# "Fly the Friendly Skies"



## KmH (Jul 6, 2017)

NOT!

United apologizes after giving away toddler's purchased seat

Stunning!


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## Designer (Jul 6, 2017)

United Is very good at the "shrug".  We quit UA years ago.


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## table1349 (Jul 6, 2017)

For Sale, One Slightly Beat Up Airline, Service is poor and employees are stupid but has great bones.  Price $3,000,000,000 or best offer.


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## benhasajeep (Jul 16, 2017)

Luckily I don't fly United as much as I used to fly Continental.  But my company puts us on whom ever is cheapest when they move us around.  Luckily no Spirit, Frontier, or Allegiant.  But all the airlines are getting worse.  There will be more mergers and it will get worse than now.


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## 407370 (Jul 16, 2017)

Trust me when I say you aint seen nothing yet.
Globally airlines are racing to the bottom. Pay staff less, have cheap ops systems, charge pax more, pay vendors less, equip aircraft with less equipment etc etc etc
USA is like a barometer for the rest of the aviation industry. The LCC in America set the tone for the rest of the world (thats a bad thing) europeans are incapable of putting up with bad service so airlines in Europe meet a certain standard or passengers dont come back. USA however seems to be able to physically abuse passengers and people still book with them.


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## WhaleDaughter (Jul 17, 2017)

It's says an apology, but I hope that included a full refund of both their tickets. 
And a bit of shame on the standby passenger for not giving the seat back.


"Rule 408: Time is not the boss of you"


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## smoke665 (Jul 17, 2017)

Has actually been several years since we've flown, and don't see us flying commercial in the foreseeable future for medical reasons, but there was a time when it seemed as if I lived either at an airport or on a plane. IMO United has a people problem on the front lines, and likely several layers up. Granted attitudes can filter down from the top, but customer service begins at the point you make contact with your customer.


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## benhasajeep (Jul 17, 2017)

407370 said:


> Trust me when I say you aint seen nothing yet.
> Globally airlines are racing to the bottom. Pay staff less, have cheap ops systems, charge pax more, pay vendors less, equip aircraft with less equipment etc etc etc
> USA is like a barometer for the rest of the aviation industry. The LCC in America set the tone for the rest of the world (thats a bad thing) europeans are incapable of putting up with bad service so airlines in Europe meet a certain standard or passengers dont come back. USA however seems to be able to physically abuse passengers and people still book with them.



Actually Ryan Air was the catalyst that others copy now.  Southwest who for some reason gets put in the same category as a discount carrier but that's not the case anymore.  They are riding on their reputation from when they first started out flying just in TX and surrounding states.  They have not been a true discount carrier since going full national.  Spirit and Alegiant both studied Ryan Air (literally, went to them and asked what they do).  And are basically copies.

For those that don't know.  I have worked for an airline for 18 years now!  If I could, I would get out tomorrow!!


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## smoke665 (Jul 17, 2017)

benhasajeep said:


> For those that don't know. I have worked for an airline for 18 years now! If I could, I would get out tomorrow!!



Why??? Can you elaborate more, is it the pay, stress, corporate climate, don't like working????? I owned an over the road trucking company for 25 years, and hated it, but it made a lot of money over the years. I saw it as a means to an end, to retire young , but the stress levels took a toll.


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## benhasajeep (Jul 17, 2017)

smoke665 said:


> benhasajeep said:
> 
> 
> > For those that don't know. I have worked for an airline for 18 years now! If I could, I would get out tomorrow!!
> ...



Stress level and tired of traveling.  I am home less than 1/4 of the year.  Pay is better than some places, but less than several others.  Upper management is also a pain.  Middle managers are ok.


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## smoke665 (Jul 17, 2017)

benhasajeep said:


> Stress level and tired of traveling



I can relate to that, there was time when I traveled so much, that when I woke up in a motel/hotel, I would have a panic attack not knowing where I was. I finally learned to put the phone book on the night stand in plain view so I saw it first thing! LOL

I missed a lot of family time, that in itself created marital problems, as my wife didn't understand. To her, it was all fun and games on the road.


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## table1349 (Jul 17, 2017)

benhasajeep said:


> 407370 said:
> 
> 
> > Trust me when I say you aint seen nothing yet.
> ...


I would disagree. Southwest is still a discount airline, the best of the discount airlines perhaps, but still a discount compared to the standard fare.  You still don't pay for up to two checked bags and unlike the other airlines that have assigned seats they still have Ninja boarding.  *

"*Passengers 1 through 40..*....*..*GO!!!!!"*


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## 407370 (Jul 17, 2017)

gryphonslair99 said:


> I would disagree. Southwest is still a discount airline, the best of the discount airlines perhaps, but still a discount compared to the standard fare.  You still don't pay for up to two checked bags and unlike the other airlines that have assigned seats they still have Ninja boarding.
> *
> "*Passengers 1 through 40..*....*..*GO!!!!!"*


See thats the thing! passengers dont know anything but fares. Cheapest means book. The discerning traveller will have an interest in the airline as a whole. "
_Is that the airline that dragged the bleeding guy out of the seat he paid for?" _would be the kiss of death for Easyjet or Ryanair but people still travel on United?????
Southwest is a different kettle of fish. Lots of happy staff and customers. If I was in USA and needed to fly thats who I would look at first. I would walk rather walk than book United. 
Skytrax is the airline industry recognised quality register United HERE Southwest HERE


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## benhasajeep (Jul 18, 2017)

It is nice you don't have to be elite or some credit card to check bags on SW.  But everything ends there.  I can't stand not having assigned seats.  And of course they only fly 737's with slimline seats.  Not bad for 1-2 hour flight.  But they are flying longer flights and those slimline seats are just not comfortable.  They didn't pick them for comfort, they use them so they can stuff an extra 2 rows on the planes!  I just love it when someone pulls something out of the seat pocket behind you.  And you can feel what ever it is running up your back.  Of course the other airlines are no better.  They are putting 10 wide seating on their 777's in coach.  That's charter configuration!  But they are doing it so they can add room for first and business class lie flat seats.  But they don't want to loose any coach seats either.  So their solution is to go from a comfortable 9 abreast seating to 10 abreast with narrower seats.  And these are the planes that fly 10, 14, 16 hours!!! 16 hours in a narrower slimline seat.  NO THANK YOU!


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## The_Traveler (Jul 18, 2017)

Any flight over 3 or 4 hours I fly business class. I'm too damn old to scrunch into economy any more. I'm not fat or bulky just stiff jointed.


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## table1349 (Jul 22, 2017)

US fines American, Frontier and Delta over violation claims

I'm thinking United is next in line.


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## davidharmier60 (Sep 21, 2017)

Southwest has a happy culture and I'll fly the cattle car or drive myself. But then I rarely ever go anywhere anyway. I wouldn't fly United for free.

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## Jamesaz (Sep 21, 2017)

You can travel across the continent in 6 hours. It's a travel day and you know it's going to suck from the time you buy your ticket. You then get to travel back later. All for about $500. Not really a bad value when you consider what some other things cost.


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## davidharmier60 (Sep 22, 2017)

I'd rather ride a bus than fly United.
But that's just me.

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## KmH (Sep 22, 2017)

The last time flying commercial was my only option was in 2005.
Ever since I've been able to take Amtrak whenever I needed/wanted to travel.


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