LAS - Hawaii - LAX and back to Europe (Sep-Oct 2006)

Acest trip report a fost publicat in engleza pe airliners.net, luchtzak.be si Romanian Air Transport Forum.

LAS - Hawaii - LAX and back to Europe (Sep-Oct 2006)

Make yourself comfortable, this is going to be a long trip report.
I made this trip in Sep-Oct 2006, but I only had the initiative to write the trip report now. The reason is quite simple: my true passion for aviation developed after taking this trip. I did like to fly before too, but I wasn’t an aviation geek in the real sense, for instance I never wrote down any facts about my flights, like registration number, aircraft type, or take off / landing times. I had to recover many of these details by looking on the pictures, but some of the details are lost forever.

Some statistics about my trip:
-12 flights in 12 days
-distance flown: more than 15.500 miles / 25.000 km
-flying time: more than 34 hours
-time zones: 6 from east to west (JFK - HNL), 13 from west to east (HNL - OTP)
-airports visited: 10
-airlines: 7



I was planning to go to Hawaii since the beginning of the summer, but I didn’t know when would I go, what flights would I take and, maybe most important, how much money would I spend.
The only thing I knew for sure was that I had already booked my flights back home, to Romania, on October 2-3. So I actually had to create my trip, begging from the “back” to the “front”. I basically set up how many days I would be spending in each place, and going backwards. I finally came up with the day of my departure, which was Sep 22. Then I looked for the best fares, for hours and hours, trying to find the best connections between flights, taking also in consideration the different time zones. Not an easy task at all. Also I was looking to fly as many airlines as possible, on as many different aircrafts, but not spending a fortune on it. So in July 2006 I managed to find what I wanted and in 2 hours I had all my bookings done. But those 2 months were very long; at one time I was actually counting days.

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So, the moment I was waiting for has finally come. I went to the airport 2½ hours prior to departure. Reaching jetBlue’s Terminal 6, I got my boarding pass and I checked-in my 2 big suitcases, which were a pain in the ass, because I had to drag them all this time, on so many flights and especially to and from the airports. After going through security I got close to the boarding gates and I was going from one part of the terminal to the other one, back and forth. I also visited jetBlue’s shop but I didn’t buy anything, unfortunately. Later I regretted this because there were some things I could have bought, like a toy box with a small plane model.









JFK - LAS
22 Sep 2006, Fri
jetBlue Airways 195
Aircraft type: Airbus 320-200
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 6:40 PM - 9:30 PM
Actual: 8:35 PM - 11:15 PM
Flight duration: 5hrs 40min
Seat: 23F



Boarding began and soon after everybody took his seat, we were welcomed by the captain, on the speakers. We were told that the flight would leave later than scheduled, as predicted by me, because at that time, in the evening, there are so many flights bound for Europe. He told us that our flight is in the queue for departure, but there is a long one and that he will do everything he can to take off sooner. Meanwhile we taxied towards our designated runway, but as far as I could see from my window, even though it was already dark outside, there was indeed a very long queue line for departures. Nothing to do inside the plane, I was stuck in my seatbelt. Even though the flight was almost full, I was lucky enough to have a free seat next to me, so plenty of room to stretch out my legs.

After a very long wait, we finally took off, going towards Connecticut, but when we almost reached the northern part of Long Island we made a big turn towards east. The FAs began the in-flight service, the usual on jetBlue, a soft drink and a snack. My PTV was turned on all the time, because I wanted to see our routing. I watched some news and some short movies and from time to time I switched to the map mode, to see where we are. Three hours into the flight I noticed the plane’s speed indicator was very low, sometimes even less than 400 mph. The captain made an announcement in which he stated that our flight encountered strong headwind, so our ground speed was lower. He apologized for the delay, which adds up to that from the departure in New York. Well, nothing to do about it…



On the final approach at LAS, all of the sudden I could see millions of lights outside… Yes, it was Vegas! We landed on runway 25R, and when I got into the terminal building I could see all the casinos from the south part of the Strip. I was speechless. What a light show in front of my eyes!
I claimed my luggage and I was out of the airport in no time. I bought a ticket for the airport shuttle, to get me to the Stratosphere Tower. I got there very late, after midnight.

These are some pictures from Las Vegas.

”Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” Sign


The Venetian - Campanile and Ted A320-200


McCarran Airport


The Venetian Casino


Las Vegas Strip


Eiffel Tower - Paris Casino


New York Casino


Fremont Street casinos




View from Stratosphere Tower


Bellagio Casino


Stratosphere Tower


Hoover Dam






The Desert

I reached the airport by shuttle and I was dropped by the shuttle driver at the right terminal. When I got inside I was in for a surprise. It was the Southwest “assembly line” type check-in desks. The system was very efficient, because I got my boarding pass from the self check-in kiosks and seconds later I was called at the counter to drop off my luggage. Great job, Southwest! Then I headed to my gate, but the security check queue line was huge. I waited at least half an hour to go through. Then I took something to eat, as my breakfast, before the flight.











LAS - LAX
25 Sep 2006, Mon
Southwest Airlines 1377
Aircraft type: Boeing 737-300
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 10:10 AM - 11:20 AM
Actual: 10:32 AM - 11:14 AM
Flight duration: 42min
Seat: 22F

Boarding was announced and we were split in groups, according to our check-in time. I was in the second group so I did manage to get myself a window seat.













We taxied towards the end of the runway 25R and we took off. I took these nice photos of the casinos.











The flight itself was uneventful, I could see from my window the highway between Las Vegas and LA. Very soon our aircraft was in decent to land at LAX.

Ontario Airport


Downtown LA with heavy smog


We landed on runway 24R and taxied to the gate. Good opportunity for me to take some more pictures.

Qantas 747-400 “Wunala Dreaming”




The Encounter Restaurant


I got to the baggage claim and I waited for my two suitcases. I got one, which was one of the lasts. But where was my second suitcase? I said to myself that I was in deep trouble. The problem was that I was only 3 hours away from my AA flight to HNL. The only small hope was when I saw that I wasn’t the only one waiting for my suitcase, there were several folks like me… And after 5 minutes or so, I spotted in a corner, my second suitcase. I don’t know why and how it was dropped there, together with some other suitcases… but who cares anymore.
The bus trip to change the terminals was very short. I checked-in my luggage at AA counters and I got through security, very quickly. I got something to eat and then I watched the aircraft movements at LAX.

LAX - HNL
25 Sep 2006, Mon
American Airlines 283
Aircraft type: Boeing 767-300
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 3:30 PM - 6:05 PM
Actual: 3:43 PM - 5:45 PM
Flight duration: 5hrs 2min
Seat: 39J

As boarding began, I went all the way in the back of the aircraft, to my assigned seat. The aircraft looked worn out, with an old design. I don’t care that much about these details, what’s important is to be transported from point A to point B in the most efficient way, and of course, having a window seat. Since American Airlines don’t serve food anymore on flights inside USA, I was happy I ate a good lunch before my departure. We took off directly towards the ocean.

Marina del Rey


Santa Monica Pier


Point Dume - Malibu


West Anacapa Island


Santa Cruz Island


A movie was on but I didn’t bother to look at it, I just tried to kill some time by listening to music or watch through the window as the clouds go by, over the Pacific.







When we were told that our flight is going to land soon, I was taken by surprise. I immediately discovered under the clouds, Honolulu and Aloha Tower. We passed close to the airport and got almost to the west end of the Island of Oahu. Then we made a 180 degrees turn towards the airport, passing right over the smaller Kalaeloa Airport. We landed smoothly on runway 08L. I got out from the plane and I was immediately struck by the warm humid air. The airport had open-air hallways.



Pearl Harbor


Kalaeloa / John Rodgers Field






I was welcomed by this: Aloha!


I got my luggage and I went outside the terminal building, to wait for a shuttle bus, to get to Waikiki Beach. On the way from the airport to the city I had a weird feeling; maybe some of you had the same feeling. I felt like I was so far away from everything, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, basically in the middle of nowhere. I was so far away from my home country and if I tried to imagine where my home was, I didn’t have to look to the west, east, north or south, just look under my feet, at the ground. My home was almost on the other side of the planet.

Waikiki Beach pictures.







Duke Kahanomoku Statue




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Since my flight to Maui was so early in the morning, I had to wake up at 3 AM, after sleeping only 2-3 hours. I always say when I travel, when I have to sleep less, that I would have lots of time to sleep back home, so I should make the most of my travel, not to bother because of the lack of sleep. My shuttle was waiting for me right outside the hotel and I was to first person to be picked up, but the driver made several stops on the way to the airport, to get more people. I arrived at the airport earlier than 5 AM, so I just went directly to the check-in counters. Then I had to wait in the terminal, where I got a light breakfast and obviously went from one side of the terminal to the other, to watch the sunrise and how the airport’s activity began to intensify.







HNL - OGG (Kahului)
27 Sep 2006, Wed
Aloha Airlines 226
Aircraft type: Boeing 737-200
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 7:00 AM - 7:37 AM
Actual: 7:01 AM - 7:22 AM
Flight duration: 21min
Seat: 20A



As we boarded the plane, I could choose my own seat so I got one in the back, on the left side, in order to get some views over the Waikiki Beach soon after take off. Which I did, as you can see in these pictures.









The FAs were all wearing Hawaiian style shirts, and the female FAs had also a flower on their left ear. This is common in Hawaii, since even the front desk staff at the hotels is wearing the same colorful shirts. It makes you taste that holiday atmosphere, even if let’s say that you are there just for business purpose.

Molokai Island


Just a few minutes at cruise level and then we had to put on again the seatbelt, as the aircraft was approaching Kahului Airport, from the south.





It was just a few hours stay in Maui, but I had time to take a swim in the warm ocean water. The beach was quite deserted at that early hour.





I got back at the airport around noon, to have plenty of time to walk around the airport terminal, which looked kind of old; even the flights timetable appeared on old TVs but not all of them worked.



Half an hour before boarding I went to the departure lounge, which was quite crowded. I started to count the people inside, and the number was well above the capacity of one Dash 8. Later I discovered that there were two flights, one to HNL, and one to KOA. Boarding began, but the staff made quite a mess of it because no announcement was made concerning the flights. I showed my boarding pass and went through the gate, reaching the airport tarmac. I went inside the aircraft and got myself a seat, but only a few seconds later we were announced that this flight is going to HNL, not KOA. This was the aircraft:



So we had to get out of the aircraft and go back into the terminal. Minutes later our flight was ready to begin boarding.
I was very happy to discover that I will fly onboard this “Island Style” logojet:



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OGG (Kahului) - KOA (Kona)
27 Sep 2006, Wed
Island Air 1262
Aircraft type: De Havilland Canada DHC-8-100
Registration: N979HA
Scheduled: 2:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Actual: 2:14 PM - 2:36 PM
Flight duration: 18min
Seat: 9A



The load factor was about 70%, so my seat next to me was empty. This was my first flight on a non-jet aircraft, so I was quite anxious to see how everything will turn out. The take off run was a little bumpy but the fastest I had ever felt, because after full throttle was given, we rotated about 15 seconds later. And the engines did a lot of noise on the short 18 minutes hop to the Big Island of Hawaii.













We landed on runway 17 and the scenery on this island was very much different compared to Oahu or Maui. It seemed as the airport itself was built on solid lava flow, because I couldn’t see any trees or grass around the airport ground. Kona airport, also called Kailua-Kona, is made of open-air set of structures that look more like holiday resort houses than an airport. As we got off the plane, it began raining, not uncommon at all in Hawaii at after-noon time. It was just a short rain shower, much needed to cool off that warm atmosphere. The island’s volcanoes were surrounded by lots of heavy clouds, so I couldn’t have a clear view of the mighty Hawaiian volcanoes.

My original plan for the evening was to spend some hours in Hilo, on the east side of the island, only 60 miles away, so I had a booking on a second flight on Island Air.

I passed though security, after I got my boarding pass, so I had about to wait about half an hour in the open air terminal, with benches instead of seats. The plane which should have taken me to Hilo was the same “Island Style” logojet. I bought something from the souvenir shops and then I listened to some music. Still, only 10 minutes prior to departure and no activity around the aircraft, which was parked just next to the fence of this so-called terminal. I spotted an Island Air employee and kindly asked him if there’s something wrong with the flight. He told me that the flight was cancelled due to technical problems and I should go to Aloha Airlines desks. As I knew there were only 5 minutes left before the scheduled departure and Aloha desks were located in a different terminal, I started running. But running I mean, literally. I reached the Aloha check-in counters and there were two agents who told me that my flight was leaving right now. As they informed me they also issued two new boarding passes. I got those and quickly ran to the security check point. I was through in seconds and then I spotted the aircraft, which was waiting for us, on the apron. Me and some other guys from the Island Air flight got inside the plane and then the doors closed. I was all sweaty but at least I made it into the plane. What a relief!

KOA (Kona) - HNL
27 Sep 2006, Wed
Aloha Airlines 281
Aircraft type: Boeing 737-200
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 4:30 PM - 5:10 PM
Actual: 4:33 PM - 5:03 PM
Flight duration: 30min
Seat: 21A



I found myself a window seat in the back, and only after we took off, I had time to take a look at my boarding passes. Before looking I wondered why there were two. My question was answered, since Aloha doesn’t operate direct flights from Kona to Hilo, but only connecting in HNL. So instead of a 25 minutes hop over the volcanoes, I did almost two hours to reach Hilo.







The flight was again short, and as usual we landed on runway 08L. As people got off the plane, the FAs told us that we can stay inside, not needing to go into the terminal and come back again. They cleaned the cabin and did all the preparations for the flight, so I had plenty of time to look through the window to see all the activity around the aircraft. Soon boarding started so people began to fill up the cabin, but then again the load factor wasn’t that great.

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HNL - ITO (Hilo)
27 Sep 2006, Wed
Aloha Airlines 46
Aircraft type: Boeing 737-200
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 5:40 PM - 6:31 PM
Actual: 5:39 PM - 6:14 PM
Flight duration: 35min
Seat: 5A



Aloha Tower








Diamond Head Crater




As we took off, I got some more pictures as I did early this morning, of Waikiki Beach and Diamond Head crater. After reaching the designated flight level, there was a uniform layer of clouds as we got closer and closer to the Big Island, which I left less than 2 hours before. We approached Hilo Airport form the north and, to my amazement, I witnessed the greatest approach of all… Only 1-2 miles from the airport, less than a minute before landing, I could see the runway from my window, which is on the west-east direction. I was astonished to see immediately as the plane goes in a steep left turn to align itself for runway 08. Seconds later we landed. This proved me that Hawaiian pilots are among the best in the world, because they do many short flights in a day, with as many take offs and landings.

By the time we landed, it was already dark outside, so I didn’t bother taking anymore pictures. I visited the city, but I didn’t have enough time to see much of it, unfortunately. If I would have arrived earlier, as originally planned, I could have seen a lot more. At the airport, I checked-in and headed into the terminal, where the air conditioning was on, so a good place to cool off.

About 40 minutes before my flight, there was yet another Hawaiian Air flight going also to HNL. I went at the gate to ask the staff if I could board this flight, to get earlier in HNL. She checked into the computer, but she kindly refused me, explaining that the conditions of the ticket don’t allow me to be on that flight. Well, I waited half an hour more, to board my flight, which was the last one of the day.

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ITO (Hilo) - HNL
27 Sep 2006, Wed
Hawaiian Air 391
Aircraft type: Boeing 717-200
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 8:43 PM - 9:30 PM
Actual: ?
Flight duration: 47min (scheduled)
Seat: 7F



It was the first time I was in a Boeing 717, so I didn’t know what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised, because the cabin looked almost new and the seats were very comfortable. And since the engines were located in the back of the plane and I was so tired, I slept on the spot. It was the first time when I actually missed the whole take off run and most of the flight. I only woke up before landing at HNL.
I quickly went outside, to get a shuttle bus to Waikiki, to my hotel. I also slept the entire trip from the airport to the hotel.

These are some pictures I took the next day, when I went to the North Shore of Oahu Island. I have seen here the biggest waves in my life; I never believed that I would be ever afraid to go into the water, but this time I was, because some of the waves were almost 12-15 feet high.

Waikiki Beach






Oahu North Shore

Time to leave Hawaii came so I woke up very early again, around 4 AM. My shuttle picked me up from the hotel at 5 AM and I was at the airport around 6 AM. As soon as I got inside I discovered that my flight was going to leave later than scheduled. I wasn’t really upset about it, I just checked-in and went to buy breakfast. I ate a lot more than I usually do, because I knew the flight isn’t that short and also, considering the different time zones, that I will arrive at my hotel in Hollywood quite late in the evening… So no decent lunch that day.
I just occupied my time by looking outside the terminal and reading some magazines I bought the day before.





Boarding was announced and all the passengers rushed inside the aircraft.



HNL - LAX
29 Sep 2006, Fri
American Airlines 270
Aircraft type: Boeing 757-200
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 8:00 AM - 4:15 PM
Actual: 9:17 AM - 4:52 PM
Flight duration: 4hrs 38min
Seat: 32A

When everybody was seated, the captain apologized for the delay and explained its cause: the AA flight which arrived in the evening, landed in HNL with a big delay, so the cabin crew had to take the mandatory rest period, which led to a rescheduling of my flight.



We took off and I also took some pictures as we passed close to Waikiki Beach.







Hanauma Bay






The captain told us that we could see all the way to Maui and Big Island, but only if you were on the right hand side of the plane, which I wasn’t. But I did see a little bit of the volcanoes, Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. The flight was quite boring, the only option I had was to listen to music. Once again a movie was played, but nothing interesting to look at. Finally I spotted California’s coastline, and the plane began to loose altitude. We made our way towards the airport by flying over the downtown.

The Hollywood Sign


Downtown LA






We landed on runway 24R and the plane reached the gate by making lots of turns around the airport. I claimed my luggage and waited for almost an hour to get a shuttle van to Hollywood. There were dozens of vans outside the arrival terminal, but all of them went in different directions, obviously, since LA is so huge.
The trip to my hotel took a long time, because most of the main boulevards were full of traffic jams. My shuttle dropped me off exactly on Hollywood Blvd and I immediately stepped on the famous Hollywood stars.

Walk of Fame




While I was in LA, I went to the best places in town, Bel Air, Beverly Hills, North Hollywood, Santa Monica, Malibu, Venice Beach, Downtown, Universal City, China Town, Pasadena and Long Beach.

Santa Monica Beach




Santa Monica Pier


Venice Beach




Malibu Beach




Kodak Theater, where The Academy Awards (Oscars) are held


Grauman's Chinese Theater


U.S. Bank Tower (Liberty Tower)


Financial District on Saturday


Hollywood Sign


Fast boat ride on the Pacific


Queen Mary in Long Beach Harbor

And now the final part of my trip.
I had to catch a flight very early in the morning, at 7 AM, in order to arrive in time at JFK for my next flight on Air France.
I also got a shuttle from my hotel to Long Beach Airport, in the southern part of LA, many miles away from Hollywood. But because it was so early the trip was quick, but even so it took almost an hour.
As soon as I arrived at the airport, I could tell right away that this airport is pretty small.



LGB (Long Beach) - JFK
2 Oct 2006, Mon
jetBlue Airways 202
Aircraft type: Airbus 320-200
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 7:10 AM - 3:30 PM
Actual: 7:23 AM - 3:12 PM
Flight duration: 4hrs 49min
Seat: 23F







Boarding was done through some doors which led us straight onto the tarmac, where 3 jetBlue planes were waiting. I was welcomed inside the aircraft by one of the FAs and then I headed to my assigned seat.





We took off towards the ocean and then we made a big turn over Long Beach Harbor, to make our way towards north-east, our normal routing for New York.

Somewhere over Colorado, the mountains were full of snow


Midwest plains


Our plane went over North Chicago. I did see from my window O’Hare Airport and the Downtown, with Sears Tower


View of Manhattan


Newark Liberty Airport


The plane made a big detour south of Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Long Island marshland


Not long after the plane landed on runway 31R I ran to get my luggage and to change terminals, from 6 to 1. Before going to the AirTrain I went to the toilet to freshen up and decide which pieces of clothing I will keep, since I won’t recover my suitcases until I get back home. I had to make sure I had everything with me, in my carry-on, because my layover in Paris would be almost 10 hours long.
I finished this operation and quickly jumped on the first AirTrain, to get to the busy Terminal 1 at JFK. There was a long queue line and I had to wait about one hour in order to check my luggage through.

New York City skyline




JFK - CDG
2 Oct 2006, Mon
Air France 7
Aircraft type: Boeing 777-300
Registration: F-GSQB
Scheduled: 7:25 PM - 8:50 AM
Actual: ?
Flight duration: 7hrs 25min (scheduled)
Seat: 22A





Boarding was announced and I showed my boarding pass, to enter this good looking widebody. When I booked my flight I chose an A seat, around row 35. But at check-in I was assigned a different seat, 22A, just over the wing. But because the flight was operated during the night, it didn’t matter anyway.







I don’t remember the time of our take off, but it was for sure close to the scheduled time of departure. About half an hour later service began, and the dinner was quite good. Minutes after finishing my dinner, I fell asleep for almost the whole trip over the Atlantic. I woke up as we passed just south of Ireland. Then breakfast was served, which was again tasty and nourishing. Our plane approached Paris from the north-west and we landed on runway 27L. The weather in Paris was awful, there were lots of clouds and it was quite cold. Luckily I predicted this in New York, so I did have with me a jacket.
After landing, our aircraft parked in a remote area, so we were transported by bus to the terminal. As I didn’t have to wait for my luggage, I got through customs and rushed into the airport train station, to head to central Paris.

I had a few hours of sightseeing in Paris.

Tour Eiffel - Champs de Mars


Ecole Militaire and Montparnasse Tower


Hotel des Invalides


Palais de Chaillot


Arc de Triomphe


Champs Elysees


Seine


Notre Dame Cathedral




I went back to CDG airport about 2 hours before the departure, but I was very tired due to my fast tour of the city. Seeing so many planes in the last days, I wasn’t at all interested in taking any more photos at the airport, so I just patiently waited for my flight, the last one.

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CDG - OTP
3 Oct 2006, Tue
Air France 1088
Aircraft type: Airbus 320-200
Registration: ?
Scheduled: 6:30 PM - 10:20 PM
Actual: 7:14 PM - 10:57 PM
Flight duration: 2hrs 43min
Seat: 15A



The boarding began as planned, but the captain told us that the flight is going to face a delay, most likely because of the rush hour at CDG. We finally took off going west only for a few miles, so our plane passed exactly over Paris. The captain was in a way funny, he was taking a speech almost like a bus tour guide: “On your left side you can see Eiffel Tower, on your right side you can see Montparnasse Tower…” and so on.



The meal service began shortly after departure, as our flight followed a more southerly route to Bucharest, through northern part of Switzerland and then Austria and Hungary. I did sleep once more on this flight, but there were only short naps. We landed in Bucharest on runway 08R and outside it was pitch black. Since the terminal wasn’t busy at that late time, I quickly got my luggage and I was the first to leave the baggage claim area.
And this is how my trip finished.

As I mentioned in the beginning of my trip report, I took the initiative to write it now, because I discovered my true passion for aviation only after completing this great trip.

Any questions, opinions or suggestions are greatly appreciated.