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I just looked up the price of a flight from Houston, TX to Boston, MA and I got $216.00.
Does United believe that squeezing $216.00 profit (if that is even the final amount) is worth the eventual social media/news hullabaloo that is guaranteed to follow?
Have they still not empowered their staff to protect their company's image and keep customers happy?
I just looked up the price of a flight from Houston, TX to Boston, MA and I got $216.00.
Does United believe that squeezing $216.00 profit (if that is even the final amount) is worth the eventual social media/news hullabaloo that is guaranteed to follow?
Have they still not empowered their staff to protect their company's image and keep customers happy?
The staff don't care about squeezing out another $216 in profit. Their problem is that they are lazy and surly. UA can try to "empower the staff to protect the company's image and keep customers happy" until they're blue in the face, but it will not make any difference if the staff simply do not care. Just read Campfire's posts as an example of their attitude -- it's always the passengers fault, so just suck it up buttercup. As long as people keep buying tickets on UA, the abusive behavior will continue. The only way to fix it is for people to fly a different airline.
What is it with these United people? They never seem to learn, no matter how much awful publicity they're getting.
Well a few reasons, high level:
1. The 2010 merger between United and Continental was a corrupt mess. Many scrappy policies (I.T., customer service, etc) was kept from Continental and much of the c-suite management as well. CO's policy is likely to blame for this incident (seat assignments missing), Dr. Dao (compensation limits and overbooking policies), and the old man who got beat up in Houston in 2015 was by a legacy Continental employee.
2. Most of the legacy CO management has been forced out or left. Jeff Smisek was almost indicted on a corruption scandal in 2015 at Newark airport - Look up "Chairman's Flight." The new executives have experience but don't know "where the bodies are buried" hence these policy mishaps. The airline top to bottom needs to be cleaned out.
3. Cost cutting across the board from the merger: Closing JFK, dumping legacy mainline aircraft and not replacing regional jets fast enough, steaming entertainment (garbage), and the fact the failed c-suite could not merge both airlines together until Oscar came aboard.
4. Oscar's blind allegiance to his employees but not as much a paying customer.
Figure this about the merger: Most of the good legacy United and Continental c-suite and managers went to other companies or airlines and all the bad stank up Willis Tower. In the case of CO, some even were poached by Delta when they were emerging from bankruptcy by luring them over with massive salary increases.
. As long as people keep buying tickets on UA, the abusive behavior will continue. The only way to fix it is for people to fly a different airline.
Maybe Spirit?
Many young people today may not know the history of these big airlines, but I can sum it up in one or two sentences.
Airlines used to be great and secure places to work. Everyone - from the mechanics to the flight attendants - had job security, pensions and good working conditions.
Then came "The Barbarians at the Gates" and in a series of moves, most airlines went "bankrupt" (like Mr. Trump) and therefore were able to stiff employees, creditors, investors and more. United was one that did this more than once.
And so, the die was cast for some pilots to make poverty wages (actually true).
Worse yet, according to airlines like Spirit, this is what the passengers desire...the cheapest possible travel no matter what. "No matter what" includes things like not refunding the return fare when a passenger dies (Spirit refused to do this) and charging $100 for a bag if you check it at the last moment.
One airline thought about offering standing room and a cost per trip to the restroom.
I have to somewhat agree with the Spirt CEO that there is a BIG market for being shoved in like cattle. The fastest growing airlines are almost always the cheapest. The typical scenario these days is to start out being cheap (Jetblue) and then - once you gain customers - hike up everything as much as possible.
Anyway, the point is - consumers should look in the mirror. Home Depot and Walmart out Ma and Pa out of business because YOU wanted them to (you went to the former). Airlines are another perfect example of predatory capitalism...they will squeeze you in and mistreat you just like you are asking for.
If there were more demand for higher end flying, airlines would spring up to provide it. But there is not.
Being treated like a human being and being given a seat with 34" space between the rows is hardly "high end flying".
Wal-Mart is the nation's largest retailer because they're cheap. But there are other options between Wal-Mart and Neiman Marcus, such as Target or JCPenney. I shop at Target or JCPenney because the prices are reasonable, maybe not as bottom-of-barrel cheap as Wal-Mart, but I don't care because I get significantly less crowded stores and better quality merchandise.
Too bad there is nothing like that in commercial aviation. There is nothing between self-loading cargo and NetJets. There are people who would be willing to pay a little more for an airline like that, but the barriers to entry are so high, it just doesn't materialize, which is really sad.
The major airlines try to fill in the gap between bottom-of-the-barrel cheap and NetJets with first class or economy+ but the problem is that you're on the same plane with the surly rude uncaring nasty employees as the people in the back of the bus.
1. The 2010 merger between United and Continental was a corrupt mess. Many scrappy policies (I.T., customer service, etc) was kept from Continental and much of the c-suite management as well. CO's policy is likely to blame for this incident (seat assignments missing), Dr. Dao (compensation limits and overbooking policies), and the old man who got beat up in Houston in 2015 was by a legacy Continental employee.
2. Most of the legacy CO management has been forced out or left. Jeff Smisek was almost indicted on a corruption scandal in 2015 at Newark airport - Look up "Chairman's Flight." The new executives have experience but don't know "where the bodies are buried" hence these policy mishaps. The airline top to bottom needs to be cleaned out.
3. Cost cutting across the board from the merger: Closing JFK, dumping legacy mainline aircraft and not replacing regional jets fast enough, steaming entertainment (garbage), and the fact the failed c-suite could not merge both airlines together until Oscar came aboard.
4. Oscar's blind allegiance to his employees but not as much a paying customer.
Figure this about the merger: Most of the good legacy United and Continental c-suite and managers went to other companies or airlines and all the bad stank up Willis Tower. In the case of CO, some even were poached by Delta when they were emerging from bankruptcy by luring them over with massive salary increases.
Interesting, thanks. I've only flown Continental once, and United never. For some reason, I always felt that they had safety issues.
Interesting, thanks. I've only flown Continental once, and United never. For some reason, I always felt that they had safety issues.
United and Continental are both very safe airlines - mechanically speaking. The only safety problem is the slight chance of getting verbally abused or assaulted by staff these days.
I remember one time back in 2004 I flew LAX-EWR with Continental and left my jacket on the plane, shortly after I was walking up the jetway. I walked right back onto the plane to get it and the flight attendant gave me an earful. When I started to fly between the east and west coasts for college, I remembered to avoid them after that.
Being treated like a human being and being given a seat with 34" space between the rows is hardly "high end flying".
Too bad there is nothing like that in commercial aviation. There is nothing between self-loading cargo and NetJets. There are people who would be willing to pay a little more for an airline like that, but the barriers to entry are so high, it just doesn't materialize, which is really sad.
(
Jetblue has decent room - and is somewhat civil...if you pay extra for the better seats. I'd say it is in-between for flights up to 3 hours.
Again - either you are wrong or capitalism is wrong. The "invisible hand" must not be working or you would see lots of "all business class" airlines springing up. But they are not - which indicates what the people want.
Jetblue has decent room - and is somewhat civil...if you pay extra for the better seats. I'd say it is in-between for flights up to 3 hours.
Again - either you are wrong or capitalism is wrong. The "invisible hand" must not be working or you would see lots of "all business class" airlines springing up. But they are not - which indicates what the people want.
Wait, so I don't get a steak if I'm only willing to pay for a hamburger?
Social media is an interesting melting pot. The collective whole grasps onto extremely isolated incidents and then generalizes them as if isolated incidents are even a statistical blip on the radar. You would think in over 25 years in the cockpit, I would have had at least one incident to rival some of the latest "newsworthy" stories.
But here's the rub, I haven't had one nor have any of my friends or coworkers in the biz. The reality of the situation is that absent minute amount of horrendous customers and employees, air travel is a pretty decent experience today. It's incredibly affordable and unbelievably safe.
There's an entitlement mentality that has arisen from instant gratification on social media in my opinion. Why folks think they deserve steak for hamburger prices confuses me. I imagine it's similar to the confusion one experiences at an Al-Anon meeting. It's difficult to grasp how someone thinks the way they do if you've never been like them. I didn't grow up as a spoiled brat getting everything I wanted. I didn't grow up throwing tantrums when I didn't get my way. For whatever reason, I fully expect to get a hamburger if all I'm willing to pay is for a hamburger.
When things don't go the way they "should", I voice my opinion. If the business disagrees with my opinion, I am free to take my business elsewhere. Why is it that I haven't run into an issue with that? Is it because I am a reasonable person not trying to pull a scam/get something for free/etc....?
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