During the "rush hour" at Houston's Hobby Airport,
my flight was delayed due to a mechanical problem. Since they needed the gate
for another flight, the aircraft was backed away from the gate while the
maintenance crew worked on it. We were then told the new gate number, which was
some distance away. Everyone moved to the new gate, only to find that a third
gate had been designated for us.
After some further shuffling, everyone got on board, and as
we were settling in, the flight attendant made the standard announcement,
"We apologize for the inconvenience of this last-minute gate change. This
flight is going to Washington, D.C. If your destination is not Washington,
D.C., then you should 'deplane' at this time."
A very confused-looking and red-faced pilot emerged from the
cockpit, carrying his bags. "Sorry," he said, "wrong
plane."