4 ms·

Addis Ababa to DC was a 17½ flight when I took it. Since it lands in Rome or Dublin to refuel, it doesn't count as a non-stop flight but on the fuel stops they

Addis Ababa to DC was a 17½ flight when I took it. Since it lands in Rome or Dublin to refuel, it doesn't count as a non-stop flight but on the fuel stops they don't pull up to the terminal. You're stuck in the plane so it's only slightly better than being in the air. It did cure me of my previous hatred of coast to coast flights in the US. They seem so short now. Used to be I'd always arrange a stop half way.

echelon 7y ago
I really wish we had better rail infrastructure in the US. Being able to walk around and check out different cars is amazing. Dining and sleeper cars are fantastic.
- jfim 7y ago
  As a heads-up, Amtrak is slowly gutting the dining car service, so I'd enjoy it while it's there. The new "enhanced menu and flexible dining service" is as weasely as you'd expect from the corporate naming.
- technofiend 7y ago
  Indeed. Unfortunately there’s an anti-rail movement that fights any expansion of it, large or small. It’s too bad because between post 9/11 security and airlines adding fees while reducing seat pitch and services it would be really nice to have an alternative. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/19/climate/koch-brothers-public-transit.html https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/19/climate/koch-brothers-pub...
- VLM 7y ago
  Not entirely clear how you'd use rail infrastructure to go from Addis Ababa to DC, so if you need the aviation infrastructure for intercontinental travel, its cheaper to use the same infrastructure for both. Kinda like the classic problem of "why don't rockets use atmospheric oxygen for the first 5% of their flight" well, its just not worth it. Another BIG problem is urban people think rails go everywhere and connect everything. An interesting geographic feature to google for is "darien gap" in Panama. Most people refuse to believe there is no road connection between north and south America... We don't even have paved roads crossing Panama in 2019... We're simply not going to have high speed rail between the USA and Cape Horn in our lifetimes due to engineering challenges. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darién_Gap https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darién_Gap One of those interesting engineer's daydreams is building a rail connection across north and south america. Imagine a really cool bridge across the panama canal. The problem is there's no market. High speed (human) cargo gets put on the planes because the countries need aviation infrastructure for intercontinental trade anyway. Low speed (metal ore or bulk grain) cargo takes boats which use about half the energy and cost of rail with essentially zero environmental or property tax impact (well, zero compared to rail or road, anyway). So what has to move faster than people but slower than coal... well... nothing, I guess. So no market means no infrastructure.
  - UserIsUnused 7y ago
    Parent was talking about US, not intercontinental
dehrmann 7y ago
> You're stuck in the plane so it's only slightly better than being in the air Is it?
- elygre 7y ago
  I detest sitting in an airplane on the ground. It's equally cramped, but there is no progress. Much worse than actually flying.
  - varjag 7y ago
    Also, the toilets can be locked…
- Mountain_Skies 7y ago
  My seat was an aisle seat a couple rows back from a door. They opened it for a short period while we were on the ground. Even though we were on an airport tarmac, the "fresh" air was nice.
snovv_crash 7y ago
Cape Town - Atlanta was a similar arrangement, stopping at some island in the Atlantic along the way with no chance of getting off.

echelon 7y ago

I really wish we had better rail infrastructure in the US. Being able to walk around and check out different cars is amazing. Dining and sleeper cars are fantastic.

jfim 7y ago
As a heads-up, Amtrak is slowly gutting the dining car service, so I'd enjoy it while it's there. The new "enhanced menu and flexible dining service" is as weasely as you'd expect from the corporate naming.
technofiend 7y ago
Indeed. Unfortunately there’s an anti-rail movement that fights any expansion of it, large or small. It’s too bad because between post 9/11 security and airlines adding fees while reducing seat pitch and services it would be really nice to have an alternative. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/19/climate/koch-brothers-public-transit.html https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/19/climate/koch-brothers-pub...
VLM 7y ago
Not entirely clear how you'd use rail infrastructure to go from Addis Ababa to DC, so if you need the aviation infrastructure for intercontinental travel, its cheaper to use the same infrastructure for both. Kinda like the classic problem of "why don't rockets use atmospheric oxygen for the first 5% of their flight" well, its just not worth it. Another BIG problem is urban people think rails go everywhere and connect everything. An interesting geographic feature to google for is "darien gap" in Panama. Most people refuse to believe there is no road connection between north and south America... We don't even have paved roads crossing Panama in 2019... We're simply not going to have high speed rail between the USA and Cape Horn in our lifetimes due to engineering challenges. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darién_Gap https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darién_Gap One of those interesting engineer's daydreams is building a rail connection across north and south america. Imagine a really cool bridge across the panama canal. The problem is there's no market. High speed (human) cargo gets put on the planes because the countries need aviation infrastructure for intercontinental trade anyway. Low speed (metal ore or bulk grain) cargo takes boats which use about half the energy and cost of rail with essentially zero environmental or property tax impact (well, zero compared to rail or road, anyway). So what has to move faster than people but slower than coal... well... nothing, I guess. So no market means no infrastructure.
- UserIsUnused 7y ago
  Parent was talking about US, not intercontinental

dehrmann 7y ago

> You're stuck in the plane so it's only slightly better than being in the air Is it?

elygre 7y ago
I detest sitting in an airplane on the ground. It's equally cramped, but there is no progress. Much worse than actually flying.
- varjag 7y ago
  Also, the toilets can be locked…
Mountain_Skies 7y ago
My seat was an aisle seat a couple rows back from a door. They opened it for a short period while we were on the ground. Even though we were on an airport tarmac, the "fresh" air was nice.

snovv_crash 7y ago

Cape Town - Atlanta was a similar arrangement, stopping at some island in the Atlantic along the way with no chance of getting off.