US Airways Dividend Miles (Pre-FlightFund Merger) - PHL to LAX in FC report

Just finished a PHL to LAX trip on a really great roach fare in 1st and it wasn't a bad experience:

Depart Wednesday Flight 21. We were served pre-departure drinks by a polite FA. After the mandatory 1/2 wait on the runway we got up and a second round of drinks were served. Breakfast was a choice of cheese omlete or french toast or cereal. This was accompanied by a muffin and fruit bowl. My french toast and bacon were average but edible and the fuit was fresh as was the muffin. FA, about an hour and a half prior to landing brought around the standard snack basket.

On the return, flight 30, we were again served a pre-departure drink. The food was either a salad with chicken breasts or a chicken wrap sandwich. It came with mushroom soup and a warm chocolate chip cookie.

As far as I am concerned there is nothing wrong with FC on the trans-con flights. Yes, I miss the hot towel and glasses but ITS NOT THAT BIG A DEAL. If the airline can save some coins without glassware so be it.

My one gripe is that the LAX to PHL leg was on a A319 instead of the 757 that I flew on the inbound leg. Now don't get me wrong the 319 is a comfy bird but it only has 3 rows of FC. For us roaches who don't like to mix with the masses back in steerage it makes for some real nasty compitition for that last open seat in first. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

P.S. I forgot to add that the limes were green!

[This message has been edited by sassamanlaw (edited 08-08-2003).]

[This message has been edited by sassamanlaw (edited 08-08-2003).]

If you toss in glassware in FC, then you have described a perfectly acceptable FC Transcon Experience IMHO!

I'm not one to expect restaurant quality cuisine in FC so the meal followed by a snack basket a few hours later is fine. Bring back the glassware and I'm a happy camper! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

As for green limes - you lucky bugger!!! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

I agree with GEO. Bring back the glassware.

BRING BACK THE GLASSes! I am glad I am US1 because I don't think I could bring myself to buy a single $40 coupon for US's FC these days.

I'll sit in E+ before I give BBB another dime for the US FC product. Just one upgrade coupon purchase could pay them at least 2X what they spend on catering and glass washing in FC. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/mad.gif

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by MikeM6090:
I agree with GEO. Bring back the glassware.</font>

Let's look at the big picture shall we? The company just emerged from Chapter 11 and it is still bleeding cash. There are many things they can do with the cash saved from cutting corners - like hiring more cleaning crews. Keeping the airline running is what is important now, we can petition to get the frills back later when the industry as a whole is doing better. I think for now we just have to weather the storm and pray for green limes.

Hello???!!!

Where you BBB's intern??

By cutting the QUALITY of the service, by ALIENATING US's most loyal customers and by turning the airline into a poor version of America Worst and headed to Southwest. They are driving away revenue. UA is in bankruptcy and has mantained quality. US has cut qaulity, lost truckloads of bags in PHL and is still expecting its revenue to come from Y and B fares. They continue to reduce service in the hopes that if they shrink themselves small enough they can sell those B and Y fares. That is the failure in their business model. I just hope a bell goes off in the Crystal Palace before it is too late

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by sassamanlaw:
Let's look at the big picture shall we? The company just emerged from Chapter 11 and it is still bleeding cash. There are many things they can do with the cash saved from cutting corners - like hiring more cleaning crews. Keeping the airline running is what is important now, we can petition to get the frills back later when the industry as a whole is doing better. I think for now we just have to weather the storm and pray for green limes.</font>

Can we agree on a few things? #1 USAir just emerged from Chapter 11. #2 It still has not shown a profit since it emerged from Chapter 11. #3 The quickest way to get to Chapter 7 is not to show a profit.

You can whine all you want about the loss of perks, I'm more interested in the fact that the airline is still up and running. Remember the goal of an airline, or any common carrier, is to get the traveller from point A to point B alive and well. Anything else is a perk. So to achieve this goal the carrier must have fleet of aircraft - USAir's fleet is shrinking and that's a concern. The aircraft must be maintained - I don't know if they are cutting back on non mandatory maintenance - if they are that's a concern. You need to get the passengers and baggage aboard the planes in a timely and efficient fashion - you rightly note the Philly baggage fiasco plus there are the cut backs of gate agents - another concern.

With all these critical factors needing attention (meaning money) and a limited income stream of money what would you have them do? You need to stop the hemorrhaging of a major atery before you worry about a little nick.

You can have all the glassware you want, but I think you may look a little silly standing on the tarmac with a gin and tonic in a glass while your plane is parked in the Arizona desert because the airline went belly-up.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by NeoOfTheCRS:
Hello???!!!

Where you BBB's intern??

By cutting the QUALITY of the service, by ALIENATING US's most loyal customers and by turning the airline into a poor version of America Worst and headed to Southwest. They are driving away revenue. UA is in bankruptcy and has mantained quality. US has cut qaulity, lost truckloads of bags in PHL and is still expecting its revenue to come from Y and B fares. They continue to reduce service in the hopes that if they shrink themselves small enough they can sell those B and Y fares. That is the failure in their business model. I just hope a bell goes off in the Crystal Palace before it is too late

</font>

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by sassamanlaw:
Let's look at the big picture shall we?</font>

Sure. Chasing away a single customer who actually pays for F from this move easily wipes out all of the so called costs savings that it might result in.

This is Mickey Mouse cost savings. The dollars are miniscule in the scheme of things and the accounting highly questionable. It doesn't help the company survive or improve profitability at all. All that it does is to make a statement about spreading the pain to those weasels who upgrade. This resonates with some employees and coach customers who think that F is "worth" $2,000 and that they "lose money" by "giving it away". It's pure crap but it plays well in some circles.

What it really does is further reduce the differentiation between V & Y and make the product even more of a 3rd rate commodity thus reducing pricing power and increasing the pressure to cut costs. It's a death spiral. The only way out is to do something different.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by sassamanlaw:
You can have all the glassware you want, but I think you may look a little silly standing on the tarmac with a gin and tonic in a glass while your plane is parked in the Arizona desert because the airline went belly-up. </font>


The point is that business travellers DO have a choice. And the FACT is that at 37,000 feet somewhere over Kansas, there is a US Airbus, an AA 757, a DL 757, a NW Airbus, and a CO 757 all flying transcon routes. All of the First Class passengers on those planes EXCEPT for the US Airways flight are having their beverages in a glass. If US decides to cut the corners on a product THEY market as a PREMIUM service, they better be careful about what the competition is doing. Some beancounter at CCY can point to the cost savings of plastic vs. glassware on the longer flights as a cost saving measuer but where is the marketing guru with the statistic showing the number of high revenue passengers who choose another carrier because their premium product is just that - premium?


If glassware is a "perk" on US Airways and part of the regular service on all the other major carriers domestic FC product, who is in trouble here?

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by sassamanlaw:
Can we agree on a few things? #1 USAir just emerged from Chapter 11. #2 It still has not shown a profit since it emerged from Chapter 11. #3 The quickest way to get to Chapter 7 is not to show a profit.
</font>

There's more to making a profit than cutting costs. You need revenue. And if you take away all the reasons to pay for a ticket you have no revenue. All the cost cutting in the world won't save you from that.

US Airways is differentiated from SWA and the other LCCs in very few ways -- decent business services like an F cabin are one of the very few things that remain. Take that away or reduce to a state where you may as well and the customer is left with no reason whatsoever to choose US Airways. And there's no way that US Airways is ever going to have costs as low as those guys. No matter how many "perks" they pull. They shouldn't be whacking this stuff -- they should be playing it up and giving people a reason to fly the airline.

It seems like I'm a minority of one. So be it, I've been known to tilt at windmills before.

But on general philosophy, I think schedule and price are the key elements at least to me and my firm. We fly out of Philly so USAir is the most convenient for us because it gets us to where we want to go when we want to get there. If, however, US was charging an outrageous rate, which they are sometimes known to do, we'll use another airline. It's that simple. I have never altered my flight because airline A gives more cashews than airline B.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the perks just as much as the next guy. However, would I book a different airline for more money or at a less convenient time just to get better first class service? No.

[This message has been edited by sassamanlaw (edited 08-08-2003).]

Tom is right on!!!

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by TomBascom:
There's more to making a profit than cutting costs. You need revenue. And if you take away all the reasons to pay for a ticket you have no revenue. All the cost cutting in the world won't save you from that.

US Airways is differentiated from SWA and the other LCCs in very few ways -- decent business services like an F cabin are one of the very few things that remain. Take that away or reduce to a state where you may as well and the customer is left with no reason whatsoever to choose US Airways. And there's no way that US Airways is ever going to have costs as low as those guys. No matter how many "perks" they pull. They shouldn't be whacking this stuff -- they should be playing it up and giving people a reason to fly the airline.</font>

All the cost-cutting in the world doesn't fix a broken revenue model.

I am a paying customer, and this is a business transaction. Their sob stories about not being able to afford glassware (and printed menus, and decent snacks in the Clubs, and limes and lemons, etc.) are getting tiresome.

That said, their crew have some of the best attitudes out there, and I suppose that does somewhat make up for all of the above.

Bring back glassware??? How about bring back real forks and spoons!!!

Had those on my UA flights this week.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by ITRADE:
Bring back glassware??? How about bring back real forks and spoons!!!

Had those on my UA flights this week.</font>

forks and spoons??? F*** that, knives, we want metal knives!!!! .... Actualy the new high quality plastic knives arent too bad. In fact I don't realy see how they are any less dangerous than metal knives?

Just flew SAN-PHL in F. Yellow limes. Mushroom soup served with tiny plastic spoons. Otherwise an OK flite. Got in 20 minutes early which meant 30 minutes on the tarmac waiting to pull up to the gate. Par for the course at PHL.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by jcrb:
forks and spoons??? F*** that, knives, we want metal knives!!!! .... Actualy the new high quality plastic knives arent too bad. In fact I don't realy see how they are any less dangerous than metal knives?

</font>


I understand the rationale behind the knives, but a nice metal fork would be wonderful to eat with.

My mushroom soup (LAX-PIT) was actually in a real bowl/cup, not the styrofoam or aluminum heating container from the last few flights. And the chicken wrap was quite tasty. I put it up with the late, lamented rock shrimp/marscapone ravioli US used to serve as ones I would be happy to eat at home.

I do wish the spoons were bigger for the soup - you get about 1/2 tsp. with every scoop, but I can live with the rest. Yes, perhaps my expectations have been lowered from the good old days, but I had to fly both Southwest and United long-haul w/meal service in the last 2 weeks and US F is miles ahead.

I just ask for 3 bottles of water before takeoff and I'm set for the flight, so no glass doesn't bother me.