Frankfurt Rhein-Main

My brother was flying the same day to Bilbao and I called him to ask if he was already at the gate. He had not passed security and we decided to meet at his gate which was A 24. As he had not passed security I slowly walked towards the security check and arrived there as he was passing it. Together we walked back to his gate and chatted about his job and new house as well as his trip to Bilbao where his girl friend was studying.
As we arrived at his gate, boarding for his flight started and he boarded while I walked to the c concourse. Immigration took some time as only one office was on duty and the lines did not move very quickly. Unfortunately the new layout of the c concourse means one has no access to the Red Carpet Club anymore. I decided to skip the lounge visit and to head straight to the gate. Security was fast and again no beep. At the boarding area my boarding passes on Lufthansa paper were changed into US Airways ones and they were also able to get the Star Gold on the boarding pass, something LH always failed.

After now several years waiting for flights in airlines lounges, this was an experience I have had in the very beginning of my flying and sitting there in an really not nice waiting area, I know why I like my Star Gold Frequent Flyer Status.

Boarding began at 11:00 by zones with Envoy Passengers as well as Star Gold Passengers in Zone 1. So I had the change to secure space in the overhead compartment and took my seat while the plane begun to fill with passengers.

20 February 2009
FRA - CLT
[Frankfurt – Charlotte Douglas Airport]
US 705 (US Airways); Airbus A 330 (N274AY)
Gate C9
11:40 – 15:35 [effective 11:38 – 15:38]
Economy Class
Seat 11 C

The plane was not completely full, but the load was app. 90% in Economy. I had looked at the open fares classes on this flight the previous day in Galileo and the cheaper classes were not available anymore, while the more expensive classes were available with a few remaining seats.

The captain informed us, that we need to be de-iced which would take a couple of minutes. While the de-icing was done, the safety demonstration was done and finally at noon we were pushed back and headed to the runway “Startbahn West”. We had to queue for start and finally at 12:19 it was our turn and we climbed into the sky.

Once airborne, the crew made several announcements and notified us, that despite the fact we had to register online, we still need to fill out the green I-94 forms. They handed this together with the customs declaration as one of the first things.

I again missed a hot towel service, but so is life on US Airways.

The beverage and meal service was done at 13:00 local time. This time we had the choice between chicken or pasta, translated in chicken with grilled potatoes and vegetables or lasagne with vegetables. The meal came with a tomato-mozzarella salad, a roll and a slice of cherry cake. Nothing to write about and while the lasagne was eatable but lacked a bit of a spicier taste, the salad as well as the cake were not really good. Alcoholic beverages were sold, while the non alcoholic beverages were free of charge. We again got the whole can. Unlike on Lufthansa flights, where only a glass is offered, the US airlines still offer the whole can which is to me an advantage. Trays were cleared after ap. 45 minutes and a few minutes after the tables were cleared another beverage service was done, this time also coffee and tea were offered. Since I had already started to use my laptop, I skipped this beverage service.

The in-flight entertainment system was not yet started and they did so after finishing the meal service and sold the headphones for 7 USD or 5 EUR. However, this time US Airways had several difficulties with the AVOD System. Some screens as well as headphone jacks did not work properly.

The flight was partly a bit bumpy and the fasten seat belt signs were turned on most time of the first half of the flight. The crew made an announcement that they were not serving beverage in the cabin while the fasten-seat belt signs were switched on. And for two times the plane was really shaken by the turbulences.

The load of the flight was as written above app. 90% with a few empty seats. Unfortunately the seat next to me was occupied. Nevertheless I was able to work for three and a half hours on my laptop. I finished some documents for my own business and wrote a bit on this trip report. After this I listened to music, although I knew some of the music and film from my previous flight from Philadelphia to Munich back in January.

As the flight became a bit calmer the crew did two beverage rounds. After eight hours in flight the lights were switched on again and we were requested not to come to the rear galley during this time as they were preparing the second service. App. a quarter of an hour later the second service began. We got a hot sandwich and our choice of non-alcoholic beverage. I opted again for a sparkling water. Everything was collected half an hour later and the crew began to prepare the cabin for the landing in Charlotte.

We touched down at 15:34 in Charlotte and taxied for our gate D 11, where we arrived at 15:38. To my very surprise, Economy Passengers were hold back while the passengers from Enoy Class disembarked. Finally it was our turn and I headed to immigration.

Immigration was not full, since we were the only longhaul flight which had arrived at this time at CLT. I had to wait a few minutes before it was finally my turn. There was an female agent looking if the I-94 form had been filled out correctly before she directed the passengers to the checkpoint. As usually, a few passengers did not fill out the departure card or use the wrong lines. The officer at immigration was very friendly and we chatted a bit about the architecture in Chicago while my fingerprints were taken and the photo made. He wished me a pleasant stay in Chicago.

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