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This is me first trip report and as I write this, I am over the Pacific coming up on NAN. The main purpose for the trip is to attend a class in Raleigh, North Carolina. To qualify for a DONE4, I needed to take QF149 to LAX (No D availability on QF93 for the next three days), so it was an excuse to sample the delights of the SYD QP FLounge - I've use the MEL FLounge a number of times, but this is my first opportunity for SYD. To maximise my time in the FLounge, I elected to take QF408 (7am) MEL to SYD, even though it necessitates leaving home at 5am! Anyway, the first leg (QF408) was an uneventful 'bus' ride. I figure I will grab a nice breaky in the FLounge - Eggs Benedict - the first time I have ever had Eggs Benedict, I knew what they were, just never had them before. I like them! I figured with a 11:30am departure, I wouldn't get to have lunch in the FLounge, how wrong I was. QF149 didn't depart until 3pm - plenty of time to sample the Club Sandwich (I figured they would feed me on the plane anyway, so elected for something relatively light). I am not sure what I am going to do once I get to LAX just yet - I was supposed to change to QF107 to continue to JFK, but given QF107 departed SYD only 20 mins late, they will be long gone before I get there. I suppose, I will be allocated to a AA flight to JFK - I'll let you know.

Once I get to JFK, I still have a further leg of today's travel to get to RDU late tonight. Unfortunately, when I checked in thismorning, the agent could not see my JFK-RDU leg, so I will have to collect my luggage at JFK, then recheck to RDU - what a pain. The agent couldn't tell me why she couldn't see the JFK-RDU segment - I am wondering if it is the fault of the TA when he booked to flights - not linking them or something... ideas anyone? When organising the trip, I did have the feeling I had the trainee doing it - Hotel and Car memberships were not associated with my booking - hotels are on a separate booking, he ask some odd questions that I would have thought the answers would have been self evident. I guess I better doublecheck on the other 'complex' routings to make sure this same thing doesn't happen again...( I still have RDU-MIA-DFW-LAX-LHR and LHR-HKG-AKL-SYD-MEL on this trip...) Fortunately, I had plenty of time at JFK (about 5.5 hrs) so I still stand a good chance of making my RDU flight assuming I can get a non-stop flight LAX-JFK.

While waiting for QF149 to depart, I tried out plenty of the seats through the FLounge, and spotted Pat Rafter with family in tow. They left the lounge at about the right time for QF107, so I guess they are heading to the US also. I would have thought someone like that would have CL access - ex Australian of the year (2002 I think), sporting hero and celebrity, and has done some marketing for Qantas in the past (if I recall correctly) It was cool to see a celeb like that, but I am surprised to see him in there and not in the CL. Is there a CL in SYD T1? maybe that's why... have I answered my own question???

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Sorry for the delay in updates - my laptop had an infarction and I have only just got things back up and running (after a full rebuild!) This is the TR update I wrote just before the failure on arrival into RDU...

Well, on clearing immigration (thank you APEC BT card!) the Qantas ground staff at LAX informed me of my new flight details - no longer going to JFK, now going LAX-STL-RDU. The new itinerary gets me into RDU much earlier, but I was looking forward to QF107 to JFK - at least QF J has AVOD and seat power - on the AA flights (both MD80 in F) no entertainment system at all. I guess I am just spoiled with QF, but I have come to expect at least some audio channels to listen to. AA Domestic F really is a far cry from QF J (domestic or lintl) On using the LAX priority security lane (foir the first time - I never knew it was there until I read a post on AFF!), I was - ever so politely- informed by the TSA staff that "you airline has selected you for additional security screening" - thanks AA! Anyway - after the most rigorous screening I have been through anywhere in the world - about 8 explosives swabs, wanding, full pat down, empty my backpack and go through the whole lot. Nearly 25 minutes later, I was heading to the Flagship Lounge in T4. It has new high back seats since the last time I was in there (last May) which give a bit of added privacy. I posted the previous entry in this TR while there. I should be getting in to RDU at about 8:30pm local time - which will give me an opportunity to have a little drive around and evaluate the US maps I have for TomTom on my phone. hopefully, they are as good or better than the Hertz Neverlost maps (I've had some fun and games with that system in Austin, TX - many of the maps are for Austin have significant inaccuracies) I will have Neverlost this time still, but having my own GPS for the phone will allow me to keep my favourite locations for the next time I visit.

I really must remember to get some batteries for my MP3 player - I presume the AA flights I have next Saturday will also be lacking in on-board entertainment systems...

I changed my Hertz booking via the Hertz Gold web site, and interestingly, my points balance has dropped to zero! I guess it is cleared at January 1st, so my Hertz 5 Points status has gone with the wind and I now have to re-qualify to this year. Note to self - need to look at how the Hertz system works...

I am currently mid way between STL and RDU, it's dark out and all I can see out the window is some air traffic - one tracking with us, two going to opposite direction. There must be think cloud cover below us to block all the town/city lighting. I never get tired of watching all the flight traffic when flying in the US - on the LAX-STL leg, I saw a yellow Gulfstream (G450 or G500 I think) rocketing past heading the opposite direction - I guess with a closing speed of (something like) 1600kph, you would expect it to look like it was going fast! On most of my flights to/from Asia, you just don't see other traffic except when you are close to your airports.

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After rebuilding my laptop, I now have an almost fully functional PC to work with - although I am missing some of my bookmarks still and some of the specialist software that I need normally, but I have enough to get going for now.

On arrival into RDU, I was disappointed to discover a huge split in my suitcase - thankfully nothing inside was damaged, but it looks like the suitcase took a huge fall. I have found a Samsonite factory outlet close to the hotel, so I think I will be hitting my my travel insurance for a new suitcase.

I was more disappointed with my laptop - after working on the STL-RDU flight, it would not go into standby, hibernate or shut down - and with some evil eyes from the FA on approach to RDU, I had to just power it off. When I got into my hotel, the PC now fails to boot. Thankfully, I had a spare 100Gb HDD and the rescue and recovery disks - that allowed me to build a new drive, then copy the important data of the old drive onto the new one. Unfortunately, the hotel's Internet connection went down last night and didn't come back until this morning. At least I am now at a state that I can leave the hotel and catch up with some colleagues who have arrived last night for the same class I am here for.

The hotel I am in is on the south end of RDU - I am hoping to get a Kai Tak style photo with the hotel in frame, and the aircraft overhead. I will post the best of them later.

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I'm settled in the Durham area for the week, while I attend a class with colleagues from around the world.

I managed to get a snap (Kai Tak style) with the hotel in the foreground, but I had forgotten about the shutter lag on the compact camera I have with me, which made it really difficult to get the shot...



This is the pick of them.

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I've just checked in at RDU for my RDU-MIA-DFW-LHR leg of my DONE4, much to the consternation of the AA check-in agent. She asked why I was going to MIA instead of direct to DFW since she has plenty of availability on the direct flight. I explained that I was doing it for the points/miles and that I was using up all the North American segments of my fare. She was ok with that, albeit a bit surprised. I guess she doesn't see to many MRs.

On nearing MIA (almost directly over FLL) we had what I would consider a close encounter with a FedEx DC-10 (or maybe it was a MD-11). I've never seen another aircraft so close in the sky. It passed directly beneath us on a slightly different track to us (maybe 15 degrees to starboard) and what looked like 300 meters below us. The FedEx plane moved slowly away from us then climbed to well above us before we started to get into position for our decent into MIA.

Our aircraft was a 738 which actually had an AV system... bliss.... They didn't play a movie because of the duration of the flight, but did play a mishmash of a number of TV shows - 60 Minutes, Entertainment Tonight, The new adventures of old Christine, Some sports show (which I ignored because all they were covering was American Football). I flicked between the TV sound and audio channel 7 (80's music) which had me bopping along. Speaking of 80's music, my rental car (Pontiac G6 GT) while I was in Durham has a built in XM Satellite Radio system, and the 80's station there was my favourite as well. I guess I am showing my age...

Nice lounge in MIA - just Admirals Club, no Flagship lounge (I'm in the one on the D concourse). I've just had the best coffee for a week in here - from an automated espresso machine (much like the ones in QP). I really miss good espresso coffee...

Next leg is MIA-DFW which leaves in about 90 mins...

[drron]

Good on you dot.Had my laptop done that it would be curtains for this technologically challenged grey hair.Guess there are not many mileage runners out of RDU.Certainly different to MIA where the checkin agent suggested a longer routing when I told her I was coming up on explat for the first time.However travelling with mrsdrron means the direct routing.Fortunately doesnt notice a couple of extra segments occasionally chucked in "because it means we will get there earlier".
May your computer fully recover in the next 10 days.Enjoy.

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Thx DrRon, rebuilding my PC was no problem for me because I am a technical specialist for a large IT company - it kind of goes with the territory. I would not expect most AFF members to carry around spare 100Gb drives with them... That said - my PC problems are not yet over, it has an intermittent POST problem which indicates a fault with the Motherboard, I just have to hope that that problem will not get worse. If it does, I will be completely dead in the water.

The MIA-DFW was uneventful, the plane was a 757 with the brown leather F seats and looking very tired. I was looking forward to getting on a 757, I always had the feeling that they were a bit of a rocketship - effectively a 767 with less weight and lower coefficient of drag (as a result of the fuselage cross section) and I recall in the past that their take off roll to rotation was very rapid with a real push in the back, but this one felt just like a 767. Maybe it's a case of absence making the heart grow fonder.

We pulled into Terminal D at DFW, I caught the SkyTrain around to Terminal C for the next leg - and enjoyed the deserted nature of the Admirals club there. I was able to talk to the family on Skype (my son woke up this morning crying saying that he missed me) so that was great. I love being able to see and talk to Mrs Dot, Miss Dot and Master Dot from wherever I can get a reasonable Internet connection. Makes the travelling easier for me and for the family.

I left the suitcase that AA destroyed in the hotel room this morning, having purchased two Samsonite suitcases to replace the broken one. The Samsonite shop had a special on with the second suitcase at 50% of the marked price (which was already about 50% off) which meant I got a US sized roll-aboard for 25% of RRP, not bad and definately needed on this trip. Mrs Dot is an avid (and professional) scrapbooker, she ordered a whole lot of scrapbooking supplies to be delivered to my hotel this past week. As it turns out, she ordered way too much stuff, forcing me to buy the second suitcase just to get all the stuff home. Oh well - the insurance will cover the big suitcase and I got a great deal on the second one. I am sure we will be able to use them in the future.

I've got a couple of hours between DFW-LAX and LAX-LHR, it will be my first opportunity to sample the new F lounge at TBit. I am looking forward to that.

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Currently in London, the trip from LAX to LHR was uneventful, at least until I went to collect my bags - both lost. This is why I have been travelling on hand luggage only since last April - when on my last DONE4, my suitcase went missing again on arrival into LHR (and that was just LAX-LHR, no connecting flights). The lost baggage folks at LHR were sympathetic, but I think they reckon I was a knob to expect them to arrive given the four flights I took to get to LHR.

Then, I go ask at the Hertz counter where the bus is, the attendant asks my name and tells me "there is no booking under that name, do you have a confirmation number?" which I duely produce, "I'm sorry sir, that booking was for yesterday and we have cancelled it since you didn't show" Great - trainee TA strikes again!


It's 1:50am as I write this and I really should get some sleep, I will post an update in the morning

[Evan]

I hope they managed to find you a car anyway did they ?
After some sleep may the bag fairys deliver your suitcase to your hotel.
E

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Thanks Evan - yes, they managed to find a car for me - thankfully. Unfortunately, the promised update to the thread for this morning wont happen - I've been busy trying to recreate the DVD's of family photos that were in my suitcase for the UK relatives - and this afternoon I am off to visit with them.

BA Baggage Services tell me that both bags were last scanned at LAX, so my convoluted routing to get here from RDU had no effect on my bags. Interesting coincidence that the last time I made that flight (BA268), my checked bag went missing then as well...

I'll post an update when I can - I intend to cover TBit OW 1st lounge impressions, BA268, and DFW-LAX.