LAX Meltdown; Scary Situation, unbelievable agents...
#286
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Aug 2003
Programs: UA 1K 1MM (finally!), IHG AMB-Spire, HH Diamond
Posts: 60,172
This must have been the plan. CO is destructive but the planes say United so it becomes "wake up United"
Diabolical. Someone has been drinking lots of Freshpoo to hatch this scheme
Last edited by iluv2fly; Mar 20, 2012 at 4:01 pm Reason: merge
#287
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: SFO
Programs: UA 1K/MM
Posts: 234
Every employee I have dealt with has been kind, but even more frustrated than I have been.
However, even though I have encountered none with the attitude OP did at LAX, I don't doubt for a minute that it happened.
Wake up call for United.
Last edited by eyevision; Mar 20, 2012 at 4:02 pm Reason: Grammar
#288
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: NYC
Programs: AA EXP, B6 Mosaic, UA Platinum, others
Posts: 1,270
#289
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Minneapolis (MSP)
Programs: AA, DL UA (.5MM)
Posts: 226
Even if things work themselves out reasonably with the SHARES snafus in the next month or two, the new UA will continue to be a mere shadow of itself until it revises its entirely new philosophy and goes back to focusing on what matters: your customers and their loyalty. Shame on you, UA.
#290
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Join Date: Aug 2003
Programs: UA 1K 1MM (finally!), IHG AMB-Spire, HH Diamond
Posts: 60,172
#291
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 57,581
With all due respect, that is brainwashingly ludicrous. The airline I loved has flown the coop and jumped the shark all in one move. The airline I loved gave back to me just as I gave to them - it was a two way street. No longer. Even if things work themselves out reasonably with the SHARES snafus in the next month or two, the new UA will continue to be a mere shadow of itself until it revises its entirely new philosophy and goes back to focusing on what matters: your customers and their loyalty. Shame on you, UA.
#292
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: DEN/OGG
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 1,482
Voting with my wallet already. Reading the last few posts sitting in row 82 on lH 447. And enjoying my 3rd PDB champagne.
#293
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Menlo Park, CA, USA
Programs: UA: 1K, HH: Diamond
Posts: 1,330
Even on the best days, with the best computer entry experts, change of equipment, downgrades and delays challenge the best of us. I am not excusing the behavior of LAX or anywhere else since March 3 but please, just a little less anger for the next few weeks would help the sUA agents master Shares just as well as they did with Fastair.
The airline you love is still here and getting better every day.
The airline you love is still here and getting better every day.
Even the best company fails spectacularly on occasion, and I'm hoping that UA has some meetings about the processes that failed in this case. Sounds like there were at least three separate classes of failures to me creating a perfect storm of badness: how the long MX was handled, how the equipment change was communicated to the gate agents, and not having adequate personnel at the gate and club to handle an equipment downgrade of that magnitude without completely frying both GAs and pax.
There's got to be a more elegant way than beeping through the boarding passes, though.
#295
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Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Wesley Chapel, FL
Programs: American Airlines
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#296
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: San Francisco, CA USA // UA 1K 2 Million Miler, AA EXP 2MM, HH Diamond, SPG Plat // Easily found on SFO-ORDs
Posts: 2,726
An LAX-based PMUA FA mentioned on my flight that 50 GAs at LAX have called in sick due to mental stress recently.
Given that it was from an FA, take that for what it's worth... but sounds believable.
Given that it was from an FA, take that for what it's worth... but sounds believable.
#298
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2006
Location: SEA or BGR, Lower Earth Orbit
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 17,217
After reading about this (and other threads about LAX), I'm seriously reconsidering flying on UA for the rest of the year. I've got travel booked through the end of next month, and one flight in May so far. But that might be it. It would be enough to get me silver for next year, and still have enough time to hit Gold on Delta.
I want to stay UA. I really do. But seriously, throw us a bone here. Give fliers a reason to continue to fly on UA.
#299
Moderator, Omni, Omni/PR, Omni/Games, FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Between DCA and IAD
Programs: UA 1K MM; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 67,129
I will say the GAs on UA 974 on Monday, despite handling the situation at the gate very poorly--this new "wait until the scanner beeps and we'll see if you're on the plane" approach really sucks but must be policy!--handled the on-plane situation very well.
During a 30+ minute catering delay (honestly, how do you have a catering delay on a flight already delayed 2+ hours for MX?!), the GAs came onboard and paged several pax for whom they'd made alternate arrangements, then--and this is the huge point of kudos for them--moved pax up in the appropriate order to fill the open seats. Yep, they offloaded a F pax for another flight (must have been misconnecting internationally at IAD, I suppose), then came on and got the first priorty C pax and moved him to F, then went back to Y and got the last person from the C waitlist not to clear and moved her up to C... rinse and repeat.
Still, the new approach to handling irrops is terrible...
During a 30+ minute catering delay (honestly, how do you have a catering delay on a flight already delayed 2+ hours for MX?!), the GAs came onboard and paged several pax for whom they'd made alternate arrangements, then--and this is the huge point of kudos for them--moved pax up in the appropriate order to fill the open seats. Yep, they offloaded a F pax for another flight (must have been misconnecting internationally at IAD, I suppose), then came on and got the first priorty C pax and moved him to F, then went back to Y and got the last person from the C waitlist not to clear and moved her up to C... rinse and repeat.
Still, the new approach to handling irrops is terrible...
#300
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Hoboken, NJ; Pembroke Pines, FL
Programs: CO Gold, SPG Gold
Posts: 2,939