How Malta to Jordan, Usually About 10 Hours, Turned Into Four Days
On a personal level, of course, I became worried that my wife and I would not be able to get back home anytime soon. You Americans don’t run into this sort of thing, but it happens from time to time in our part of the world. My saga is one of mere inconvenience, but multiply it by the millions of stories that are similar and worse—some, of course, far worse—and you begin to get a sense of how a war that to Americans is halfway across the world reverberates across many countries, affecting untold numbers of people. The New York Times reported just yesterday on how airspace restrictions have tangled travel in the region, “fragmenting a once efficient and finely tuned global aviation network,” as the paper put it.
By noon on Saturday, February 28, just hours after the start of the war, Turkish Airlines texted us that the second leg of our flight, from Istanbul to Amman, was canceled due to force majeure, and we could apply for a refund.
The cancellation of our Turkish flight back to Queen Alia Airport in Amman meant at least a one-day delay. The hotel graciously agreed to our conference organizers’ request to keep the conference rate of $170 per night for the extra night.
