New Stand-by policy experience

Last week I flew stand-by once I arrived in Houston back to DCA. My flight got in early and went to gate to get on the earlier flight. Was given a STBY boarding pass and 10 minutes later cleared for the flight. On Tuesday same experience but in Newark - arrived at the gate with 40 minutes to spare. Was told by agent that he was by himself and he could not process the STBY request. Sent me to service center. Arrived there and was told it was $25.00 to standby now at ANY time. Explained my experience in Hoston last week and was told they should not have done it for free. I left the service center without paying and called the Elite line. I thought for sure she was incorrect. Nice guy at Elite Line explained it is a new policy

Went back to the gate... it was right next to service center and was told it was too late to get me on the flight. It was 22 minutes before departure and he was finishing boarding the last few passengers. He said he just closed the flight! I dont know what is involved in processing this $25.00 fee but he felt it could not do it and get the flight out on time ... with 20 minutes to spare!

Called Elite Line back.... not happy.. explained situation and how I now had to wait two plus hours for next DCA flight. She explained that due to the new policy you should process STBY fee when you arrive at the airport - not at the gate. Many gate agents are alone and their priority is getting the flight out on time - even if they have to loose collecting the fee's that they desperately need. The service center can do it on your connection but you better leave yourself enough time.

Frustrating, Frustrating....

Enjoyed the new fee 2 weeks ago when I was trying to get home (to Houston) from NY to board up my house and evacuate for hurricane Ike. CO was very understanding when they still assessed the stand-by fee (on top of the $150 change fee the previous night to get home on Thursday instead of Sunday) since my flight into EWR from ALB was early

I hate fees! Just charge what you need to for a damn ticket and be done with it. Rant over...

CLG

At least you are Gold so the fee is only $25 versus $50. Here are the rules:

http://www.continental.com/web/en-US...romoCode=A1631

Horrible, horrible policy. Need I say more?

Yes. This 'enhancement' should continue to receive the negative attention that it deserves. IMHO, the more said, the better.

For tomorrow morning, I scheduled a 2 hour connection in Houston because 31 minutes seemed a bit too short. If my red eye flight gets in on time I certainly won't have time to find the cashier's desk customer service center, process a standby transaction, and then get to the gate before they close the flight I want to be on. If I ask about standby in my city of origin and they put me on the list (after collecting my credit card information) and I clear while in flight -- but my flight is a little late, I'll end up off my already-full scheduled flight. Am I missing something here?

dont forget the fee that it will cost to put you back on the scheduled flight, for the delay will 100% be from weather and so it wont be CO's fault sounds like another good revenue bump for CO

I agree. Yesterday I was flying Alaska from SEA-SFO. Got to the airport early, wanted to get on the earlier flight. Not only was it free (and I have no AS status), I was able to make the change from the check-in kiosk.

I think $25 is pretty absurd when the availability exists and you're already at the airport. Charging it to Platinums is just a slap in the face.

There is one thing to charge for confirmed change in advance, another for standby at the gate with no checked luggage.

In the past, GA's wanted to get you on an earlier flight if there were empty seats. This opened up seats for later flights, which may be needed if someone missed their connection.

Plus some flights have notorious delays - like DCA-EWR in the afternoon. Missed connections cost CO money - when they have to accommodate you on another carrier.

I would think it is in CO interest to let people standby at the gate for free, when they have no checked luggage.

UNLESS it results in NO TICKET REVENUE!


I made plat by march. (Plat CO* here)

From 4/1 until today I have been on CO a total of about 10 flights. Did I stop flying? NO. Did i stop flying CO? YES!

This, along with numerous other changes have allowed me to take my business elsewhere! (cheaper, escape cnx in EWR! , AVOD that works, miles that can be used for actual flights, ETC)

So good 'ole Lar can keep making cuts...and keep thinking "its just the economy" on why his planes are not full.

Exactly. I actually appreciate the new policy when I can change my originating flight to the night before, or to a different (sometimes later!) flight, when doing OLCI from the comfort of my own home. I'm happy to pay $25 for this.

But having to pay $25 to get on an earlier connecting flight because my original flight actually got in on time, or when my scheduled departure is running 2 hours late and I happen to be there early enough to catch the on-time earlier flight (or delayed earlier flight which is now leaving when my scheduled departure is supposed to!), or whatever, when I am already there standing at the gate is a completely different story.

We have seen Continental re-examine and revise policies when there is a real uproar - what do we need to do to put this one on the radar?

I will fly almost 200k/mi this year, but will cut back to 120k/mi next year. I was fortunate enough to get enough miles to qualify platinum on both DL and CO. I will not be able to do so next year, so I will need to decide who will get my miles. I really enjoy flying both carriers, and both have their strengths and weaknesses, but the more expensive change fees and SDC charge for a top tier flyer on CO will carry a lot of weight on my flight choices next year. I have already missed coming home early 2 times because of this SDC fee on connections nonsense. I have also happily done SDC changes 3 times to adjust my flight schedule (if change fees were $50 - $75, they would have gotten more money).

And yes, I do buy up the fares to help with the upgrades, so I don't consider myself a bottom-feeder

My daughter was flying LBB CRP last night and they tried to charge her the change fee on a Y fare to get on an earlier connecting flight in IAH. Apparently CO is really pushing their people to collect the fee. Fortunantly, as my daughter ( ), she's sophisticated enough to know better than to fall for a fee on a full fare.

I do, however, have a question: Is the standby fee refunded if you don't clear?

Ok..So its clear now..If you want to standby,go to the service center or the ticket counter and pay the fee..then the gate will clear you..sounds pretty simple..

Even simpler...fly an airline that still allows traditional standby for free.@:-)