fsusurfer

Wife and I were on a flight yesterday from Charlotte to Fort Walton Beach and the pilot said we had to make a landing in Montgomery due to radar failure. We landed, and we're told to wait in the terminal and we could not exit security. This obviously irritated people who were smokers (of which we are not) because there was nowhere to smoke inside the terminal. 3 hours later they tell us the flight is canceled and to go to the gate agent to make other arrangements. They then told us we were going to have to be taxied 3 hours to our final destination. We were told we would receive no compensation and not even a meal voucher (which US air says on their web site they will provide after a 4 hour delay). We were loaded into a van in a somewhat hostile situation with 8 other pissed off people and told we would not be able to stop once we were on the way, not even for the bathroom. We finally got in nearly 8 hours after we were supposed to. My wife and I are pretty laid back people so we stayed calm but some people didn't, it was all around a bad situation. We fly quite a bit, but I've never had an experience like that. Very disappointed in their customer service.

fsusurfer

It was the planes radar problem... i wrote US CS earlier, haven't heard anything back, guess it could take a while if they even decide to do anything at all.

GNRMatt

An 8 hour delay due to a mechanical issue is definitely compensation-worthy. I would submit a request in writing to US Airways via their webform and make sure you stick purely to facts (leave ALL emotion out of it) and state specifically what you'd like in terms of compensation. If you are willing to take a voucher for a future flight, you have a better chance of getting better value, but that's only worth it if you know you'll fly US Airways again within the next year.

fsusurfer

i heard back from US Air... they gave both myself and my wife a 75.00 airline voucher... i guess that's better than nothing, but i'm still pretty disapointed with the customer service.

Panam Clipper

That compensation is only marginally "better than nothing".

Consider completing the form below:

http://www.dot.gov/airconsumer/file-consumer-complaint

us2

File a DOT complaint and follow up with US. Utterly unacceptable; my time is worth a heck of a lot more than >$10/hour plus the inconvenience of a long van ride with no meal voucher and restroom/food stops.

Biggie Fries

I'm usually of the "things happen, it's over, you're okay, forget about it and move along" school of thought. In this instance, however, if things are as you describe, I'd consider pursuing it further.

But let's think through what that means.... Others here can weigh in on this, but does the DOT have the authority (and, if so, the tendency) to make the airline give specific compensation in a specific case? If so, then I suppose it is like an appeals court and then, sure, have at it .... Same thing if you are just mad at US and want to make sure that others including regulators know about this.

If, however, you have some specific recompense in mind, you may be better off responding to US directly, telling them you want more. If that goes poorly, you ask again (and try to elevate), making it clear that you intend to seek redress elsewhere.

United_727

No stopping for a bathroom break on a 3 hour van ride is a bit harsh.

AZ Travels the World

No, but it has been pretty consistently reported that it is the DOT complaints that get the attention of US and seem to result in better outcomes.

I wonder if that's because DOT-related issues land on the desk of someone higher up in the food chain at US, so get treated more appropriately than the lower level customer service folks who hand out $75 for a mechanical failure that results in an 8 hour delay.

I would definitely file a DOT complaint were I in this situation. Nothing to lose. And it seems like the kind of unacceptable treatment that should be on record with the DOT.

BoeingBoy

You are correct - the DOT doesn't usuallly get involved in setting reimbursement levels. A few areas are exceptions - IDB and lost baggage compensation are the two where the DOT does set compensation levels that most folks like yourselves run into.

I know that it isn't necessarilly someone's position in the corporate food chain that determines how your claim is treated. But there is, as far as I know, a special department whose function is to receive the copies of DOT complaints forwarded by the DOT and get as many resolved or removed as possible. The tools used vary on the particular ciircumstances of an incident, with shifting it to another carrier often successful - Express vs mainline flight, code-share partner, etc.

For those complaints that can't be shifted to another carrier, getting the customeer to accept a resolution is the only real option available. That's where normal complaint resolution first enters the picture - as in this case offer a token voucher to keep a complaint from going to the DOT in the first place - the DOT monthly complaint statics only contain complaints that DOT received.

When you send the DOT a complaint, however, it triggers two things immediately - the complaint is logged as being against a specific carrier for a months report (I had coffee spilled on me on a US Air flight logs as a complaint against US AIR) and a copy the the complaint received by the DOT is forwarded to the carrier the complaint is logged against. That forwarded complaint goes directly to the special staff that handles DOT complaints. If they're unable to shift the burden to another carrier, their only option is to find a suitable resolution with the customer. Chances are excellent that they'll contact you - no waiting hoping that someone at US will get back to you. Obviously, in a case like this one there are limits on how much they'll spend - don't expect a $5000 shopping spree for a whole new wardrobe just because $100 worth of clothing is ruined, but they'll likely go somewhat higher to get the complaint resolved the the people who handled your original complaint directly to US. Whereas the normal complaint staff's purpose is primarily to resolve complaints as inexpensively as possible (or at zero cost by saying they gave you everything they were required to), this special staff's responsibility is to resolve complaints within reasonable cost limits.

Jim

AMLFlyer

The "radar" issue is likely a weather radar issue. This time of the year, the American south and Florida are extremely prone to thunderstorms. If the pilot and dispatcher didnt think it was safe to continue the flight due to thunderstorms or the risk of thunderstorms, then the flight would be diverted enroute to the nearest suitable and upon landing the options can be limited. If the local outstation maintenance cant fix the issue or the repairs will take a long time with parts needed to be shipped in, the only thing the airline can do is wait for the weather to clear or convince the pilot and dispatcher to allow the flight to operate. This is likely why it took so long to cancel the flight.

In a station like Montgomery with limited service, the TSA may have gone home for the day when the flight diverted. Thus if a passenger exits the secure area then the flight cannot be re-boarded until everyone has been re-screened.

The cancellation would likely get coded to either weather, pilot or dispatcher. Weather most likely since that type of cancellation would legally allow the airline to avoid compensation. Since the weather radar could have been a legal MEL but pilot/dispatcher didnt agree with it and maintenance likely disputed putting the cancellation on them, they likely coded it to something else.

BoeingBoy

Different plane types have their own specific MELs but weather radar was required to be operational on every type I've flown IF weather forecasts predicted the possibility of thunderstorms - especially embedded thunderstorms which may not be seen without the radar.

Jim