FlyingOptimist

Just had a FA apologize that I’ve had four cancelled flights so far this year that she pulled up on her device. Just curious as to what kind of access FAs have for our passenger profiles and flying records, and if there is a way for us to access our own records/profiles on the app or website (I didn’t even realize you could see how many cancelled flights you’ve had)?

FlyerDigits

See this post: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/33977999-post93.html

There was more context and discussion earlier in the thread.

TheBeerHunter

What kind of info do they have access to? Is it just service failures, or all travel history? Waiting to deplane this weekend, one of the flight attendants made a comment about me going back and forth to Hawaii a lot, which I do, but I was a little surprised that she knew that. I have had several trips impacted by the January cutbacks from the bay area to Hawaii.

anteater

A copy and paste (mostly) from my post in the other thread, cheers.

The FAs only see that flight and connecting flights. There is information on any recent trip failures, so as they can apologize and potentially offer a service gesture. They cannot see personal information. They don’t have access to your travel activity (past or future) beyond connecting flights and recent (greater than 60 day window) failures (e.g. delays, cancellations).On their work devices, the FAs have access to a different app than the one that is publicly available for pax.

FlyingOptimist

Thanks for the link! I probably should have read through that thread first before making a new one.

Yeah, it kind of threw me off a bit since I’ve had close to fifty flights since the first 3 cancellations in early January and that’s the first time a FA has made a comment about it. Thanks for the insights!

jhurwitz

I experienced this for the first time recently and it felt very strange. Towards the end of the flight, I had my headphones in watching a movie when the FA walked down the aisle to collect trash. After I handed over my empty cup, she remarked, "You've been having a tough time lately." I paused the movie and took off my headphones, wondering whether I'd heard her correctly, or if she was somehow rudely remarking on my drink order, or what else had happened. She noticed my confusion and added, "I saw all the delays and cancellations." (She didn't have her phone with her at the time, so I presume she read my profile in the galley before coming down the aisle.)

I'd had a few flights since the IRROPs (all in F) and nobody had said anything to me. This awkward comment aside, the FA (from Skywest) was fantastic. As soon as we reached 10k feet, she immediately approached the bulkhead passengers to ask if they needed any of their personal items out of the overhead bin; she took all 12 drink orders in a single pass without writing them down and correctly remembered everyone's; and there were multiple rounds of service in the short 60-min flight. I assume she probably strictly followed whatever memo from AS instructed her to check and comment on travel history.

I'll likely write in to CC about this. I think giving the FAs a few suggested prompts could have greatly improved this interaction. ("On behalf of Alaska Airlines, I'd like to thank you for your loyalty, and apologize for the delay you experienced flying from XXX to YYY. I'm going to do everything I can to make sure we get you in on time tonight.")

jsguyrus

Speaking for myself only, I would prefer the FA initiated the conversation in an informal way. I don't want to feel like they are just reading some script.

mfolf

I agree with this. The casual banter over "sticking to the script" is what makes Alaska feel warmer than Delta.

notquiteaff

And then my wife, sitting next to me, would go… “when did you fly to YYY, and what did you do there?”

VegasGambler

I understand that this is meant as a joke, but it's a serious privacy issue. Airline employees should not be sharing my previous travel with surrounding passengers. Discretion is important in any service industry.

notquiteaff

Agreed. It’s frankly also a bit creepy to imagine an FA sitting in the jump seat scrolling through my recent travel history, even if it’s just flights that had disruptions.

AS Flyer

nobody is sitting around looking at anyone's recent travel histories on the airplanes. The only thing FA's can see is if you have been inconvenienced at some point in recent history. Nothing beyond that. It's meant as an opportunity for service recovery - to try to help make it better. Honestly, I think it's not a great idea because not every FA will do it and those that do will handle it differently. It just leads to inconsistency and expectations that may not be met by every crew. If anyone prefers that this method of service recovery not be used, I suggest you write to Alaska management to let them know.

notquiteaff

I know that because I read this thread, but a random traveler getting approached by an FA with an apology about a previous flight that had issues might not know that. Nothing in “You've been having a tough time lately” (quote from a previous interaction upthread) makes clear to me that that FA only saw flight disruption info.

Right. If AS thinks that some disruptions require a personal sounding apology (perhaps based on the frequency of issues or severity, combined with status), have some customer service agent write a short email note with a voucher. Also avoids the issue of different treatment of travelers sitting near each other who all may think they have had “a tough time lately”.

AS Flyer

even more reason that it's not a perfect idea....

notquiteaff

The other thing that bothers me: making FAs apologize for problems that they have no control over. They are onboard for our safety (and I am not being sarcastic) as well as to provide snacks and beverages. If they do that, and with a smile and efficiently, as they usually do, I am a happy customer. If the flight is delayed or canceled, I do not hold it against them. Or the pilots. And I certainly don’t expect the FAs on the next flight to apologize for it based on some algorithm that tells them so. I know, one team and all, but it just doesn’t make sense to me.