September 13 caught up with me (or I with it?) somewhere mid-Pacific while Fiji slept below.
The Qantas trans-Pacific flight sailed on though the darkness uneventfully.
But at LAX beforehand? Well, that was a little touch and go.
I travel with an aircraft aluminum, semi-rigid, Invacare Spyder wheelchair. The breakdown ritual as I transfer from it to one of the narrow aisle chairs to get into the cabin of an airliner is always amusing.
Keep in mind that, when fully broken down, I am left with an additional eight items of luggage -- foot pedals, solid back, seat cushion, etc. It would be ten items if this was a wheelchair with armrests.
All these are stowed in the cabin while the crew brings the wheelchair frame down into the belly of the aircraft. Riding with the rest of the luggage, the frame gets unoaded and brought to me at the cabin door anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes after the very last passenger has disembarked.
I used to be easygoing about the process. I even allowed the removable parts to be stored below in luggage. That was until I found how easy it was for those parts to go to, say Cleveland, while I was at my destination - O'Hare.
So, I was in no mood to have my appendages arrive in Malaysia while my body sat waiting for them in Sydney. And the "expert" the airport sent to assist me in the boarding process was all thumbs and attitude -- although admirably sure of himself for someone so incompetent.
I must have made an impression on the Qantas flight concierge - a personable, well-built, roustabout-looking fellow -- the kind I've come to dread in these situations. I feared a repeat of the LAX boarding spectacle.
As we disembarked in Sydney he commented with some respect on having seen the process back in LAX and joined in the reassembly with a healthy reserve. Reassembly went smooth as silk and we all had some good laughs in the process!
I didn't tell him and the rest of the crew until the whole process was successfully completed and we were making our way down the jetway together that I am here sponsored by Tourism Australia.
All-in-all, my first international flight with Qantas has been positive. Thanks crew of of Qantas Flight 12!
Now, on to a new experience -- arriving in a major city without hotel reservations and booking an accessibe room on the spot (or finding a homeless shelter?)