Originally Posted by
themicah
Not exactly apples-to-apples, but have you tried Terminal C at LGA lately without Delta status? My last two departures from there (both mid-day flights) have been terrible. Delta woefully understaffs the non-priority baggage drops so it can take a very long time to check bags, and they've set up the security queues (which Delta controls at that terminal) so that Delta Priority and CLEAR passengers have a near monopoly on TSA ID checkers. Even the regular (non-priority/non-CLEAR) precheck queue at that terminal can get long, but we got stuck in the plebe queue on one trip (my daughter was flying as a UM and you can't get precheck on a parent gate pass) and it took over an hour to get through security. Half the people in that queue were at serious risk of missing their flights, and the roving Delta employee just shrugged and suggested they sign up for a trial of CLEAR to skip the line (many of them took that offer, earning Delta some nice commissions), or else they'd get rebooked if they missed their flights. Even though we got in the ticket counter queue over 2 hours before flight time, we ended up running to the gate as they announced final call, and the door closed behind my daughter.
That's why I asked about checked bags. I haven't experienced first hand, but certainly have seen, long queues to check bags. I've never seen hour waits for security anywhere (although I've had pre-check since day 1, so haven't tested it)!
On a recent international trip ex-BOS, for some reason aa.com would not allow me to check in online, and even the kiosk at the airport was sending me to see an agent. It was 90 minutes prior to departure, but the lines to speak to an agent, even the priority lines, were really long, and I was concerned that I wouldn't make it to the fron the the line to meet the check-in deadline. So I (and I have to say, I'm pretty proud of this move) went on aa.com and found a domestic flight with award availability, which I booked right away using my AA miles. I checked in, got a boarding pass, cleared security, and then went to the Admirals Club to cancel that flight, get my miles back, and check in for my international flight!
I've also flown on Etihad out of JFK T4 a couple of times when Etihad did not participate in pre-check. (Not sure if they do now.) The lines for security were alway really long -- I was not at risk of missing my flight, but who wants to wait in a queue when they could be a the lounge? -- so I would purchase a fully refundable DL domestic ticket, clear security through pre-check (I did not have Clear at the time), and then cancel that reservation. Am I a bad person?