Taking to the skies

Senior Josh Wees has made the flight from Indianapolis to his home town of Omaha, Neb., more than a dozen times. But he said this year's challenge of booking a flight was more difficult. After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, IU students traveling home for the semester's first break will encounter fewer flights to choose from, increased security and warnings from concerned parents. \nWees' problems going home arose because of fewer flights offered. Although Wees said he is not worried about his flight home, he admitted that his parents are showing anxiety.\n"I think a lot of younger people in general think that these kinds of things happened but will never happen to them. I don't think the risk is that much," Wees said. "You can't live your life in fear."\nJohn Skolak, the Bloomington branch manager for STA Travel, said the number of travel arrangements for Thanksgiving break dropped from last year. STA Travel is in the Indiana Memorial Union and serves students and nonstudents. Skolak said students and their parents have shown concern about flying home for their first major break of the semester.\n"We didn't see a lot of Thanksgiving traffic because Sept. 11 happened at such a prime time for people to book trips home for Thanksgiving," Skolak said. "It seems like it's getting back to normal, but then you get a plane that falls out of the sky, and that just kind of threw everybody back again."\nIn October 2000, STA served 352 customers, who spent an average of $294. This October, that total dropped to 242 customers, who spent an average of $202.\nSkolak said that because of a decline in aviation confidence, airlines are offering flight insurance, which he calls a "saving grace." The insurance guarantees that in case of a canceled flight or other circumstance, the airline will purchase tickets for another flight or provide a refund.\nWeighed down by suitcases, backpacks and plastic bags, IU students trekked to the circle drive at the IMU to wait for a Bloomington Shuttle Service bus to take them to the Indianapolis International Airport yesterday afternoon. Despite increased fear of flying after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, most students flying home for Thanksgiving say they aren't nervous about traveling by airplane. \nMary Reese, a junior from Portland, Maine, said heightened airline security calmed any fears she had about flying.\n"If anything, I feel a little safer," she said. \nAlthough neither senior Erin Nasser nor her parents though it better for her to stay in Bloomington for the holiday, her mother did want to make sure she had a safe flight, Nasser said.\n"My mom was giving me all these warnings like 'Don't take this' or make sure you have a bag that fits under the seat or make sure you only have one carry-on bag," she said.\nFor many students who live far away, the quickest way to go home is to fly. Derek Ratzenboeck, a freshman, said he wasn't nervous about flying and that driving to his home in Sarasota, Fla., is too much of a hassle and takes "way too much effort."\n"You've got to do everything like you always do," he said. \nWhile Nasser and most of her traveling companions were not nervous about flying, Chris Gourley, president of Bloomington Shuttle Company, said last week that business in October was down 10 percent from last year. \nSkolak said he expects the traveling lull to level off in the future and business to return back to normal. He said STA realizes that the attacks of Sept. 11 have tarnished the Thanksgiving traveling season and that the recent crash of American Airline Flight 587 might effect traveling for the upcoming Christmas season. Therefore, STA has decided to concentrate on spring break packages and students studying abroad.\nAs a result of the recent terrorist attacks, Skolak said students are making themselves more aware of the traveling process, safety and options available. \nWith the long stretch of classes leading to Thanksgiving break, Skolak said IU students are more likely to disregard safety concerns with a need to leave Bloomington before the onset of final exams.\n"The students just want to get home, they want to see everybody, they want to visit and they want a break," he said. "The parents want to know their kids are going to be safe getting there"