Sorry to revise this thread. I stuck with this thread last night. I read the entire thread and got some ideas on what really happened a few months ago.
Originally Posted by
usedtobeimportant
Update:
1) I did get it wrong and mis-wrote. The DOT has the rules not the FAA
2) I filed a complaint with WN and they responded quickly and have agreed it was an IDB (initially said it was voluntary but I pushed back) and they have given me $1350 per ticket in cash as per the DOT rules. This is odd as the DOT rule is 400 percent of the one way fee OR $1350 which-ever is smaller and my ticket was only $230.
But I still think they treated the passengers poorly by not giving hotel and meal vouchers.
OP got a great deal from SWA for the trouble of mis-connection (due to system melting down) and sleeping inside the airport at LAS. It would be nicer that OP acted more graciously. SWA tried very hard to win back your business.
Originally Posted by
ulmguy
Therein lies the confusion. You started a thread about IRROPS and then later on said you were IDB'd with no context of what happened.
Totally agree with this assessment of this thread. I wish that OP stated the events more clearly and orderly. The piecemeal approach did not help with the discussion at all. That the IDB regulation from DOT was mistaken to FAA's did not help. OP tried to lecture the people involved in the discussion of this thread, but backfired badly. I think that the SWA FT community is well informed bunch. I, as a UA 3 MM 1K, won't never lecture anyone in this board.
Originally Posted by
Boraxo
These are not "observations" but more like an irrops diary with a prologue.
Agreed. I'd take the $200 voucher any day over the crap hotels that airlines issue vouchers for. Usually there is a long line to checkin at these places (not great anytime but definitely not at 1am) and the hotels are rarely full service (i.e. you might prefer a strip resort with 24/7 room service). Plus if you use the right credit card you can make a claim for the expenses due to delay. A much better solution than meal/hotel vouchers and does not put you at mercy of airline.
As for the 6am replacement flight I have usually found that airlines (and specifically WN) will accommodate a request for a later flight if space is available. You just have to ask nicely.
Kind of surprising that a 1MM miler is not familiar with these solutions. And UA does not provide these benefits to kettles unless they ask. In fact I often found they did not provide decent trip delay benefits to me unless I was 1K.
Well, well, it was very confusing. Too much fires were directed at multiple repliers, Unfortunately. UA does not treat kettles very well, either. I gradually learned all the tricks in UA over the years. Certainly, OP certainly applied some UA knowledge to solve this situation. It was well done. But there is no need to lecture others in this SWA board.
Originally Posted by
WillCAD
You're right, I am not getting the full picture. Would you be willing to post a timeline of the incident? As in, what happened in what order?
My curiosity is practical - I like to listen to other peoples' stories about travel difficulties so that I can try to avoid them myself, and know what best to do when something does inevitably happen to me. Unlike most FTers, I am an infrequent flyer, but I have found others' experiences posted here to be invaluable during my own booking and travel experiences.
I will fly SWA sometimes in the future. I am trying to learn more by reading more threads on this board. I know that SWA is a great airline and very well managed. There are a lot of devotees.
Happy travels.