Originally Posted by
2stepbay
So noticeable to me the difference in attitude between United Flight Attendants and those that fly ANA, South African Air and Lufthansa in F and economy. United peeps in general are more about getting tasks done/finished rather than focusing on improving customer experience. When i fly the aforementioned *A carriers, I marvel at the improvement in service and customer connection (especially ANA and SAA).
Operationally, departures of late have been on time. However, just this past week I flew from SAN to PHL via IAD. In IAD I had a 3 hr layover starting at 5:30 am, so I used the United Lounge in D terminal (mediocre at best). Left the lounge for my flight's announced boarding time only to learn 20 minutes before scheduled takeoff that the flight would be delayed 45 minutes to an hour due to late arriving flight crew. Same crew had arrived quite late the night before due to delays. Regs require a certain number of hours before crew can fly again. Knowing this, why didn't United announce the delay well in advance? I could have remained in the quieter lounge rather than a noisy terminal. Poor ops coordination seems to be a United trait that just won't go away.
I appreciate that you live in SA, and you have more experience than I, but I have found SAA service to be extremely sterile. Job done, listen to your questions, bring what you ask for, but not remotely to the level of an ANA or a SQ. I guess what do you know, maybe fast efficient service is what I aim for. All of my SAA stuff has been international (MRU, AUH, LHR), so maybe it is different domestic.
Considering most of my inbound to SA is the LH FRA-JNB flight, I find that to be equally sterile. Just to make it an all around bummer, I'm not thrilled with EK flights to DXB either. Those 777 business class seats are pretty sad, and I'm not totally sold on service either. The other way I get around the neighborhood is the EK 380 DXB->MRU, and that bar in the back of the upper deck is pretty cool.
Forgot to make this UA relevant. I feel like UA FA are still struggling to make this a positive experience. At least TPAC or TATL this year in biz, I almost feel like a bother than someone who deserves to be helped by the FA team. As with all anecdotes, exceptions exist. For the first time I can recall, I had the same person on the out and the inbound going SFO to SYD over a week. Usually my duration is longer, so I think they rotate out and I don't see people twice. That connection with that person really made my flight and service so much better.