Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with flights

Can I fly internationally with a lead acid battery in my carry-on?

mateuslee — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 08:06:49 -0800

In just a couple weeks I will fly to a remote area of Peru from Europe via the US. I'll be bringing some research equipment which including a mobile solar unit. That solar unit is powered by a lead acid battery like this one. Technically, this is an okay thing to bring on carry-on because it is dry-cell (i.e. not like a car battery), and as far as I know it conforms to TSA standards.

However, it is expensive and I know that the TSA aren't exactly known for their willingness to cooperate or their friendliness. This battery is pretty expensive and it would be a shame to lose it.

I wonder, is there some sort of documentation I can bring to show the TSA and other authorities which will demonstrate that I have a legal right to fly with this device and that it is not dangerous or threatening...

If not, and perhaps more importantly, is it safe to put this battery in my normal (non-carry-on) luggage? I don't know about the safety issues involved...

Thanks guys! You're the best.

London-Mumbai

Anonymous — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 17:14:56 -0800

Cheap flights London-Mumbai (Bombay)? So I'd like to fly to Mumbai around the 18th of August and return around the 1st of September.
I'm in England: where should I fly from, who's the cheapest?
O hive mind help me.
Anony cos this is a surprise for the bf!

Get me to Chapel Hill from NYC!

greta simone — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:33:52 -0800

How to get to Chapel Hill from NYC? Hey y'all. So I'm riding up to NYC from Chapel Hill, NC around the first of August, with a friend who is moving there. I was hoping to hang around for a few days and see friends, but I'm struggling with the best way to get back. I have always flown round-trip when visiting NY, when airline prices were more reasonable. Presently, I have very little money, so I'm trying to come up with the most economical way to take a one-way trip back to CH from NYC. I have looked at one way flights and Amtrak. While those options aren't super-expensive, I am looking for alternative ideas that I might not have considered.
A few things:
Please do not suggest taking a bus. I have my reasons for not wanting to take a bus.
As long as I can get to the general Chapel Hill area (Greensboro to Raleigh), I could have someone pick me up at the end.

Mostly, I'm just looking for secrets that others may have discovered when making this trek. Is there a website to find a good rideshare? I have looked at craigslist already, but haven't found much, and I'm not sure I would trust anyone from craigslist. Is there a place to find discounted Amtrak deals? Do you or any of your friends want to drive me?

I'm just trying to save a couple of bucks.
Thanks!

Sri Lankan Airlines

cillit bang — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 05:01:26 -0800

I'm looking at flights London-Tokyo and Sri Lankan are coming up far far cheaper than anyone else. Should I be concerned about flying with them? The obvious concern is Tamil Tiger related terrorism. I realise the chances of being personally injured are minimal, but should I be concerned about disruption (I'll be changing planes in Sri Lanka), or of the country collapsing into civil war between now and September? I know nothing about the situation beyond what's on Wikipedia.

Secondly, does anyone have any experience with Sri Lankan? Are they reliable and basically competent as an airline, or am I likely to be messed around

Finally, one of the flight options allows me to leave a day earlier and spend a night in Colombo or wherever (ca. 30 hours between flights). Good idea/bad idea?

(btw, the price difference is enough to determine whether I can afford to go or not. I'm not just looking to save a few quid)

Thanks!

Cheapest Flight to Anywhere

nivekraz — Tue, 27 May 2008 11:27:40 -0800

Cheapest Flight to Anywhere: I have a large flight credit on Continental Airlines that I need to use with in the next few months. I'd like to find the cheapest ticket for a same day departure/return so that I can get the remaining balance refunded. Is there somewhere I can find all Continental flights originating from Newark, NJ (EWR) over the next few months? Kayak.com is great but I have to know the destination to get the prices.

Cheap .au to .uk flights with stop off in .id?

singingfish — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 03:21:57 -0800

Best way to get reasonably priced flights from Sydney to Scotland and back with a stop off in Bali on the way back? My family (me, wife, 2 children both over 2 and under 12) need to go to Scotland to visit family, preferably stopping off in Bali on the way home to visit friends and old haunts. The dates are between mid-August and September this year. I'm going to try to get my employer to pay for my flight (but not the others), due to some work related stuff going on. Online travel agents overwhelm me, so can anyone suggest the best way to get a reasonably cheap deal?

How can I search for cheap, last minute flights out of a particular city, but with no particular destination in mind?

decoherence — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 14:01:27 -0800

I often find myself with an open weekend and an urge to fly to no place in particular, just to go exploring. Whether it's Sioux City, Billings, or Biloxi, I figure I can entertain myself anywhere for a weekend. Are there websites that allow you to search for cheap, last minute flights from a given origin, irrespective of destination? Most sites require you to enter a destination, which makes the whole process a lot more difficult.

Finding all possible flight destinations?

inflatablekiwi — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 16:30:18 -0800

Is there a travel site that will let me see all possible destinations from a given airport for a specific date (and let me filter by direct flights only, flight length, departure time, price, etc)? I'm looking for a travel site that lets me find out what destinations I can get to from an airport on a given date, and given other criteria like length of flight, number of stops, price, etc. Mainly looking for a site that works for North America (but all the better if it worked beyond that as well).

For example, if I know am going to be working in Seattle for the next few weeks, I may want to know all the weird and wonderful places I could possibly fly out to on a given Friday night for a weekend adventure that are less than 3 hours flying time.

The "Buzz" feature on Kayak and the "Activity" feature on Mobissimo are close-ish to what I want (but both appear to show you what other people have found around the dates - not what actual flights are available). Other travel aggregation sites seem to have similar "hot deals" type interfaces, but nothing I can see that matches what I'm after.

This comment suggests that what I want has existed previously, but the linked site (fareprice.net) appears to no longer operate and is now just an advertising-spam site.

Can I get a cheap flight by purchasing a ticket connecting in my actual destination?

newatom — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 15:28:52 -0800

Flying from Edmonton to Toronto: $285 on flight AC172. Flying Edmonton to Newark via Toronto(AC172): $258. I only have carry-on luggage. Is there any reason why I can't buy the ticket to Newark and just get off in Toronto? In addition, the flight from Edmonton->Toronto->Newark is a Tango Plus flight, which is a class ABOVE the $258 Edmonton->Toronto flight. If I wanted to fly Tango Plus from Edmonton->Toronto, it would cost me $332.

Much historical value to an old Guam WW2 Navy flight logbook?

Quarter Pincher — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 06:59:00 -0800

My grandfather recently showed us an old handwritten flight logbook from when he served in Guam in WW2 with the Navy. Would scanning this serve any interest to someone? Might it be considered classified info? It's a frailish, brown, pencil-written log books of flights, I presume in and out of Guam, in the WW2 time period. I thought scanning it might preserve the records made in it (no matter how scribbly).. is there someone who might benefit from its information?

International excess baggage-->Cash?

anonymoose — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 03:20:08 -0800

Is there any way to make some money with my excess baggage allowance on my routine international flights? I fly LAX-VIE and back about 4 times a year. I have ~100-150 lbs baggage allowance each way. Is there any way to turn that into cash? (Particularly the VIE-LAX leg, since I really don't take home much stuff)

Cheap Transatlantic Flights?

hobgadling — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 15:15:53 -0800

How far in advance should I make plane reservations for a New York to London flight to find the best price? My fiancee and I are planning our honeymoon to England next June. How far in advance should I look for flights to find the cheapest fares? Is there one airport in the NYC area that has cheaper flights to London than the others? Any other tips for finding a cheap flight are appreciated.

Ireland-->Spain. APIS required?

knapah — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 05:24:50 -0800

Do I need to provide my passport details for APIS (Advanced Passenger Information System) purposes when flying from Dublin, Ireland to Barcelona, Spain? I will be flying with Aer Lingus in August.

Am I correct in thinking that as Ireland is not part of the Schengen system that the info. must be supplied? If so, where do I supply the information? Check-in? There was no form in the Aer Lingus booking procedure.

Flight Pricing Mistakes

alona — Tue, 22 May 2007 11:05:23 -0800

Trying to find a website that publicizes airline's online mistakes in terms of pricing, giving you very cheap flights. I thought the MeFi community may have already posted about this, but a search yielded no results. Anyone know what I'm talking about?

Looking for information on cheapest airline travel routes

nitsuj — Sun, 06 May 2007 17:21:45 -0800

If I wanted to fly from one mainland to another -- North America to Asia, for instance -- but I'm willing to fly out of any city in North America to any city in Asia, how can I find out the cheapest route? Is there a website that says, for instance, that LAX->HND (Tokyo) is the cheapest US-->Asia flight, and it is cheapest from April-June? Is there a chart somewhere? Help!

We gotta get out of this place

sgt.serenity — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 14:58:46 -0800

Easyjet promo codes/ flight to london from edinburgh -help ! hi, we need to connect with a flight leaving london stansted mid june, we're leaving from edinburgh and our budget is limited - we dont know whether to get the train or a budget flight from edinburgh - the current easyjet promo code would be very helpful ! or some wizard link to a site about flights - i really have no clue about this sort of thing so cheers for bearing with me : )

Flying from Manchester to Gothenburg

reklaw — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 12:49:42 -0800

Are there any flights from Manchester to Gothenburg? Or, failing that, from anywhere in the north of England to anywhere in the south of Sweden? I've looked and looked, but I can't find anything. I can't afford hundreds and hundreds of pounds, so a budget carrier or a cheap fare from a national airline is all I can really look at.

So does this exist? And is there any easy, one-stop kind of way to find this kind of thing out, for future reference?

Savings in international flight taxes from Australia

mule — Wed, 18 Oct 2006 05:36:41 -0800

Get me off this hemisphere! Help me find cheap(er) flights out of Australia to Europe. Price are reasonable until taxes come into play (+25%). Is there a way around this? Help me beat the taxes and get a better deal! I'm trying to get return flights from ADL to somewhere in Western Europe (Paris, Amsterdam, London wherever). I can find reasonable prices for flights in April/May 2007. Cheapest is Singapore airlines $1650 ret. but the taxes are over $400 extra. That's an extra 25%. Is there a way around this? Some secret place/airline I should be using?

FYI. I generally check webjet.com.au and STA travel as a baseline price and then direct with airlines to see if there's a better deal. Often bricks and motar travel agents have better prices still. It seems Australia's a bit behind the US when it comes to online travel. What's the secret?

Gambling on air travel

onlyconnect — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 07:58:41 -0800

Farecast is telling us to wait to buy tickets to Las Vegas for next weekend -- they have 58% confidence that the price will go down. How late can we wait and still be sure to get tickets? Round trip fare from DC to Vegas is now running somewhere around $360 /person, and only 4 or 5 days ago (before NortonDC and I had decided to go) the fares were down around $215. If there's a chance they'll go down, we'd like to save the cash, but we don't want to wait so late that we lose our chance to go and watch jonmc and pips get married (and celebrate our own anniversary with some cirque du soleil and sightseeing).

So hive mind, can you give us advice on when they might run out of tickets altogether? Also, has anyone had good or bad experiences with the reliability of Farecast's predictions? (I've seen the MeFi post re its launch.) As far as we can tell, there are no conventions in Vegas that week. Thanks, in advance!

Romantic week away for a disabled traveller

kairab — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 15:44:57 -0800

Disabled travel. Direct flight from Dublin for one week in any direction. Wheelchair user. Five star hotel and interesting things to do. Can you help? It's difficult to find places that are genuinely wheelchair friendly. Many places say this but when you get there it's a question of them being "helpful" which really means lugging you around. Not conducive to dignity. Max. flight time from Dublin Ireland 7-8 hours. Two adults (one wheelchair) looking for a romantic but unusual destination.
This will be between October and December. We don't want to freeze but also not interested in very hot places. Links to disabled travel sites very welcome. Personal experience even more so!

Why are liquids now banned from flights?

GuyZero — Thu, 10 Aug 2006 07:53:40 -0800

Why are liquids now banned from flights? So by now most people will have seen the news - liquids and gels are banned on UK flights, US flights and Canadian flights. So, what's so dangerous about liquids? Transport Canada says beverages, shampoo, suntan lotion and more. What exactly is the security risk with liquids? How much damage could you do with 400 ml of anything?

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go.

thejoshu — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 22:39:51 -0800

How do I get a free airline ticket? I've had two airlines independently lose my luggage this week, and one airline sent me to another airport to get on a flight that was eventually delayed another few hours after my initial flight was cancelled. With all these inconveniences, and the fact that my current trip is open-ended, I'd like to fly home for free. How can I make this happen? On Saturday, I travelled to EWR to hop on a 9:45AM AirTran flight to Minneapolis via Chicago. Cancelled. I had to make my way to LGA to get on a noon flight that brought me to Minneapolis via Atlanta, and that flight was another two hours late. They lost my luggage, told me it'd be with me by 8AM the next day, and finally delivered it at 5PM.

This morning (Wednesday), I travelled Northwest from Minneapolis to Miami. In Minneapolis, all of their computers were down, delaying and complicating the check-in process. Again, my bag was lost at my destination. They took down my information. At 1AM, I received a call from a Continental representative, saying they had just found my bag on their carousel, with no tags, and they had called my mother's line, listed on the outside of the bag, where they got my cell phone. They had no idea who I was, what flight I had been on, or what airline I had travelled with, and would not have been to find me if it weren't for my own personal tag on the bag.

These are all significant inconveniences, I feel, and as I am planning to travel back to NYC early next week but don't yet have a ticket, I'd like to see if it'd be at all possible to get a voucher of some sort. Who should I contact? Which airline? What should I say? On the phone or in person? The first thing I'm planning to do is contact the AirTran luggage representative I initially dealt with on Saturday, and work from there. Do you have any good ideas? Have you been given a domestic airfare voucher for similar inconveniences, or would I had to have been royally screwed for this attempt to succeed?

When should I buy tickets to Hawaii for travel on August 7?

indigo4963 — Thu, 11 May 2006 12:01:36 -0800

When should I buy tickets to Hawaii for travel on August 7? I'm going to Kona from Hartford on August 7th. How far in advance should I buy tickets? My fiance is convinced that we have to buy now or we'll pay much more later. Will prices rise or fall as the date approaches? I've checked kayak.com, but prices are in the neighborhood of $900 and tend to have long layovers. Should I try to fly to Honolulu and then get a separate flight to Kona? Should I try priceline?

Eurofly: Anyone?

veronica sawyer — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 11:38:22 -0800

Has anyone flown to Italy via Eurofly? I'm looking to book tickets from NYC to Rome for the end of June and they're predictably expensive. But Eurofly seems fairly reasonable and it's nonstop.

I'm wondering if anyone here has had any personal experience flying with them, and if so, was it an okay experience?

I've looked on the forums at TripAdvisor and haven't really found an answer, though there appear to be several people asking the same question. (On a positive note, it seems no one's created a "EuroflySucks.com" website yet...)

Need rss travel feed for Netvibes

daveed66 — Mon, 13 Mar 2006 05:25:46 -0800

Need an rss feed for flights from New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Lafayette for Netvibes.com. Anybody know of a feed service or a way to work around getting it on the page?