Posted on 07/28/2010 12:51:40 PM PDT by martin_fierro
I hear you.
Mid to late ‘70’s was primo for air travel.
Except when I had to run around Pennsylvania in a de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter on Allegheny Commuter or Altair.
However, my experience with United on the way back was hands down the worst customer service experience I have ever had in my life! The highlights:
1) ticket counter rep at O'Hare regaling me with boasts about how she didn't look her age, while I was trying to get my luggage checked in,
2) being kicked off my flight, and my seat given to a stand-by customer, even though I was already in my seat and buckled it,
3) luggage went to Denver, though I was headed home to Boise.
But United is no stranger to horrendous customer service. Check out this video, "United Breaks Guitars"...a catchy tune and funny as all get-out!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo&videos=HrTkK4WZOsE
Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!
I was flying from Melbourne Australia (on Qantas) to LAX with a 3 month-old. The people on Qantas were unbelievably helpful & sweet. I was alone. Then, my flight from LA back to Pittsburgh was on US Scare. I was flying 1st class (not that that should matter but still) and the flight attendant refused to give me water to mix a packet of baby formula. She told me if I needed water to mix formula, then I should have been responsible enough to bring it along. How she expected me to do this I have no idea since the TSA (Tools Standing Around) were confiscating & throwing away all fluids at that time. Evenutally, she gave me the hot water used to make tea but was such a bizotch I have never forgotten it. Let’s just say in my experience with that airline, her attitude was NOT an isolated incident.
I don't think that's allowed anymore.
Good old days. Some flights and some airlines were terrific. There were exceptions, such as Piedmont Air, one of the predecessors of USAirways, which always gouged Charlotte passengers, a tradition that has continued. We had all kinds of schemes to avoid the overcharges such as the "hidden city" method. If I wanted roundtrip Charlotte/New York/LaGuardia, for example, I would book the final destination as Asheville, lowering the fare by $75. I just deplaned in Charlotte and didn't use the final leg of the flight.
Sometimes it paid to drive to other cities to begin the flight, Raleigh or Greensboro. Fares were so outrageous that we even took Amtrak on occasion to New York.
Any airline that had Capt. Sullenberger as a pilot is OKAY in my book.
That plane sailed down the river right past my apartment building.
And not a single passenger sued the airline either.
Of course delta stranded you. Delta is actually two acronyms..
Doesn’t Ever Leave The Airport
Don’t Expect Luggage To Arrive
I use to have to fly their little twin turboprop commuter puddle-jumpers fairly frequently. The pilots looked to be around 25 years old with a cap two sizes too big down around their ears. They never would fly around a thunderstorm. Those were some rockin-an-rollin’ white knuckle years of travel. We didn’t call them U.S. Scareways for nuttin’.
US Air and Delta have so many rude buffoons who work for them. Recently while checking my $25.00 bag the agent almost put the wrong claim sticker on it until I caught it first. They constantly delay my baggage for arrival too. Less problems with Southwest and American but I hate flying but must do it for work.
I would rather go back to PSA(Pacific Southwest Airlines) or Branff. Both made flying PLEASUREABLE!
Remember when flying on an airliner was so glamourous that Frank Sinatra sang about it? Can you imagine someone singing “Come Fly With Me” nowadays?
My sister and B-I-L fly regularly on Delta out of ATL. Usually they go on buddy passes to Vegas. Yesterday, however, they weren’t so lucky. They got to ATL about 0600 and didn’t get out until 13 hours later. They travel a lot, so they get to chill in the Crown Room all day, which beats sitting around the terminal.
I have flown them twice. I will NEVER fly them again unless I need to escape communist occupation or a war zone.
I felt unsafe because the employees seemed to have a policy of giving me misinformation, covered their name badges when I asked one of them to turn it over so I would know who she was, refused to take my 12 year old out of an exit row, told me their web site always tells people they have a good seat when they sell they seat, then they move you out of the seat when it is time to actually issue boarding passes.
Drive by posting ;)
Why didn’t you tell him he should’a taken the train?
I ain't gonna rub my homie's face in it when he's in the midst of a crisis...
Besides, I'm confident that marty is capable of figuring that out for himself, even if he might not admit it.
What, you haven’t flown or heard of Aiway before?
Aiway is the best!
Flew them just last week 1230am flight out of Denver. They closed the security that screens bags when you check in a handgun at 9pm. Took them about an hour to figure out what to do.
The counter checker employee didn’t know how the company policy on checked handguns. She had to wait for a TSA employee help, even though I was telling her what the policy was (gues I shouldn’t be doing that part).
On the return flight, the next counter check employee didn’t bother looking to see if my handgun was unloaded; just gave me the sheet to sign and let me go on my way.
Those two weren’t rude with me. But, I do see them getting rude with people they think they can harass - like those actually seeking help.
One person asked, ‘Where’s the security checkpoint?’. The only response was basically waving a hand saying ‘over there’ while not looking up in a bit of a rude tone. The customer had to ask again, because he basically didn’t understand the handwaving part. The handwave was the sort of ‘don’t bother me’ type.
When I was single, long ago, and better looking, an attractive young stewardess got me a free drink when my flight was delayed and slipped into the seat next to me for a quick smoke a couple times during the flight. She flew in for a couple dates with me after. Those were the days.
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