Also, let us not forget (which I forgot for a moment) the "Jet Blue System Meltdown" due to a big northeast snowstorm. Sorry, when you've got people trapped on a airplane for hours and hours with no real hope of taking off, its time to get them back to the gate and get them off the plane. You can improve their temper just by removing them from the long metal tube, especially when that long metal tube has no food, drink or working bathrooms.
one of the best things about southwest is how fast they deplane. the agent is ready and waiting with the jetbridge.. pop the door open and let the people off. it's a very simple task that most airlines manage to delay / screw up..
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Originally Posted by izzik
one of the best things about southwest is how fast they deplane. the agent is ready and waiting with the jetbridge.. pop the door open and let the people off. it's a very simple task that most airlines manage to delay / screw up..
plus no RJs, so that means no waiting for a tug to pull you in, not having to get off the plane and walk across the tarmac, waiting for your gate-checked bags, etc, only adding more time to the process
I've flown both Southwest and JetBlue a lot and JetBlue is nice, but they keep screwing things up like increasing their change fee from $25 to $100 relatively quickly and reacting extremely to the well publicized tarmac delays by canceling flights all the time. To go to the NY area a colleague and I sometimes fly JetBlue to JFK or Southwest to PHL. With JetBlue the flights get cancelled often. With Southwest, the flights may get delayed, but they almost always go. At least this has been my experience. While Southwest has made some consumer unfriendly changes such as much more limited award availability, JetBlue has always been like that, and then adding stuff like change fees, etc -- its still a race to the bottom, and both airlines are 'losing' (winning'?) that race with the legacies...
American Airlines parent AMR announced a sharp cut in its domestic flight schedule, including a fourth-quarter reduction in domestic capacity of as much as 12%, citing high fuel prices, concerns about the economy and a "difficult competitive environment."
AMR Chairman and CEO Gerard Arpey said, "The airline industry as it is constituted today was not built to withstand oil prices at $125 a barrel, and certainly not when record fuel expenses are coupled with a weak U.S. economy." American also plans a $15 fee for the first checked bag.
Well, THAT ought to push more passengers to WN. Even business folks that find the overhead bins to be totally stuffed because of folks avoiding the fee.
Nickel-dime-nickel-dime. That's where we're headed.
Just saw a link to this list of fees on another site that AA is now charging. Holy crap, I always liked AA though I never flew them much, but this is way out of hand. $150 change fee ... $150 AAdvantage reinstatement fee ...
Once WN gets international partners and/or starts flying internationally themselves, the legacies are so so screwed it's not even funny ... the folks at Love Field must be whooping it up today, AA just drove another nail into their own coffin.
Wow, is AA trying to go out of business? I can't follow the thinking with all of these fees. People would be happier to just pay a higher fare and forget the nickel and dime junk.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mangokitty92262
People would be happier to just pay a higher fare and forget the nickel and dime junk.
I don't agree with that. I think the airlines know that people are still making purchasing decisions based on the quoted price, without fully considering all the add-on fees.
People will eventually catch on, so this shell game is merely a delaying tactic, one that will alienate customers to boot. I'm glad to see that Southwest is once again going its own way and resisting the lure of this short-term thinking.
When people wise up, they will start choosing Southwest even at a higher quoted price, due to no change fees and no junk fees. FTers are already doing this. Within 2 years it will be conventional wisdom. Southwest's future is looking very bright to me right now.
Can you imagine the grumbling when you've paid $15 to have your bag come with you and it's delayed or lost?
What is really unfair about the first checked bag for $15 is that it is almost impossible to travel anymore without a checked bag, since you need certain liquids, gels, etc. that can't go through security. Further, it is a pain to reduce those liquids, gels, etc. into 3.5 oz containers, where the sum of all containers does not exceed the one quart zip lock bag.
What is so amazing is that Southwest really doesn't have to do anything. Just sit back and watch the legacies screw themselves. Then every once in a while, come up with a super great idea like the A-list and numbered, ordered open seating. I think the jury is still out on Business Select, but right now, it is not hurting the loyal customers, while bringing in some (albeit limited) additional revenue. I'm amazed by the number of people that buy Business Select and then don't take an exit row. Shhhhhhh... Don't tell them!
Last edited by FCfree; May 21, 08 at 3:50 pm.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FCfree
What is really unfair about the first checked bag for $15 is that it is almost impossible to travel anymore without a checked bag, since you need certain liquids, gels, etc. that can't go through security. Further, it is a pain to reduce those liquids, gels, etc. into 3.5 oz containers, where the sum of all containers does not exceed the one quart zip lock bag.
Wait until AA gets sued for discrimination against women!
