speak where every other word is 'like'. There was a hard edge to their voices that seemed to say "I will be heard, at any cost". It was about as attractive as broken glass and I wished they would shut up.
In due course, an announcement indicated that we were on our approach into SLC. Some forked lightning could be seen off to the west, but it wasn't close enough to be of any concern. As with all of my previous flights on the Canadair Regional Jet, I was starting to feel uncomfortable by this time due to the space constraints. It's not a problem that affects me on other small aircraft; as I have commented many times in these pages, I actually enjoy travelling on small Embraer jets. Touchdown came at 2030 and our Palm Springs-based crew were soon bidding us farewell.
This short flight confirmed my dislike of the Canadair Regional Jet, and it didn't help at all that I was in such close proximity to the two noisiest people on the plane. Other than that it served its purpose, getting me to my chosen destination and doing so on time.
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| Date: Sat 27 Aug 2011 |
| Aircraft: Bombardier Canadair Regional Jet 200 |
| Scheduled dep: 1914 |
| Actual departure: 1914 |
| Scheduled arrival: 2039 |
| Actual arrival: 2034 |
| Cabin: Economy |
| Seat: 2A |
