Greetings everyone,
Well it finally happened I had a bad experience in BF on Continental.

This was flight 72 from Honolulu to Houston on July 9th.

First let me say with my history I have flown to and from Hawaii on Continental twice in coach rt and 3 times rt in BF.

The good:

I was allowed to go into the President's club in Honolulu for the first time ever. Normally they don't allow me because I'm underage but this time I didn't even offer my ID I just handed her my drivers lic. In fact the lady at the counter remembered my name from the day before (I changed flights) and was overall very friendly. I spent about two hours in the club then decided to stretch my legs. About 2 hours later I returned and she immediately greeted me by my name. It was a very nice touch!

Another good thing was one of the BF flight attendants remembered me from flying to Honolulu on flight 1 about 6 months ago and even remembered me sitting in seat 1A and talking about the cruise industry. This was another great touch!

The other good parts were the food and the ability to sleep. I didn't even pull out my IFE once.

The Bad:

To sum it up I was ignored by the purser (or whatever they call the head FA.) For starters I was the first to board the plane and I sat there for about 20 minutes waiting for him to offer me a drink while he asked everyone else. Finally the FA that remembered me came over and offered it to me. I thought no big deal maybe he just forgot or thought I said I didn't want anything.

When it was time for dinner I was skipped. To be fair maybe he wasn't doing my seat for this meal because I was sitting in row D seat 1 but I noticed he was helping the person behind me. Luckily the FA who remembered me brought over my meal. When the purser started offering wine to everyone he went straight past me. He Did seats 1A then 1B then 2D. Now I am underage but the other flight attendants were offering me alcoholic drinks and must of thought I was over 21 so I don't know why he didn't even offer. Every other single flight I have been on they have asked me without thinking twice. The part that really annoyed me with this was simple he wasn't making any eye contact, asking if I needed anything. I even put my empty water glass on the arm rest and he passed it three times till the other FA finally filled it up. I think she realized that I was a little annoyed by him and filled up my water but also brought out my cheesecake. We joked about the ice cream sundaes not being offered anymore.

After dinner I went to sleep and woke up as they were getting breakfast ready in the galley. This was the worst part of the trip. They started serving breakfast and totally skipped me. I actually had to ask him and said "sir may I have breakfast please?" and he gave me a snotty reply. Now I'm very polite when I ask for things. I work as a purser/front office member for a major cruise line and I just know how to handle myself without being rude. He however was.

If it wasn't for the flight attendant that remembered me I would of really been upset over this flight. I love CO, they are the best and I will continue to fly on them but this guy's attitude towards me was really surprising. I was wearing nice jeans and a nice button down shirt. THe person next to me was talking about business to me so I was def not acting up.

I spoke to my friend who is a manager over at Alaska and he said maybe because I moved to a blocked out seat they thought I was a non rev. Would this explain his attitude towards me?

Like I said I'm 20 and work for a cruise line so flying BF is expensive but its worth it to me because its my last freedom before I get on a ship for half a year but with service like this I was really disappointed.


So do you think they thought I was a non-rev?

The flight attendants get a print out before the flight that lists each passenger and his/her details including whether or not that psgr is a nonrev. They're very careful to offer meal choices to paying customers first and careful NOT to offer BF arrivals lounge passes to nonrevs. In the 8 BusinessFirst flights I took as a nonrev, the flight attendants always treated me as though I were a paying customer as far as meal delivery was concerned (although I didn't always get my first choice of meals which was a small price to pay for sitting up front!) which seems to be where you were forgotten. I can't see this being an issue of a mistaken nonrev.

I doubt he thought you were a non-rev, because we aren't allowed to wear jeans.

Why are you annoyed that he didn't offer you wine? You are underage and I guess he realized that. I usually skip someone that looks underage. If they ask for it, thats when I ask for ID.

That flight does not have a purser/ISM.

That's incredibly non-professional!!! You just ASSUME people's age??? Wow!!!

Anyway, this entire story looks to me like a clear case of "looking young and being elite".

The head FA thought you looked young, and was bothered by it, probably thought you played some kind of trick to be in BF. Some people are just not nice. I would have written down his name and complained.

Yes, if someone looks underage I don't offer alcohol or I ID them. This is a problem why? Last time I checked it was illegal to serve alcohol to minors.

No the problem is that you assume who's underage and who's not.
You're obviously not in your 20's, or you'd know how insulting it can be.

Just take a look at the thread I referenced up there.

You could ask politely for the guy's age instead of just assuming and skipping him (or her).

Talk about a sense of entitlement!

I'm in my early 20's, of age and elite. If I want a glass of wine, I have the social skills enough to ask for it! I don't think good service from a flight attendant requires that he or she drown me in alcohol.

Having social skills shouldn't be a requirement for flying a plane and having a drink. You've paid for your seat and you're owed a thing or too.

Then what? Are timid people guilty of something?

Actually I am in my 20s and carded all the time.

When I'm playing bartender on the plane, if someone looks underage I don't even attempt to serve them. Like I said, if they do say something I will ID.

It's got to be the non-rev thing. Some FA's don't read or assume that the manifest is wrong. When I was in my 20's, I occasionally got substandard service in F. I always assumed that it was because I was young. I later worked for AA and figured out that they probably assumed that I was a non-rev.

The solution for this is to write a letter/email to CO Customer Service. Detail the flight and the time and give a short, concise description of what happened. Don't mention the alcohol specifically, nor your age. Just focus on the fact that you were ignored by the lead FA for the entire flight and felt VERY uncomfortable.

Will do thanks for the tips.


The thing that bothered me about the wine is every other flight I was on I was offered it as well as mixed drinks and suddenly this guy ignores me on that service that put it over the top. Also I turn 21 in two months so I look like it.

Then you are a very bad FA. Doesn't CO train FAs properly? It should go something like this:

FA: Would you like something to drink?
Pax: Yes, a red wine please.
FA: Certainly, but I do need to see the ID of anyone who looks under 30.
Pax: Let me get it for you.
FA: Happy 21st Birthday!

What's next? Stop asking pax if they want dinner because they look like they might be full?

Read the line you responded to again. The FA explicitly states that they don't openly offer booze, but they do ask what the person wants to drink and cards them if necessary. That's exactly what you seem to be asking. Or are you suggesting that they card someone and if they are underage serve them anyway? It is completely inappropriate for underage pax to assume that they should be served.

I am not suggesting that there should have been no service - that is unacceptable, too - but being passed over in the wine service isn't an abomination.

No, that is not what the FA said. The first post by the FA indicates that "I usually skip someone that looks underage." That is plain wrong.

I never suggested that they serve the underage. A perfectly acceptable answer to "would you like a drink" by an underage person is "yes, a Pepsi please."

As for "passing over" customers, I don't think that any FA is omniscient about the age of customers so they should not make assumptions about who can be served. They should offer and ask for ID if the request is for alcohol.

I interpreted it as "I skip them when I have a bottle of wine in my hand" rather than "I provide zero service to a passenger younger than 21." It isn't like they are coming through the aisle with a drink cart. They ask you want you want and then fill the order in the galley.

I would be shocked to find any FA that summarily ignores a young passenger, though it seems that the OP felt this was the case on their most recent flight.