I frequently connect through MSP to head to Europe, and it’s always gone well for me.
You've never had a great experience connecting in any TX airport? I find that hard to believe. How many times have you connected through DFW or IAH (just as examples) and what happened? Was there a weather/mechanical delay? Could you not find your connecting gate? I'm sorry but I find such a blanket statement somewhat bizarre, especially given that DFW and IAH are two of the best connected airports in the entire USA.
Chicago is a cluster? Sure, any airport can be a cluster on any given day. Look what happened at DEN last week. Look what happens to the entire NYC area anytime a thunderstorm or blizzard rolls through. I've connected through ORD multiple times and not had more than an hour or two layover, even flying internationally. I've connected through ORD countless times and the vast majority of flights are on time. Is it a cluster when there are IRROPs? Of course, but which hub isn't?
2-4 days - how? An extra flight from OKC to whichever hub you use doesn't add 2 days to your trip. That's not mathematically possible. Flying to Europe and back takes two days of travel regardless of if you have a nonstop or not.
If you said you'd fly to Europe more if Wow Air or Icelandair brought their low fares to OKC, that would be one thing - certainly lower fares incentivize price-conscious flyers to fly when they otherwise wouldn't. But to say that you don't fly to Europe more because it takes an extra 2-4 days to make one connection doesn't make any sense.
IAD too - UA serves quite a bit of Europe from IAD. Usually is a long layover given how early the OKC-IAD flight is, but it's still another viable option.
Not to mention OKC-PHL on AA too. Incredible to me that places like Prague and Budapest are now accessible from OKC via one connection.
I am fine with saying that my experiences with connections in TX, either way, have been unlucky. The past 7 or 8 connections in the past 3 years or so have each been affected by weather, with 3 or 4 also adding in mechanical issues. I just don't have great luck flying through any TX airport, with the excepting of AUS. I have not flown to or through AUS.
As far as the travel days, the 2-4 time frame is when there are delays and considering both the out trip and return trip.
I should disclose that the past 2 times I have flown to Europe, once to London and once to Barcelona have both been great experiences with no issues. Point being, both times I flew SWA non-stop to BWI. Stayed a day with family and then flew out of EWR/JFK.
I know the likelihood of WRWA ever getting European service is practically zero. I know that I will always need to plan for a layover somewhere in the U.S. before getting to Europe. All I was saying is that I would more often choose to fly to Europe if all I had to do was drive to WRWA, get on a plane, and in roughly 12 hours or so I am in Europe. I agree that the current way of getting to Europe is not terrible. I even agree that when all things go well, that the trip is smooth. But I am only speaking to the idea of making international travel from OKC simpler and quicker.
When my wife and I went to Belize last October it only took us 4 hours from OKC, including the layover in IAH. We left OKC at 8am and by noon we were walking on the beach on Ambergris Caye. However, it was a different story coming back due to massive weather delays around IAH and then mechanical issues when the plane finally got to BZE. Throw in the well overbooked flights between IAH and OKC on a Sunday and Monday and we were stuck waiting on stand-by, we waited on 4 different flights and finally made it on the 5th flight. All of this despite flying first class, we took the first two available seats, which were not together and in coach. However, if we had a flight directly to and from BZE, we wouldn't have had to deal with IAH.
Very glad to see that OKC's slowest-moving commission has decided the time is right to proceed with the expansion. With the consolidated security checkpoint, the journey from the current United and Alaska ticket counters...all the way to the far east end of the building...then back all the way to the west end of the building to board, will be quite long. Travelers with small children will particularly hate it. Might those airlines have the opportunity to move east after the construction is complete? Segments of moving sidewalks down the middle of the west concourse might be a nice addition, though it will never happen.
In theory there'd be more room in the middle for ticket counters once the existing security checkpoints were gone...
I don't get it - on one hand you don't want to spend an extra 2-4 days going to/from Europe (which again is not mathematically true), but OTOH you'd rather spend an extra day flying to BWI first, before going to Europe? That's great if you want to visit family first, but it's simply inaccurate to say that you don't go to Europe more often because you can't get there in 12 hours. Look at Saturday August 11th as an example. There are at least 5 itineraries that will get you to London in less than 12 hours total travel time.
And I understand you've been hit with weather at DFW and IAH. It happens. Literally every airport in the country other than LAX deals with weather at some point (maybe SAN is also exempt). Even SNA deals with excessive heat and a short runway, which results in flights being delayed/overbooked.
And come on, you really expect OKC to have a nonstop flight to Belize?
We can just agree to disagree at the end of the day. My wife and I have been to Europe pretty much every year for the last 4 and it's never ever taken us an extra 2-4 days, just because we live in OKC.
This reminds me of BOS when walking from a SWA flight to baggage claim. It just kept going and going... I only remember taking escalators down, don't remember many moving sidewalks... It was the last flight in, so nothing was open and we were practically the only passengers in there.
Last edited by PaddyShack; 07-26-2018 at 11:48 AM. Reason: spelling
Lol! People are concerned about walking long distances at WRWA? You must not travel much. I've literally had to run to catch a connecting flight in Atlanta.
Forget the wheelchair. I get them to drive me around between gates.
Dude, I was thinking of others. I walk a few miles every night, but thanks. I have several friends and family members who don't want to use a wheel chair and find it rather tough to walk long distances because of particular challenges they have. Or perhaps there's someone traveling alone with little kids and there's all the gear you have to haul! And since there is no alternative to getting a wheelchair at OKC for the time being (moving sidewalks, cart shuttles, etc.), I was concerned for folks I know, with whom I have traveled and seen how hard it can be for them. Have a bit of compassion before you pounce. No need to be rude, man.
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