Flight Delay? Here’s a Solution that Hopefully Repeats Itself!
A flight delay that actually worked out well? Yes, it does happen!
On my overnight flight to Norway connecting in Copenhagen, the fog was amazingly thick as we landed. The aircraft has a webcam and we can see the landing strip as we descended. Or not see the landing strip, as the case was today. This fog was so thick, we couldn’t even see the jetway until right next to it, and even then it was ensconced in gray fog.
Between the heavy fog in Copenhagen and a similar fate in Norway, the word “Cancelled” was expected. Sure enough, my 8 am Wideroe Dash-8 connecting flight to Kristiansand Norway was cancelled. The next available flight wasn’t until 2:25pm, though better news was just around the corner and up the stairs.
I have always said that airport lounges are where you want to be or get to when there is a flight cancellation. Today was another great example. After getting booked on the later flight, the SAS lounge agent said, “I can give you a rest cabin so you can sleep.” A rest cabin? Not sure what that was, but sleep I understand!
I was escorted to rest cabin #12. This was a private room with a twin bed, chair, television, and bathroom with shower and towels. Wow, very nice! I brought in a bit of breakfast and I was set! After catching up on emails from the States and setting my phone’s alarm for 1:30pm, I was soon buried under the covers and fast asleep.
I woke up a few times to the sounds of dishes clattering or people talking just outside my rest cabin, but nothing loud enough to fully wake me out of my needed sleep. When the alarm went off, I took a quick shower, exchanged the key to Rest Cabin #12 for my boarding pass, and headed to the gate.
Now I know what a rest cabin is – a wonderful and surprising windfall after learning of a six-hour flight delay.
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What a brilliant idea and service for FC pax! especially in climates where weather delays are common, a simple room associated with the FC lounge is brilliant. Depending on the circumstances, they may or may not ‘owe’ you a room during the delay, but where t hose events are routine, providing a small room of their own has got to be less costly than buying a hotel room for you, even at their contracted rate. Elegant it is not, but for a tired flyer faced with several hours delay, I’ll bet that it looked just fine, especially with its own shower and bath facilities. Did I mention brilliant? I’ve used SAS only a few times, but I’ve always been pleased. Great post!!