stubeeef said:
Yeah, the "dash lights" were broken and we had to get off that fully boarded plane.
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iGary on Airline! tonight at 10:00 p.m.
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Yeah, the "dash lights" were broken and we had to get off that fully boarded plane.
1. It should be illegal, illegal, ILLEGAL for airlines to overbook flights. Raise the prices if you have to to make up the revenue, but when I buy a ticket, I expect to be on the damn flight. If I ever get bumped, there will be a lawsuit.
2. Airline gate employees obviously can't do math. The Superman guy in Chicago checked in at the main ticket counter at 10:57 for a flight that was departing at 11:20, yet the woman at the gate said it took him 30 minutes to get to the gate. Wrong, wrong, WRONG. It took him about 10 minutes, and they'd already given his seat away (see 1, above).
3. It's absolutely inexcusable for them not to stock a FULL assortment of spare parts, ESPECIALLY at an airport as large as BWI.
Gary, PM me your snail mail addy and I'll send you the DVD as soon as I get a chance.
2. Airline gate employees obviously can't do math. The Superman guy in Chicago checked in at the main ticket counter at 10:57 for a flight that was departing at 11:20, yet the woman at the gate said it took him 30 minutes to get to the gate. Wrong, wrong, WRONG. It took him about 10 minutes, and they'd already given his seat away (see 1, above).
3. It's absolutely inexcusable for them not to stock a FULL assortment of spare parts, ESPECIALLY at an airport as large as BWI.
Gary, PM me your snail mail addy and I'll send you the DVD as soon as I get a chance.
Well at least everything worked out for you, iGary.
I feel pretty bad for the guy allergic to peanuts.
I feel pretty bad for the guy allergic to peanuts.
Yeah, we finally made it to Providence and my publisher bitched me out for booking the photographer and pilot through BWI to meet me.
i think i was flying southwest from boston to islip and first my flight was late, then they delayed it more... then canceled it, then moved me to a later flight then that was late......
it would have taken less time to drive from my house to boston (using the ferry) i'm never flying home from school on southwest... terrible...
it would have taken less time to drive from my house to boston (using the ferry) i'm never flying home from school on southwest... terrible...
Can't say too much about Southwest Airlines since I live in Dallas and thanks to brilliant legislation they can only fly to adjoining states, which means, unless I'm headed to New Mexico or El Paso, drive time will equal fly time for anywhere I want to go once you factor in being an hour early and waiting for luggage and getting a rental car/waiting for shuttles.
You came off fairly well iGary. Stayed fairly calm and presented your case without being too much of an a$$hat.
If you still need more copies I can probably get it off of my TIVO to VHS without too much difficulty.
You came off fairly well iGary. Stayed fairly calm and presented your case without being too much of an a$$hat.
If you still need more copies I can probably get it off of my TIVO to VHS without too much difficulty.
clayj said:
1. Take a look at this and see how far your lawsuit will go. By flying on any airline, you agree to each carriers contract of carriage.
http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/contract.html
2. You need to be AT THE GATE 10 minutes prior to departure. If I checked in at home 10 minutes before, how is that better than at the ticket desk? I do disagree with the ticket agent's decision to charge the price difference between tickets. It is apparent he was close, but you'll win more bees with honey.
3. With every spare part stored at each airport that has a high amount of WN operations, you can watch your prices go up. Southwest has a model that works, and having overly redundant things is not a part of it.
No offense intended, but there is a lot more that goes on at an airline than you know. Those people are not out to make your life suck. They have to work twice as hard when the flights are overbooked, delayed, etc. Airlines are businesses not conveniences.
-TJ
Airline Mgmt. in Training
And the problem is that ever since they all started trying to run their operations as thinly as possible, they've all SUCKED. Raise the damn prices, and get the service back to the level of competence they used to have back in the 1970s and early 1980s. Southwest's model clearly DOESN'T work... witness all of the problems shown in the show (parts not available, planes overbooked, etc.). It merely sucks less than the rest, maybe.
Airplanes nowadays are like Greyhound busses. The only truly good airlines are the ones that still charge a lot (Virgin Atlantic, etc.). All the rest, especially Southwest, are cattle cars.
Airplanes nowadays are like Greyhound busses. The only truly good airlines are the ones that still charge a lot (Virgin Atlantic, etc.). All the rest, especially Southwest, are cattle cars.
iGary said:That would be awesome!!
Umm, depending what an asshat I was...
I knew they were watching and interviewing me, but I WAS pissed.
Everyone was confused - that was the main problem.
Watch and see.
Why do I see a remake of the "I should have used FedEx" commercials?
iGary said:God, I'm scared now.
Everyone and their brother knows!
Bah!
That shows you about airing dirty laundry on MR.
stubeeef said:
Gasp, hope that you still have a flying job! Maybe I missed something in your posts.
You have a point. The excuses given by the commercial pilots are laughable. As are the schedules that the airlines have. My flight from ORD was delayed to SFO by an hour for some darn TSA security screening problem; but we were still able to land in SFO 5 minutes ahead of schedule. So much padding in the schedules now.
clayj said:
Welcome to the new reality. My recent flight to SFO from DCA and back had me worried about not being "confirmed" and on board 30 minutes before flight time.
Did you know (some one will correct me if I am wrong) that the airline on time performance is based on the time the aircraft door is closed. not the time it lifts off from the runway?
The Superman reference is why I show up 1 1/2 hour before my flight. This was even when I lived 5 miles from IAD, and had the first flight in the morning. Pretty sad when you show up before the gate agents.
As to parts, it is really hard to stock all the parts that might be needed, if you are not at a service hub. It does get to the issue of the airlines protecting their butts against possible liability for delays.
We as travelers are given so little real information as to what is going on. I sat on the IAD runway for weather delays, while no less than 10 flights took off (only two of which were "local" flights that might not have been impaired by the weather).
iGary said:Yeah, we finally made it to Providence and my publisher bitched me out for booking the photographer and pilot through BWI to meet me.
You do realize that if traffic is with you that you could have made the trip in 6 to 7 hours.
puckhead193 said:
Reminds me of the "musical gates" game that United had me play so many years ago at Boston. I thought I was in a remake of "Airport"; now departing at gate 5, gate 7, gate 11.....
atszyman said:
So no more of the cheap flights on "off" days from DFW to the likes of San Antonio? Was so tempted back in the late 80's for for the Xmas day round trips for just $29.
clayj said:
You bring up a great point. There are travelers like myself that would be willing to pay more if if the service was guaranteed to be better than than the rest. More seat room. No over booking (like FlyI).
Though I wish the US airlines had to run themselves like their European brethren. It is my understanding that n airline Ryan Air has a cost associated to each seat (taxes and the such). So it is possible to fly for as little as $5.
Chip NoVaMac said:
Oh those still happen now and again, only more like $50 one way. Not bad for a weekend trip but by the time you get to the airport an hour ahead of time, have a one hour flight barring delays and get off the plane and find your ride you're at close to 3 hours spent doing the airport thing and it's roughly a four hour drive from DFW to San Antonio, IIRC, which means I can get there in four hours and leave on my schedule if I drive or I can risk getting delayed for hours at the airport and have to follow their schedule. With all of the new airport security stuff and the cost of parking it makes it a lot easier to drive. One of my co-workers does the same thing with Houston, flies every once in a great while and always talks of how driving would have taken just as long, and you have your car when you get there.
clayj said:
Airlines like jetBlue do not overbook (also Independence, as mentioned above). If you want service WN is not the airline to fly. You pay Greyhound prices, you get Greyhound service. That is why I fly United loyally. Pleasant crew, nice planes, top notch service every time.
-TJ
atszyman said:
So right! If I can get there in 8 hours of driving (maybe not with the gas pries of today), I am more likely to drive than fly once all the expenses are figured in.
It is hard to figure more than the gas expenses for the purists here. Since taxes, tags, insurance, and the such don't matter - since you pay them whether the cars sits unused or you drive 100K+ a year.
Will never fly United again unless they are the only choice.Superdrive said:
They were the airline that played musical gates in Boston so many years ago. They were also the airline that told me that I could get a "medical hardship" upgrade to first class, only to be told that first class was too valuable to just "give away".
Fair enough. But when I requested food to take my pain medication, because the telephone agent did not explain properly the the "financial burden" I would place on unused first class seats - I was told that I should have brought food with with me.
This was the time that United ran the TV commercials that showed the uncertainty that their passengers had, while their staff waited for their trainer.
For those that question my motives. I was bed ridden for a week before my flight. I had a doctors note clearing me for my flight, along with a request that they extend what ever "comfort" they could provide (not to be graphic, but it was a testicular infection that required a bit more "space" to be comfortable in).
It was a matter of expectations. The telephone person gave me no indication that my request was above norm. In fact they suggested that that this was done as a space available basis. Just show up two hours before flight time.
That is OK. Pay back is a bitch. Had an over booked flight from Tampa to DCA on the old Midway Airlines. I agreed to be bumped if they could get me on the United flight to IAD that evening. United was just a little upset at the "ticket price" for my return being only $5!
XIII said:Anyone gonna get a download of the show set up, for us poor europeans?
....and the poor Australian's
XIII said:Anyone gonna get a download of the show set up, for us poor europeans?
indeed, if anyone can clip out the iGary bits and send them to me [asif786 AT gmail.com] I'll put them online..
Chip NoVaMac said:
Well things have been a bit topsy turvey for you this summer, but this
this post..
Attachments
That's correct - over here it's even in the timetables, although most people are unaware of this, at least the ones I asked.Chip NoVaMac said:
That's also true -I just booked a flight from London to Jerez in Southern Spain for £0.05 each way. Taxes and charges bump the price upto £23.50 return. The taxes vary for each destination (depending on local airport taxes and landing fees). AFAIK they don't overbook - it simply says there are no flights available.Chip NoVaMac said:
Can someone send a copy to Asif786 so he can host it? I really want to see this
iGary, I got it on tape, but sounds like clayj got a nicer copy via Tivo. I'll hold on to the VHS until you let me know you've got it, just in case.
btw, I was expecting fire and brimstone. Were you exaggerating, or did they do you a friendly edit job?
btw, I was expecting fire and brimstone. Were you exaggerating, or did they do you a friendly edit job?
powermac666 said:iGary, I got it on tape, but sounds like clayj got a nicer copy via Tivo. I'll hold on to the VHS until you let me know you've got it, just in case.
btw, I was expecting fire and brimstone. Were you exaggerating, or did they do you a friendly edit job?
I thought I said the f word.
They made fun of my buddha belly. Bastiches.
I'll let you know if I need your copy, PM666 - Thanks!
