flying home for leave

nickb312 · 06-20-2008, 02:10 PM

does anyone know how much time we should allocate to get to and from springs airport/ denver, or just have any general suggestions about getting home for thanksgiving and the holidays without breakin the bank?

AC232323 · 06-20-2008, 02:59 PM

They run a bus service to/from the airports for thanksgiving and x-mas. It takes about an 1h10 to get to DIA. Springs airport is about 30-45 minutes. For most places it is cheaper to pay the extra $15 for the bus ticket and fly from DIA to home. COS is much more expensive to most destinations. Other than that just book your flight as early as you can.

HNeedle · 06-20-2008, 03:08 PM

wont you have to know the day of your last final before you can get your ticket?

AC232323 · 06-20-2008, 03:17 PM

Yes you will. But last year I think it was November 15 that we were allowed to schedule our finals, so the next day I bought my ticket home.

nickb312 · 06-20-2008, 03:27 PM

yaa. i figured we had to wait for x-mas leave. I was trying to get thanksgiving and wasnt sure when we'd be able to leave campus to get to the airport.

AC232323 · 06-20-2008, 04:31 PM

For us I want to say that we had 20th-26th off I think, which would be the Tuesday before until the next Monday. I think we weren't allowed to leave until 3:00 p.m. that Tuesday...but it will probably all change next year. I'm guessing I will only be flying home for x-mas and not thanksgiving because the flights will be so much more expensive. But, I guess that's the good thing about having sponsor parents.

eagle36 · 06-20-2008, 06:13 PM

the typical guidline is after LMD (last militray duty) you need to have at least 3 hours for COS and 5 for DIA before your flight leaves

usafa2011dad · 06-20-2008, 06:29 PM

You also need to consider where you are flying too. For example, if you are going back to the east coast, then it is very difficult to find a flight that will give you enough time to get there after LMD, so might as well book first flight out the next morning.

HNeedle · 06-20-2008, 06:57 PM

is it common for some cadets to stay at the academy/sponsor house over the major breaks?

usafa2011dad · 06-21-2008, 01:19 PM

I don't know how common it is, but my guess is that with the rising cost of fuel and airfare, it will become more common going forward.

UNcynical · 06-22-2008, 03:53 PM

From my experiences, cadets tend to go home at Christmas. Thanksgiving is split between going home and going somewhere with other cadets (like to a cabin in the mountains to ski for the break). For Spring Break, a lot of cadets (especially in the upper classes) go on trips/cruises/etc. For summer, assuming the cadet gets a leave period, some might go home, some might to elsewhere, and others will split the time between home and somewhere else.