? re: having cart meet us at gate at Philly airport

[huntersmom]

We only have a 40 minute layover in Philadelphia on 2/2/08. I know we have to take a shuttle to the other part of the airport to catch our connecting flight, as we come in on a small plane from a small airport. We will have a child in tow and wanted to increase our chances of making the connecting flight so I thought i read you can request a cart be waiting for you at your gate to take you to your next gate. How do I go about setting this up? Do I call US AIrways or the Philly airport and is this service free? I have never done this before and have no idea how to go about doing this. Any help/ input appreciated. Thanks

 

[ducklite]

You'll be coming into terminal F. There's a shuttle bus that takes you from F to A, B, & C. There are signs in terminal F directing you to the shuttle, or you can ask a gate agent for help. Using the shuttle should get you to your new terminal in under 15 minutes after you get off the plane. They run pretty much continuously. Once you get to your new terminal it's a 2-3 minute walk to even the furthest gate. Because of the shuttle, they generally on use carts for people with mobility problems.

 

[huntersmom]

Thank you Ducklite! I feel so much better now. I posted this time frame dilema several weeks ago and no one really thought i had much of a chace of making the connecting flight. However, you seem pretty confident that it is doable and we can certainly run. You also sound familiar with the Philly airport and your description makes perfect sense. Thanks so much!

 

[safetymom]

Is there a flight with a longer layover? Philly is known for delayed flights. 40 mins is extremely tight considering they close the door 10 mins before departure.

 

[huntersmom]

US Air has changed out flight 7 times since we booked it last april. This is the flight we are assigned to take, as US Air says 40 minutes is a reasonable time to connect. if we choose to look for another flight we must pay a change fee of $100 per ticket. I am so disgusted by them at this point it is not even funny and am just trying to make the best of the situation.

 

[safetymom]

40 mins maybe reasonable at other airports but I don't think so at Philly. I would try calling them again. You don't want to get stuck in Philly at the airport. The attitude of their workers there is terrible.

 

[safetymom]

I would post on www.flyertalk.com for why 40 mins may not be enough time. Just go to www.flyertalk.com, then miles and points, then airline forums, finally the US Airways forum. You will find many folks that will tell about the problems at Philly.

 

[CarolA]

Dump the cart idea.....

A couple of issues.

Unless Philly is unlike anyplace else in America your cart will NOT be there when you get off the plane.

You probably will NOT have the cart to yourself so it can and will stop at several other gates.

Carts can't really go any faster then the walkers. Running over a walker gets a cart driver fired....

In my experience if you can walk you will beat the cart. (I have timed it in Atlanta!)

If you do use a cart, it's free but the driver expects a tip!

 

[ducklite]

Is there a flight with a longer layover? Philly is known for delayed flights. 40 mins is extremely tight considering they close the door 10 mins before departure.

Actually if they know that there are connecting passengers and their flights have landed, they will keep the door open until the bitter end waiting for them. If OP's flight is delayed by a bit, they will wait as long as possible--I've seen them wait until the last minute and literally close the door and push back before the passenger is in their seat.

With the shuttle the OP should be able to make thier flight even if they are 20 minutes late arriving.

 

[safetymom]

If you read the reports on Flyertalk there have been many folks that missed their connections because US didn't hold the plane.

 

[ducklite]

If you read the reports on Flyertalk there have been many folks that missed their connections because US didn't hold the plane.

Quite possible, but I'll say that PHL was my "home" airport for over a decade, and I saw the doors held for connecting passengers many, many times.

 

[CarolA]

Actually if they know that there are connecting passengers and their flights have landed, they will keep the door open until the bitter end waiting for them. If OP's flight is delayed by a bit, they will wait as long as possible--I've seen them wait until the last minute and literally close the door and push back before the passenger is in their seat.

With the shuttle the OP should be able to make thier flight even if they are 20 minutes late arriving.

Your experience varies from mine.... my planes are all about closing that door so that they can report and "on time" departure the the FAA. (Yes, folks if the door closes and you pull away it's 'on time'.... granted you may spend four hours on the jetway, but your departure was "ON TIME" )

 

[huntersmom]

Thanks everyone for all your info. and input. I guess we will try to make it on foot rather than trying to use a cart. We will just do our best and try to make the best of our not so great situation. If we don't make it we will do our best to get on another flight to Orlando ASAP and go have a nice meal in the airport. Thanks again. I am feeling a bit more hopeful and due to your responses have a much better idea of what we need to do.