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03-23-2007
01:38 AM
4 Loves
Young Skywalker,
I am your father.
Darth Vader
Seriously, may the force be with you, Jedi Blog Master
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03-22-2007
10:12 PM
2 Loves
Mary, great post!
Kim,if I were a nut, I'd be a Macadamia--exotic, expensive, and in Hawaii!
Jim, I like Bordertown Blog Boy--it makes you sound dangerous.
By the way, candy corn bags don't have the "hard-to-open" problem. When I was taking the bag out of my backpack to hand it to USS Blog Boy, it opened itself.
Blog Boy
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03-22-2007
01:36 PM
4 Loves
USS Blog Boy
That's okay, tell April that candy corn is an excellent source of sugar! Colleen will read your comments, and we showed her pictures from the trip.
Blog Boy
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03-21-2007
10:29 PM
3 Loves
Kim
I assure you that Erin is a very real person, and she is one of the ex-Delta folks that I worked with who are now happily part of the Southwest Family. She's Irish and Oregonian, and she LUVS her Ducks. Since this post is about Fred, let's not mention his Louisville Cardinals.
Blog Boy
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03-21-2007
09:57 PM
6 Loves
Hi Sean,
You must be new to the blog and welcome! Our own Bill Owen addressed your concern in two kind of recent blogs. The first http://www.blogsouthwest.com/2007/01/24/why-cant-i-make-reservations-further-in-advance/ generated quite a bit of discussion, and he followed it up with http://www.blogsouthwest.com/2007/02/08/ready-set-book/. I hope they answer your questions.
Brian
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03-21-2007
09:09 AM
531 Loves
Francisco Delgado, our own USS Blog Boy, returned home to Albuquerque for a well-deserved two-week leave before his ship, the USS Nimitz, sets sail for the Persian Gulf for an extended stay. (For the rest of the post, I am going to use Albuquerque's airport code ABQ, because I never trust myself to spell the city correctly.) To greet and meet Francisco, a group (Shelley Logan, Hollee Ford, Paula Berg, and me) from the Blog Team here in Dallas flew to ABQ to meet his flight. Francisco didn't have a clue about what was going on until he stepped off the airplane in ABQ, and we even got his parents, Yolanda and Jesus, in on the surprise.
ABQ's local Culture Committee decorated the gate area with balloons and banners that read "Francisco Delgado Appreciation Day." Colleen had selected a model of New Mexico One for us to present to Francisco, and we had members of the Blog Team, including Colleen, and our ABQ Station Employees autograph a Southwest Airlines soccer ball for him as well. On top of that, the great folks at Outback Steakhouse donated a dinner for four to Francisco and his family. (Francisco, don't make your mom cook every night you are home!) Of course, we also had to contribute a bag of our official snack, candy corn. As USS Blog Boy stepped out of the jetbridge , he was greeted with cheers of appreciation from a sizeable group of our ABQ Employees and the Customers waiting in the gate area, followed by hugs from his mom, dad, and sister, April. He even became a local television star when ABQ's ABC affiliate interviewed Francisco on his way to baggage claim.
Of course, the joy of his homecoming was tinged with the sadness that he will soon be gone for eight months, but you can track Francisco and the Nimitz through the ship's web site which is linked on the right of this page under "Link LUV." Incidentally, the Nimitz is Nuts About Southwest's "official ship." Francisco has promised to contribute to the blog during his deployment, and we look forward to heaaring from him.
There was one other surprise that night, and it was on us. When we boarded the flight home for Dallas, one of our Flight Attendants was another blogger, Carole Adams. During the flight, my fellow bloggers commented on the fact that Southwest (and this blog) really is a part of our Customers' lives, and we are truly honored by that. Our low fares and our great Employees make it possible for servicemen like Francisco to visit their families, and while we can't salute each of them individually, they are all in our thoughts. Besides our visit with USS Blog Boy reminding us of the dedication of the men and women who are in uniform, it also brought home the fact that, like the Delgado's, there are families at home waiting for their return. Nuts About Southwest wishes Godspeed to Francisco and the Nimitz.
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03-20-2007
01:33 PM
11 Loves
Shelly,
Since you read the book, just what do dogs do in the nighttime?
Blog Boy
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Hi Patricia,
I am so sorry that your son got caught up in the weather mess in the Northeast, and I hope he is home now. Incidentally, Southwest doesn't fly to LGA. It sounds like your son was traveling on ATA, which codeshares with Southwest. Even though he may have bought his ticket through us, ATA is responsible for the operation of his flight.
I will share your thoughts with the appropriate people, however.
Brian
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03-19-2007
11:21 AM
608 Loves
You work with someone in the next office for six years, and you think you know them. Then you see them featured on the front page of Sunday's The New York Times.
One of our bloggers, Fred Taylor, is that guy, and this article ran on the front page yesterday. Way to go Fred!
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03-17-2007
11:04 PM
1 Love
Kim and Ding Boy,
Those casinos play for keeps. Don't go getting me in trouble.
Blog Boy
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03-15-2007
06:42 PM
1 Love
Hi Kris,
I am pretty sure Ray is out flying right now, but he will get back to you. In the meantime, I wanted to make sure you had seen his post on Turbulence. Here's the link: http://www.blogsouthwest.com/2006/06/08/turbulence/ . If you want to read more of Ray's posts, just click on his name above under the title. Also you may want to visit the Taking Flight site, and there is a link above on the right under the LUV Link section.
Brian
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03-15-2007
01:47 PM
3 Loves
Kim and Ding Boy,
That would be a "sweet" honor, and after all the triangular shape of candy corn symbolizes Southwest's original "Texas Triangle" cities of Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. However, I wouldn't hold your breath too long waiting to see it.
By the way, the "Bravo Lima" (BL) in the registration would have to stand for "broken liver."
Blog Boy
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Hey Tamra,
How many times did you have to say, "What's it gonna take to get you in this car today?" What's the real story when car salespeople "take" your offer to the manager? You can spill the beans now!
Kim,
that's pretty funny. I got a map out to see where 225 degrees points from Dallas, and it aims at the Gulf of California or maybe later on Hawaii. Then it dawned on my that 225 degrees points to the southwest.
Blog Boy
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03-15-2007
01:34 PM
2 Loves
Ray,
while we are on the topic of ELP, when you do fly over Juarez, do you have to transition to Mexican ATC, or do you remain under ELP Approach/Departure Control? The reason I ask is that Juarez has a commercial airport too, and I am wondering how ATC coordinates the traffic flow with the two airports.
Are there any other SWA cities where a landing and takeoff can take you over a foreign country. I am wondering about Detroit and Buffalo?
Blog Boy
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03-14-2007
07:03 PM
2 Loves
Jim,
the one advantage to Francisco's floating runway is that it is always pointed into the wind, so at least Navy pilots don't have to worry about crosswinds. Of course, that short runway is another matter altogether.
By the way, other airlines have some unique call signs. British Airways, for example, uses "Speedbird," which referes to the logo that originated with BOAC. When they flew Concorde, they added that to their callsign, so their Flight #1 would identify itself on the radio as "Speedbird Concorde 1." Pan Am used "Clipper" as its call sign.
Speaking of the Nimitz, take a look at our "Link LUV" section on the right side of the page. We added the Nimitz web site and made it the official ship of Nuts About Southwest in honor of USS Blog Boy.
Blog Boy
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03-14-2007
05:34 PM
1 Love
Jim,
You have it right, and as Kim explains, runways are numbered by the direction they point. It's not unusual for runways to vary in altitude along their length, after all, some are two miles long. You mentioned Atlanta, and the runways there have a pronounced dip in the middle. Also Atlanta illustrates what happens when you have more than three parallel runways. For the fourth runway, Right, Left, and Center are gone, so what do you do? Keep in mind that runway number isn't an exact representation of heading. Runway 8 may well point 085 degrees, and since we only use two digits, the last one is eliminated. In ATL they named the two runways north of the terminal 8L and 8R, and two of the runways to the south 9R and 9L even though all four point the same direction. Runway 10 is a newer runway more to the south and it may have a slightly different direction. Incidentally, while runways have numbers, taxiways have letters that are pronounced phonetically. In most places, taxiway "B" is "taxiway Bravo," and "D" is taxiway Delta. In ATL because Delta has almost 1,000 daily flights, they call it taxiway Dixie to avoid confusion in radio transmissions to all the Delta flights.
This stuff fascinates me. By the way Jim, did you get my e-mails?
Blog Boy
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03-14-2007
02:05 PM
3 Loves
Raphael,
I so miss Concorde. I was fortunate enough to fly it twice between London and New York, and I can't think of a more beautiful airliner ever. Of course, a takeoff in Concorde was nothing like any other airliner with the afterburners on the four engines pressing you into your seat. Ray, that really was a case of "go fast, pull up."
Blog Boy
By the way, Raphael, food and aviation have certainlly peaked my interest. I worked for a month at Orly when I was with Delta, and it was an amazing time. Of course, every aviation buff must make two pilgrimages in life. One is to Le Bourget not just for the Art Deco Terminal and the Musee de l'Air, but to imagine what it was like when Lindbergh touched down after his epic trip--one of the 20th Century's truly transforming moments. The other is to visit Kitty Hawk to see where it all began. Kitty Hawk is still on my "to do" list.
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03-14-2007
01:56 PM
3 Loves
Hi Linda,
What a moving comment, and I am so proud of you and the Flight Crews of Southwest and all the other airlines, not to mention all the Customers who got back into the skies during those very uncertain times after 9/11. In the spring of 2002, I flew into Newark (on another airline) and our approach took us down the Hudson along Manhattan, and I can remember how my heart ached when I saw the void in the skyline where the Twin Towers should have been. Speaking of New York, one of the most awe-inspiring manmade sights to be seen from an airplane window is the Statue of Liberty.
Blog Boy
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03-14-2007
01:45 PM
3 Loves
Raphael,
I have had some other memorable experiences flying between the States and Europe. Seeing ice bergs in the North Atlantic, the ice cap in Greenland, and flying right down the middle of Lake Michigan. One of the most memorable was landing at London Heathrow and flying along the Thames over central London and seeing the Tower Bridge, St. Paul's, the Houses of Parliament, and Buckingham Palace.
Jim, the R and L stand for left and right when you have two parallel runways. I actually was turned around when I was writing about taking off in El Paso. We took off on Runway 8 Right, which is the opposited end of Runway 26 Left. The R and L designations are in relation to your looking straight down the runway. In the case of 8R, you are looking almost due East and it is the runway on the right. By the way, if you have three parallel runways like Detroit used to have, the middle one is designated C for Center.
Blog Boy
Brian
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03-13-2007
08:27 PM
1 Love
USS Blog Boy,
easy Sailor, women can smell desperation!
Blog Boy
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03-13-2007
08:23 PM
1 Love
Hi Raphael,
I was on a westbound flight out of El Paso last month, and we took off on Runway 26L. Instead of making the tight right turn back to the west over downtown El Paso as I have often experienced, we made a more gentle turn and crossed the Rio Grande into Mexico. We turned back to the west south of downtown Ciudad Juarez and followed the Mexican side of the river until we were able to cross back into the US into New Mexicco. Cap'n Ray, this is the second time I have flown over Mexico into/out of El Paso--the other time was landing from Phoenix and we flew near the bull ring. Is this procedure more common now?
Blog Boy
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Ah grasshoppa,
One must be patient with candy corn. One must become one with the candy corn. One must commune with the candy corn and feel its pain. Only then will one reach the first level of zen.
Wise Blog Boy
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03-13-2007
01:56 PM
3 Loves
Hey Kim,
no offense taken because Angela is much better looking than I am. If I was given the choice of only knowing either me or Angela, I would take Angela.
Ding Boy, it takes a keen eagle eye to locate candy corn factories from the air. You have to keep an eye open to see trailers of corn syrup sneaking into out of the way rundown buildings in the bad parts of town.
Blog Boy
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03-12-2007
07:28 PM
2 Loves
I always try and find old World War 2 training airfields from the air. There are lots of them scattered across Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Colorado, and they all appear to have been built in the same pattern. Airports are usually easy to identify from the air, and I recently flew over both Abilene Municipal and Dyess Air Force Base. Once on a trip from Atlanta to Paris, we flew over JFK Airport in New York.
Blog Boy
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03-12-2007
04:25 PM
1 Love
USS Blog Boy and Leah,
I'm afraid the rear-facing seats are gone for good. There are two major reasons for this, and they have to do with safety and security: At about the time we began accepting deliveries of the 737-700, the FAA changed the impact requirements for seating. Previously, seats had been designed to withstand a force of 9g, but with the new rule the requirement was changed to 16-g. There were no rear-facing seats that met that requirement, so all 737-700s were delivered with forward-facing seats, and we began to reequip our existing 737-300s and 737-500s. The 737-200s were allowed to keep their lounge areas until the were phased out two years ago. Also, at the same time the 737-700 was being introduced, the FAA mandated that Flight Attendants be able to see the entire cabin, and the high bulkheads of the lounge areas prevented this. Bottomline, the lounges and their rear-facing seats are history, along with hot pants. (Darn on both!)
Blog Boy
By the way, Leah and USS Blog Boy, you two seem to be awfully compatible! (But don't tell External Blog Boy)
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03-09-2007
08:57 PM
3 Loves
David,
Thanks for sharing the great story. Rest assured, we will send along our own thanks to Bernie.
Brian
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Hi Megan,
I understand that Hollee has contacted you offline via e-mail, but for everyone, I wanted to clairfy the post times. Since our server is in Dallas, the times are suposed to be all in Central Time, but they currently appear to be Central Daylight Time. (We will have to see how the time change affects that this weekend.) However, no matter when the comment is moderated and posted, it always goes on the blog in the order with which the writer sent it to us. For example, Sally writes a comment at noon and Billy writes one at 2 P.M. If for some reason we moderate Billy's first, Sally's comment will go before Billy's once it is moderated.
Clear as mud? (I promise that I wasn't eating candy corn when I wrote this.)
Blog Boy
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03-09-2007
04:38 PM
3 Loves
As a point of clarification, Blog Boy was neither of the Brians mentioned above. Shelley should also point out that no Brians were injured in the writing of this post.
Blog Boy
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03-06-2007
04:00 PM
3 Loves
Phil,
I saw Hoyt Wilhelm pitch once. The catcher needed a gigantic mitt, and Hoyt was either really good or terrible. I don't think the Harry Caray story is urban legend because it was always an adventure to hear him do the last couple of innings of Cub games.
Blog Boy
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