Travel | It Happened to Me

Air Travel Is Changing So Fast, It Can Be Hard to Keep Up Sometimes.

If you are planning to travel, then you might be wondering what it is like to take to the skies again, let me share my recent experiences with you.

Home seems to be the last place people want to be. After the restrictions of the past two years, people want to go places. Anywhere. They don’t seem to care where they go, as long as it is not home.

Yet for me, the sentiment was so different. I just wanted to get home, and this was a struggle.

My Experiences of Air Travel Over the Past Two Years

I have flown several times throughout the pandemic, not out of choice but due to necessity.

The first time I traveled was in August 2020 due to losing my mother. This was at the height of the pandemic. Many countries were locked down, with restrictions at their borders. Airport terminal shops and facilities were shut. Transit was grueling, to say the least.

I had to travel from the UK to New Zealand, whose borders were one of the tightest in the world with the apt name “Fortress” New Zealand. I gained the special permissions required to enter. Upon arrival, I had to undergo two weeks mandatory stay in a managed isolation facility in Auckland.

It opened my eyes to the many changes taking place in air travel due to the pandemic. It was no longer a simple matter of booking a flight, checking visa requirements, and going. There was a whole layer added to the not-so-yummy cake.

As if, the first time taking to the air wasn’t bad enough, I found myself needing to fly once again to New Zealand in March 2022 due to my father receiving a terminal diagnosis.

I would never have chosen to travel normally under such conditions, but the circumstances dictated that I needed to.

The situation with flying abroad was constantly changing.

Air Travel Was Not What It Used To Be.

By March 2022, air travel was starting to pick up once again. People were tentatively taking more steps towards the air. Even booking their summer holidays. 😲

It was a different situation for me. There was no summer holiday in sight. I needed to travel but not for pleasure.

There was still a distinct lack of passengers, alongside the closed New Zealand borders. Thankfully this meant I had no difficulty getting a flight out.

Distinct Differences Between My Two Air Journeys.

During my first flight in August 2020, there had been many new restrictions in place. The main one was that you could not travel unless this was essential.

By the time, I took my second trip in March 2022, there were measures in place trying to overcome that restriction. Like PCR Testing. Supervised RAT Testing. Wearing of masks. Requirements to be vaccinated. An attempt to enable travel.

I asked the question then in this piece, Is This The New Normal In Air Travel? which compared the visible differences in air travel.

I witnessed first-hand what is like to travel post-pandemic and how the changes almost made my brother miss his flight.

Three months later by June 2022, air travel changed once again.

I was due to return home from New Zealand to the UK in June 2022. Bearing in mind that I had by this stage been away from home for 3 months, it would be fair to say I was eager to get back home.

It’s Not So Easy To Get Back Home Afterall

I shared a story of how my travel agent made a huge error on my return flight, and now no more seats were available.

The travel agent told me in all the 12 years he had worked in the travel industry, he had never had a situation where he could not then re-book a passenger onto an alternative flight.

There used to be so many more flight choices before, but that is not yet the case.

Why Are There No Flights?

If you are traveling in the next months, you may find that there are limited choices with flights depending on your destination.

I was due to fly with Singapore Airlines, who before all this, would have had several flights per day leaving New Zealand. Fast forward to June 2022 and you will find there is just one flight a day.

Airlines are taking time to get back to their pre-pandemic schedules. Most airlines release their flight schedules at least a year in advance. A year ago, they would have based this on the prediction of what the world would look like post-pandemic. Who would have been able to know that the world wanted to start traveling in droves?

A further layer on the fast-rising cake is the airlines' staffing difficulties. Many were deployed during the pandemic.

As a result, many airlines are nowhere near back to full force.

But passenger numbers are increasing, whilst the industry is struggling to cope with this surge.

The media has been filled with baggage failures at Heathrow, snake-like queues at Manchester, flight delays and cancellations happening in the US, and queues and delays in Europe. It looks like travel chaos out there.

Who would want to travel just yet?

My Situation Reflected This Turmoil.

An error on my flight booking meant that I had no return flight home.

There weren’t a lot of options left open either.

Not even a seat on an upgrade which I think is what might have happened in such situations.

My only aim was to get a seat, as long as it wasn’t on the toilet I was good with that. 💺

I just wanted to get home after 3 months of being away, unlike everyone desperate to go anywhere but home.

Are Most Flights Full?

I couldn’t believe it when the travel agent told me he had checked for flights everywhere.

There simply weren’t any flights. Or if there were flights, there were no seats.

He told me that any alternatives, were booking up quickly, and choices were extremely limited. The first availability on my original route would be in two weeks' time! 😱

Option 1 — Add an extra day to my travel

I think he expected me to show gratitude when he told me of a workaround plan. Flying via Sydney — Singapore — Heathrow would take an epic 55 hours of travel time due to the transits.

It would take over two days to get from New Zealand to the UK. I’ve flown this journey many times, it usually takes just over 24 hours.

To say I wasn’t so keen on the only solution, but with no other choice, it seemed to be the only way to get home.

The agent booked this flight and I was due to travel the 55 hours. (urgh)

Option 2- Last-Minute Reprieve

At the last minute, I was thrown a reprieve. I happened to mention to the agent that after arrival in London I still needed to make my way up to the north of the country.

An hour later, I was still digesting my additional travel time, when the travel agent called and said he managed to book me onto a flight leaving a day later, with my original airline, but I would need to re-route totally via Christchurch — Singapore and then Manchester.

“Do you want to do this?” he asked?

Hell yes!

Closer to home is like music to my ears.

24 hours of travel time is even better.

Leaving a day later, better than two weeks later.

So that is what happened to me.

I left New Zealand just a day later than planned.

The longest 24 hours wait in my life because I saw my sister off onto the flight I was originally intended to take with her.

We were going to travel together for the last steps of our journey, so it was sad that we were not able to take the flight together.

My sister sent me comforting messages that the flight was jammed packed. Not a spare seat in the house.

It would have felt worse if there had been one seat and I had not been allowed to have had it. So that sweetens the cake a bit I guess.

Everyone wanted to travel and seems that everyone was, except me.

Is Air Travel Returning To Normal Again? It really might be …

Here’s what you need to know if you are planning to fly soon:-

1) Flights were full. People are wanting to travel again, and they are not put off by the changes. Plan ahead and book in advance. Oh and also check that your travel agent has booked you correctly!!

2) You will need to wear a mask on the flight and inside the terminal buildings. 24 hours of mask-wearing, I suggest you order lots of coffee, and act like you are eating!!

3) If you are vaccinated, then you will just need to show your health record showing this. If you are vaccinated, most countries do not require any further tests. But please check as my brother was fully vaccinated and still was almost denied boarding, you can read more of this here.

4) Unvaccinated travelers can still travel to some countries but will need to get PCR/Supervised RAT testing within a specific time period before their flight. You need to check with the airlines, as these rules change frequently. Make sure that you check requirements with any countries you are visiting or transiting through as well. For example, visitors to the USA need to be vaccinated.

Did I Get Home or Not?

I am glad to say I was able to get the flight a day later.

Both legs of the flight journey were jam-packed.

Full to capacity.

Not a spare seat even in premium economy or business.

Not a spare seat except for the toilet, and that got busy!

I guess it validated what the travel agent had said.

People were going places, I just wanted to get home.

My recent experience of traveling, during the pandemic, and then post-pandemic, means that I am in no hurry to get on board a flight for a while. I think I am done with air travel for at least the next year or so.

Air travel is picking up that is true. Are you prepared for the changes? Are you planning to travel soon? Tell me in the comments.

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