trvlr64

With the upcoming WN flights out of PIT soon I've decided I'm going to look at doing a mileage/segment run just for fun. Might as well stay a cockroach? Right? Or are we called GoFaries?

I looked at PIT to ORD/MDW for May 6. Let's just say US is out of their mind!

US = $495.40 (on an RJ to boot! only 3 direct flights, other 2 on 737)
UA = $180.40 (with 7 direct flights on an Airbus or 737)
WN = $116.90 (we all know 737)

HHMM....guess I'll fly UA and use my US1 # to obtain zone 1 seating and get those segments towards 2006 CP status. I'm already at 60 segments this year. So between work and GoFarie runs I'll make CP again in no time.

...............


I also looked at doing a PIT to PHL run, total cost for 4 segments = $156.80 Start flying at 5:30am between PIT and PHL, get 4 segments and be home for lunch.


Interesting.

pitflyer

Don't do to Southwest what the populace did to AirTran. Fly the reason why fares are going down -- support the LCC!

sts603

Well I for one will not. I don't like flying WN - there idea of what flying should be is terrible and the populace and their desire to save two cents has been one of the reasons why flying is the disaster that it is today. I for one will support the legacies.

JAXPax

True, but recently I had the opportunity to compare riding in the back on US vs. WN. US was an A319 (upgrade as a Gold didn't clear, I was in the back with at least three CPs as well), WN a new-ish B737-700.

Southwest had more legroom.
Southwest had leather seats.
Southwest was much cleaner.
Overheads on their B737 could take my rollaboard wheels-first. Try that on most US B737s.

Both offered the same level of inflight service in coach.
I found the US flight attendants a little more friendly on this occasion.
Check in online and get an A boarding card on Southwest... even if you don't want to queue up with the other As, join the end as they start boarding the plane and at worst you're 35th or so to get on... still plenty of aisles left at that point.

If it were not for my FF status on US, Southwest would have won out.

sts603

Wouldn't disagree with those points.

However, try using your miles to get to Europe, Thaiti, or upgrade to Envoy, etc. Try getting them to endorse your ticket during irregular opearations. Try flying them 100 seg's a year and getting treated the exact same as if you flew once every 100 years. Try checking in at their LAX counter when the line is 2 hours long. Not even US in PHL can beat approach that long.

JAXPax

US must have sold out of the lower fares. They show fares originally offered as low as $58 round trip on PIT-ORD for that date.

Many others apparently have already done what you intended to do for that date: Take advantage of Southwest's low fares and fly US Airways at the same time. They just got to the cheap seats first.

Looking at the first flight of the day on May 6th PIT-ORD:
Y7 B7 M7 H0 Q0 V0 L0 W0 S0 T0 K0 N0
That's a CRJ.

The first B737-300 of the day:
F7 P7 A7 Y7 B7 M7 H0 Q0 V0 L0 W0 S0 T0 K0 N0
Low fares are all sold out already.

If you look at just the first UA flight of the day (a B737) for comparison:
F8 Y9 B9 M9 E9 U9 H9 Q9 V9 W9 S9 T9 K9 L9 G9 A8
Still availability in every fare class, including the low ones.

JAXPax

True, miles can't get me overseas on them. But, personally, I rarely use frequent flyer miles on myself. I normally gift them on others because the places I want to go for pleasure, I can normally find a fare cheap enough that I'll just buy it and collect more miles. Of course, YMMV and so may your needs.

When flying Southwest, I use online check-in and get an A boarding card. I online check-in on US all the time anymore. I rarely see a counter agent. Southwest also is big on skycaps (and even employees many of them as actual Southwest employees) for checking bags if you check-in online.

100 segments is bad example.... Fly 100 segments a year on Southwest and you get a companion pass for the next year and can take somebody with you on all of your travels for free, and confirm their seat when you make your reservation. You can even change the name on the companion pass up to like four times in the year. Plus, the "Southwest CP" folks have their own phone line to call for reservations.

My last call to Southwest on the phone was answered faster than calling the US Gold number. It rang about three times, and somebody answered. No automated prompts, just a pleasant voice on the other side asking what they could help me with today. I was changing a flight to another departure, and it was accomplished in just a couple minutes with no change fee charged and I got a $15 credit to use on Southwest during the next year (new flight had a lower fare).

Without the First Class upgrades, and slightly more daily frequency on the routes I fly, I'm not sure that US would be such an attractive option. That's not to say I don't love the people of US and think they are the best around (especially the JAX ground staff). I find the US travel experience to be generally pleasant, but so is flying Southwest sometimes. I don't really care for their informal dress and atmosphere, but their planes are comfortable as far as coach goes, and the service is normally with a smile (of course, WN has the rude few that every carrier has too).

Endorsed over to another carrier during irregular ops... that's true. However, most WN passengers aren't connecting traffic so as long as the flight doesn't cancel, they are alright. I've never had US endorse me over to another carrier, though I've been endorsed over to US by other airlines.

pitflyer

That's why it's a free country (for now). Some people wax poetic about the days of good service on airlines, as a relatively recent frequent flier (six years) I've never really experienced that great service domestically, so I'm happy to support the carrier that makes it a reliable commodity.

Besides I have millions of miles in non-interest bearing accounts with AA, US, UA and DL so I'd rather take the $$$ now than more miles later.

cedric

This to me is a huge benefit of the Legacy carriers. More than once I've arrived at YYZ to find that my outbound flight to PHL has been delayed before arriving. "We're not sure you're going to make your connection in PHL, so we're going to put you on the Air Canada flight to PHL instead" is the standard response in this situation, even before US was part of *A.

SOBE ER DOC

I will drive before I ever fly WN again. I suffered in college...but no more.

I agree with the other posters that WN treats those who fly once every 100 years the same as those who fly 100 times per year. As someone who flies 2 - 4 times per month that just doesn't cut it for me.

F on US may not be as nice as on AA or UA, but its a big seat, more legroom and no singing FAs annoying me while I'm trying to get work done.

Bad weather...flights cancelled...no chance of getting moved to another carrier on WN.

No preferred phone lines, security lines or boarding for WN fliers.

When was the last time you could redeem Rapid Rewards miles for a jump over to Europe or Asia?

Does anyone really like being herded like cattle?

I will stick with US until they shut off the lights and take down the signs. When it' over, I'll move on to another legacy carrier, or HP if they snatch up the right routes but I will not go near WN.

sts603

Exactly. It doesn't matter that you may only run into this situation every 5 years. Murphy's law dictates it will be the time you're on the way to your own wedding.

pitflyer

Actually on the way to my own wedding I flew Continental and they were five hours late so I got married at 3am ... but that's another story for another day! LOL

trvlr64

Well this past weeks snow storm in Denver caused one heck of a scheduling mess for me. On Sunday I was flying PSP to PIT on UA. All flights to DEN of course canceled. There were no seats on the flights to LAX or LAS to get me headed east. I called my emergency travel # for my corporate travel department and they started trying to get me onto any airline that would take me home. None of them could take me on Sunday. I finally said to the GA, I'll stay an extra day (tough decision) and fly out of SAN instead on Monday. Thankfully there were some seats available on US out of SAN on Monday and I finally got home. With a killer tan too!

trvlr64

I found it interesting that I can fly UA on May 6 PIT to ORD RT the same day and get 3 or 4 segments (with most on US too!?) from $87.10 up to $143.80. And yet the US website won't display that same itineraries with those prices.

I think I prefer the UA website for finding flight options lately.

phillygold

Lets see.....I fly out of Philly. No preferred lines there....
Herded like cattle? Have you seen the mad rush when Group 1 boarding takes place? Invariably, when I'm sitting up front in a 737 another "Group 1 boarder" will poach the overhead space while gettnig on before me. (Note to US....FC passengers should have their own Group !!!).
Unless you can plan pretty far out, the whole redeeming miles for Europe thing is a sham. I tried in January to redeem miles for a trip to FCO this summer. Ended up with only 1 set of days that works in August.
Lastly preferred phone lines? That geek Alan on the GP automated upgrade phone line is sickening.
Singing flight attendants? Well, I had one 2 days ago on US flying to CLT that did nothing but complain the entire flight to a passenger about senior management. (He was right.....but we gt the point after 10 minutes. I finally told him that I feel his pain regarding the pension loss.....however most of us in private industry have not seen a pension plan in years).
So, all in all.....WN is not looking too bad with their wider coach seats, newer planes and non-complaining FA's.