…. I flew direct!
One day, in the not too distant past when I was speaking to Aer John on the phone about a forthcoming flight of mine to Palma de Mallorca ( and no, I didn’t post a TR. It was bog standard with the exception of “had a G&T” became “had two G&Ts” and Gordons Gin had been replaced by Bombay Sapphire), he asked me if I would like to go with him for a weekend to New York. Well, this came so unexpectedly out of the blue that my initial reaction was to book in immediately for a hearing test! However, just in case such extreme measures were unwarranted, I asked him to repeat himself. Yes, he wanted me to accompany him on a trip to New York! Well, there’s only one answer to that, isn’t there?
Aer John took care of everything once dates were agreed upon; booked hotels, organised transport and, because it was standby travel, negotiated back-up plans. Aer Lingus has two flights a day from Dublin and it suited him to work for the morning so the afternoon flight it was. Well that was the original plan. Apart from the fact that we were extremely busy at work, my main preoccupation was how I was going to get to Dublin. Drive or take advantage of free travel thanks to my rapidly advancing years? Travel up that morning or go up the night before (One always goes “up” to Dublin even if one lives north of the capital! It’s an Irish thing). I eventually decided to take the train the day before and booked into the Carlton Hotel at the airport. A friend deposited me at the train station and nicely ensconced in a relatively quiet carriage, I sat back to enjoy the journey…….
Ha! I wasn’t long into the journey that our plans began to unravel spectacularly!
The morning flight to JFK, which had been wide open, suddenly and inexplicably had become seriously oversold which threw our bookings for the afternoon flight into jeopardy. Even the business class options we had taken were under threat and it looked like we were having to travel to New York via Boston which was still wide open. I began to research flights from Boston to NYC and at least it was looking like that would be an option. Then we were alerted that Manhattan would be in gridlock because of the Pope’s visit and the transportation we had been planning to take would not be operating there! In spite of being good Irish Catholics, that had never even come onto our radar!! What to do? Well at that stage, there was little or nothing to do except ride out the storm, and at that stage I was kinda half looking forward to going via Boston as part of the adventure of travel. That night we decided we would simply enjoy ourselves as I took Aer John and his delightful girlfriend out to dinner. After all, fretting would change nothing.There was no change in loads the next morning and we just had to wait until the morning flight had left. The news wasn’t good - only two of those waitlisted had managed to get on the flight and our trip was very much in the lap of the gods.
We had decided that we would check in at about 12.30 and fetched up just after that at the appropriate desk. Ah, the moment of truth! Well, no actually. The check-in lady informed us that she couldn’t check us in for another hour as data hadn’t yet come over from whatever department they come from. She told us what we already knew about the loads and confirmed that we wanted to use our upgrade options before sending us on our way to get lunch. At 1.30 we were back again to learn our fate. There had been a shift change and the data still hadn’t arrived, so we had to wait. We watched the steady trickle of people arriving to check-in at the Closing Flights desk, marvelling at how many people arrived at the last minute and had to dash to catch their flights! About twenty minutes later there was a burst of activity which looked as if it boded well for us when all of a sudden a supervisor asked if I had any shoes!! I looked at her in bewilderment and down at my feet, clad in Skechers Go Walk, which seemed to be the shoe of choice of all the women around me as they all opted for comfort (me included!) No, it wasn’t good enough; I had to have shoes! Fortunately I had, for whatever reason totally unknown to myself, decided to travel in a proper pair of shoes the previous day and they were nicely ensconced in my case from where they were quickly retrieved. Suitably shoon, check-in proceeded normally and soon we were in possession of our boarding cards some 90 minutes or more after first presenting ourselves at the desk. And in Business! Phew! 
Security was very quiet at that time of the day and although our boarding cards said Preclearance closed at 2.15pm and it was now past 2pm, we decided to go up to the lounge where we knew we would get an extra 30 minutes respite - and indeed it was so. Those thirty minutes were a welcome breathing space but we were no sooner there when another problem - albeit a minor one arose. Shortly after my arrival in the airport I was aware that my iPhone/iPad charger was not in my hand luggage.
I had recalled unplugging it in the hotel but after that….nothing! I had called the hotel who said they’d get back to me but the silence was deafening. There was always the chance that I had packed it in my soon-to-be checked bag and so I crossed my fingers. With hindsight (which is always brilliant) I should have taken the shuttle back to the hotel while Aer John was having lunch but we were too focussed on getting the flight. The episode with the shoes had meant that in retrieving them I could also avail of a quick rootle around my case to no avail but that meant nothing. I wasn’t going to put my shreddies on display for the world to see 
and if all came to all, well then there were Apple stores in NYC. No sooner had my backside touched the seat when the hotel rang. They had the charger! 15 minutes earlier and I could have made a quick dash back for it. Aer John saved the day and tootled down to Dixon’s for a cable for me to use with his iPhone/iPad (the older models) charger. It just seemed that there was one thing after another but at least we were on the flight. Oh, and now that we knew that, on the recommendations made in another thread on here, I booked Carmel limos, complete with coupon for a pick-up at JFK. 
Pre-clearance was a delight. So much easier and better than even the best experiences on landing in the USA. OK, there have been times when I have been among the first into an empty Immigration Hall and have found it fine but let us not forget the occasion when I was second in line but had to wait while the woman in front of me held up the whole procedure waiting for 6 members of her family who had travelled in economy to come through in LAS! Or the time I was behind the remnants of a flight from Mexico where there were issues with its last two passengers in EWR! No, pre-clearance is easy-peasy and so much more relaxed. Having ascertained that we had previously entered the USA on ESTAs (even though we were both on new ESTAs) we were directed to machines which spat out a docket for us to take to the Immigration Officer. He asked us why we were going to New York and without thinking replied “Because it’s there” only to be subjected to glares from both Aer John and the Immigration Officer.
Aer John however, responded appropriately and we were good to go. The whole process including security had taken less than ten minutes and was conducted in a friendly and helpful manner - well except for my smart-ass remark!! Post Pre-clearance has a small Duty Free shop - and I do mean small, a WH Smith/Easons type shop selling books magazines and confectionery and a couple of bars (well it is Ireland) and I think, a snack bar but really these are only incidentals as the main departure lounge has all that you could wish for in terms of shopping and dining. The gate areas are not dissimilar to the ones in LHR and LGW.
We weren’t there long before Flight Closing flashed up on the screen even though boarding had not yet commenced. This was followed immediately by an announcement that Flight Closing referred to Pre-clearance. However that did not stop a dozen or so people going up to the gate to enquire why they hadn’t been let on to the aircraft!! In the fullness of time, after families with small children and those needing special assistance had been boarded, the call went up for passengers in row 1-7 to come forward, which was essentially the Business cabin. Of course this meant there was a stampede to the gate but some quickly realised that those rows were Business class and others were sent away with a flea in their ear. We were welcomed on board and directed to our seats which were 6G and H.
Aer Lingus Business class has been reconfigured since my last trip in February this year and now has lie-flat beds. It has a staggered configuration with alternate rows of 1-2-2/1-2-1 seats. In other words, all the seats on the A side are individual seats but alternate as to whether the seat is against the window or further out in to the aisle as the side table of the seat in front covers the leg space of the seat behind for when the seat is in bed mode. The centre seats are two side by side, and again staggered to allow for the seat to go into bed mode and in the H/K rows, there are three rows with two seats side by side alternating with three rows of single seats. This seat map should give you an idea.
When we arrived there was a guy stuffing his carry-on luggage in the bin above 6G before settling into 6K even though the bin above his seat was totally empty! He then settled down and embarked on an “I’m so important I need to make this phone call until the aircraft is on the point of take-off” call. Aer John asked me which seat I wanted, the one next to yer man or the one assigned to me in the centre rows on the other side of the aisle. Bad mother that I am, I chose my assigned seat and left Aer John to his fate but not before asking him to put my carry-on and handbag up into the bin above his seat “because someone has filled up the bin above my seat”, said in loud censorious tones with glares in the direction of yer man in 6K. On the A/D sides champagne was being distributed along with duvets and amenity kits which in Aer Lingus parlance were called washbags but on our side there was a tad of a delay, mainly because the cabin crew there was one of the J crew but the lady handing out the goodies on the other side was one of those dragooned in from Economy to help with the pre-flight service in J. In the fulness of time we were offered (and accepted) our champagne followed by our duvets and washbags/amenity kits. Yer man in 6K (who had been constantly on the phone since we arrived and was still yacking away) immediately ensconced himself in a duvet (while still yacking accompanied by much eye-rolling from Aer John who can eye-roll more eloquently than anyone else I know) and reclined his seat. On the A/D side there were top-ups of champagne but alas none were forthcoming on our side. However it was now time for take-off and yer man in 6K got his come-uppance by being requested to remove the duvet from around his legs and put his seat in the upright position. Fortunately after that he caused no problems at all and no longer features in this TR. Oh, and the best was there was no-one in 6D so I had the row to myself!
We pushed back on time and had a short trundle to the runway and, after short wait while a couple of Ryanair and Aer Lingus flights followed by a Cityjet one landed, we soared off over the west of the city ready for our US adventure. At this stage, I was anxious for the IFE to function as I wanted to see if the plane flew over the ancestral home on the west coast of Ireland but unfortunately, in spite of a couple of resets by a very helpful crew, the map never featured but all the data with regard to Time of Departure/Arrival, Hight, Speed etc., did. Oh a word about the IFE. The number of new movies is small compared with the VS offering but they have an extensive library of classic films such as Home Alone, The Godfather Trilogy, Casablanca and many more beside. There is also a dedicated children’s channel of movies where I found Paddington on my previous Aer Lingus TATL. Having said that, I rarely use IFE apart from the map so I cannot comment further.
So back to the flight. Once the seat belt signs were off the crew swung into action and menus were distributed. Then followed the drinks trolley. Given that we were in row 6 of a 7 row cabin, we were at the very end of the line. Now, regular and eagle-eyed readers of my TRs will realise there is something missing from my this report to date. The only mention of alcohol so far has been the pre-flight champagne. There was none in the lounge (I had a cup of tea and was considering a G&T when Pre-Clearance was called) and at this stage I had made serious inroads into the bottle of water in my seat. *Cue tonty and other V-Flyers denouncing the author of this TR as an imposter and demanding to know where the real HL is* Now at this time I was more than ready for a G&T but the guy who was serving our side was taking his time. He was what we would call a “grá mo chree” kind of a fellow, with a kindly word to everyone with a bit of flattery added to the equation. Very nice, except I was gagging for a G&T.
To give an example, he fetched up at the seat in front of me where a mother and daughter were travelling together - the mother in her 80s and white-haired - and asked the mother were they sisters 
(with a wink at the daughter). He served them and then proceeded to Aer John and the guy in 6K and then it was my turn. Omigod!! OK, before I go any further I should tell you that I was wearing a royal blue sweater and jeans (and the shoes I had been obliged to wear) as well as a Jerusalem cross which I had chosen to wear because the blue enamel on it matched the blue of the sweater. So yer man asks me what I want to drink and you don’t need me to tell you what my reply is but my main interest was the gin on offer. I was delighted to see that Bombay Sapphire was now standard as well as Cork Dry Gin on the EU flights a few weeks ago but given that I had had Tanqueray on a TATL flight earlier in the year - well I know what I wanted but it was not to be. OK, so it was Bombay Sapphire but that was fine with me. So yer man is preparing my drink and he looks down at me and asks, “May I ask you something?” “Go ahead,” says I. “Are you a woman of the cloth?” WHAT!!! Me a nun!!!!! I pointed to Aer John across the aisle and informed him that he often calls me Mother because I am his mother! Yer man was mortified but the worst part about it, I realised exactly why he thought I was a nun. It was the blue sweater and the Jerusalem cross! However, I got my G&T and the canapés of paté, mini mozzarella on a stick and olives. IMG_0177.JPG (1.26 MiB) Viewed 6041 times
Duly recovered, I turned my attention to what was described on the menu as “Lunch” but given that we had a 4pm take-off and at this stage were well over an hour into the flight, would be better described as “Dinner”. However, food is food and I was hungry. The menu looked good
although I did wonder about salmon lasagne.
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For starters I had the smoked salmon tartare, which was both generous and tasty.
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I followed this with the braised chicken, which was basically a chicken stew but was absolutely delicious and, again a generous helping. I struggled to finish it!
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To finish I had the raspberry fool and shortbread and and again it was gorgeous.
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On all the TATL flights I have had with Aer Lingus, the meals have been really good and the portions, plentiful. Aer John had the tenderloin with roast spuds and green beans (having asked me what “jus” was and being told it was a posh name for gravy
) which is a favourite of his if you substitute roast beef for tenderloin and he declared himself well satisfied. Once the meal was over I occupied myself with my iPad, since there was nothing that grabbed my interest on the IFE but that is nothing to do with Aer Lingus as I rarely use it, preferring to read or watch something I have downloaded. The cabin crew, obviously intent on making amends, offered me another drink and I returned once more to a G&T which was just nice to have at hand to sip from time to time.
I should mention at this stage (and you will have seen it on the link to the seat map that I have posted) that the toilets are at the front of the cabin and are near the galley. At one stage I noticed that Aer John was up there and was chatting to the cabin crew and left them at it. However about half an hour later I needed both the bathroom and more water in equal measure. However, when I arrived there both toilets were occupied and so I had to wait and joined in with the chat. The bathroom at the other side of the galley was vacated by an elderly Jewish New Yorker who had just been touring the south of the country (where I live) and so we were chatting to him about his experiences. After I had used the facilities I teased the cabin crew about thinking I was a nun and Aer John, on hearing the story couldn’t stop laughing
while the American guy looked on in bemusement. However that interlude broke the ice, especially as the Cabin Manager joined us, pulled the curtain across and joined in the conversation. Yer man was delighted. He asked questions about Ireland and living there and probably learned more in that hour than he had during the whole of his stay! At one stage, I had slipped back to retrieve my G&T and when it was finished, asked if I could have another. The cabin manager acquiesced and asked Aer John and yer man if they would like a drink too, and of course they both agreed and thus it became a mini cocktail party. By this stage our American friend was shaking his head at regular intervals and muttering such phrases as “Gee! You don’t get this on American airlines” and I couldn’t help but thinking of the PR that this had created. He just loved it! It ended when the Cabin Manager murmured something about a second service and we rapidly returned to our seats. The tea and warm scones were absolutely delicious and just hit the spot. Shortly after that, the cabin was secured for landing and I was delighted to note that the American guy (who was sitting behind me) was given some samples of his chosen beverage before leaving the aircraft. Fair play to the cabin crew (even if he thought I was a nun!)
We arrived well ahead of schedule and taxied to T5 which is the JetBlue terminal since JetBlue has links with Aer Lingus for onward flights in the US. Arriving at the baggage hall I headed for the Ladies while Aer John watched the carousel. I wasn’t long there but when I returned, he had both our cases. A quick call to Carmel limousines told us where to go for a pick-up and within minutes the car was with us even though we were still 15 minutes ahead of the pick-up time I had requested. Some 45 minutes later we were deposited to our hotel Downtown where on entering our room, this view awaited us!
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