Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Spare a thought for some American friends of ours. They are people we knew when we lived in the Midwest, really special friends (don't want to be too gushy here). They made it over to see us, and tour round Scotland a little last year. This year, they are going to Spain, but stopping off in Scotland again for a few days en route. Or so they thought...

Their story really is like that film. You know the one. Steve Martin trying to get home for Thanksgiving, and the journey being full of just about every twist and turn imaginable.

Our friends (parents, travelling with a 9 year old and a 7 year old) were going to arrive at Edinburgh airport at 8.00am yesterday. I was going to meet them, spend the morning with them, help them turn round, hire a car, and see them on their way. They were going off to Girvan on the west coast for 4 nights, coming back on Sunday, to spend 5 nights in Edinburgh, seeing us, before heading off to Spain. Just to recap, they were due to arrive at Edinburgh airport at 8.00am yesterday. They are currently in the departure lounge at Atlanta airport.

1. Their flight schedule (via Chicago) was randomly changed, pushing it 12 hours later, which they were notified about by electronic voice message over the phone. Frustrating, but not too bad, as it was actually a better flight schedule (via Dallas). 
2. Storms over the Midwest meant that their new schedule was badly disrupted. They were re-booked (via Chicago).
3. Randomly, the one connecting flight to take them from their city to Chicago was cancelled. Not a weather issue (the storms were over), no explanation given. It was the only flight cancelled that day. Just random. They were rebooked (via Atlanta).
4. They contacted me from Atlanta airport. The plane pushed back from the stand, but encountered some problem in one engine. They sat for 3 hours while mechanics worked on it. They then disembarked, and are now sleeping on the floor of the departure lounge. 

With luck, they'll make it to Heathrow this evening, in time to get a flight to Edinburgh. But they may well have to spend the night at Heathrow and come up tomorrow instead. That will represent a delay of 48 hours. Yes, you read that right: 48 hours. Instead of spending 4 nights in a cottage in Girvan, it will be 2. Though luckily, this whole sorry saga won't have eaten into the time that we will be spending with them, which would have been much more tragic.

Not so much Planes, Trains and Automobiles, as Planes, Planes, Planes. Spare them a thought.
 

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