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Wear something comfortable and that does not require a belt to hold up. I prefer sweatpants (pockets), but a lot of people wear pajama bottoms.
Wear slip-on shoes, if you can. Something without laces, so that you can quickly and easily take them off for the x-ray and put them back on again. I personally wear sandals that have a "pull-to-tighten" buckle on them.
Wear socks. You don't want athlete's foot, do you?
Keep all your jewelry, keys, gadgets, gizmos, and change in your carry-on bag. If you are carrying fluids on the plane (I carry a contact lens case and a small bottle of fluid, for example) all the bottles have to be in a 1-quart ziplock bag. All of them. Lotions, shampoo, etc. And all the bottles must be 100mL or less in size... about 3.5 ounces. If you're carrying regular-sized bottles of, say, shampoo, put them in your check-in bag.
You can bring snacks or actual food in your carry-on bag but no drinks (the bottles are too big, even those little juice boxes).
Remember, no nailclippers or knife-like things are allowed in the plane. I lost my little swiss army keychain knife at the airport because I forgot to take it off my keychain.
Have your driver's license handy.
You'll go in and check in at the counter. They'll give you a boarding pass after you show your ID to them. You'll also check in your non-carry-on luggage there. Nowadays they're charging for the bags, so make sure you have a way to pay for it. The airline I fly on charges $15 for the first bag.
Then it's off to security. There's a maze you have to go through, and at the end there's a guy who checks IDs and tickets just before you get to the checkpoint. Now, quickly, move up to the counter and grab a plastic bin. Throw your footware in the bin, take off your coat and fold it on top of your shoes, then top the entire thing with your carry-on bag. You should now have on you: socks, pants, undies, a shirt, your ticket, and your driver's license.
Walk your plastic bin down the table toward the metal detectors. When it's your turn, shove the bin onto the conveyor for the x-ray machine and step through the metal detector. If you don't beep, you'll show just your ticket to the TSA agent manning the detector. Then you're through!
Grab your bin. Throw your coat back on, shoulder your carry-on bag, and slip your footwear on. And then you're free to wander about the secure zone of the airport.
You'll have about an hour or so before plane boarding begins. If your airline charges for drinks, then now's the time to buy a couple of bottles of your favorite beverages from a kiosk or vending machine at moderately inflated prices. Also, buy gum. Chewing gum will help keep your ears from hurting do to the change in air pressure.
Now find your flight's gate, snag a seat by the big windows, and enjoy watching the airport activity for a while.
Eventually the flight crew will start boarding. They seat 1st class first, so they'll announce something like "DU Airlines Flight 44 to Progress, America is now boarding 1st class passengers, passengers with small children, and passengers that need extra help".
After a couple of minutes, they'll start boarding everybody else, starting at the back and working for wards. "DU Airlines Flight 44 to Progress, America is now boarding rows 30 to 38. Rows 30 to 38".
A few more minutes... "Now boarding rows 24 to 38". Then "rows 15 to 38". Then, finally, "all rows".
When they call your row, line up, get your ticket scanned, then walk down the jetway to the airliner. Work your way through the press of people until you find your row and seat assignment. Seats A, B, and C are on the left, D, E, and F are on the right (facing forward, of course). Throw your coat in the overhead bin work your way into your seat, and shove your bag under the seat in front of you.
Now you wait while everybody else boards. This is a good time to buckle your seatbelt and cinch it snug around your hips, and to read the emergency information card so you know what happens in case there's a problem.
Eventually, everybody else will be seated. The flight crew will close and seal the door and then go through the infamous "safety presentation" routine, basically reenacting the high drama of the emergency information card with props.
Then you'll have to turn off all electronic gizmos from that time until the plane is in the air. Kill your cell phone, iPod, and DVD player and pull out a good book instead.
At some point, hopefully in the near future, the plane will start to taxi to the runway. This is usually moderately bouncy and tedious, but not that big of a deal.
You might here a loud noise for a few seconds to wards the end of the taxiing process... that's the hydraulic pump for the flaps turning on as the pilot lowers the flaps into takeoff position. Don't panic!
Finally the plane will be on the end of the runway and ready to take off. You'll hear the engine surge (which is a really cool sound, by the way) and then the pilot will release the brakes. The plane will leap ahead, pressing you into your seat as it accelerates down the runway. It'll go faster and faster... then all of a sudden it will tilt back and leap up into the air. All of a sudden the ride will get a lot smoother, and you are now officially airborne.
You'll hear more hydraulic pumps whining as the landing gear retracts, and a couple of thumps as well as the doors close. And then the flaps will retract at the plane builds speed and altitude.
The place will now climb for maybe 15 minutes, banking left and right as it does so to get out of the airport control zone and on course for Ohio. If you can see out of the window, do so... it's really cool to watch everything shrink down to the size of toys.
Once you are in level flight... it's like being in a bus. The flight crew will serve beverages and sell you alcohol and food. If you need to use the bathroom, go ahead... keeping in mind they are the size of a rather small closet.
So you'll fly level and straight for a couple of hours. Then the reverse happens.
The plane's engines, up until this point a steady background whine, will drop to idle. The plane will begin to glide downward to wards Ohio. This will take maybe 20 minutes or so. The plane will turn to align itself with the runway as it does so.
A couple of minutes out from the airport, the pilot will lower the flaps and landing gear, so you'll be hearing more whines and thumps. Then it's a matter of flying down the glideslope to the runway. The pilot will be constantly adjusting the airplane, adding and taking away bits of engine power, banking slightly to the left and right. Then, finally, just as you're wondering where the hell the ground is...
THUMP! The rear wheels hit the tarmac. The plane tilts forward. THUMP! The nose gear hits the tarmac.
Then the pilot hits the airbrakes, the wheelbrakes, and reverses engine thrust. The engines howl again as the plane is quickly dragged to a near-stop. Then the engines throttle down again and you begin taxiing to the airport terminal.
The plane stops and as soon as that "Fasten Seat Belt" light goes out there's a mad scramble by the passengers to find their luggage and don their coats. Then everybody waits while the jetway is attached to the plane and the door opened. Then, in reverse order, everybody gets off the plane.
Once you're off, you collect your checked baggage. Follow the signs to the baggage area. Look on a TV monitor to find out which carousel your flight is using, then go to it. About 10-15 minutes will go by before they get the luggage to the crassly, so now is an excellent time to use the restroom and call your relatives to tell them you arrived safely. If they're picking you up they're probably waiting for you in the baggage area.
Collect your bag from the carousal when it appears, then go visit your relatives. You're done at the airport!
:-)
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