Date: 26: April 2012
Airline: US Airways, flight 1760
Location: Charlotte, NC
I traveled from Cincinnati (flight 2709) to Charlotte (flight 1760) to Hartford, CT on April 26, 2012. When I arrived at the airport in Cincinnati, I was instructed that I was being put on an earlier flight because of weather in Charlotte. The agent printed me two boarding passes that displayed my reserved seat numbers. I arrived in Charlotte and was at the gate for over an hour before the flight left. When I went to board the plane, the agent scanned my boarding pass and asked me to step to the side where the agent Ron would assist me.
The agent punched a couple of keys and said, "Oh my…looks like you won't be getting out of here until the next flight. You can have a seat over there. The next flight isn't until 8:30 pm. Looks like you have a few hours to wait." I said I purchased the ticket in February, my boarding pass indicates I have a seat and that I needed to be in Connecticut by 6:30 pm. He simply looked at me and said, "I don't know what to tell you." I questioned how they could give my seat away when I had a boarding pass with a reserved seat.
The supervisor then brought up a separate conversation about the gentlemen before me and how they should have called the police and had him arrested because he became upset that they gave his seat away. I overheard that conversation, and the gentlemen they were referring to was NOT rude. He simply was asking questions to understand how they could give away his seat and downgrade him when he was clearly a gold member frequent flyer.
After he boarded the plane, the supervisor (older women, gray hair, heavy set around 5 feet 3) continued to bad mouth him in front of all the customers; threatening how she was going to take care of this situation; how the agent should have called the police and have him 'thrown' off the plane, etc.
I was appalled by their behavior and the lack of respect they were showing this man. This type of issue should not be discussed at the counter where everyone can hear. It should be discussed in privacy to not discredit and disrespect customers when they aren't there.
I felt threatened that the supervisor was indirectly warning me that if I kept asking questions, they would call the police on me if I didn't just say okay and had a seat. I never raised my voice nor was I rude. It was critical that I was in Connecticut as originally planned. They clearly overbooked the flight, but they never asked for volunteers to give up their seats.
Again, I told the agent how important it was that I be in Connecticut by 6:30 and asked if they could please see if there were any empty seats. He proceeded to tell me all his problems; demonstrated frustration through verbal and non-verbal expressions and repeated twenty times it wasn't his fault. The lack of accountability, poor customer service and unprofessionalism this gentlemen and the supervisor continued to demonstrate was ridiculous.
I eventually got on the plane, which the agent and the supervisor proceeded to act as though they did "ME" a big favor. I fly every week to a different state with my job. I will NEVER fly US Airways again and I will be sure to share my experience with the travel department. The CEO Letter by Doug Parker states "Doing Our Very Best". If that is what they consider their very best, perhaps they should benchmark against Southwest and how they treat their customers. Southwest is one best airlines I have ever flown.
US Airways need to remember without customers flying their airline, they wouldn't have a job. Customers should not be threaten with the police because they are simply inquiring why their seat was given away with no effort for resolution, compensation or accommodations.
- Brenda
Showing posts with label us. Show all posts
Showing posts with label us. Show all posts
18 November 2009
A Reminder that Some Delays Are an Inconveniece to More than Just the Passenger
This complaint, sent in by Andrew, is a reminder that airline delays can cause serious inconveniences to many more people than just the ones on the airplane.
Date: 8 November 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Airline: USAir Express (Air Wisconsin) Flight 3741, ATL to PHL
Dear USAirways:
I am writing this letter from (a hotel) in Charlotte, North Carolina, where it had been no part of my travel plans to find myself tonight. I am writing to protest and complain about the treatment I have received today from your airline.
Yes, it was a good thing for your contractor, Air Wisconsin operating as USAirExpress, flight 3741, to have a pilot who set the plane down safely for an unscheduled stop in Greenville-Spartansburg not long after leaving Atlanta at 10:51AM on our way to Philadelphia (see flight data from FlightAware). After that, your company’s performance was poor.
The USAirways staff at that location first informed us (after an hour or so on the ground) that our flight had been canceled and that new equipment was being sought. That would have been within the range of acceptable airline responsibility. It was quite a bit less acceptable to hear (after another hour or so) that instead, we would be taken by bus to Charlotte. We did not leave Greenville-Spartanburg until well after 2PM, now already 3 hours after leaving Atlanta. I was not offered and did not receive a meal voucher in Greenville-Spartanburg.
After traffic delays, we arrived at Charlotte at around 4:20PM and I stood in line for over an hour and twenty minutes before any USAirways staff attempted to deal with my situation. We were told by staff there that no efforts at all had been made by anyone during our trip to find us alternative routing and that they would need to start from scratch. That waiting line did not move at all for a long time; a few of the more vociferous passengers seemed to get some attention, and some of them seemed to get onto new outbound flights. By the time I reached a podium, close to 5:40PM, I was told that there were no remaining seats on any flights from Charlotte to anywhere that could connect to Philadelphia flights for tonight.
Between around 1PM, when it was known that no replacement aircraft was coming to Greenville-Spartansburg, and 4:20PM when we arrived in Charlotte, it should have been perfectly possible for USAirways to place every one of us on new flights to our expected destinations. It is a complete failure of responsibility to your passengers that this did not occur.
Although I am alive and well, and our plane did not crash, I am in a hotel room in a strange city instead of being home in my own bed. I got $15 worth of meal vouchers that covered part of my dinner here at the hotel. I will also have incurred another day’s parking charges at the Philadelphia airport, for which I consider USAirways to be responsible. And even on the earliest available flight, I will not be able to get to work at the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center in time to begin seeing patients on schedule. In addition to inconveniencing me, USAirways will be responsible for delaying needed care for our returning combat veterans seeking mental health treatment.
Please consider me a very dissatisfied customer. The accommodations and vouchers received so far may begin to meet your statutory requirements but they come nowhere near addressing the breach in relationship and responsibility that your company has inflicted today. As a Philadelphia-based traveler, it is not easy to avoid USAirways, but you have given me every reason to try very hard to do so.
AirSafe.com Responds
As we have said before for previous delay complaints, US airlines are not required to offer any compensation whatsoever for passenger delays on domestic flights. That said, a reasonable airline would make reasonable accommodations for passengers who face more than a minor delay. In this case, getting passengers to their destination on the same day, would likely be acceptable to an overnight stay in a strange city, even if all costs were covered by the carrier.
Suggested Passenger Actions
When faced with a significant delay or a diversion, if the airline is dragging its feet or otherwise does not seem capable of quickly getting you on an alternative flight, one action you can take is to call the airline's reservations department to see what you can arrange. If you can work something on the phone, then all you may have to do is get a boarding pass.
If your airline can't arrange a flight, you may want to contact another airline that is serving that airport (either at the airport or by phone) to see if they have an alternative available. Your airline may not reimburse you for doing this, but if time is critical, the money you spend to get to your destination sooner may be worth it.
You should also contact the airline's customer service department with details of the service shortcomings, and a very specific request for compensation. For details on what kinds of information should be in a request for compensation, visit the AirSafe.com How to Complain About Your Airline page.
Date: 8 November 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Airline: USAir Express (Air Wisconsin) Flight 3741, ATL to PHL
Dear USAirways:
I am writing this letter from (a hotel) in Charlotte, North Carolina, where it had been no part of my travel plans to find myself tonight. I am writing to protest and complain about the treatment I have received today from your airline.
Yes, it was a good thing for your contractor, Air Wisconsin operating as USAirExpress, flight 3741, to have a pilot who set the plane down safely for an unscheduled stop in Greenville-Spartansburg not long after leaving Atlanta at 10:51AM on our way to Philadelphia (see flight data from FlightAware). After that, your company’s performance was poor.
The USAirways staff at that location first informed us (after an hour or so on the ground) that our flight had been canceled and that new equipment was being sought. That would have been within the range of acceptable airline responsibility. It was quite a bit less acceptable to hear (after another hour or so) that instead, we would be taken by bus to Charlotte. We did not leave Greenville-Spartanburg until well after 2PM, now already 3 hours after leaving Atlanta. I was not offered and did not receive a meal voucher in Greenville-Spartanburg.
After traffic delays, we arrived at Charlotte at around 4:20PM and I stood in line for over an hour and twenty minutes before any USAirways staff attempted to deal with my situation. We were told by staff there that no efforts at all had been made by anyone during our trip to find us alternative routing and that they would need to start from scratch. That waiting line did not move at all for a long time; a few of the more vociferous passengers seemed to get some attention, and some of them seemed to get onto new outbound flights. By the time I reached a podium, close to 5:40PM, I was told that there were no remaining seats on any flights from Charlotte to anywhere that could connect to Philadelphia flights for tonight.
Between around 1PM, when it was known that no replacement aircraft was coming to Greenville-Spartansburg, and 4:20PM when we arrived in Charlotte, it should have been perfectly possible for USAirways to place every one of us on new flights to our expected destinations. It is a complete failure of responsibility to your passengers that this did not occur.
Although I am alive and well, and our plane did not crash, I am in a hotel room in a strange city instead of being home in my own bed. I got $15 worth of meal vouchers that covered part of my dinner here at the hotel. I will also have incurred another day’s parking charges at the Philadelphia airport, for which I consider USAirways to be responsible. And even on the earliest available flight, I will not be able to get to work at the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center in time to begin seeing patients on schedule. In addition to inconveniencing me, USAirways will be responsible for delaying needed care for our returning combat veterans seeking mental health treatment.Please consider me a very dissatisfied customer. The accommodations and vouchers received so far may begin to meet your statutory requirements but they come nowhere near addressing the breach in relationship and responsibility that your company has inflicted today. As a Philadelphia-based traveler, it is not easy to avoid USAirways, but you have given me every reason to try very hard to do so.
AirSafe.com Responds
As we have said before for previous delay complaints, US airlines are not required to offer any compensation whatsoever for passenger delays on domestic flights. That said, a reasonable airline would make reasonable accommodations for passengers who face more than a minor delay. In this case, getting passengers to their destination on the same day, would likely be acceptable to an overnight stay in a strange city, even if all costs were covered by the carrier.
Suggested Passenger Actions
When faced with a significant delay or a diversion, if the airline is dragging its feet or otherwise does not seem capable of quickly getting you on an alternative flight, one action you can take is to call the airline's reservations department to see what you can arrange. If you can work something on the phone, then all you may have to do is get a boarding pass.
If your airline can't arrange a flight, you may want to contact another airline that is serving that airport (either at the airport or by phone) to see if they have an alternative available. Your airline may not reimburse you for doing this, but if time is critical, the money you spend to get to your destination sooner may be worth it.
You should also contact the airline's customer service department with details of the service shortcomings, and a very specific request for compensation. For details on what kinds of information should be in a request for compensation, visit the AirSafe.com How to Complain About Your Airline page.
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