CLTF

too be honest, im not really bothered. But I still think its bad business.
I actually was #3 to board but was pulled aside. Again they did admit it was a mistake and their fault in Houston, but oh well.
I only wish If i was misconnecting on paid tickets that I could bump upgradees, but I know that doesnt happen (especially since it happens to me like once a month PEK-ORD-CLT due to late arrival and I end up flying home in Y as F is all upgrades...but im good with that).
remember key fact: we SOLD an upgrade and bumped you - so for $120 upgrade they threw me under the bus.
Its all about good will, and I think ...they failed here.
A sorry might have been good enough!
and for the record: I travel intl. in paid C class on UA and US (and in F with my award tickets) and domestic on Y with US as I like my upgrades.
end of the day, I still like US, just think 'operational reasons' is a cop-out

blueheronNC

"Operational need?" More like discretionary mistake! It's not a "need" when they could just have well have refunded the non-elite's money for selling them a product they didn't have available to him at the time he tried buying it.

apeortdz

If it happened to me, this would be the way I would feel as well. I love US but I know there are occasional hiccups along the way that I do not like.

Biggie Fries

Geez, I feel for the OP, who does have the right perspective on it all, at the end of the day ....

But, gosh, it's not like anyone really needs to understand US's position. It's very understandable, if you look at it in terms of their rules and micro profit structure (although, like others, one wonders exactly how this particular "over sale" came about). However, in US's inability to comprehend the deleterious effect of being seen as -- I'm looking for the contemporary euphemism for an inappropriate childhood phrase about the type of person who gives you something only to take it back -- well, that type of person (or company); and how much the customer would have preferred never to have been tendered at all the "gift," were he or she to be aware that it would not last long ... I don't know -- as a customer, makes me sad. Because the more of these things I read about, the less enjoyment I get from all of the good things that I do get from flying US regularly. As OP said above, just an apology, a "we screwed up, this shouldn't have happened" and a little bit of "make nice" would go a long way to diffusing the anxiety. Instead, it makes me one of those tiresome people who work hard to get on first, lest my arguing rights be diminished in the event of a foul-up by US.

FlyerAl

I'm still confused as to how the Gate Agent was even able to sell the OP's seat as a GoFirst upgrade. The OP had already checked-in and was holding a boarding pass. The system wouldn't have that space showing available for sale, right? So the Gate Agent deliberately removed the OP's upgrade, reassigned him to a crappy coach seat, and used some BS "computer glitch" excuse.

Maybe the old man was an employee's friend or relative and they were trying to do him a favour. At any rate, this type of behaviour should not be tolerated. Sometimes airline employees have too much power to screw good customers.

MSPeconomist

I think the OP should escalate this. Whether the GA did it for a bonus payment or to help a friend or family member, it sounds like clear shenanigans to me. The GA should be disciplined even if the OP doesn't get compensation, which IMO should be given. This does not sound like an innocuous operational issue to me at all.

Often1

Sorry, but US is a for-profit company. The notion that any business which expects to stay in business would refund a paid ticket to take care of a freebie is just not tenable.

Before folks on FT go running around accusing the GA of misconduct, how about the possibility that a misconnecting paid F pax was the cause?

Maybe the solution is not to UG anybody before the gate and then process UG's at T-15. That way, there are no downgrades and everybody's expectations are clear.

ellinj

This is exactly the issue with downgrading customers. Typically they are left with a worse seat then they might have had before their upgrade. While I understand the need to downgrade people on occasions, leaving them in seats worse then they originally booked should justify some sort of compensation.

bevoinva

In this case it doesn't appear to be a refund for a paid ticket but rather for a $120 paid upgrade that was improperly offered.

You call it a freebie but part of the benefits of OP's gold status is complementary upgrades. Presumably, he has given US enough of his money over the past year to earn his status and therefore earn the upgrade benefit over a paid upgrade at the gate.

Under your reasoning, why not just sell upgrades at the gate until T-15 and then offer elite upgrades for any seat left - ala United? AFAIK US doesn't do this (at least not deliberately).

pbuntrock

I see you on a number of different board all of time reminding us that airlines are businesses, and that they don’t owe us anything.

Well in my experience, great businesses have great customer servive. I was in a local McDonald’s the other day and my great-niece spilled her small vanilla shake. Yes, I only paid for that one and I was not entitled to anything. However, a very nice young woman came from behind the counter and helped me clean-up my great-niece and then gave her a new shake. I was I entitled to this, no. Did I feel good and will I go back, yes.

How you treat people really matters. Just look at WN, they are no longer the low cost airline. But they still live in the glow of treating people well.

dfsb

Dear USAir ... nice response, but this is terrible (in my opinion)

I'm a CP (for many years) and things seem to be getting worse ...

Last Sunday I had an upgrade confirmed well in advance - at the airport, 5 mins before boarding, they called my name and downgraded me to coach ... said it was for 'Goverment Reasons' and apologized ... as I walked by my seat, I saw an older gent in my old seat, with a USAF pin ... and then the next 3 rows of first, wondering if all those people were paid 1st or CPs (higher in the pecking order than me)

Please, nobody get my post twisted ... I like USAir, and 99% of the time sing the airlines praises, and I'm appreciative of upgrades ... but in the last 2 weeks, I've had 14 flights (3 coast-coast), and 6 of them have been ridiculous (from a customer service perspective, on board and in the airport) ... I hope that was just January, but I've never seen such shoddy operations and lack of customer respect since being a Div Member for the last 10 years - it really does have me wondering what's going on of recent ...

Dont call me Shirley

I sincerely doubt that the agent was playing favorites or fishing for an upgrade commission. My guess that it may have due to "government requisition of space". US Airways does not overbook F/C on purpose --- even if they did, they would take away the seat of someone who had checked. Other than an aircraft swap, the aforementioned reason is the only one I can figure. I will leave to the reader to figure out what "government requisition of space" means.