Egyptian Airport Experiences

[HEPZIBAH]

I've just got back from Heathrow airport having picked up a friend who had a flight from Uganda back to the UK via Cairo with Egyptair. She was filling me in on a number of the experiences she, and the individuals within the group she was travelling with, had during their flights and airport transfers.
As I listened to her, my mind immediately started buzzing with my own flight and airport experiences when travelling to and from Egypt.
It's almost 1am, and I should be getting my much needed beauty sleep, so far to late to start writing up some of my experiences, so, in the meantime, I will just post the question:
Do you have memorable experiences of travelling with Egyptair or perhaps specific airport incidences when travelling to or from Egypt? If so, please share.

[crewmeal]

Personally I've found the Egyptair staff at Cairo very helpful. About 4 years ago the flight from Heathrow was 2 hours late arriving into Cairo so I missed the Luxor connection. The staff sorted out who was connecting and escorted about 12 of us to the airport hotel for the night complete with sandwich bag. We caught the early morning flight. I couldn't see British Airways doing anything like that.

Last year, again the Heathrow flight was delayed and I rushed through Immigration to connect to Luxor and wondered if my bags had made it. I asked the guy at the gate to check using my barcode baggage tag. It had connected. I'll always do this in future.

I have nothing but admiration for the Staff at Cairo and of course Luxor as well.

[A-Four]

In all my time in Egypt I have never had any real problem at either Cairo or Luxor airports when departing from there, being probably because these were the outward journeys, even when Luxor airport really looked like a military one, and the departure and arrivals hall were little more than great large tents.

I do remember once, many years ago now, boarding an Egyptair flight at Heathrow, where we all sat on the plane for five hours, yes FIVE HOURS, before the plane lift off, to this day we never found out why such a delay occurred. From what I understand after two hours, passengers were supposed to return to the departure lounge, but this did not happen.

All this I am sure is difficult to believe, but true. One other passenger on that flight was a youngish lady, I had come across on the West Bank, who rode a bicycle, often had a camera with her, and a good friend of the Dr on this site. During that long delay this poor lady started getting a lot of greif from an Egyptian man, and I am sure would remember me rescuing her from a very bad headache.

When we all eventually got to Luxor, the very next day, being a member of Egyptair's Star Alliance, I complained at their office, they contacted Cairo and I eventually got a free return flight from Heathrow to be given at request, what others got, I do not know.