Your humble author was scheduled to fly from Oakland to Phoenix, via Los Angeles. I would then have a meeting in the late afternoon. As it turns out, the baggage door on the aircraft in Oakland would not close. After over an hour in a sweltering plane, it was decided to get a mechanic out and that would take time. The decision was made to have us return to the terminal. As the terminal was air conditioned, I had no problem doing just that.
Many of my fellow passengers grumbled but what were the alternatives? Risk the door coming open in flight? That could be fatal. Sit in a plane that is rapidly reaching oven-like temperatures? Flexibility is a must when traveling these days. These things happen.
The aircraft was thought to be beyond fixing on the tarmac and we were in the process of being re-booked when 45 minutes after leaving the plane, we were told it was fixed and we would re-board and be on our way. In fact, I am writing this in mid-flight.
Kudos to Delta Airlines, whom I usually do not like to fly as they tend to be overcrowded. Everyone from the gate agents to the pilot have been profusely apologetic and have done their best to get us to LAX. Delta operations has apparently been tracking our progress so they can get us booked to our final destination.
Sure, I missed my meeting and what happens once I get to LAX is a mystery. But the meeting can be rescheduled for tomorrow morning. But it beats having problems in the air. When it comes to travel, business or otherwise, it pays to be flexible.
Update: Now at LAX. There was no gate agent waiting for us when we disembarked to rebook us on our connecting flight. At that point, I reminded myself that we were flying ExpressJet, flying as Delta Express, and it was they who were falling over themselves to assist us, not Delta. I have flown them in the past and found them to be excellent. In fairness, once I located someone from Delta that would assist me, I found that I had already been booked onto a later flight. As I said earlier, flexibility and the ability to let things slide is invaluable when traveling. Someday, I hope to have both!
Update II: Made it to Phoenix in the early evening. Meetings rescheduled for tomorrow. Wish me luck.