I know the airlines have a hard job trying to ensure that all the people who have purchased tickets are able to get from point A to point B. However, they bring a lot of this on themselves.
They are the only organization that I know of that provides a service where you have to pay for everything up front. They are the only organization that can sell more than they have, oversold or overbooking. The are the only organization that can claim weather and not have to do anything for you. They are the only organization where the employees just have to claim your are a problem and you are booted off the plane and potentially put on a no fly list.
I personally hate flying and it has nothing to do with fear of flying, but the airlines attitude towards us the customers. To be fair, most of the people behind the counter are friendly and will try to help if they can.
For the life of me I cannot figure out why anyone would want to fly. If I am within 6-8 hours, I drive. Most airports require you to be there an hour early and depending on where you live, you may have to leave 2 hours before your flight takes off. There may be connecting flights, delays, etc. So you think it is only a 4 hour flight, but in reality it is a 6-8 hours flight. When I drive, I get to leave when I want and can decide how much I want to take, where I am going to stop, etc.
I travel for business which I hate and when I am going home, I want to get home. I do not care about your maintenance or other excuses. I want to get home to see my family.
So on Friday 15Jan16, I get a message that my original flight is delayed by 1.5 hours due to maintenance. The time the plane is to land is the exact time the connecting flight is to take off. Obviously, I am going to miss the connecting flight. The personnel at the counter was very helpful and was able to get me to another city that was closer, but only on standby to my final destination. The connecting flight for this final leg was sold out, but I was confirmed for the flight in the morning.
I wanted to get home, but I did not want others to miss their flights. As it turned out, all of the people showed up and I was unable to make it home. The people behind the counter were very nice and were able to get me lodging for the night, but I was told that if it was delayed due to weather, there would have been nothing they can do for me. What? There are a lot of things that could have been done, especially since the last flight was going to its final destination for the night.
I did make it home, but about 10 hours later than I had planned. Why aren’t the connecting flight required to be delayed provided it does not mess someone else up, to allow the people a chance to make their flight. They can make time up in the air if they are that worried. However, the airline does not want this since that would potentially burn more fuel. There solution is basically we do not really care about you the customer since we already have your money. Yes we have to provide the service, but we will do so out our leisure, not yours. This is the main reason that airlines have lost customers over the years.
While I was waiting on all of the standbys, there was a lady who had been at the airport for almost 24 hours. Apparently she had been lied to multiple times and was getting a bit upset. Another man was lied to about giving up his seat because of an oversold situation. When he agreed to give up his seat provided he could make it home that evening. He was told they could do that. So after he gave up his seat, he was then told that he was confirmed on the next flight, but was put on standby on the last leg of his flight. The agreement and the resolution were not the same.
I just want to know why the airlines can get away with being so deceptive, why aren’t they more heavily regulated. Why does the regulation that does exist seem to favor the airlines versus the customers.
As a Christian, I kept my cool the entire time and said thank you were appropriate. Did I want to get upset, yes. However, what would that really solve. In a word nothing. Yes there are times when other action is necessary, but the people behind the counter are not the ones to take these out on. They are just doing their jobs. The ones that need to be contacted are the upper management.
You want to make a statement, then drive when you can and let the airlines know that you would have used their service, but the way they are currently structured, you cannot due to their lack of customer service or more importantly their lack of customer care. These companies worship money and unfortunately, they need to be hit hard in the pockets to really take notice.
I pray that when you get into a situation where they outcome may not be as favorable as you would like, that you are able to main composure and represent Christ as he would have handled the situation. It may not be easy, but with the Lords help, you can do it. So pray to God and seek His help before you open your mouth and say something that may get you into more trouble. In Jesus name I pray for this for you, Amen