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-   -   Comedy of Errors on UA flight (https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/united-airlines-mileageplus/1585595-comedy-errors-ua-flight.html)

BearX220 Jun 16, 2014 7:58 am


Originally Posted by channa (Post 23039434)
Why would you put your own mother on UA? Mother-in-law, I understand, but mother?

I put my MIL on UA in 2012, using my miles for an F roundtrip. She was involuntarily downgraded, they lost her bag, and another flight was cancelled so she got home 12 hours late. Now my wife and MIL forbid me from burning my UA miles on her flights. She is not an airline savant or anything but she refuses to look at United again, even for free.


Originally Posted by CO_Nonrev_elite (Post 23039550)
I actually think we are in the equivalent of a slowdown now. Operations have completely fallen apart this month, and I wouldn't look too far beyond the employees thanking Jeff for his recent comments.

I had two UA flights last week (burning my miles for myself). Both ran 45-60 minutes late without explanation. On the first one (a 5-hour transcon) the dark A320's slimline seats were so excruciating, my back hurt before pushback, and numerous passengers got up and lingered in the aisle for long periods -- up to an hour -- because they could not stand the seats any longer. On the second one another guy and I were assigned the same exit row seat and it took the GA 20 minutes to sort things out even though the plane was only 60% full -- also, no service, the FAs remained out of sight takeoff the touchdown. Not even water or coffee.


Originally Posted by ibuyyoufly (Post 23040038)
If the Board won't do anything, even small groups of employees can take the matter into their own hands. It's going to get uglier.

It may already be happening. The operation appears to be unraveling even more.

FLYMSY Jun 16, 2014 8:22 am


Originally Posted by hughw (Post 23041739)
.... great food in BF, and adequate in Y.

"Great" food in BusinessFaux???? HAHAHAHAHA! That's a good one. Just flew TATL in Biz last week and the food was mediocre, at best. I could only take a few bites. Even the sCO FAs agreed the food has gone downhill in the last year.

And, "adequate" in Y? Give me a break! It's slop! For the last 18 months, if I'm flying Y, I bring my own. Vino Volo is my "go to" place domestically and I have my favorite places scoped out at my international airports.

(Bolding is mine.)

United_727 Jun 16, 2014 9:11 am


Originally Posted by claaaaaydavis (Post 23040493)
I really feel badly for the employees who have to deal with this kind of stuff day in day out and are expected to put on a smiling face throughout.

Me too,UA could not pay me enough to have to be a front line employee having to deal with the public over their corporate screw ups. :td:

Artpen100 Jun 16, 2014 9:33 am


Originally Posted by cruisr (Post 23041700)
Stuff like the OP stated is happening more and more. I have 1 RT to Europe in BF (got in on the 1400. P fare that was around for a few days) and had I not gotten that fare I would be on another airline.

I have not seen UA competing on price on any of the TATL routes and times I take, nor have I seen R class upgrades for miles at booking (I generally either buy business class, buy upgradeable flexible economy, or buy economy and upgrade with miles). Even before stories like this, I did not think the product was as good as most other carriers. Consequently, for about the last two years or so, my international travel has been LH and AF. Like the person quoted above, if the price on UA was significantly less for business class, or R space had been available at booking, I'd have flown UA, but neither has been the case.

mh3265a Jun 16, 2014 9:42 am


Originally Posted by fiddlestickies (Post 23041843)
You got it :-). EWR 763.

I stand corrected. I was mixing this forum up with another forum on UA 122 and a debacle on that flight.

joshwex90 Jun 16, 2014 11:26 am


Originally Posted by mh3265a (Post 23041300)
No I believe this is an int'l configured 757 which is pmCO staffed

:confused:

eta: I see you commented before this. My bad


Originally Posted by JNelson113 (Post 23041664)
You do realize that the management of the current combined airline is PMCO, right? Including the great Jeff Smisek.

So? Before the merger, I personally was really happy with CO. There were many really happy with UA. I don't care what the reason, who's in charge, or what. Since the merger, the airline has gone downhill. Doesn't matter who's in charge. And has been shown many times, there are leaders from both sides

united4 Jun 16, 2014 7:41 pm

Well you know, it does matter who's in charge. Because for years before the merger, I heard just how great CO was and how terrible UA apparently was. I heard that CO management was going to turn UA around and that UA was going to have its assets bought about by the great CO management out of BK and blah blah blah.

Then, when the CO management team fails at running anything but a regional airline, the apologists come out in full swing, either blaming it on the United side, or saying it doesn't matter who it is. No. This is Continental at work and the vaunted Continental management team doing their best to make things worse. Even the people in charge are trying to blame it on the United side, I will not stand for that.

JOSECONLSCREW28 Jun 16, 2014 7:48 pm


Originally Posted by united4 (Post 23045705)
Well you know, it does matter who's in charge. Because for years before the merger, I heard just how great CO was and how terrible UA apparently was. I heard that CO management was going to turn UA around and that UA was going to have its assets bought about by the great CO management out of BK and blah blah blah.

Then, when the CO management team fails at running anything but a regional airline, the apologists come out in full swing, either blaming it on the United side, or saying it doesn't matter who it is. No. This is Continental at work and the vaunted Continental management team doing their best to make things worse. Even the people in charge are trying to blame it on the United side, I will not stand for that.

Oh lord :rolleyes: This combined airline is nothing like what CO was and I've been with the company for over 10 years. It's basically the Lorenzo era of CO and the worst years of UA combined into one rather then taking the best parts of both airlines and combining them together. Now both airlines were good, both of them also had their troubles as well.

CMK10 Jun 16, 2014 8:22 pm

So United offered you $800 to not fly on this frustrating flight and you didn't take it? What we call in law school "assumption of the risk" :p

weero Jun 17, 2014 2:33 am


Originally Posted by fiddlestickies (Post 23039196)
J..3. Captain never said hello or how long the flight would be.
4. The entire plane was bundled up into the heaviest layers possible due to the unrelenting AC that the FAs could do nothing about...

These would have been welcome changes to me. I hate babbling on the PA and loathe sweaty cabins.

8. The meal choice for the meat eaters was chicken. That was it. No standard "chicken or beef." Just chicken.
That is disgusting, I agree. Which meat lover eats chicken? UA does this a lot ex SIN these days and it one more reason for me to fly SQ and NH whenever possible. I hate these minimal cultural denominator dishes.

9. They were only serving juice, water, tea and coffee plus alcoholic drinks. No soda for some reason?
That is entirely unacceptable. I don't drink any of above on a day flight. I would have thrown a major fight about this one.

Nothing funny about points 8 and 10.

Lion06Fish Jun 17, 2014 4:47 am

No soda on morning flight?!
 
Let me guess...as the OP stated the flight was understaffed by 2 fa.
Depending on load factor that would mean either 5 or 6 working crew for entire plane.
No matter how you cut it there would only be 2 fa working in the Y cabin, one in each aisle. You can either have a bar cart or a food cart going down the aisle at any one time with this sort of staffing. Remember it is a full Y cabin with no galley fa assisting to refill supplies or run special requests.
I think the fa did the best they could, thought to get warm drinks out with breakfast (in the freezing cold cabin) all on one cart and serve as quickly as possible bc of the delay.
If you really want something else to drink go to the galley in a case like this....the fa were probably doing the best they could.

Wickersley Jun 17, 2014 6:16 am


Originally Posted by channa (Post 23039434)
Why would you put your own mother on UA? Mother-in-law, I understand, but mother?


Brilliant ^

JOSECONLSCREW28 Jun 17, 2014 6:40 am


Originally Posted by Lion06Fish (Post 23047431)
Let me guess...as the OP stated the flight was understaffed by 2 fa.
Depending on load factor that would mean either 5 or 6 working crew for entire plane.
No matter how you cut it there would only be 2 fa working in the Y cabin, one in each aisle. You can either have a bar cart or a food cart going down the aisle at any one time with this sort of staffing. Remember it is a full Y cabin with no galley fa assisting to refill supplies or run special requests.
I think the fa did the best they could, thought to get warm drinks out with breakfast (in the freezing cold cabin) all on one cart and serve as quickly as possible bc of the delay.
If you really want something else to drink go to the galley in a case like this....the fa were probably doing the best they could.

Except that OP stated he was on a 3-Cabin 763 which is normally staffed with 8 FAs but went out short 2 FAs so only 6 FAs would've been working that flight.

fiddlestickies Jun 17, 2014 7:14 am


Originally Posted by Lion06Fish (Post 23047431)
Let me guess...as the OP stated the flight was understaffed by 2 fa.
Depending on load factor that would mean either 5 or 6 working crew for entire plane.
No matter how you cut it there would only be 2 fa working in the Y cabin, one in each aisle. You can either have a bar cart or a food cart going down the aisle at any one time with this sort of staffing. Remember it is a full Y cabin with no galley fa assisting to refill supplies or run special requests.
I think the fa did the best they could, thought to get warm drinks out with breakfast (in the freezing cold cabin) all on one cart and serve as quickly as possible bc of the delay.
If you really want something else to drink go to the galley in a case like this....the fa were probably doing the best they could.

As I said, on their own, none of the 10 things would have ever bothered me, but the combination of all of them was frustrating.

fiddlestickies Jun 17, 2014 7:15 am


Originally Posted by CMK10 (Post 23045905)
So United offered you $800 to not fly on this frustrating flight and you didn't take it? What we call in law school "assumption of the risk" :p

Sadly, I had to be in London early the next morning so it was impossible, but I was itching to take the $800!


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