question about coming home after 120days

[FFDownSouth]

for those of you that have been in iraq and decided to come home for your 10 days of R/R i wanted to know from where do we fly out of? does wsi send us to germany then we pay for our flight from there? or do we just have to figure it out from our base? I'll be In-country in 3-4 weeks so i just wanted to know.. i saw that flights from baghdad to miami may run me $4000.. ouch

[FFSmith77]

You request your R&R through travel there and you can request a specific flight/airline if you want. They take the entire fare out of your check and then reimburse you about $850 when you return. You'll always fly out of Dubai so I would check travelocity (most other multi airline sites don't offer options from Dubai) and see who flies to Miami the cheapest and quickest. I always stuck with Delta b/c they had a direct flight to Atlanta. I'm sure you can flights around $1000.

[AKflightmedic]

Correct. The company gets you to Dubai and then it is your cost from there with reimbursement.

I fly back and forth to Florida, been doing it for years. The most expensive ticket I ever had was 1700 dollars because I bought it last minute due to some personal schedule changes.

For the past 4 years, my average ticket price from Dubai to Orlando has been in the 1100-1300 range round trip. I have gotten tickets several times for as low as 900 because I bought them way in advance.

Here is the secret to travel with these companies.

If they buy your ticket, you do not always get the best route or best price. However if your dates are changed due to you being tied up at a FOB or weather or whatever, they pay the date change fee.

If you buy your own ticket, you will get most favorable route, best price (if bought early enough), but YOU will have to pay the fees for date changes and those vary from 150-250 on international flights.

I started buying my own ticket years ago because it also puts you in a better fare class when it comes to upgrades or seat changes, Plus you can choose your own seat most times (bulk head, aisle, exit row) without going through the hassle of competing with 300 other people at the airport.

Just something to consider.

[FFDownSouth]

thanks for the info... i was suppose to be in houston this week, but due to some issues with the visa we've had to delay till aug 9.. so thank you again.. how long did you two serve in iraq as firefighter if i may ask?

[AKflightmedic]

7 months in Iraq, 4 years in Afghanistan...still here as we speak.

Did not work as a firefighter, been doing medic jobs up until 4 months ago.

[FFDownSouth]

wow... godbless you... well again thank you for you info and for serving this country... i hope god willing i can do 2-3 years..