Woody's in PA!! See Karen's new thread

[Freedom]

FREEDOM - what do you mean Sugar flew into the regular terminal?? I'm guessing an animal wouldn't come down the little spinny carousel, lol. You're saying it's a separate cargo area, right?

Nope. At least at our airport, they bring the dogs right up to the Check In place, where you go to buy tickets, check luggage, and so forth. It is on the UPPER level. When you get off a plane here, and need to get baggage and then go out for a taxi (or your car) all that is on the LOWER LEVEL. We did not go down stairs except to be told to go back up lol. That's what I mean, for all the questions I was SO confused, but they did know what was happening. They needed access to the computer terminal to mark each dog in and arrived, and then as picked up. There are no computer terminals in that lower level, except in the lost luggage office.

If you are going to a LARGE airport for pick up, it could be a hike back and forth. Our airport is quite small, so it wasn't too bad going down and then back up again.

Sorry Leslie had a wasted trip to the airport; she should "make a big fuss" when she is on the phone with them, so it doesn't happen again!

[Freedom]

No, we did not go to a special cargo area either. (I just re read what you asked.) The special package service goes in a special, pressurized area of the cargo hold of a passenger flight. So there are lots of people on the plane and the plane comes in to the regular terminal, not a cargo terminal. (We DO have a cargo terminal, we did not go there to pick up Sugar.)

They get the people off, get the dogs off and onto the luggage dolly, then unload all the baggage for the passengers. It took AGES for the attendants to bring the luggage dolly up with all the dog carriers on it. All the passengers were long gone from downstairs, I am quite sure!

Once Woody is actually in the air, you should phone and get specific instructions where to go at your airport for the pick up. Terminal A or Cargo Bay 6 or whatever. Until he is actually on a flight, they can't give you the specifics.

[pitc9]

Paws (and everything else) crossed for tomorrow.
I hope the weather is nice to Woody!!!!

[Cinder & Smoke]

I hope the weather is nice to Woody!!!!

The Philadelphia area forecast (as of 11:00 am Sunday) has lowered the
Monday temperatures (again)
Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 14. West wind between 9 and 14 mph.
M.L.King Day: Sunny, with a high near 27. West wind around 8 mph.
Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 19. South wind between 3 and 5 mph.

Once again, TUESDAY looks to be a better flying temperature day >>>
Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 19. South wind between 3 and 5 mph.

Tuesday: Snow showers likely, mixing with rain after 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 38. South wind between 7 and 17 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Tuesday Night: A chance of snow showers, mainly before midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 26. Chance of precipitation is 40%.

[jennielynn1970]

Gosh, the weather just keeps getting colder!!

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are out for me this week. I teach a homebound student in the evenings, and don't normally get home from her place (the 2 days a week that I am there) until about 9pmish if her mom has questions and wants to talk. So, till I'd get done there, and then get to Philly, we're talking a minimum of 10:30 or 11pm. Not good, and not gonna work when I have work the next day.

I could do Friday, Saturday or Sunday of this week. If Friday, his flight would have to get in well after 5pm. Traffic on Fridays going into Philly is rough, and I wouldn't be able to leave work till 3:30-4:00. Weekdays when I'm working are hard to schedule things after work because I never know when kids are going to want to stay to use the library for research or whatever.

This week is going to be a strange one because I just got a call that one of the teachers I worked with died suddenly yesterday (Saturday). They didn't say how or why, just that he had passed away. So, we're going to be having a disruption of classes for the school psychologists and meetings for kids and all the other fun stuff involved with a death in a school. We had a death of a teacher last school year, and it just rocked the school for a good two weeks. Granted, he was a huge personality in the school, and so vibrant, it just really affected everyone. The teacher that just passed this weekend was newer to the school, and pretty quiet. He taught Spanish class, so not everyone had him, so I really don't know how the kids will react. He was a little negative, always counting the days left for school, so I'm wondering if he actually committed suicide?? He didn't look ill, and never said much really. His wife didn't tell the principal either, so if it was a suicide, the reaction is going to be really mixed. He wasn't well liked, so we might have kids who feel really guilty that a teacher would kill himself, and feel regret that they didn't like him.

Anyway.... I know Leslie really wants to get her house back to normal. Her dogs are acting out, and it's not good (jumping the fence to run away from the puppy, lol), and just having another "baby" to take care of. So, I really hope Woody can fly sooner rather than later. If the cargo holds are all heated and pressurized, then I don't see why there would be that much of an issue, except for the transfers on the ground.

Let's just keep our fingers crossed that the weathermen are wrong again as usual, and it will be warmer tomorrow!

[shais_mom]

But Jenn has school on Tuesday and can't miss any more work. You willing to pick him up Phred and drive him home? what's the 10 day forecast?

[Cinder & Smoke]

But Jenn has school on Tuesday and can't miss any more work.

You willing to pick him up, Phred, and drive him home?

What's the 10 day forecast?

Yeah butt ...
Jenn gets out of School early enough to get to Philly before Woody lands -
no time off work required.
REVISED:
OK - *scratch* the above ... weekdays would be bad.

US drive to Philly & then deliver him --- SURE - as long as you buy da GAS!

Another week in Texas??
Dunno if Leslie can hold up that long.
Word hazzit that between Baby Quinn and Puppy Woody - her "strings" are
getting *stretched* pretty tight!

Woody might wind up stuffed inna US Mail collection box with an Airmail Stamp stuck
between his eyes and a "TO: Jenn" tag on his collar.

[Cinder & Smoke]

Oooopsie!
I missed seeing Jen's earlier reply ... *scratch* what I said above.

Gosh, the weather just keeps getting colder!!

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are out for me this week.
I could do Friday, Saturday or Sunday of this week.

If the cargo holds are all heated and pressurized,
then I don't see why there would be that much of an issue,
except for the transfers on the ground.

Let's just keep our fingers crossed that the weathermen are wrong again as usual,
and it will be warmer tomorrow!

There's a definate "warming trend" at Philadelphia later in the week -
NEXT Saturday and Sunday would be good temperature days with >>>
(SAT: 24* / 39* / 33* and SUN: 33* / 42* / 32*).
Dallas / Ft Worth has a heat wave - temps in the 60s on next Sat & Sun.

The temperature "Issue" is mostly the ground temps during transfer onto and off the aircraft;
but they're NOT going to change or overlook long-standing airline policies for Woody.
Anything below 25* is "too cold to fly" - that's their Rules!

Since Tuesday is out for Jenn; can Woody stay in Texas at Leslie's Ranch till next weekend?

I think tomorrow (Jan 2st) should be considered as a last resort.

/s/ Phred

[AdoreMyDogs]

Just an idea...anyone near the Philly airport that would want to puppy sit Woody a few days? As Phred posted in the previous post, Woody has really stretched me as far as I can go. I can't take it much longer. When I originally got Woody, I expected to have him a week. This is turning into closer to a month and I can't take it much longer. Woody needs more then I can give him and Boone has started jumping the fence in the past week, because of Woody. When all 3 dogs are outside to play and potty, Boone waits until I close the back door and he immediately jumps the fence. I had to resort to getting a chain for him, and he is so terrified of the chain he won't leave the back door. When I let Boone and Kersey out to play together, Woody cries because he wants to go and play with them, and I have to listen to his screaming which is not fun, especially when Quinn's asleep. She wakes up the instant Woody starts his "I wanna play" bark. If I let Woody out by himself he gets lonely (no surprise there) and he barks at the door so I can let one of the dogs out with him. I've been letting Kersey stay out with Woody because she doesn't jump the fence but she is just so unhappy about this situation and I can just see the look in her eye when I send her outside to play with Woody and it breaks my heart. She's never liked him. She tolerates him, but she doesn't like him.

My house pack is really not comfortable anymore. Woody needs more then I can offer him and my dogs are really tired of him. I really can't imagine having him another week. He's a great little dog and a sweet personality, but one person can only handle so much. If I didn't have Quinn, I'm sure it would be 10 times more do-able, but I can't take it much longer. Anyone near Philly airport that would want to pick him up for Jenn and keep him until he can be united at last with his new mommy?

I'm not sure how possible this would be, considering Jennie's info is on the health certificate, but, once the vet opens on Monday, I MIGHT be able to get the info changed IF someone wants to pick up and foster Woody a few days. Just an idea.

[jennielynn1970]

Let me PM Sparks19 and see if we can fly him into Harrisburg. She offered to pick him up there earlier, so maybe she could still do that?? Let me see what she says.... cross your paws!!

[Catty1]

Apropos of nothing - I got the impression that this was a commuter-size plane.

Since when do they have cargo holds? I thought stuff went in the cabin in a secured area.

If the aircraft is a dash 7 or 8, anyway.

[Cinder & Smoke]

Apropos of nothing - I got the impression that this was a commuter-size plane.

Since when do they have cargo holds? I thought stuff went in the cabin in a secured area.

If the aircraft is a dash 7 or 8, anyway.

The "larger" commuter jet flies DFW to Philly ... it's a
McDonnell Douglas DC-9 Super 80 (or DC-9-80), sometimes called the MD-80;
combining the new engines with a further stretched fuselage, increased span wing and other improvements. Launched in October 1977, the Super 80 first flew on October 18 1979. Seats approx 142 passengers. Flight Crew of 2 = Pilot + First Oficer.

From another discussion board:
"... American employees figured out a way to rig up a second smaller hose that funnels some of the cool air from the plane into the cargo hold...
American's working to install the belly coolers at more and more gates ...

So far they have the belly coolers at all of the gates that handle Super 80 airplanes.
The plane with the most cramped cargo hold
and also the most common plane in American's fleet. (Dated August, 2007)
Seems like the Super 80 does have one or more "belly holds".

Again, the issue isn't the temperature aboard the operating aircraft - it's the
possible temperatures during loading / unloading and travel to / from the terminal.

/s Phred

[Emeraldgreen]

Do the regulations for temperature just have to do with the ground time spent between transfer or does it also apply to boarding and deboarding ground time as well? If it just applied to ground time spent between planes, would it be worth it to try and find a direct flight that doesn't transfer from one plane to another? I haven't checked but I'm guessing that the flight that transfers to another plane is less expensive than a direct flight but it could solve the problem. Maybe there isn't a direct flight available though.

[Cinder & Smoke]

Do the regulations for temperature just have to do with the ground time spent between transfer
or does it also apply to boarding and deboarding ground time as well?

... would it be worth it to try and find a direct flight that doesn't transfer
from one plane to another?

1) The Temperature Rules apply to a Live Animal for every second that animal is
in the care & custody of, and is the responsibility of, American Airlines.
They take that responsibility Seriously and do NOT "bend" their own rules.

2) We HAVE checked - there are NO direct or non-stop flights between Wichita Falls, TX
and either Harrisburg OR Philadelphia, PA.

3) The small commuter jet flying out of Wichita Falls does NOT fly on to
either Harrisburg noe Philadelphia - passengers and cargo & Animals must
exit the little Wichita Falls plane at Dallas / Ft Worth and board a lil bigger jet
to get to Harrisburg or Philadelphia.

/s/ Phred

[jennielynn1970]

The only way to get a direct flight is to fly him out of Dallas Fort Worth and fly into Philadelphia. I don't know if Leslie and her husband are able to get there.

These are the daily direct flights for DFW to PHL:
DFW 08:20 to PHL 12:25
DFW 10:45 to PHL 14:50
DFW 12:15 to PHL 16:25
DFW 13:35 to PHL 17:45
DFW 15:30 to PHL 19:45
DFW 17:10 to PHL 21:20
DFW 21:00 to PHL 00:55