U.S.A.F. Niagara Falls, New York

We spent the entire day in Niagara Falls, New York, and on a break, I made a quick run to a Wendy’s restaurant. In front of me in line were four young Air Force men who looked to be in their late teens, or very early twenties. Behind me was a young couple with a baby, and behind them more Air Force men.

As I stood there waiting in the queue, I chatted with the couple beside me who said their baby had been fussy in the car. As we were talking, the Air Force lads were playing with the baby and keeping her entertained, and it struck me that these boys, dressed in fatigues and black boots, are like all the other American boys being sent to Iraq, many of whom never return.

It reminded me that wars are fought by the young men, those barely out of high school and, at that moment, it seemed wrong that the men standing near me should be sent where too many others have lost their lives. It also reminded me of the American Cemetery in Normandy, France, where I saw field after field of white crosses with the names and ranks of fallen soldiers of the second world war; those buried in France the same age as these Air Force boys. I marvelled at their camaraderie, their courtesy, and couldn’t help but wonder what their futures held.

I hope there is an end to the war in Iraq.

Kudos to… JetBlue Airways

Yet again, JetBlue Airways impresses me with its service.

A friend and I flew to New York a while ago, my first time on JetBlue and I must say I was extremely impressed overall.  Yesterday, I collected my daughter and her friends at Buffalo Airport when they returned from Florida, their flight fifteen minutes early.  (Yes, early-arriving flights still happen.)  One of the girls had to speak to a customer service rep about a (late-boarded) bag that had gone astray at JFK, but within one minute (I shit you not, Terry…) the employee located the suitcase online, knew exactly where it was, and arranged to have it delivered that evening.

This may sound trivial and par for the course, but the JetBlue employee was extremely polite and helpful, not to mention the epitome of efficiency.  I’ve stood in line at baggage counters over the years like most travellers, only to have a page of suitcase pictures shoved in front of me and a few terse instructions barked in my direction… “…fill this in and sign your name.  We’ll see if we can find it, but we can’t promise anything.”

JetBlue was the first airline to make lost baggage a quick and painless exercise.