Snooper"s Video Collection

Thursday, March 27, 2008

US Airways Sucks

ANO

So, let me see if I have this right...

I book a flight two weeks in advance in preparation of the massive Gathering in DC for Operation Eagles Muster, including "trip protection" only to find out that the flight is canceled.

An announcement is made that "we will get you on the next available flight to your destination."

This naturally, relegates said passengers as "stand by passengers".

Then, we find out that the professionals at US Airways have an SOP to over-book flights in anticipation that some will not show up and/or miss their flights for one reason or another, causing passengers un-asked-for agitation when told, "Ladies and Gentlemen. This flight is over-booked so we are asking for volunteers to surrender their assigned seating in exchange for a free round-trip ticket anywhere in the continental US and Alaska. This ticket will be good for 1-year. If you surrender your seat, we will get you on the next flight. Thank you."

Then, later on, when the plane arrives and the usual boarding is to begin, another announcement comes on and says something like this, "Ladies and Gentleman. The seating assignments have been issued in the order that passengers have been checked in and the flights are completely booked.

Looking further into this situation, it becomes apparent that since several flights have been canceled, many passengers are in competition with others for the next available flight and through some mythical void of oddness, there is some top-secret method in determining who gets what seat in accordance to the time of check-in, regardless of confirmed seating from a previous flight that has been canceled.

Delving into this deeper, it has always been (at least to me) known that if one has confirmed booking, complete with the usual confirmation code and all, that the airliner has an obligation to get one on a flight to destination. Apparently, this s not the case.

I have one more opportunity to catch a wave to DC and I will be trying that is just a few hours.