Derek W.
Yelp
I've generally been pretty pleased flying with Alaska Airlines, but something did happen on my last trip that caused me to not award the 5th star for this Alaska Airlines.
So when it comes to airline business pages on Yelp for each airport, I don't know if they are for the flight into that airport or for the flight out of that airport. To be clear, my rating is for the flight that departed Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SeaTac).
After spending just over a week in the Seattle area, I was heading back home to SoCal by way of Alaska from SeaTac Airport. No, I didn't go to Alaska as that would have been way out of the way lol. I meant Alaska Airlines, which I've flown numerous times to and from Seattle both for personal and business travel.
After dropping my rental car off at the SeaTac Rental Car Facility, I took the shuttle back to the airport, and I went inside to check in. Since I didn't have any checked baggage, I simply hopped on a kiosk to check in, which was especially easy considering I remembered the six character confirmation code. After printing out my boarding pass, I was on my way to security.
I don't believe all Alaska Airlines flights depart and arrive at the same terminal because when I arrived in SeaTac, I didn't have to take the SEA Underground. However, after going through a TSA Security Checkpoint at the main terminal upon departure, I did have to take the SEA Underground. If you're not familiar with the SEA Underground, it's pretty much a train/shuttle that takes you from one secure area to another. For my flight, I had to go to the N Concourse, but there is also an S Concourse, so if you need to take this Underground transportation, ensure that you are taking the correct half of the train/shuttle. There is sufficient signage that directs you to the Underground, but it's quite a walk that necessitates at least 2 escalators, and then additional time to wait for the next ride.
Even though I arrived at the airport 2 hours before my flight, I didn't arrive at my gate until an hour and 15 minutes before my flight. And the line for security wasn't that long, though it did take me a while to find a checkpoint. Now you see why you should arrive at the airport this early? Otherwise, I wouldn't have had nearly as much time to enjoy my last meals up in the Pacific Northwest.
Anyways, boarding will commence about 30 to 40 minutes before the scheduled takeoff time, and listen carefully to the announcements to find out when your boarding group is. I'm fortunate that I checked on the Alaska Airlines app the night before my flight because at first, I was assigned to Row 32, literally dead last in the airplane right next to the lavatory, so I would have been in the last boarding group. When I saw the seating chart, there were a few available seats, one muuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuch closer to the front of the passenger cabin, so I took that seat without any hesitation!
The flight I was on was fully booked, and they were looking for about a dozen volunteer passengers to check their bags. I didn't bother doing that, so I can't comment further about what that would have entailed. However, it did give me some anxiety that maybe I wouldn't be able to fit my carry-on in an overhead stowage bin. Had I not changed seats the previous night, I probably would have run into that problem, but since I did change seats, I luckily didn't.
Just like my flight from SoCal to Seattle, the flight attendants wheel carts to provide complimentary snacks and drinks to passengers about halfway through the flight. The snacks were the same as the first flight: Stellar Mini Braids, which are pretty much pretzels. Just okay, but no Biscoff cookies?! I missed those :(
For the complimentary drink, I went with a Coca-Cola Zero Sugar. Not only did they gave me a 7.5 oz can of the soft drink, but they also gave me a cup with some ice cubes inside. Cool! Pun not intended lol.
I was sitting next to a nice mother & son on the flight, but the son almost fell asleep on my shoulder! That's not why I'm taking off a star, since that's not on Alaska, obviously. However, the hard landing at John Wayne Airport literally woke everyone up, including myself. Everyone started commenting about how hard that landing was. I even saw the passenger directly across from me give a thumbs down on the touchdown. Did the pilots not see the tarmac at night? Did they misjudge the height of the landing gear? I won't speculate at this point, but until my next flight, that will be my most recent memory of being on a plane lol.
Other than the hard landing that almost made my heart jump out of my chest, it was a smooth flight from SeaTac to SoCal, and I do recommend flying with Alaska Airlines if you plan to fly to/from one of their destinations. The agents and flight attendants will do whatever they can to help you enjoy your flight. The pilots? Umm...no further comments :)