On May 28th we found out there was an Air Force flight going to Lincoln Nebraska in 72 hours. After some discussion about missing Lucy's ballet recital, logistics of making our way across the country, how to get home, being away from Aaron for a month, and having never done the free Air Force flights before, we decided to go for it! Early in the morning (5:30 AM) on the 31st, he headed to Hickam Air Force Base to try and get a seat on a plane that was leaving in a few hours. After some waiting, we found out we had been chosen for the flight and we had our tickets! We checked our bags and waited to board the plane. Everything was going so smoothly until they made the announcement that our plane had mechanical problems and there would be a 24 hour delay. No problem, we thought. But we quickly learned that this process of getting on a free flight was not going to come easily.
We went home and crashed. Later that afternoon we found out the the flight would now be leaving at midnight. So at 11:00 PM I loaded up the kids and headed back to the air force base. We were then sent home again for a flight time change to 10:00 in the morning.
We slept and then went back. When we got there, they still had not fixed the plane. New time: 4:30. We spent the day at the park, shopping, and just hanging out waiting for 4:30 to come. At 4:30 we were a little nervous to go back...but the plane was fixed! We checked our bags, again, and waited to board the plane with the understanding that until we were on the plane and had been in flight 4 hours, there was still a chance we were not going to Nebraska.
We rode a bus out to the flight line where we watched them load our bags.
Then, after a quick emergency briefing which scared Grace, we were getting on this huge air force plane!
There were no assigned seats, or really any seats at all. Just a long bench along the sides. So we sat down and strapped ourselves in.
Then, the crew asked Noah if he wanted to sit up in the cockpit for take off! They put the headphones on him so he could hear the pilots talking, and he sat up front for the first hour of the flight. So cool.
The plane was really, really loud. The engines were right next to us so we had to wear earplugs. We left Hawaii at 7:30 PM on June 1st.
The kids got a great tour of the plane! They all to to go up into the cockpit and look out the front window. They also got to see how and where they refuel planes and how it all works.
They each took turns laying down and moving the boom. So cool.
After they had toured the plane, everyone fell asleep. The airplane did not have climate control. They had a small heater that they could turn up or down but it would only heat from the waist up. So our feet were freezing! After a 7 1/2 hour flight. we arrived in Lincoln Nebraska at 8:30 AM on June 2nd.
This would be the start of an amazing adventure that would total 10,947 miles by the time it was over.
