Many, and I mean, MANY, years ago I had the pleasure of flying Trans-World Airlines, or “TWA“, a now-defunct airline absorbed by a lesser player many years ago. This airline, steeped in aviation history, had an incredible international route system and rivaled the likes of PanAm (and outlasted it by a few years).
I got to fly it only domestically in the U.S. but grew to love it quickly with its friendly flight attendants and the occasional -and welcome- complimentary first class upgrades without having to accumulate a gazillion miles before being treated to a free upgrade… (Much better than airlines these days…) And those flight attendants in first class did pour the wine gleefully and frequently even in short flights. Not in an “I-do-the-first-serving-as-part-of-the-standard-thing” and “maybe-come-by-and-offer-you-a-refill-out-of-obligation-and-more-only-if-you-happen-to-catch-me-or-ring-me”, as many U.S. airlines do today. No, they really just were happy to keep you happy! As a freshly minted 24-year old traveling for business, seeing myself flying high and mightily in a first class seat being poured the wine (or beverage of my choice) freely, I did not pass up the opportunities… (I think back and see myself as a 24-year old wondering what people around me thought; me with my briefcase (no laptops back then!) with my baby face, sitting in first place probably not quite looking like I belonged. I was fortunate to have experiences like that… (but they came with brutal work schedules as I was a grunt in a large management consulting firm…).
So, ex-TWA-ers, if you read this, hats off to you. And that earns you this boarding pass series post. Thanks for the good rides! Miss ya.
Read some more Boarding Pass Series entries!
- Headed to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- And Constantinople bound! OK, Istanbul…
- Finally, to my hometown airline, looking at the beverage options back in the 1980s with Delta
This reminds me of the fact that the U.S. is sadly falling in the world of international airlines
karl recently posted..Chain Bridge Budapest – Pic of the Week