bkafrick

Anyone's who traveled on a plane since they started charging for drinks (um, I think its been like 30 years now) know that planes dont have change.

How would you envision getting all these $5's and $1's out to all the FA's and keeping the change bank replenished for every flight? And who takes responsibility for that change bank?

scottsam66

With all due respect, having change available on flights should be a no-brainier for airlines. Somehow McDonalds with a few more stores and employees manages to figure this out. Yes, I know different scenario, but my point is, $B companies should have the logistical know-how to make this happen-- or take CCs.
All those with flippant responses do no good either. OP had a valid gripe. No need to insult him.

eponymous_coward

Yes.

ibrandsguest

I've found US customer service to be pretty responsive...to legitimate complaints. I can see why you're irked, as I'd be hungry and irked that there was no change. However, some things just aren't worth complaining about.

Petty complaints = petty responses.

If you didn't get to spend a few more dollars on a business that you don't like, why are you upset? You avoided giving your money to someone who offended you. You won.

justhere

Yes. Couple of recent flight cancellations due to weather and customer service was quick, efficient, and did exactly what I asked them to do when rebooking.

I don't disagree about the money but I understand that after giving out change on the first few flights of the day the fly-through lane of the Skyhigh Bank gets a line and tends to cause flight delays.

BoeingBoy

McDonalds has cash registers, the airplanes don't. McDonalds are mostly/all franchises - the franchisee (through the store manager) is responsible for filling the till every morning. No one person is responsible for every McDonalds in the U.S. or the world. US has more planes that almost all McDonalds franchisee's. And the planes don't sit in constant locations like McDonalds. A change fund would be magnitudes more difficult to administer with the planes than for even a large McDonalds franchisee.

Jim

172pilot

Something tells me that the OP has GE and doesn't need to fill in custom forms.

LowlyDLsilver

Credit card processing equipment = one-time expense, plus minor ongoing processing fees.

Maintaining cash inventory for every plane plus necessary control measures = huge ongoing expense, plus a lot of money tied up in a decidedly non-productive fashion.

Doesn't take a Harvard MBA to make the decision, lost sales alone should make this a no-brainer, forgetting completely the customers you upset by not being able to sell them something.

Superguy

I'll go you one further - during the day, if someone runs out of ones, or whatever, they can run to the bank and get change. It's hard to do that at 30,000 feet.

I don't know how many times I've heard on flights that "correct change is always appreciated." If anyone's traveled more than a few times, they should know that change can very easily be in short supply. Similarly, I've also been to restaurants, grocery stores, gas stations, etc, that have posted signs saying "we need $1s/$5s/whatever." OP, do you get mad when you see that in one of those instances?

The resulting situation was a choice of the OP to do a SDC and forego lunch. If food was so important and given the "wonderful" onboard options for lunch, I'd have suggested the OP get lunch and then try to move up. You can't rely on airlines to be properly catered, or still have an item until they get to you. Quantities are limited.

I empathize with the apathetic FA, but it sounds like there's not a whole lot that can be done.

BoeingBoy

And the ever-popular "Does anyone have change for a $X" back in the days when it was cash only on mainline.

Jim

bkafrick

Its crazy how you think it would be so easy or a "no-brainer" for airlines to have a change bank available. I'd love for you to give an example on how you think this might be accomplished?

Yes, take CCs... Sure. Thats the only viable solution here. Change is not possible. At all.

TProphet

If you're going to sell things, you should be able to make change. Every restaurant and shop in the world knows this and can deal with it. Even bus drivers in most cities can make change. What makes airlines so special or unusual here?

First rule of business: if you want to sell something, make it easy for people to buy it and easy for them to pay. I have never heard of this not being the norm except at Chinese state owned enterprises. However, that's Communist companies in a Communist country. Shouldn't we expect better service in the United States of America?

BoeingBoy

You can keep singing the same old song, but that doesn't make an airplane (which may be in MIA, CLT, BOS, PHX, LAX in one day) a restaurant or even a city bus.

And what's easy for the vast majority of people AND US? Credit card only.

Jim

bkafrick

People keep on saying that US should do this...
...yet no one offers a suggestion on how to do this operationally...

Please - come up with a solution. I'm all ears.

I'm sure the 299 MBA's on staff at US would welcome your suggestions.

MOC991

I don't really like to beat a dead horse. I think everyone made all the points that could be made about this, and some people just repeated what was said on the first page indicating that they probably didn't read it. I guess the essence of my point is that they should go cashless only or properly implement cash only, but I think having different policies on planes you are connecting with is bad policy. I agree that implementing proper change policies would be difficult, but they shouldn't use that system if it is not fully implemented. With the risk of theft of cash probably being exceptionally high, I imagine any viable cash system would not be possible.

I just though the complaint was valid because of the conflicting policy combined with poorly implementing cash only. I don't think the OP is due any compensation really because there wasn't any actual cost, but customer service shouldn't tell him he is wrong because that is express policy. Policy should not supersede passenger comfort. The appropriate response should have been something like we are constantly looking for ways to improve our service and are looking for ways to better streamline cabin service. Even if it's BS. I've gotten responses basically telling me I was wrong from US Airways telling me an 11+ hour wait on hold is reasonable, hence my tendency to side with the OP.