Posted by William Herp on Mon, Sep 17, 2012
They call it “leisure travel” for a reason.
You’re supposed to be traveling as a way to escape the hectic pace; the chaos; the pressure; the relentlessness of daily life and work. You are trying to escape stress. But too often, these days “leisure” travel is a stress inducer, not a stress reliever because it is done in anything but a leisurely manner. You know the long list of reasons why. And if you’re a frequent flier you’ve probably experienced most – or all – of them personally.
Crowded airport parking lots. Impersonal airport customer service workers. Broken or unfathomable passenger check-in “kiosks.” Long security lines that end with you being asked to all-but strip in public and the possibility of a way-too-personal “secondary screening.” After that, the real “fun” begins. Waiting in crowded waiting areas. Being herded onto planes like cattle, only to be kept in too-tight spaces (seats) just like cattle in feed lot pens (at least the cattle get fed: you don’t). Frequently late flights (even when considered “on time” under the government’s very generous rules for what counts as on-time. And once you do arrive – if you arrive – you get to play baggage roulette. Will your checked bag be delivered to you within 30 minutes of landing? Will it be delivered to you at all? And in reasonably good condition? With all the contents you packed in it still in there?
It’s bad enough that there seems to be almost continuous outrage among consumers – and threats from Congress. Most recently, Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky has proposed a “Passenger Bill of Rights” law that, among other traveler-friendly steps, would give the Transportation Security Administration just one year to implement a speedier screening process. And Senator Charles Schumer, a Democrat from New York, is pressuring airlines to change their policies and start refunding their customers’ baggage fees when those bags are “lost” or not returned to them after a flight a timely manner.
The only problem with Schumer’s proposal is that most travelers whose bags are lost or delayed don’t need their $25 bag fees refunded nearly as much as they need the clothes packed neatly in their bags. And that’s another good reason to consider Linear Air’s on-demand air-taxi service the next time you travel. And contrary to what you might think about chartered air service on small jets like ours, lots of Linear Air’s customers are leisure travelers, especially during the summer. True, the majority of our passengers are commuting business travelers who typically carry nothing more than a brief case and, perhaps, presentation materials. But we also carry lots of folks traveling purely for fun. And nearly all of them travel with bags – none of which ever get lost or delivered late.
That’s because when you show up – with your bags – at the private aviation terminals from which we operate at uncongested airports near your home or destination, you hand you bags to one of the two pilots who’ll fly your plane. They personally place your bags on the plane, then retrieve them and carry them to your ground transportation once you land. It’s that simple. There literally is zero chance for your bags to arrive later than you do, or for them to be lost.
Thus, Linear Air’s customers never have to go a day or two in the same clothes. They never have to drop by a drug store to buy emergency toiletries. And they never face the Hobson’s choice of buying tacky tourist T-shirts and ill-fitting shorts at a local tourist trap, or paying outrageous sums for dressy clothes in the hotel’s or resort’s gift shop.
So, if you’re extending your summer vacation, or looking to sneak in a long weekend getaway this fall, ask yourself whether it’s worth risking having an airline lose – even temporarily – your bags when you could charter a Linear Air flight for you and your family or friends and be guaranteed full and free access to your own clothes. How could a travel be more leisurely than that?
See you on board.
