Lomapaseo

Maybe it looks bad, like a pine-apple on a teachers desk vs an apple. To avoid others natural cynicism,disguise it from others like the 10$ tip to the head waiter neatly folded in the palm of your hand

bluedemon211

Totally agree. That said, the 767 FC cabin has been Polorized while the 757 still has the original seats. They have seen better days, but don't get me wrong. I'd take the 757 over the 737 10 out of 10 times.

DJ_Iceman

I had a good experience on 10/28, although luck certainly played a role. Flying MCO-IAD-LAX with my 8 year-old daughter, with the IAD-LAX in Polarized 767. MCO departure was delayed 45 minutes waiting for a crew to come in from another flight, then we boarded and taxied out just to hold on the ground another hour or so due to weather.

Original connection time in IAD was 75 minutes, so it wasn't looking good. Kept checking flight status throughout the flight and it showed us arriving after departure of the connecting flight, and there were no other flights with two first-class seats for at least two days. Upon landing, the flight status of the connection showed delayed 30 minutes awaiting inbound crew, so we had a chance! Lots of people had tight connections, but we rushed off the plane and began the hike from D7 to C12. Heard our names paged over the PA and told my daughter "That's us, so at least they haven't given our seats away yet!"

Fast-walking next to us was a UA first officer who asked if we were on the flight to LA, and who noticed we had left the flight from MCO. Turns out, he and the pilot were the flight crew the LAX departure was delayed for! So we made it in time, they had not given away our seats, and the flight attendant was particularly gracious in thanking me for being a 1K, helping us get settled, and then taking our food orders to ensure we got our first choices.

Would they have held the plane just for us if not for the happy coincidence that they also needed the pilots from our same flight? Probably not. But it all worked out, and that flight attendant's seemingly-genuine greeting ("We were worried about you; we're so glad you made it!") helped make a stressful situation a more pleasant one.

findark

Nice!

It's always amusing to be the one pax that's actually glad the flight was delayed

dmurphynj

To be fair, the lie-flat seats on the 757's today aren't anywhere near original. This is what the original seats looked like: https://www.airliners.net/photo/Cont...-757-224/43463

With a quick makeover, those 757's would be extremely nice again as well. You can't turn a narrow body into a wide body, but you sure can dress one up. I still have a super soft spot in my heart for the 757; it's a heck of an amazing airframe.

sean5280

Originally Posted by narvik View Post
cutesy story, there's something that bothers me about apparently having to butter up the UA crew first,

"Cutesy story"

Yeah, Definitely not my intention to butter anyone up. Honestly, your response really made me feel rotten.

I don't expect anything special - other than that *I* feel great in thanking the crew for the hard work they do. So yeah, I guess I do get something out of it, and that's my tiny little belief that I've brightened someone's day.

One need only turn to their preferred media source to see videos of pax behaving poorly. I'm lucky I don't have to worry someone's gonna scream at me and punch me for doing my job today.

My intent is NOT butter. My intent is to give them something to hold onto the day someone screams or starts throwing haymakers - a reminder that not everyone onboard is a giant tool.

lincolnjkc

Indeed. I've made it a habit over the years to distribute a small gesture of thanks (usually card + chocolate or similar) to all of the UA folks I encounter when I travel around the end of the year or for special occasions (wedding, birthdays) to thank employees for being there and, as you mentioned just to be in the back of their mind on a bad day. Aside from some very warm thank yous and a purser that tried really reallly hard to get me to take complimentary booze there's never been quid pro quo and I like it that way.

On the flip side I got an FB message from the widow of a ramper several years after I gave out that particular card letting me know that he had kept it in his backpack and frequently referred to it on tough days so it definitely makes an impact. Because of that and the way the reactions from crews make me feel I have no problem keeping on regardless of what anyone on the Internet thing.

Meanwhile I've thought about getting together a Thanksgiving meal for the folks at my local station (who admittedly I have a much closer connection to than many other stations) but I thought that would be excessive and pose logistical challenges... Unless... Anyone want to get in on this with me?

fumje

I'm sure the intent of that wasn't to criticize your gesture. There is a longstanding issue with crews sometimes being remarkably surly, and in some cases tipping culture can have perverse outcomes, so potentially this story implicates some of those issues, but all of it doesn't negate a nice gesture.

In the end, it's apparent that your act was generous, not venal, so I think only good feelings warranted!

autobahnal

Not sure this is the best place for this story, but it's a positive experience that made an otherwise short, humdrum domestic flight way more interesting:

Yesterday's UA1892, SLC-DEN, pilot makes his welcome announcement from the aisle instead of the cockpit. The reason? His daughter was on the flight, and so he asked her to stand next to him. He said he's been flying for 26 years, and she's been alive for 20 of them, but this is the very first time he's had her as a passenger. Then thanked her for being such a great daughter in front of the plane, and added two last remarks: 1) She's a tough critic -- I better make sure the landing is smooth (it was, very much so!), and 2) At the very end instructed her to go take her middle seat in the back (not sure about this part...though possible given the flight was full even after an upgauge from an A319 to an A320 a few days prior). Everyone near me clapped.

narvik

So sorry about that. 🤝
My post was directed at UA crews, not your gesture. Believe me when I state that your approach is far more admirable than my own. Yours is positive and pro-active; mine is negative and rather passive (complaining on internet forums after-the-fact ).
In my [feeble] defense, it was posted at a time of caffeine deficiency... 😚

lincolnjkc

Can't say I've had crew acknowledge family on board but every once in a while the captain (or FO) will make the welcome PA from the aisle -- I've always appreciated it, particularly when it involves "bad" news (e.g. delay for maintenance, weather-means-seatbelt-sign-isn't-coming-off-anytime-soon. (Come to think of it those PAs generally have more "spirit" to them than the "I'm captain X. We'll be leaving soon. Flight time is X. ThankyouBye"

lamphs

IAD-DEN 11/26, F. Maintenance issue. Captain came to the gate area to provide updates (that doesn't happen often). Purser and the F FA provided great, proactive service (although no PDBs). I didn't want the heavy hot meal, so the purser brought me a snack box. The mask instructions were given by both the captain and the purser is a professional, but friendly tone (unlike my recent IAH-PHL flight). And the captain recognized a passenger that passed the 2 MM mark enroute to Denver. (Does the crew know these things in advance?) The passenger's wife was happy, but the passenger himself barely acknolwedged it.

By chance, last night, I was at the Yard House bar in downtown Denver. A captain and FO sat down next to me. It took a few minutes for me to surmise that they were United pilots. Ended up having a pleasant conversation with them. The FO was relatively young and had not gotten involved with hotel point programs. She said 'I'll have to get on the Marriott train, I guess'.

DEN-IAD 11/27, F. A communicative crew. No service for the first 50 minutes of the flight as the FAs had to remain seated. The purser was pleasant enough, addressed each of us by name, but a bit discomboulated on service. I also reported that there was no power at 1A. Not a big deal - just reporting so that it got addressed for the next passenger. Purser gave me a note 15 minutes later that the problem had been logged and that miles were deposited. I wasn't expecting anything.

All in all, two decent flights with good crews. Thanks United!

Santander

Flew BRU-IAD today. Apparently, I was so tired that I let my Rolex come off my wrist and fall into the side of the seat. I panicked when I woke up, as the watch has huge sentimental value to me, and enlisted the help of the flight attendants, who did a thorough search, and arranged for a mechanic to come on board at IAD to help find the watch. Long story short, with the help of the cabin crew and FO, who went above and beyond, and the mechanic, I was reunited with my watch. The crew was very thoughtful and understanding throughout the situation. Thank you United!

Clemson

MCO - SFO today. Captain gave a gift and congratulated a 2m miler for hitting his milestone on the flight during boarding. Then before departure the Captain introduced himself to the F cabin and gave a briefing on the flight, expected conditions, etc before going on the PA and doing general announcements to the whole plane. I thought it was pretty neat and it definitely made me feel a bit more appreciated in the F cabin. Gate agent before boarding also made it clear that the 1K pre-boarding call was not for Group 1 but for "frequent fliers who have earned Premier 1K status with United." Flight attendants were also pretty attentive on the flight and breakfast was good so all around it was a good flight experience.

buckeyefanflyer

I was at FLL yesterday waiting for my flight was in line at a burger concession older gentleman and looked to be his grandson did not speak English and looked like spoke Spanish but guy taking order only English.
A United ground employee in front of me stepped in and translated the order and cost took almost 10 minutes.
I told the UA ground employee how nice it was of him to do that. He was on his break not sure how long he gets but we need more employees like him.