Are There Any Good Airlines Left?

[lugnut33]

Uh... Southwest cut their maintenance more than any other airline. But hey, you don't have to pay baggage fees! Congrats!

Not having baggage fees is customer friendly, or are you against customer friendly policies?

If cutting the budget leads to more delays then that's a bad thing.

And somebody please prove to me that adding baggage fees has saved people money? Who will be the first to tell me that all fares dropped $15 or $25 when the airlines implemented it? That would be like the Menard's slogan, "Save Big Money At Menards". Yeah, but you're still spending.

 

[lugnut33]

Isn't that your choice so you don't have to pay the luggage fee? I don't think you have to bring additional carryons aboard, you are choosing to do so.


We love JetBlue. They have decent fares from our area and non-stops to the destinations we like to go to. Those things are key. The tvs are a plus, extra legroom and friendly FAs and CS agents. We have to drive farther (45-50 mins on a good day vs. 10-15 mins) to fly JetBlue over other airlines including Southwest.

Yup, it's my choice and that's why I'm driving an extra hour to fly on Southwest, just so I don't have to pay baggage fees.

 

[lugnut33]

The problem is, people want it both ways. They want to pay rock bottom prices, yet get every perk imaginable. You consistently see people on this board complaing about paying $200 for cross country flights. The airlines cannot survive when people are not even paying enough per flight to cover the costs of the fuel and flight crew.

You may think baggage fees suck, and I tend to agree with you. But at least I can make a decision to pay the fee or not by how I pack, instead of everyone having to pay a higer cost for a ticket.

Maybe if people would follow the rules and not try to take 4 carry-ons on the plane with them, the CS people wouldn't be so rude! During one flight a few weeks ago I saw a guy try to cram an oversize carryon into the overhead bin. The door wouldn't even come close to closing, so he just proceeded to slam it down a few times, and then leave the compartment open we he couldn't get it shut. Not to mention the people who were not even in their assigned seats, which caused the flight to be delayed while the FAs sorted everyone out.

If service seems to be lacking, well, you get what you pay for.

I completely agree with you that we as consumers demanding rock bottom pricing above all has really diminished the flying experience. It still doesn't make it right to understaff your check-in counters, cut maintenance budgets, and treat people like cattle heading to the slaughterhouse.

And to be fair, buying a ticket doesn't give the customer a right to be a total jerk to the agent.

 

[LoveTheEars]

Southwest
Always fly them and never had an issue
Good Luck

 

[uva185]

I'm not really complaining about the 7 hour delay. I'm complaining about the overall experience of flying and how that 7 hour delay doesn't help it. Or the probable soon to be fiasco when they get to Houston and try to get another flight. We all know weather delays happen and I'd never complain about that.

I understand. Too many people think that weather delays are only for weather problems at either airport. I just wanted to point out it is MUCH more complex than that.

I myself didn't even realize how complex a weather delay can be until I was given a tour of the Delta Operations Center and shown how all the planning and execution is played out.

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

You're laboring under the mistaken assumption that Southwest, head to head with major carriers, is always the lowest fare. Absolutely not the case, but they do a great job of exploiting their 'discount carrier' status when, in fact, they are just as pricey as other carriers who offer services that Southwest never has and never will. Having no baggage fees certainly makes you feel like you're getting a great deal, doesn't it? On certain select routes you may very well be, but not across the board. Researching fares is imperative if price is your biggest concern.

Blaming the airline for a delay without understanding the true cause is just silly. If the state closes a road for an emergency repair do you blame Greyhound?

There are two (possibly 3) certainties in air travel:

one, there will always be delays. It happens. Prepare yourself.

two, pricing methodology will always elude you and you'll never get a fare to your liking. Even if you only pay $100, you'll still be wondering if you could have gotten it for $98. Accept the fact it costs more to fly you from point A to point B than $100 and, at some point, airlines will start charging you properly.

three, the guy seated in front of you will always recline his seat.


note: the word always here is used to demonstrate the futility of anger directed at the commercial aviation industry and not to deny the incredibly slim possibility that one or none of the above scenarios may happen.

Not having baggage fees is customer friendly, or are you against customer friendly policies?

If cutting the budget leads to more delays then that's a bad thing.

And somebody please prove to me that adding baggage fees has saved people money? Who will be the first to tell me that all fares dropped $15 or $25 when the airlines implemented it? That would be like the Menard's slogan, "Save Big Money At Menards". Yeah, but you're still spending.

 

[goofy4tink]

I primarily fly SW, Jetblue and Delta. Like them all. Haven't really had big issues with any of them. I did have a less than stellar incident with SW on NYE last year..one I think they handled less than wonderfully. Otherwise, the vast majority of my flights have been just fine. I haven't felt like cattle being herded to slaughter. I choose how many bags I need to bring and am prepared to pay accordingly. I do not fly with an airline based on checked baggage fees. I fly according to flight times and then fares. If AA had a flight at the time I wanted, at a fare I was prepared to pay, then I would book with AA.

I guess we can continue to complain....but why? Air travel is still ridiculously inexpensive...even with those baggage fees. Considering what you get for your money....I think that most often we are getting a pretty good deal. No, the fares are not going to be what they were a few years ago. There has been a reduction in flights simply because there has been a reduction in people flying. The airlines know they can't just jack up airfares....no one would fly then. But, they can charge for baggage. It's up to the passenger to decide how much baggage they have to take, and then decide if it's worth the extra cost.
For instance....we fly to Orlando next month, from Boston. We fly down on Jetblue, which allows us one free checked bag. Then, we fly home on Delta, with the subesequent baggage fees. I realized that when I booked. But, Delta had the best flights home, so I figured the extra for baggage fees wasn't a deal breaker. Now, my heavy packing eldest dd is going to have to decide how much she wants to pay in extra fees. Hopefully, she can get away with just one checked bag and her carryon. I know that my 15 y/o dd and I can get away with one checked bag between us, plus our carryons.
It's up to us to decide what it's worth.

I really don't think the airline industry is getting any worse now than it was before. There are always going to be CSRs who really are grumpy. Most are just fine though. Unfortunetly, we hear of passengers who want the sun and moon...all for free. We want refunds if our fares drop, we want to be able to change the day we fly, of course for nothing. We book non-refundable fares but complain when we can't make changes to them. It amazes me to see how many people want to know if they can make changes to those non-refund. fares for no fees!! Then they get all upset, and think the airlines are out to get them...after all, they had a very good reason to ask for the change!!!

I don't mean to sound harsh. But man, we see it all here. If people would just do their homework before making airline reservations, if they would just know beforehand what the policies are...well, maybe we wouldn't hear so many upset people. All I ask is that the airline get me to my destination around the time I booked. I understand changes have to be made..especially when booking many months out. I realize that going in. I don't need the gate attendents to be my new best friend. I don't need the FAs to be all warm and fuzzy. But, I do need these people to do their jobs, to the best of their abilities, with a pleasant demeanor. And that's pretty much what I've gotten. With that one exception last NYE.

 

[DVC Grammy]

Another fan of SWA and JetBlue here (so far ). Their prices are usually some of the lowest and the attitudes of the flight crews have been almost "Disney-like". The checked luggage is free (1 for JB, 2 for SWA), plus they have non-stops to most of the locations I visit.

Oh, and they haven't lost my luggage (hello Delta!).

 

[lugnut33]

You're laboring under the mistaken assumption that Southwest, head to head with major carriers, is always the lowest fare. Absolutely not the case, but they do a great job of exploiting their 'discount carrier' status when, in fact, they are just as pricey as other carriers who offer services that Southwest never has and never will. Having no baggage fees certainly makes you feel like you're getting a great deal, doesn't it? On certain select routes you may very well be, but not across the board. Researching fares is imperative if price is your biggest concern.

Blaming the airline for a delay without understanding the true cause is just silly. If the state closes a road for an emergency repair do you blame Greyhound?

There are two (possibly 3) certainties in air travel:

one, there will always be delays. It happens. Prepare yourself.

two, pricing methodology will always elude you and you'll never get a fare to your liking. Even if you only pay $100, you'll still be wondering if you could have gotten it for $98. Accept the fact it costs more to fly you from point A to point B than $100 and, at some point, airlines will start charging you properly.

three, the guy seated in front of you will always recline his seat.


note: the word always here is used to demonstrate the futility of anger directed at the commercial aviation industry and not to deny the incredibly slim possibility that one or none of the above scenarios may happen.

Who said SW always has the lowest fare? Heck, I have not even flown on SW yet. I still need to come to an opinion about them. I do know that they receive pretty favorable reviews here on the Dis and that's why I want to fly with them. Besides, I'm not happy with AA, Delta, Conti, United, and etc.

It's not the delay so much as how you're dealt with after that. I think I gave a pretty good example in one of my posts.

It usually ends up being the woman in front of me that always lowers her seat back!!

 

[Tara]

Or are they all crap and just treat us like cattle?

I suppose it's our fault that airlines treat their customers like crap and don't give a hoot about anything. We are the the ones afterall who demanded rock bottom pricing ahead of everything else.

Lately I've flown a few different airlines and it's getting to the point I'd rather not fly anymore because the whole experience of flying is terrible. Indifferent employees, poor service, stupid fees for everything, security lines, late flights, and damaged luggage.

I was so mad at all the carriers that fly out of O'Hare, that I booked Southwest out of Midway (an extra hour drive) for our August family trip. I hope they don't disappoint me also.

Now today, I'm supposed to go pickup my inlaws at around noon so I check their Continental flight and it says "Estimated to Arrive 6 Hours 46 Minutes Late". Nice!! Now there'll be a big fiasco as they get rebooked on their flight segment from Houston to Chicago.

I fly a lot for business and on several pleasure trips every year and I rarely have a bad experience. Sometimes it's somewhat frustrating, every once in a while I encounter someone rude or unhelpful, but overall my experience is positive. I don't blame airlines for security lines or many delays (weather can't be helped). I guess I don't blame the airlines for fees, either - I want them to stay in business, so it costs what it costs and I can choose to fly or not.

I often choose to fly Southwest because on a couple of routes I frequently travel, they're the only carrier I can be sure will use a large jet. I'd much rather be on a 737 than a small regional jet (nothing to do with safety, but with space and well-being as I can be prone to motion sickness). On one route Southwest (to Orlando), Southwest isn't always the cheapest, but the difference is generally small AND for that I get a nonstop flight - no other carrier from Albany flies nonstop to MCO. (worth the extra money)

Of the legacy carriers, I seem to get the best service from United, but I find the difference between all of them to be negligible. For a while US Airways was a lot worse but they have dug themselves out a good bit in the last 2 years or so IME.

 

[uva185]

You're laboring under the mistaken assumption that Southwest, head to head with major carriers, is always the lowest fare. Absolutely not the case, but they do a great job of exploiting their 'discount carrier' status when, in fact, they are just as pricey as other carriers who offer services that Southwest never has and never will. Having no baggage fees certainly makes you feel like you're getting a great deal, doesn't it? On certain select routes you may very well be, but not across the board. Researching fares is imperative if price is your biggest concern.

Blaming the airline for a delay without understanding the true cause is just silly. If the state closes a road for an emergency repair do you blame Greyhound?

There are two (possibly 3) certainties in air travel:

one, there will always be delays. It happens. Prepare yourself.

two, pricing methodology will always elude you and you'll never get a fare to your liking. Even if you only pay $100, you'll still be wondering if you could have gotten it for $98. Accept the fact it costs more to fly you from point A to point B than $100 and, at some point, airlines will start charging you properly.

three, the guy seated in front of you will always recline his seat.


note: the word always here is used to demonstrate the futility of anger directed at the commercial aviation industry and not to deny the incredibly slim possibility that one or none of the above scenarios may happen.

In regards to #2: I'm probably one of the few people on here that understands fare structures so I will say I am perfectly happy with a $100 fare, heck I'm even happy with a $300 fare to MCO.

In regards to #3: Thats why I choose row 1

 

[DisneyWalker44]

Another huge Southwest fan. Primarily because of their customer service. I can't think of any company I deal with - not just airline, but company - that consistently has such great employees and service.

 

[chicagodisneyfan]

I used to be loyal to United, but no more.

Southwest all the way!!

1) They treat their employees right - after 9/11 when other airlines were furloughing employees, Southwest laid off NONE. I admire a company who has planned for tough times.

2) They consistently make a profit - again it speaks to their way of running a company - they must be doing something right.

3) Customer service - I hate the get to the airport early, grouchy TSAs - I like for the most part Southwest is cheery. I admit, I like the jokes and songs.

4) Complete flexibility - want to change the date, time, month of your flight - no problem. Southwest does not have change fees.

5) They are an industry leader - when Southwest enters a market, fares on ALL airlines drop - good for all passengers (whether they fly Southwest or not). One of the first airlines to adopt ticketless travel.

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

Until the day of your flight. That's when the legacy carriers have the flexibility.

4) Complete flexibility - want to change the date, time, month of your flight - no problem. Southwest does not have change fees.

 

[MAH4546]

2) They consistently make a profit - again it speaks to their way of running a company - they must be doing something right.

No, they are not. They recently lost money for three straight quarters and, despite a profit this quarter, said they will likely lose money next quarter, once more.

 

[ElizabethB]

Yep, all the airlines are losing money. Yep, we demanded low prices above all else. Yep, it must be hard to run an airline these days.

Having said all that, I flew a couple of weeks ago and concluded that, short of crashing the plane, there is nothing a airline could do these days to make the experience more miserable. I fly with dread these days, and I used to actually enjoy it. The tiny seats, the crowds, the race for overhead space, the underpaid and overworked employees. It's just such a trial anymore -- and that goes for all the airlines. Unlike others, I don't see much difference between any of them.

 

[Disneyhappy]

I fly primarily SW and other legacy carriers only when SW is not an option for business. For me personally, no other airline has the CS that SW does. I fly them frequently and am close to companion status. I have never experienced a SW employee that was not pleasant, especially in the face of adversity when things occur out of their control. In comparison, I had an unfortunate event with US Air last week on a flight to Albany. There was a probelm that was in their control and, as usual, I was met with a flippant, so what attitude that just escalated my frustration. Priority boarding and FC is not worth the anxiety I get whenever I fly US Air and some other legacy carriers. My SW fights are comfortable. Seat assignments are not a priority for me. On time flights, good CS, limited schedule changes, decent prices, and the flexiblity to change reservations without penalty and when flight prices decrease that no other carrier has been able to compete with is why I choose SW. I know there is a debate that SW will have to start charging for luggage. They market their product as no fees for luggage. I don't see them changing that mantra anytime soon. I think they would absorb it into the price of their fares. That doesn't really bother me even though I rarely need to check baggage. If they do start to charge, they will still be my carrier of choice for the other reasons stated above. All airlines are hurting puppies, financially. That said, if I had to chose an airline stock, I would choose SW. So, for now, SW is my carrier of choice.

 

[chicagodisneyfan]

No, they are not. They recently lost money for three straight quarters and, despite a profit this quarter, said they will likely lose money next quarter, once more.

I suggest you check the facts - 36 YEARS of consecutive profitability - unmatched by any other carrier. I stand by my statement.

 

[crashbb]

I suggest you check the facts - 36 YEARS of consecutive profitability - unmatched by any other carrier. I stand by my statement.

I suggest you check your facts. The PP is totally correct:

Airline operator Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) on Tuesday reported a profit for the second quarter after posting three straight quarterly losses for the first time in seventeen years. However, profit plunged 83.2% from last year, daunted by mark-to-market adjustments on fuel hedge portfolio as well as an 8.8% decline in operating revenues amid lower demand. On a non-GAAP basis, Southwest's profit dropped 51.2% from last year.

http://www.learningmarkets.com/index.php/200907213194/News-Feed/News-Feed/southwest-airlines-reports-profit-amr-cal-post-losses.html

I'm not sure how you can stand by your statement (which is different from the one in this post) when it has been shown to be wrong.

 

[DebbieB]

5) They are an industry leader - when Southwest enters a market, fares on ALL airlines drop - good for all passengers (whether they fly Southwest or not). One of the first airlines to adopt ticketless travel.

That's not always good. Here in Pittsburgh, fares did drop. But it caused USAirways to pull most of their flights out, they could not be profitable with the low fares. So it's great to have SW to the 5 cities they fly non-stop to but it's rough to get anywhere else (I travel frequently for business). Now that US does not have any non-stops to MCO, SW has raised their fares and dings are infrequent.