Riding the Low

After several enjoyable days visiting with my parents I am now back home --finally.

I left Wichita at mid-day Tuesday and arrived home just after midnight.

Due to a storm system (dry and sunny!) which recorded the lowest pressure ever in a non-tropical system in the U. S., my plane from Memphis to Milwaukee was diverted to Peoria, Illinois. I learned today that that low pressure corresponds to readings in a category 3 hurricane.

I knew there was likely going to be a hitch when, while still at the gate in the Memphis airport, four people were asked to voluntarily (with a $300 coupon incentive!) de-plane and take a later flight.  They said it was necessary so that they could take on extra fuel in case there was a "problem" with landing in Milwaukee.  I did volunteer but was not one of the "lucky" ones to get chosen.  As it turns out I probably would have spent the night in Memphis since the later flights out to Milwaukee were cancelled.

As we approached Milwaukee the plane began bouncing around quite a bit.  It seemed to me that the plane's engines were accelerating and decelerating a lot.  When we were told to prepare for landing, the stewardess (I can't think of the current name for such personnel) said she was going to stay seated and that we, the passengers, should check each other to see that the tray tables were in the proper position and that everyone had their seat belts on.

To land at the Milwaukee airport the plane circles out across Lake Michigan.  The plane was bouncing and jerking as we came in lower and lower.  For the first time in my life I had the feeling we might have a crash landing.  Just as I was preparing for the worst, the plane pulled up and the stewardess informed us that this was the possibility that they had prepared for in Memphis.  

"Don't be afraid," she said.  "This pilot is one of the top pilots among Delta's 6000 pilots.  He won't do anything dangerous.  The cockpit has all kinds of 'bells and whistles' to let the pilot know if it is safe to land."

I wasn't totally reassured.  The plane circled and approached the airport two more times.  Each time with bouncing and jerking all around.   The third time, the plane went into a steep climb away from the airport and I figured we are not going to be landing in Milwaukee!

Indeed, we were going to fly to Peoria, Illinois, which is in central Illinois.  We had to get farther south (Chicago flights weren't landing either) to get out of the terrific wind shears.  After we had landed in Peoria I heard the pilots telling some of the passengers that their instruments kept showing wind shears like they had never seen before.  

The older pilot also said that he didn't think they should even have left Memphis for Milwaukee, but he was told that the winds would probably die down by the time they got to the destination.  Truth to tell, it is still very windy today:  sustained winds 30 - 50 mph, with gusts much higher.

When we arrived in Peoria, we were told we could fly back to Memphis or take a charter bus to Milwaukee.  I chose the bus, as did most passengers.  The bus did not arrive at the Peoria airport for two hours.  Then it was a three hour ride to Milwaukee.  The bus ride was fairly smooth, although I could feel the winds battering the bus around, too.

It was a 40-minute car ride from the Milwaukee airport to home, where Hubby and I arrived just after midnight.  I had a warm bowl of soup and some crackers and cheese and crashed into bed.  But at least I did not crash in an airplane.