AA Assistance Failure - Grandmother Lost in NYC
Jul 16, 2009, 7:46 pm
#46
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I just want to add that while very useful, solely arming someone with a cell phone doesn't guarantee successful transit. A cell phone is an accessory, not a replacement for knowing how to get around.
Yes, add me to the list of people noting the complete foolishness and disregard for a family member's safety by putting them in an environment where they could have just as easily wound up in the UK.
Yes, add me to the list of people noting the complete foolishness and disregard for a family member's safety by putting them in an environment where they could have just as easily wound up in the UK.
Jul 16, 2009, 9:41 pm
#47
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Atlanta
Posts: 91
A little extra preparation would have helped.
First of all, elderly (as well as the very young) who don't travel often AND don't speak the language preferably should not travel alone;
If you are going to put them on a plane by themselves, minimize the number of connections. It should be obvious the more connections, the more chances for getting into trouble, misconnects, cancellations, etc.
Think of a way (ahead of time) for them to get help if they run into trouble. Cellphones may not be the best option for someone who hasn't used one before. You could ask her to carry a piece of paper with your numbers along with a polite request to call you, and ask her to give it to an airline employee or any other traveler who does not appear too preoccupied.
While I agree AA GA's could have witnessed Grandma's difficulties, and could have been more proactive, I'm sure one can understand that during times of cancellations and rebookings, things could get missed if you do not know how to ask for help yourself.
First of all, elderly (as well as the very young) who don't travel often AND don't speak the language preferably should not travel alone;
If you are going to put them on a plane by themselves, minimize the number of connections. It should be obvious the more connections, the more chances for getting into trouble, misconnects, cancellations, etc.
Think of a way (ahead of time) for them to get help if they run into trouble. Cellphones may not be the best option for someone who hasn't used one before. You could ask her to carry a piece of paper with your numbers along with a polite request to call you, and ask her to give it to an airline employee or any other traveler who does not appear too preoccupied.
While I agree AA GA's could have witnessed Grandma's difficulties, and could have been more proactive, I'm sure one can understand that during times of cancellations and rebookings, things could get missed if you do not know how to ask for help yourself.
Jul 16, 2009, 10:04 pm
#48
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Jul 16, 2009, 11:16 pm
#49
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True, but interestingly, more than half the US states have adopted English as the official language. http://www.us-english.org/view/13
What's that supposed to mean?
Last edited by oklAAhoma; Jul 17, 2009 at 8:12 am Reason: just because
Jul 17, 2009, 12:08 am
#50
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I think the OP was asking for problems, sure, but thanks for the voice of reason. With all due dressing-down of the OP already done, they did get tickets that had dates and times printed on them and even in 2009 I don't think it's too much to expect that an airline might actually sell you tickets for flights and then actually fly them rather than send you to a hotel.
Jul 17, 2009, 12:11 am
#51
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I think you missed the previous poster's reference to being "Lost In Yonkers".
Jul 17, 2009, 12:21 am
#52
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I just want to add that while very useful, solely arming someone with a cell phone doesn't guarantee successful transit. A cell phone is an accessory, not a replacement for knowing how to get around.
Yes, add me to the list of people noting the complete foolishness and disregard for a family member's safety by putting them in an environment where they could have just as easily wound up in the UK.
Yes, add me to the list of people noting the complete foolishness and disregard for a family member's safety by putting them in an environment where they could have just as easily wound up in the UK.
I wonder if maybe AA did describe what they were giving her, and there was no indication she didn't understand English. Maybe the non-response was taking as shyness or just being old. If she didn't understand then maybe someone expected her to make her needs known. Why couldn't a family member from BOS meet her in New York? Old age, language issues, not a seasoned air traveler, unfamilar locations not being assertive enough to demand assistance..... all of this is not very condusive to a normal trip, let alone irrops and crosstown connections. Unless she spoke up, then someone is expecting AA employees to be mind readers.
Last edited by dstan; Jul 17, 2009 at 11:34 am Reason: fixed broken quote
Jul 17, 2009, 1:29 am
#53
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It sounds like you were expectig a lot from a free wheel chair assistance request.
It's not the airline's fault an award ticket was booked with a change of airports. It is also not up to the airline to look after her. If your parent needs this kind of support, she should have a paid attendant or family member travel with her. I would have suggested someone at least meet her at the connecting point, which is exactly what we plan to do when my MIL flies through ORD, provided AA flies ORD-DME in April, as planned.
It sounds like she needed much more than a wheelchair and someone to push her. If she didn't need the wheelchair, it sounds like she still would have needed additional assistance in determining how to get from one place to another, beyond the normal needs of an airline passenger, and airlines aren't staffed for this and I would not place this blame on the airline. The airline gave her transporation, hotel, and meals for a weather problem. I doubt the shuttle bus took a passenger onboard without knowing their destination, and I really don't think it took 2 hours. In any case, the next time she travels, at least send a cell phone with her. That way, she can call you if there are issues. You can add a family member for about $10 per month. Or go somewhere and get a $15 or less pay per use phone. OH... sorry, those are US prices. Still, I think a throwaway US phone for someone visiting the US should be a good idea. In the future, hope for the best, but make plans for what to do in case of a problem. And check to make sure she isn't connecting between airports.
It's not the airline's fault an award ticket was booked with a change of airports. It is also not up to the airline to look after her. If your parent needs this kind of support, she should have a paid attendant or family member travel with her. I would have suggested someone at least meet her at the connecting point, which is exactly what we plan to do when my MIL flies through ORD, provided AA flies ORD-DME in April, as planned.
It sounds like she needed much more than a wheelchair and someone to push her. If she didn't need the wheelchair, it sounds like she still would have needed additional assistance in determining how to get from one place to another, beyond the normal needs of an airline passenger, and airlines aren't staffed for this and I would not place this blame on the airline. The airline gave her transporation, hotel, and meals for a weather problem. I doubt the shuttle bus took a passenger onboard without knowing their destination, and I really don't think it took 2 hours. In any case, the next time she travels, at least send a cell phone with her. That way, she can call you if there are issues. You can add a family member for about $10 per month. Or go somewhere and get a $15 or less pay per use phone. OH... sorry, those are US prices. Still, I think a throwaway US phone for someone visiting the US should be a good idea. In the future, hope for the best, but make plans for what to do in case of a problem. And check to make sure she isn't connecting between airports.
Jul 17, 2009, 1:32 am
#54
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My grandmother is in her mid-80's and with limited English skills. We would never let her fly alone, domestically or internationally. A recipe for disaster as you have unfortunately discovered. I am glad that she is okay.
Jul 17, 2009, 1:39 am
#55
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 737
But in full fairness the OP does list his home base as MVD. I'm not so sure I would catch a co-terminal connection issue int'l to domestic in Uruguay myself. There's quite a few places where there's basically two adjacent airports (KUL, BOM) for connections.
I know it's a stretch, what really frequent flier doesn't know LGA from JFK. But then again not sure if everyone would expect an automated booking engine to arbitrarily insert a yellow cab in the middle of an international ticket booking and be extra vigilant. The computer really shouldn't just do that without a very prominent warning.
In classic FT style a "problem trip" thread dissolves into opposing camps. I don't think it's too crazy to say probably every party to this mess did at least a few things they probably should have done better. The 100% blame attitude seems over done.
Jul 17, 2009, 3:08 am
#56
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I know it's a stretch, what really frequent flier doesn't know LGA from JFK. But then again not sure if everyone would expect an automated booking engine to arbitrarily insert a yellow cab in the middle of an international ticket booking and be extra vigilant. The computer really shouldn't just do that without a very prominent warning.
In classic FT style a "problem trip" thread dissolves into opposing camps. I don't think it's too crazy to say probably every party to this mess did at least a few things they probably should have done better. The 100% blame attitude seems over done.
In classic FT style a "problem trip" thread dissolves into opposing camps. I don't think it's too crazy to say probably every party to this mess did at least a few things they probably should have done better. The 100% blame attitude seems over done.
The blame goes 100% towards OP is because he was totally inconsiderate of his elderly relative's situation, never took any precaution, and then when bad things happened, he complained about AA, instead. I think it is this kind of attitude that puts most people off.
Any person has any common sense would not let an 84 year old with disability and language barrier fly alone without companion care-taker, and not to choose as direct an itinerary as it can be. Whatever the reason(s) the OP chose to let the elderly fly alone, he has not put in any thought to prepare for her travel, from booking the itinerary to as simple as using written notes as communication tool. Yet, he thinks AA has failed. So where is OP's own responsibilities?! I wonder if anything happened to her, such as a fall or whathaveyou - OP said she could not walk long - that requires emergency medical attention - whom would OP choose to lay blame on?
Jul 17, 2009, 3:45 am
#57
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: lax
Posts: 3,888
So glad abuela is safe today. Imagine if AA had not given her a hotel room for the weather delay? I cannot imagine anybody not helping an obvious pax in distress. Si posible abuela did not show any distress to her situation?
Jul 17, 2009, 7:39 am
#59
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Most FT members are problem-solvers, who come to FT to acquire information to make their travel experience less problem-filled, and to share such information with others. To do so, we have to acknowledge that we can influence our travel by what we do, and to take responsibility for learning how to do that and then doing it. When someone presents a problem, we tend to present a solution.
We can't change AA, it pretty much is what it is. We can tell someone how it works and what to expect. We can also tell someone how that individual can change his/her behavior to get what they want. But to do that, he/she has to accept that he/she could have gotten what he/she wanted by behaving differently in the first instance, that is by accepting blame for the undesirable outcome experienced.
I submit that if OP wants to find out how to keep Abuela safe in the future, he came to the right place but probably started this thread with the wrong post. If he wanted validation that he did everything right and that AA is an awful, evil corporation for treating poor Abuela the way that they did, perhaps www.flyer-rant.com would be a better place. We aren't group therapy here.
Jul 17, 2009, 8:10 am
#60
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The OP is clearly in the wrong here, being neglectful of his grandmother-in-law.
The Honor Flight organization has it completely right in that they send a chaperone with EVERY WWII vet on the trip, to be sure to be able to attend to any of their needs (which will always crop up with their VERY ambitious single day trip which even just from Michigan totaled more than 20 hours!).
You needed to have someone go with them. Preferably someone at her end doing the round trip, but if necessary you or your wife doing a double-RT to pick her up and take her back.
Steve
The Honor Flight organization has it completely right in that they send a chaperone with EVERY WWII vet on the trip, to be sure to be able to attend to any of their needs (which will always crop up with their VERY ambitious single day trip which even just from Michigan totaled more than 20 hours!).
You needed to have someone go with them. Preferably someone at her end doing the round trip, but if necessary you or your wife doing a double-RT to pick her up and take her back.
Steve