Brian's Memorial

Our 2 1/2 hour flight from DFW to Miami ended up being a 9 1/2 hour flight instead.  We left on time but about 30 minutes into the flight a passenger sitting towards the back of the plane stopped breathing and turned blue.  Fortunately sitting in the same area of the plane were 3 individuals trained in emergency care.  They were able to get him breathing again and on oxygen, but his condition required us to land quickly.  The pilot made the decision to land at the Shreveport, LA airport (the closest airport).  Shreveport airport was not prepared for a plane of our size and it took airport personnel about 20 minutes to find a ramp that would reach our plane door.

Once our emergency care passenger was off the plane then the pilot's work really began.  He had a long list of obstacles to overcome in order for us to take off and return to our flight plan.  One problem a plane that is heavier and requires more runway than is available at the Shreveport airport.  A long checklist of plane checks and airport personnel that are not familiar with those requirements for a plane of our size.  The biggest obstacle turned out to be oxygen bottles and the proper adapters on board.  Our sick guy used two bottles and now we had to find replacements.

Domino's Pizza received a call from the pilot for 30 pizzas to feed his caged, frustrated passengers.

Finally, we passed all the requirements and left Shreveport.  For those of us looking out the window, we used ALL of the runway to get off the ground and back headed toward Miami.  Many passengers were scheduled to leave on cruise ships headed out of Miami on Sunday afternoon.  The ships sailed without them.  For those of us going to Key West, we were all rescheduled on the last flight into Key West.  We arrived at 9:30pm ET instead of 2:30pm ET.

Once in Key West we found that Alamo (located off site from the airport) closed at 9 pm.  We would have to find alternative transportation to the hotel.  Then to our SURPRISE our luggage was not unloaded from the other airplane.  We were on the ground in Miami for 1 hr and 15 minutes, but our luggage didn't make it on the plane.  American Eagle customer service had about 12 irate passengers, who had had a very long day.  We were all shorter on patience than usual.  They promised to deliver our luggage on Monday, October 22 by 2 pm

The taxi dropped us off at the Hyatt Beach House Resort at about 10 pm.  Check in was easy and the personnel were so nice and helpful.  We even got a list of places on the island that delivered food.  Without a car it is hard to get around to places to eat.

The room was beautiful and relaxing.  It was nice to know we had a bed even if we didn't have much in the way of clothes or toiletries.