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The Trip Home and What to Expect
6. The trip home. "Space Available" means just that: Space Available. Period. Military aircraft are not obliged to carry passengers. It's their prerogative and our privilege. You may or may not get the flights you want, either coming or going.
The military flights from Hawaii to Japan, or even to Guam, had dried up during the last few days of our stay. We finally had to buy a commercial ticket on Saturday to get out of Hawaii (we were sad to go but, after a week of tourism, our vacation money was running out). We flew back to Tokyo because there were no commercial flights to Okinawa for another week (fallout from the ATA closure). We checked into the Kanto Lodge at Yokota AB and started working on getting a Space-A flight home which means we packed our stuff and trucked over to the AMC terminal every single day until we got lucky on the third day.
Old School travelers see it as a game. They laugh when they don't get a ride and then they stake out their position in front of the schedule monitors that hang from the walls of the terminals, telling each other which flight is likely to go and which "TBD" flight will drop to "0" under the PAX column.
7. Space-A Speak. Some buzz-words to know when you're in the Space-A rotation are: Show-Time for Roll Call or simply Show-Time (this tells you what time they'll call the names of the lucky few chosen to be on today's flight...show up early and get yourself checked in or they won't call your name at all), Seat-Count (how many passengers will be allowed on the flight you want...this number is listed under the column usually called PAX on the schedule and more often than not says "TBD" - To Be Determined), and Weight or Weight Limit (how much weight you will be allowed...a combined total of your checked and carry-on baggage).
When you're stranded in the terminal after your show-time of 0400 has been delayed, these are the topics that will be discussed over and over by everyone around you. Use your new buzz-words and join in on the conversations. You'll learn so much about how to be a successful Space-A traveler that you'll be "hopping" every chance you get.
My husband is somewhat of a guru on how to find obscure information on every subject imaginable, so he gave me the following links to share with you:
[Note: I am not affiliated with the following links in any way. I offer these only as suggestions and not as guarantees of anything whatsoever. Buyer beware and use your best judgment.]
1. spacea.info - everything you wanted to know about Military Space-A Travel
2. takeahop.com - how to sign up online and more.
3. pepperd.com - Derk Pepperd's Space-A message board
4. spacea.net - John D.'s Military Space-A Travel Pages
I hope you've enjoyed this article. Please share it with others and please keep checking back for the date of the upcoming navywiferadio.com show on Space-A travel.
~ jewls
3 Comments
Dorothy said...
I'm all too familiar with those adjustments to "seat count". I'm currently at Yokota!!! :) Hope you get home soon!
April 8, 2008 at 9:11 PM
Unknown said...
Okay so I am in California, and I need to fly Space-A to Aviano, Italy. (So to Baltimore then to Aviano)
I called Baltimore to ask if they could let me know a "pattern" in which they fly--so I could fly commercial out to BWI... but they can't tell me that over the phone.
But I CAN go to the Space-A office and look at the MONTH schedule posted there. BUT THEY CAN'T TELL ME!???!????!?!
Any suggestions on how to... FIGURE things out, so I am not pulling a Tom Hanks in the Terminal in Baltimore!?
Also...
Scary thought--Space A in the SUMMER!? (Kid's vacations!?)
April 9, 2008 at 11:27 PM
Lewellen Family said...
www.pepperd.com, create an acct and you can look at flight schedules for the past year or so :)
April 10, 2008 at 8:54 AM
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