United MileagePlus (Consolidated) - United Breaks Passengers. Not Just Guitars!

The 43-hour trip (door -to-door) in early July from Krakow to Washington Dulles was the worst experience I have ever had while on travel. And, I fly a lot (I'm a United 1K flyer, a former Global Services on United, and very close to be a 2-million mile passenger).

This trip was a conclusion of two combined trips: one to San Francisco and the other one to Krakow, Poland. The itinerary on July 8, 2012 was Krakow to San Francisco and then to Washington Dulles.


Dropped From the Upgrade List
The segments on July 8, 2012 from Krakow to Munich and then to London on Lufthansa were great (LH 1627 & LH 2474)- no surprise here! The trouble started when I arrived at the United desk at LHR to board United 931 (LHR to SFO). When I asked about my upgrade request (Coach to Business), I was told that I'm not on the upgrade list. This was unexpected since I enrolled in that list long time befoe that and when I asked about it earlier in both Krakow and Munich I was still on the list. When I asked the United person in LHR to put me back on the upgrade list, she told me that with the NEW United system, they don't have access to United in the US and thus they cannot do it. She told me to call United myself. After 33 minute transatlantic phone call from my cell phone, I was finally put back in the upgrade list.


Got Finally Upgraded
During the long wait while hearing periodic announcements made to let the passengers know that the flight is being delayed (in small increments) due to mechanical problems, I was finally upgraded and received my new boarding card in Business.


“Secretly” Downgraded from Business to Coach
When the long wait (8 hours) was over, I scanned my boarding card to enter the gate. The machine did not accept it and I was told that my boarding card is not valid and that I am assigned to coach again (since the flight was late, I was told, somebody else came on board and was given my seat in Business). I asked why I was not notified immediately when it happened since I might have been able at that time to take another flight, I got no real answer except a ritualistically routine "We are sorry". Since the flight was very late and I was already going to loose a day at work, I decided to board this flight.


Also Dropped From the Special Meal List
Upon my boarding the flight, I asked if my special meal (VGML) is on board. I was told that I'm not on the list of special meals (I was on the list earlier when I talked with United agents including in LHR!). I said that it is extremely difficult for me (I'm allergic to dairy) to be without or with very little food for such a long flight. The purser was extremely nice and she said that she will provide me with what she can. Since the ingredients of the meals are not usually listed, it is hard to tell if the food, even cooked vegetables, contains dairy or not.


Against Security Regulations
Because of the lack of appropriate food, I asked to deplane and also asked that my luggage will deplane too. I was told that my luggage will fly without me - against security regulations! Because the flight was extremely late and the crew was close to the limit of their work time (including the unplanned stopover in Chicago to change the crew), I decided to stay so that the flight could leave.


When the pilot heard about my “story”, he volunteered to give me his reserved seat in Business (I thankfully accepted his offer after I made sure that he has a place to rest during the flight - a bunk where he could lie down, I was told). After a stop in Chicago, we finally arrived in San Francisco at about 1:30AM local time (8 hours late!). I missed flight United 530 that left a few hours earlier.


The Luggage Didn’t Make It!
It took the passengers about an hour to get their luggage. Mine did NOT arrive. I filed a lost luggage report.


Staying the Short Night Near SFO (Hungry and Tired)
Upon my request, United put me in a hotel for the short night. I had 2 hours to sleep. The clerk insisted that I take a shuttle to the hotel in spite fo the fact that I had only 2 hours to sleep that night and every minute counted in that situation. I also got a voucher for $10 (Ten!) for food. After not eating dinner on flight 931 from LRH to SFO (except some pieces of food that were certain not to contain dairy), I was very hungry. Everything was closed at 2:30AM. I managed to sleep 1.5 hours that night.


Flight United 770 from SFO to IAD on July 9th
I was assigned to this flight that brought me to Washington Dulles at about 4PM on July 9th. Luckily, I was upgraded. I had to buy at the airport various things that were in my lost luggage (toiletries, etc.) and eat. The $10 that I got from United was not enough after so many hours without or with very little food.


In contrast with the negligence and unprofessional behavior of some (but not all!) United people mainly in LHR, I had some good experiences dealing with the pursers of flights 931 and 770 (Frank) and the check in person at SFO (Graciela Kaden) and of course light the flight 931 pilot.


Lost Time At Work
Instead of going to work on July 9th, I went to work only on July 10 and had to leave my office early (and loose another half a day) to be at home waiting for the delivery of my lost luggage. It was discovered in London and came late to IAD on Tuesday, July 10. In spite of the fact that I was notified that the luggage will arrive home before 4PM, it did arrive only around 6PM.


United "Reaction"
I complained about the late luggage and was told to write to United about it and get reimbursed for my expenses. My expenses of the whole affairs were $235.76 (plus lost time at work and suffering). I submitted a report on July 20 and when I have not heard a response from United, I faxed it again on July 31, 2012. Until today, I have not heard a thing. The only response I got was a result of phone call I made to United Luggage Service right after this sad occurrence. It was an electronic certificate for $100. This does not cover the extent of my losses: $235.76 plus lost time at work (a day and a half) plus hunger, lost sleep and suffering. According to the certificate, by accepting this certificate of $100, I would release United from any liability. In addition, I can redeem it only of a future United flight. This assumes that after all of these events, I would still like to fly with United again...


Bottom line:

United breaks passengers. Not just guitars!

Sorry I dont understand what you want compensation $$ for. If you are based in the IAD area, I dont know of a single Carrier that will pay for any clothes etc that might have been in your delayed bags.They do so when where you arrived to is NOT your home. since it seems you live in the IAD area you arent entitled to purchase anything clothing.

I once many yrs ago ha dthe same problem with BA, when I said if .... cant be had Id rather fly on a later flight, yep w/o saying anything they pulled my bags off. most likely thats what UA did even thou they said theyw ills till fly, nce you tell them well I have to decide if in fac t I will take this flight Considered your bags have been off loaded! Sorry but no sympathy from me you brought that on by telling them you werent gonna take that flight. I learnt my lesson the hard way as well way before 9/11.

Im not saying you werent justified in doing what you did , just realize that by doing it you set yourself up just as I did

can you break down for us how you arrived at $235.76

the $100 eCert was just a way of getting rid of you since (aka a nuisance suit) as they didnt see nything that you qualified to be refunded for and from your post I agree

..but did you have travel insurance??? that would have helped with some expenses along the way and if flight needed to be changed

Why did you fly from LHR-IAD VIA SFO???

What exactly drove you to fly to SFO and then turn around and go to IAD instead of just changing the flight to a direct to IAD one? (or at least ORD if IAD was not available).

Craz,

you said::
"I once many yrs ago ha dthe same problem with BA, when I said if .... cant be had Id rather fly on a later flight, yep w/o saying anything they pulled my bags off. most likely thats what UA did even thou they said theyw ills till fly, nce you tell them well I have to decide if in fac t I will take this flight Considered your bags have been off loaded! Sorry but no sympathy from me you brought that on by telling them you werent gonna take that flight. I learnt my lesson the hard way as well way before 9/11.

Im not saying you werent justified in doing what you did , just realize that by doing it you set yourself up just as I did"

The discussion of leaving the flight took a minute. During this short time, nobody who I talked with left the plane. Besides, it takes much more than a minute to find 2 pieces of luggage and take them off a plane that is leaving in minute.

You said:
"Sorry I dont understand what you want compensation $$ for. If you are based in the IAD area, I dont know of a single Carrier that will pay for any clothes etc that might have been in your delayed bags.They do so when where you arrived to is NOT your home. since it seems you live in the IAD area you arent entitled to purchase anything clothing."

A a sizable chunk of the expenses occurred while I was still at SFO.

This trip was a conclusion of two combined trips: one to San Francisco and the other one to Krakow, Poland. The itinerary on July 8, 2012 was Krakow to San Francisco and then to Washington Dulles.

Was this two separate tickets (first -LHR-SFO, then SFO-IAD) or all on one ticket?

Against Security Regulations
Because of the lack of appropriate food, I asked to deplane and also asked that my luggage will deplane too. I was told that my luggage will fly without me - against security regulations! Because the flight was extremely late and the crew was close to the limit of their work time (including the unplanned stopover in Chicago to change the crew), I decided to stay so that the flight could leave.

fwiw, all checked luggage is xrayed so there's no need for having your bag on the same flight as you (as far as security regulations are concerned)

Why didn't you ask for a reroute when you were in LHR? Were you allowed to deplane in ORD?

and re your luggage, bags fly without the corresponding pax all the time. A friend of mine had his bags left in LHR when flying to LAX in June. The bags flew on the next flight.

Why did you fly from LHR-IAD VIA SFO???

+1 :confused:

OP needs a better travel agent.

chinatraderjmr and runningshoes:

Regarding your question why I did not fly directly from Europe to IAD and instead flew to SFO. These were two separate trips combined. I had business in SF before going to Poland and I was scheduled to meet some people in SF/SFO on my way back - I had over 5 hours in between flights. Because of what happened at the end, I did not have a chance to execute my plan for the break between flights at SFO on my way back.

These were two separate trips combined

Oh so SFO-IAD was on a separate ticket? That changes things.

Craz,

you said::
"I once many yrs ago ha dthe same problem with BA, when I said if .... cant be had Id rather fly on a later flight, yep w/o saying anything they pulled my bags off. most likely thats what UA did even thou they said theyw ills till fly, nce you tell them well I have to decide if in fac t I will take this flight Considered your bags have been off loaded! Sorry but no sympathy from me you brought that on by telling them you werent gonna take that flight. I learnt my lesson the hard way as well way before 9/11.

Im not saying you werent justified in doing what you did , just realize that by doing it you set yourself up just as I did"

The discussion of leaving the flight took a minute. During this short time, nobody who I talked with left the plane. Besides, it takes much more than a minute to find 2 pieces of luggage and take them off a plane that is leaving in minute.

You said:
"Sorry I dont understand what you want compensation $$ for. If you are based in the IAD area, I dont know of a single Carrier that will pay for any clothes etc that might have been in your delayed bags.They do so when where you arrived to is NOT your home. since it seems you live in the IAD area you arent entitled to purchase anything clothing."

A a sizable chunk of the expenses occurred while I was still at SFO.

1- my conversation with the BA agent was not much longer then yours, I had no idea that as I walked away she simply picked up the phone and told them to pull my bags.Unlike you I wasnt heading home but was on my Outbound and boy did it cost me

2- Since all you were doing @ SFO was connecting Im at a loss to understand what you had in your checked bags that you needed so desperately and didnt put into your carry-on

sorry I just dont know that many people who will put something they NEED into their checked bag saying OK after clearing customs I will take it out of my checked bag and when done place it into my carry-on for the connecting flight/s

+1 :confused:

OP needs a better travel agent.

why a few yrs ago I flew 1st tkt BDL-EWR-IAH-SFO then 2nd tkt SFO-IAH-EWR-BFS-EWR-SFO back to 1st tkt SFO-EWR-BDL reason yep EQMs and both tkts were $50 less then the Non-stop EWR-BFS-EWR earned 19K+ EQMs (btw I live 15 mins from EWR and yet drove to BDL since that tkt was only $200 while starting from EWR was $400+)

so I have no problems with what the OP did even if they didnt need to be in SF as long as the fares were almost the same

It makes no difference if OP flew IAD via SFO. Fact is he was waitlisted then not waitlisted, then told by UA LHR could do nothing to help him and he had to call the U.S. on his cellphone, then got upgraded, then downgraded, then his special meal order was lost, then his luggage was missing, then, then, then. Does that not sound familiar with so many other stories we are reading lately?
Too bad, they closed the thread of the poor guy who is/was stuck in BKK without any help from UA. These are not good times to travel International on UA.

Oh so SFO-IAD was on a separate ticket? That changes things.

+1. OP chose to travel on two seperate PNRs with multiple carriers (LH and UA). This make things much more complicated and really in these types of situations things like lost baggage often happen. Also, OP should indeed be very happy by the CS staff at SFO for providing any hotel and food vouchers since this was indeed occurring at the end of one intinerary and before another. Why should the airline be responsible for a passerger chosing to end one reservation and begin another one five hours later? Suggestion: Call reservations next time and try to combine reservations before your trip commences.

OK - so as we all know, things go wrong when travelling. At the same time as a traveller (and you said you travel a lot) you need to take some responsibility as well. Not sure why you wouldn't have a carry on (thereby alleviating the whole luggage thing). You weren't travelling for that many days. Additionally, if you have certain allergies, etc. take food with you - especially on such a long flight. This enables you to know you will have food while travelling.

Were people rude and could they have provided better customer service? Absolutely. But this seems to be the way that most of the airlines are these days (not just airlines but many customer service oriented places). I don't think that UA "owes" you for "suffering and emotional distress." I mean, really? You CHOSE not to go to work. I am not a UA apologist; but in this case I think you need to realize that you have some responsibility for some of the issues you're complaining about.

UA could have handled this better, but the fact is that OP paid for Y and flew in international C followed by domestic F on two separate PNR's. OP is due absolutely no compensation, other than for the missed meal.

As to the meal, it's annoying, but as an experienced traveler with apparently severe food allergies, OP presumably knows that he needs some backup food with him at all times.

Lastly, even though OP was on two separate PNR's, I would bet that had he asked, UA would have routed him to IAD.

It makes no difference if OP flew IAD via SFO. Fact is he was waitlisted then not waitlisted, then told by UA LHR could do nothing to help him and he had to call the U.S. on his cellphone, then got upgraded, then downgraded, then his special meal order was lost, then his luggage was missing, then, then, then. Does that not sound familiar with so many other stories we are reading lately?
Too bad, they closed the thread of the poor guy who is/was stuck in BKK without any help from UA. These are not good times to travel International on UA.

+1
recently with ~ $230 in out of pocket expense and a 12 hour delay with forced overnight I got a $150 check and a $250 travel voucher. Barely acceptable if you ask me on a paid BF ticket. Sounds to me like UA ows the OP a bit more than just a $100 voucher.

i don't htink it matters that it was 2 separate tickets. once the delay hits, you should have asked to fly straight to IAD, that is - if going to work was so important. the reason i'm skeptical on the whole story is you make such a big deal about lost work time, yet a simple request probably would have gotten you to IAD pretty easily yet you chose to fly to SFO (knowing you were going to miss the meeting anyway because of the delay). it surprises me an experienced traveler would not have thought about this.

I had business in SF before going to Poland and I was scheduled to meet some people in SF/SFO on my way back - I had over 5 hours in between flights. Because of what happened at the end, I did not have a chance to execute my plan for the break between flights at SFO on my way back.

You scheduled a business meeting during a 5 hour layover, involving long-haul flights and a separate PNR?

I usually give myself no less than 2.5 hours to connect to a domestic flight, as I have to clear passport control, customs, and to drop off my connecting bags.

No sympathy here, sorry.

You scheduled a business meeting during a 5 hour layover, involving long-haul flights and a separate PNR?

I usually give myself no less than 2.5 hours to connect to a domestic flight, as I have to clear passport control, customs, and to drop off my connecting bags.

No sympathy here, sorry.

+1. There are some odd notes here. OP took a chance and lost, and then lost again when he didn't elect to go to IAD directly. (and nice try listing "suffering" as an expense)

Boghopper, you said:

"There are some odd notes here. OP took a chance and lost, and then lost again when he didn't elect to go to IAD directly."

For you and others who raised this issue:

It is not a simple matter to "elect to go to IAD directly". If I would have known at the beginning of my long wait at LHR that the flight is going to be delayed for hours, of course, I would have asked to switch to a direct flight to IAD. United announced that the flight is delayed for a short time (e.g., 30 minutes) because of mechanical difficulties and then extended it bit by bit until the end. The latest flight that day to IAD was at about 4PM that is 2 hours after my original flight to SFO was supposed to take off.

Often1, you said: "As to the meal, it's annoying, but as an experienced traveler with apparently severe food allergies, OP presumably knows that he needs some backup food with him at all times."

It is easier said than done in reality when your trip back starts on the weekend at a hotel in a foreign country, especially that the expected trip back is long. Yes, I always have some dry food with me (that does not spoil), but how many hours could you survive on nuts, for example?

I would think that United should be more responsible and not have people's names drop from the list of special meals - it is inexcusable in the computer age.

+1. There are some odd notes here. OP took a chance and lost, and then lost again when he didn't elect to go to IAD directly. (and nice try listing "suffering" as an expense)

^

Last week we had a brand spanking new OP that experienced almost every tragedy imaginable, and when called on some of his BKK woe's he dug a deeper hole with each post, until finally the thread was locked.

Today we again have a newbie that didn't get his upgrade when promised and a pilot switched with him, so as not to hold up progress, & to getter goin'. Nobody can make heads nor tails out of which coast he's flying to and he didn't get his special meal.

All anyone needs to do is hang around here for a few days to see that almost everyone has problems getting special meals, and we all suffer from not getting on the waitlist @ T-24, more often than not, and after a while these stories gets so embellished that these guys paint themselves into a corner.

I posted this previously and it is my feeling that --- It's almost back to school time and the kids are getting restless with nothing to do but create stories and stir up the juices on FT (Not saying that this OP falls into this category).

After all, having a delay, not getting an upgrade to BUS Class when a Y seat was purchased, not getting a special meal when a guy has 10 hours to purchase one for the road, and not trying to get on a more direct flight when hanging around LHR for 8 to 10 hours, when one is worried about getting to work on time, is not justification for a $250.00 voucher, or sympathy from me.

Oh yea, the delayed bags --- You finally got them so NO BIGGIE, either, imo!!!

After all, having a delay, not getting an upgrade to BUS Class when a Y seat was purchased, not getting a special meal when a guy has 10 hours to purchase one for the road, and not trying to get on a more direct flight when hanging around LHR for 8 to 10 hours, when one is worried about getting to work on time, is not justification for a $250.00 voucher, or sympathy from me.


+1. OP's story sounds as believable as the one about delay in BKK last week.

Boghopper, you said:

"There are some odd notes here. OP took a chance and lost, and then lost again when he didn't elect to go to IAD directly."

For you and others who raised this issue:

It is not a simple matter to "elect to go to IAD directly". If I would have known at the beginning of my long wait at LHR that the flight is going to be delayed for hours, of course, I would have asked to switch to a direct flight to IAD. United announced that the flight is delayed for a short time (e.g., 30 minutes) because of mechanical difficulties and then extended it bit by bit until the end. The latest flight that day to IAD was at about 4PM that is 2 hours after my original flight to SFO was supposed to take off.

Often1, you said: "As to the meal, it's annoying, but as an experienced traveler with apparently severe food allergies, OP presumably knows that he needs some backup food with him at all times."

It is easier said than done in reality when your trip back starts on the weekend at a hotel in a foreign country, especially that the expected trip back is long. Yes, I always have some dry food with me (that does not spoil), but how many hours could you survive on nuts, for example?

I would think that United should be more responsible and not have people's names drop from the list of special meals - it is inexcusable in the computer age.

there are i'm positive *many* choices of how to get to IAD quicker than going via SFO. Once you found out about the delay, it's simple. Walk off the plane, and ask for a different routing. If the last IAD nonstop is gone, you can go through EWR, ORD, IAH on UA metal. If you were on LH tickets, you can pretty much go to any destination they fly. There are partners, you can go through Montreal, Toronto, etc. LHR is a very big airport - there are many choices yet you chose to go through SFO. Doesn't pass the sniff test.

OP - Have you tried EC261/2004 compensation?

fwiw, all checked luggage is xrayed so there's no need for having your bag on the same flight as you (as far as security regulations are concerned)

May be so, or maybe not, but it is illegal to for passenger and luggage to be separated in many countries, and all EU countries.

From the thread title, I was expecting a passenger who literally broke a bone flying UA. Instead, it's a late luggage complaint.

Too many words. Also.

Whatever united did or did not do the pilot deserves a huge well done for making the seat available when he didn't have to in order to make a screwed over pax more comfortable and avoid a cancellation.

^+1. There are some odd notes here. OP took a chance and lost, and then lost again when he didn't elect to go to IAD directly. (and nice try listing "suffering" as an expense)

+1

Whatever united did or did not do the pilot deserves a huge well done for making the seat available when he didn't have to in order to make a screwed over pax more comfortable and avoid a cancellation.

No kidding. Kudos to the pilot.

OP: I'm not a UA flyer and don't know what the upgrade "currency" is, but did United pull it, or did you get the equivalent of an op-up (i.e., you kept your upgrade currency but got the upgraded seat, anyway)?

Mike

LOL.

Who schedules a meeting in a 5hr intl layover?

You made this much worse for yourself than it had to be.

No sympathy.

Count me in with the no sympathy crowd. Almost a 2MM mile traveler and surprised that something could go wrong on a complex itinerary, or an upgrade might not clear. Heck, even my pre-teen kids know to pack a day's worth of clothes in a carry on when checking luggage. Even for direct flights.

Five hours could work if all goes well: Clear customs and immigration (1 hr), travel to a meeting (1/2 hr), meet (1 hr), travel back to SFO (1/2 hr), go through security (1/2 hr) and be at the boarding gate before the door closes (1/2 hr) which if I counted my half fingers correctly, comes to 4 hours. Would I do it? No. But I'm nowhere close to 2 million miles and maybe I just don't know better. I have done a long stopover presentation to a client upon arriving at an international destination but I had about a 7 hour stopover.

Experienced traveler? Really? Nearly 2 million miles and still shocked, SHOCKED! With the realities of travel...

If we are to believe what we read, then truly "experience" does not equate to "savvy".

May be so, or maybe not, but it is illegal to for passenger and luggage to be separated in many countries, and all EU countries.

That makes no sense. I just traveled from LHR to BOS via FRA and my bag didn't make the connection. It arrived on the next flight.

So the majority of the posters in this thread either believe the story is made up or for the one's who believe it, it is a story that is not worth telling. I know this would have created a storm in the old UA days, but expectations for the new COdbaUA are certainly at a new low. And that is regardless of the truth factor.

So the majority of the posters in this thread either believe the story is made up or for the one's who believe it, it is a story that is not worth telling. I know this would have created a storm in the old UA days, but expectations for the new COdbaUA are certainly at a new low. And that is regardless of the truth factor.

Which bit of this story is worth telling? The vast majority of the unfortunate events in this series would happen on any airline in the world -- not just pmUA or pmCO but *good* airlines as well.

Delayed flight? Yep, it sucks. It happens.

Lost luggage? Yep, it sucks. It happens.

No special meal? Actually I don't have experience of this but I imagine it happens quite a lot too. It's probably the only genuinely legitimate part of the whole complaint though. Trying to deplane because they don't have your special meal [are you really expecting to starve to death on a ten-hour flight?] is a drama queen act.

Buying a coach ticket and winding up in coach? Yep, that happens. Oh wait, he didn't wind up in coach, he persuaded the pilot to give up his seat in business class (!). What a nice pilot.

Other complaints such as "They insisted I take a shuttle to the airport hotel which they graciously provided to me for a two-hour stay" don't even warrant a mention.

In conclusion, we have a bunch of ".... happens" that is a normal part of travelling, plus one legitimate beef [heh] about a non-loaded special meal.

That makes no sense. I just traveled from LHR to BOS via FRA and my bag didn't make the connection. It arrived on the next flight.

while yes bags 'in the system' that don't make flights, are misplaced, or miss connections via the airline's control do end up traveling alone.. as far as I understand, no they are not allowed to simply fly luggage without the passenger when the passenger is not going to be getting on a flight at the outset.

I believe it also varies from place to place but on a recent return from europe, I was traveling with someone who had a passport/customs issue and ended up being held in that city for 24 hours until the passport issue was resolved, at which point the original flight was delayed while they removed his luggage - not for his comfort or so that he could access it, but for security they would not let the flight move forward until the specific bags he checked were taken off.

this makes a whole lot of sense from a security stand point and I'm not sure why so many frequent fliers in this thread are shocked or refuting this, unless I'm unclear here.

that aside, especially if a pilot moved for me so I could get the upgrade I did not actually get, even if everything else is pretty annoying I'd have to say I'd let it slide and move on.

while yes bags 'in the system' that don't make flights, are misplaced, or miss connections via the airline's control do end up traveling alone.. as far as I understand, no they are not allowed to simply fly luggage without the passenger when the passenger is not going to be getting on a flight at the outset.

I believe it also varies from place to place but on a recent return from europe, I was traveling with someone who had a passport/customs issue and ended up being held in that city for 24 hours until the passport issue was resolved, at which point the original flight was delayed while they removed his luggage - not for his comfort or so that he could access it, but for security they would not let the flight move forward until the specific bags he checked were taken off.

this makes a whole lot of sense from a security stand point and I'm not sure why so many frequent fliers in this thread are shocked or refuting this, unless I'm unclear here.

that aside, especially if a pilot moved for me so I could get the upgrade I did not actually get, even if everything else is pretty annoying I'd have to say I'd let it slide and move on.

Honestly it's quite likely that "if you get off then your bags will fly without you" was either a misinformed FA or a white lie designed to get a passenger to calm down and quit demanding to leave the plane due to his meal not being loaded. Certainly it wouldn't have been in anyone's interest for the OP to offload himself *especially* as the flight was already running late and *especially especially* as the crew was reaching the end of their allowed time so the time taken to deplane the OP might have resulted in everybody getting another twelve-hour delay. I'm glad the crew managed to talk him out of huffing himself off the plane even if they did have to tell a lie or two in order to make it happen.

UA could have handled this better, but the fact is that OP paid for Y and flew in international C followed by domestic F on two separate PNR's. OP is due absolutely no compensation, other than for the missed meal...


Agreed--if paid business or first, the outcome would likely have been very different. Funny that so many fail to comprehend the difference between paid and upgraded.

You are a tough crowd.

You are a tough crowd.

How so? Because we don't coddle people?

I know this would have created a storm in the old UA days, but expectations for the new COdbaUA are certainly at a new low. And that is regardless of the truth factor.

UA is simply about getting from point A to point B, with possible delays and perhaps a canceled flight or two.

Picking up your bags at the final destination is also a bonus.

For anything more, call SQ.

LOL.

Who schedules a meeting in a 5hr intl layover?

You made this much worse for yourself than it had to be.

No sympathy.

Same here. I'd say you need to hire NetJets to fly you around and cater to your special needs.

Why did you fly from LHR-IAD VIA SFO???He musta been "loose-ing" his mind!":rolleyes:

How so? Because we don't coddle people?


Yeah but there is a good side to it. I was a flight attendant and thought most 1K+ passengers were really very easy to accommodate overall and this thread makes me realize why. Most realize flying basically stinks most of the time and you have to plan well and roll with the chaos or you will be a basket case.

LOL.
Who schedules a meeting in a 5hr intl layover?


Busy people do! I've done it multiple times, though only at the airport on anything 5hrs or under. United Club provides rooms for hire for this purpose and provides airside access to visitors for this purpose. I agree going outside the airport adds risk.

Everyone has their own variables and limits on what is acceptable for a layover or a connection. For example, currently United feels 45 minutes is valid.. Whatever, each to their own.

It is all about risk analysis and mitigation. Others call it gambling :)

I managed to get through 2011 with 250K BIS United and only two MX that had any impact to meetings/events and United had my business because of that - routine reliability (some might disagree). In 2011, the gamble paid off because there was an established track record of reliability with relatively rare exceptions (for me). And I took the minimum connect times, and booked meetings close to travel because it worked, reliably.

This year and 120K later, I've had few on-time flights on UA metal. It has become completely unreliable, and difficult to predict how much time is actually needed. So to the point of many on this thread - what is an acceptable itinerary and plan?

Stories like the OPs are appearing frequently because the standard of service has changed, and routine for many FFers has been ruined.

My last DCA to SYD was a similar story to OP. I had three planned segments, but ended up with 48hrs door-to-door, 4 operation delayed planes, 1MX plane, (3 plane changes), broken bag, inadequate hotel support, unconfirmed seats, lost upgrades, etc. Everything that could go wrong, did! And it was a complete shambles, with no one proactively looking after this 250K BIS flyer. So, it happens, but it happens a lot now.