makfan

I have had two Alaska gate agents do things for me that I thought were impossible. The first was when I overslept and the rebooking meant a new connection and later arrival to the final destination. My new first QX segment arrived at SEA a little early and my original connection had not departed, so I booked it to the gate. The door was closed but the agent said she had not quite closed the flight, so she put me on.

The next miracle incident, I bought a last minute ticket at YVR inside the US area going YVR-SEA (overnight)-SFO. AA canceled my YVR-LAX flight (final SFO) after I had cleared customs, and had nothing available until the next day. I really hated the idea of a 6 am departure. We again arrived into SEA a bit early so I hurried to the N terminal. The last SFO and OAK flights of the night were at adjacent gates (did I say this was a miracle?). Both were already into economy class boarding. The SFO had a long waiting list and was not going to happen, but the OAK agent rebooked me and I avoided a hotel expense and a lost morning. How many airlines would change your flight date and destination airport with a smile on their face while doing it?

These kinds of things are why I have stuck it out at AS. Yes, I have had some bad mechanical delays and a few times I've had employees who made no effort. But I have more stores like the above.

makfan

After an 8+hour BOS-(SLC fuel)-SFO trip in VX, I can see why Mint would kill. I was in F, and very thankful that I wasn't in Y, but still...that was a long domestic flight. I was in the seat for well over 9 hours with deicing and whatnot.

soonerfanatic

If you support AS and really care, I suggest you voice your opinion to someone who actually cares. Take the time to write directly to Brad Tilden.

ptownca

After one SEA-BOS round trip, for that long a flight, the new slim line Recaros are awful. I told myself: "Enough is enough." Earlier last year, I burned a few miles, flew to SFO, burned a free Hyatt night I had, stayed in SFO and flew SFO-BOS on Mint. It was a relevation. I found my new favorite airline, having been a die hard VX fan while in SFO. Even better, it cost a few hundred less than a direct SEA-BOS discounted F fare.

I'm now in BOS and Mosaic. I could not be happier.

Visconti

Right, with my SFO --> JFK routes, Mint is unbeatable with fares as low as $598! Single seat and a pleasure to fly. Best in class value, and nothing else is even remotely competitive. Sure, AA transcon F is better, but it'll never be anywhere near B6's pricing.

bkojote

Oh yeah, I can't wait for Mint on SEA->JFK routes. I have literally no idea how the hell Alaska prices their first class, but I assume absolutely nobody ever pays for it. But even at MVP Gold instant-upgrade pricing, I'd still pay the extra $150 for a true flat bed and Mint's way more consistent service. Hell, if I'm gonna burn 25k Alaska Miles on a transcon premium cabin, I'll take AA (which is a close second to Mint.)

Taking redeyes on Alaska is frustrating enough in F... -maybe- you'll get a blanket, -maybe- you'll get ear plugs. Hell, on Mint they even give you a bagel round and cold pressed juice when you land (-and- you get a full meal if you so choose during the flight which is significantly more substantial than Alaska's 'snack')

DCP2016

You are, however, an Alaska MVP Gold status member. I doubt they would do the things that happened to you to some random no status customer.

Points Scrounger

I've flown AS paid F on transcons. People do it. Mint beats the hell out of that though!

Skyjumper

I've tried sending email and via the feedback page to AS and so far haven't ever received a response. That said their "Contact Us" web page only lists an email address for the Board Room so they clearly don't place any emphasis on providing service via e-mail. It was something I had become used to using for non time critical items with VX.

Eastbay1K

How? I bet if I reviewed filed fares, they would generally match the competition. It isn't quite as transparent on AS, because there may be several P fare bases on a route, while other airlines might have D, Z, I (etc.) and they'd all book in P for the various equivalents on AS.
The competition also has the "luxury" (or misfortune as the case may be, on certain flights) of large premium F cabins. AA is half the transcon plane. DL is up to J40 or thereabouts on some equipment (my next trip, on a 764). B6 is J16. AS is F16/12/8. So even if they sell a couple of seats in the lowest bucket, that disappears quickly, whereas on DL, they may sell 10 of those 40 at the lowest fare.

Case in point - June SFO/JFK trip. I'm outbound on DL for under $600, and returning on AS (VX metal) for under $700 - everyone else was near $1000 or more for the afternoon/evening of my return. AS didn't come close on my outbound.

eponymous_coward

Orwaid

To have a shot at an upgrade on a transcon, you have be 75K. You might get lucky as a Gold.

It is the nature of the beast now.

jinglish

Not necessarily. Obviously chances drop greatly if you're on a 738 these days, but my results as an MVP--traveling for leisure instead of business, which is probably important--haven't been awful. I haven't managed to get upgraded on PDX-BOS without the help of a gifted GGU, but I've wound up in F flying once each DCA-PDX, DTW-SEA, and SEA-BNA over the last couple of years.

eponymous_coward

bbinchi

I did a mileage run SEA-BOS-SEA (AS12/AS15) on 13JAN and the trips were flown with a '738' instead of the usual '739.' At 72 hours before departure of each segment there were four F seats showing available on AS's website and the fare was $1,069.

On the outbound I was 7th of 20-something on the upgrade waitlist and I don't know if anyone received an upgrade to F as I hadn't tracked the seats close-in. I did, however, get upgraded on the return and the email was sent 9h 11m before departure. I was very surprised given that I'm "only" MVPG and I had booked an R class fare. I know of two others who were upgraded on the BOS-SEA leg. Doesn't seem that AS had much luck selling seats at $1,069 a pop.

And while the F service and catering were good, and I was comfortable enough on the flight, I can't imagine paying $1,000 or more for that experience.