The bad thing about vacations is that they are always short, whether you are away for a couple of days or months. Good things come to an end I guess. But there is always the anticipation of the next trip to keep you going. My flight was in the afternoon so I had plenty of time to get to FLL from MIA. Rather than inconveniencing my folks to drive me all the way there, I chose to take the Tri-Rail. This is a commuter train that runs from Miami to West Palm Beach stopping at different stations along the way. It connects all three major South florida airports (MIA, FLL and West Palm Beach - forgot the three letter code for that one). The ticket from MIA to FLL is about $3.00 and it takes about 30 minutes. The MIA station is adjacent to Hertz Rental Car. There is also a shuttle bus from the Bus Terminal at the airport that brings you here.
Tri Rail train
While MIA airport is chaotic, its sister FLL is the opposite. Getting in and out is a breeze and the pace is much more relaxing. The counter only had a handful of passengers and I checked in at the kiosk. As usual, passing through security required the removal of shoes and metal objects but this was quick and painless.
US 1051 FLL - CLT
Dept. 2:55P - Arriv. 4:51P
A321 - Seat 3D
Today's flight did not look too full. A couple of college kids mixed with businessmen and families were waiting patiently at the gate. Boarding began about 30 minutes before departure time and it was orderly. I saw a table next to the gate with a couple of TSA agents. I guess they carry random inspections here.
The plane was clean and I settled into my seat. The purser offered pre departure drinks and this was basically a smooth flight. Once airborne beverage service began with the snack basket being passed around. The service was efficient but felt indifferent. Again no proper glassware so plastic cups were used.
A321 at FLL
Beverage service
Overall a comfortable flight and we did have "live" entertainment. There was a family who got upgraded and sat in the last row of F. A couple, teenage kid and an older lady. The guy was telling his mother that she would like the upgrade to F (I guess she doesn't get to ride up front that frequently) so good for the son for thinking of his mother. Things got interesting during the last 30 minutes before landing. There was an argument between these folks in the back and you could hear the older lady raise her voice complaining and cussing. I've heard the son saying "'Ma, when we get out of the plane I'm going to tell you something that is not very nice" and "Calm down 'ma or the cops will meet you when we land". To make matters worse we were holding for a couple of minutes after landing being subject to this drama. Once the doors opened everybody made a dash to the front sighing relief.
CLT is a nice airport and it is always a treat to grab a rocking chair and see the world pass by you. The agents were friendly and I stopped by the service center to have them switch my frequent flyer number from US to UA in the record. Originally I had to use my US one because I was upgrading with miles and was told that I couldn't earn mileage on UA if I did that. Fine with me, but when there is a will there is a way and hopefully this will work. At the gate I asked my boarding pass to be reprinted and it indeed showed the UA FF number. So I cross my fingers and hope for the best.
US 1167 CLT-SFO
Dept. 6:00P - Arriv. 8:17P
A321 - Seat 3D
Another full flight and a bunch of F and elite members gathering by the entrance of the jetbridge in anticipation for boarding. Once seated I started talking to my neighbor who was a Gold member and exchanged some funny stories about traveling and life in general. Our purser did not offer the pre departure drink service and we were delayed for about 20 minutes holding for connections. She did chat with the pilot who came to the galley and was eating her Chinese take out food.
Once airborne it took about an hour to get our drinks and a little less than 2 hours to get our meals. She served the drinks in plastic cups without proper cocktail napkins. Instead they were from Four Points hotel. She did have US ones because I saw them when she opened one of the drawers. I guess she grabbed the first thing she found. The drinks were served with a bag of pretzels and cashews. No basket this time. Today's selections were a hot chicken with pasta OR salad with grilled chicken. I was fortunate to have a choice and opted for the hot entree. The chicken dish was tasteless, dry and unappetizing. A can of ravioli would have been tastier. How much is US saving by giving us this meal? Notice that on their website all dishes have an Italian theme. Either pasta or calzone or something with tomato based sauce. Nothing wrong with Italian food as long as it is fresh and done properly. But c'mon, when you purchase pasta for a couple of cents at your local grocery store it doesn't take a genius to figure that these type of meals are easy on the budget. The entree was accompanied by a salad, roll and slice of apple pie.
Beverage service
Chicken dish
Yum!
Pirates of the Caribbean was the movie on this trip and after the meal that concluded the service for the rest of the flight. Our purser sat in the jumpseat reading a book and did not make any walking after that. She was just planted there. In the meantime, there was a stream of passengers from the back using the lavatory in F once again. After a while, one of the male attendants in the back made the announcement that the lavatory in the front was reserved for F passengers only asking people to comply with this arrangement.
There was a set up in the galley with cups and drinks. I tried to get a glass of water but did not see a water bottle on the counter, so I interrupted our lovely purser and asked if there was any extra bottles. She directed me to open the cart under the counter and told me to check at the bottom. She was not mean or disgruntled, just pathetically indifferent. By the way, she was giving me instructions while seated in her jumpseat. At least she looked in my direction. I've heard slight comments from other passengers around and this truly was a pathetic flight as far as service is concerned. By the way, the plastic panel with the emergency life vest message in front of my seat fell off, revealing a part of the inside structure of the seats in front. Maybe that is a metaphor for the inflight service today.
Well, that sums up my experience on US. The differences between US PHX and US East could not be more noticeable. While the crews from the west seems cheerful and always willing to please (a bit too friendly and casual at times), this is quite a contrast to the indifference and sometimes rudeness experienced by their counterparts from the east. Don't get me wrong, I don't think all east employees are bad. Actually there are quite a few gems out there, but they are diamonds in the rough and very hard to find. I wouldn't blame them after experiencing some of the most turbulent and toxic labor relations in the industry. This split personality reminds me of a bad marriage at worst and a sibling rivalry at best. I hope US can get its act together and become the great carrier that it once was. There is no harm in dreaming after all. Thanks for your time and I hope you liked this report. I hope it came across as objective and informative. If you didn't like it - why the heck did you just keep reading up to this point?
