Direct Air any reviews!!!??

[casjen]

I've flown Direct air once to Sanford and 4 times to Myrtle Beach. We buy their friends and family vouchers so my family flies for $600rt during school vacation weeks.

The planes are older but the crew to and from Myrtle has been the same and they are great. My flights have honestly been no different as far as turbulance and landing. Everything like a normal plane.

We did have an issue flying home from Sanford in April. The plane had an issue, and was o.k. to fly w/o passengers (?) so it left the airport. Direct air kept us well informaed and updated us every 30 minutes. I've never ever had that with a major carrier. They flew in another plane and crew from Fort Lauderdale so we did have to wait a while. BUT, they gave us free drinks and snacks in the terminal, and then again on the plane. They did have to rearrange seats on our new flight but they worked hard to keep families together, something I also never experienced on a major carrier (We were assigned exit row seats with children and the major airline we were on told us it was our issue to trade seats with someone, not theirs!)

Direct air is a charter airline and things can happen that can delay your flight. But there is never a line to take off in Worcester, and your luggage comes out faster than some gate checked items at major airports. The line at security is non-existent and the security stricter than Boston.

We love the airline, and fly them as often as we can to keep them flying. I have never been on a flight that wasn't sold out.

 

[goofy4tink]

I have flown with Directair several times now from Worcester, MA to FL.
I must say I DO NOT feel safe on these planes.
The rides are always bumpy, the landings so hard I'm surprised the landing gear has not broken off yet.
Three times at booking we had assigned seats, on arrival at Sanford, FL airport we were put in different seperate seats and all the girl could say was to call Directair, nothing she could do.
I have a bad feeling about this airline and won't be useing it anymore.

I will say that you are in the vast minority. Every single airline I have flown has had bumpy and hard landings. Not one has been perfect. I have flown out of Worcester, but not on DirectAir yet, and the landings were not the same as at Logan..but the runway isn't exactly the same either.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion.....good, bad or indifferent.
I look forward to having you continue posting your various experiences with transportation here. Hopefully, they won't all be quite so negative.

 

[jsilvers]

I look forward to having you continue posting your various experiences with transportation here. Hopefully, they won't all be quite so negative.

The OP is a troll. Using the same handle, nearly identical messages critical of Direct Air were posted by him/her to other websites. See, for example, http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g54359-i25-k4075209-Don_t_feel_safe-Myrtle_Beach_South_Carolina.html.

 

[DebbieB]

The OP is a troll. Using the same handle, nearly identical messages critical of Direct Air were posted by him/her to other websites. See, for example, http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g54359-i25-k4075209-Don_t_feel_safe-Myrtle_Beach_South_Carolina.html.

The original poster (OP) is nkkilala, I don't see where she posted anything negative and she wasn't the one who posted on the link you listed.

The person I believe you are referring to is pjopie. You should have quoted his/her post.

To anyone considering DirectAir - keep in mind they fly into Sanford. There is no DME from Sanford so you need to factor in transportation costs.

 

[goofy4tink]

The OP is a troll. Using the same handle, nearly identical messages critical of Direct Air were posted by him/her to other websites. See, for example, http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g54359-i25-k4075209-Don_t_feel_safe-Myrtle_Beach_South_Carolina.html.

Anyone is welcome to come here and post their thoughts. We can all pretty much tell that this poster has come here to post negatively. But that doesn't constitute a troll. We will see where it leads.

The original poster (OP) is nkkilala, I don't see where she posted anything negative and she wasn't the one who posted on the link you listed.

The person I believe you are referring to is pjopie. You should have quoted his/her post.

To anyone considering DirectAir - keep in mind they fly into Sanford. There is no DME from Sanford so you need to factor in transportation costs.

They were talking about the poster who just joined, and has one very negative post here. The true OP said nothing wrong.

Now...again, anyone can post their feelings. I'm sure this 'new' poster googled DirectAir and came up with this thread..so he/she decided to post their thoughts on the subject. For some reason, this poster has an ax to grind with Direct Air. No way of knowing what it is. But, as long as they post within board guidelines they are good to go. But, this type of post does bear watching..which is what I get paid those 'big bucks' to do!!!

 

[jsilvers]

The original poster (OP) is nkkilala, I don't see where she posted anything negative and she wasn't the one who posted on the link you listed.

The person I believe you are referring to is pjopie. You should have quoted his/her post.

Obviously, by "OP" I meant the post being cited (#20) in the post to which I responded (#22). I didn't think that needed explanation.

 

[formill]

We flew Direct Air Niagara Falls, NY to Myrtle Beach this fall. Our flight was delayed 2 hours and then more while sitting on the plane as the pilot said they were juggling the numbers trying to get in all the golf bags and luggage- after sitting on the plane about 45 minutes or so they announced 12 pieces of luggage would not fit but all the golf bags did....sadly it was 3 of our suitcases that did not come...so at the MB airport we had to go fill out papers etc and they were trying to get the luggage for the next day-they said we could spend up to $25 for each person's lost bag to buy necessities....we did get our luggage back at 5 pm the next day-we did spend $25 each for pjs, toothpaste etc......we then had to send in paperwork to get back that $25 each......they did send the money quite quickly but did not refund the $20 per each bag that we did pay to check each bag- I thought they should and they did nothing "extra" for the nuisance all this caused. The whole plane got free drinks and snacks on that flight down...that was for the delay of almost 3 hours total. I would fly them again if the flight was cheap enough..parking was free at the Niagara Falls airport which was really nice. There was no issues with the plane itself- flight smooth normal landings. It was our first time though at both airports where we got on and off the planes outside and had a pretty good walk outside at the Myrtle Beach airport to get to the plane for the flight home. I don't like that you have to pay so much to change anything on your reservation-the $100 itinerary change I think it is plus if the flight is more money when you call than when you booked you have to pay that difference- I wanted to change to a flight home from the Friday to the Saturday- their web site at time of booking showed the Saturday as sold out- I even called and the guy said if it all dark blue there must be no flights but he also said they were having computer problems and I could not book through him right then to go online and book....so I did book for the Friday that showed available only for months after to keep looking and see they did have Saturday flights with seats....I called twice and had no luck even though I explained....they would not budge on the fees to change and flights had gone up around $50 per person that I would have to pay- there were 7 of us.

 

[pjopie]

Anyone is welcome to come here and post their thoughts. We can all pretty much tell that this poster has come here to post negatively. But that doesn't constitute a troll. We will see where it leads.


They were talking about the poster who just joined, and has one very negative post here. The true OP said nothing wrong.

Now...again, anyone can post their feelings. I'm sure this 'new' poster googled DirectAir and came up with this thread..so he/she decided to post their thoughts on the subject. For some reason, this poster has an ax to grind with Direct Air. No way of knowing what it is. But, as long as they post within board guidelines they are good to go. But, this type of post does bear watching..which is what I get paid those 'big bucks' to do!!!

Hello all,
Sorry some do not agree with my negative review of Direct Air.
I always post positive or negative when I feel it would help others. Before I make a large purchase I always review the item to see what others have said postively or negatively about it. This also goes for hotels, restaurants ect. This is my own opinion of Direct Air. I hope it helps others in the future. pjopie

 

[goofy4tink]

Hello all,
Sorry some do not agree with my negative review of Direct Air.
I always post positive or negative when I feel it would help others. Before I make a large purchase I always review the item to see what others have said postively or negatively about it. This also goes for hotels, restaurants ect. This is my own opinion of Direct Air. I hope it helps others in the future. pjopie

Glad to see you back and responding. I completely agree with your post. Everyone is very welcome to post the kind of experience they had. But, on the other hand, everyone is welcome to post completely opposite views or experiences. Just because one person posts that they had an awful experience, does not mean that everyone will automatically take that particular company off their list of acceptable companies. This is a public discussion forum...it is meant to have various opinions. So, again, thanks for yours. Hopefully we will see you here posting again.

 

[Lewisc]

The OP is a troll. Using the same handle, nearly identical messages critical of Direct Air were posted by him/her to other websites. See, for example, http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g54359-i25-k4075209-Don_t_feel_safe-Myrtle_Beach_South_Carolina.html.

Sounds like a Direct Air passenger had a bad experience. Used Google to find places to leave a less then favorable review.

Not really a troll. The poster said she flew Direct Air 3 times and doesn't feel safe. I don't care if the price is free, I wouldn't fly on an airline if I didn't feel safe.

Direct Air is an indirect charter. More like a broker. They charter planes complete with the crew.. Looks like they don't even have a dozen employees. Everything is outsourced/contracted.

I certainly wouldn't book them for a once in a lifetime trip.

Posters are able to cancel an Airtran reservation (and get a full refund) if a schedule change is only a few minutes: Direct Air has a similar policy, (but not as generous) if the schedule change is more then 48 hours you can cancel and get a refund.

MAJOR CHANGES: If Direct Air makes major changes prior to departure, the Participant shall have the right to cancel the reservation on the Charter Flight and receive a full refund. The following are major changes: (1) a change in the origin or destination city of a Charter Flight, unless the change is only the order in which cities the cities are flown; (2) a change in the departure or return date of a Charter Flight experienced by Direct Air of greater than 48 hours;

Earlier in this thread a poster said Direct Air has a small fleet. The fleet is zero. The flights are public charters flown by XTRA Airways, Vision Airlines, Inc, Aviation Advantage/Sky King, & Dynamic Air.

 

[RobynB]

Don't waste your time flying with this airline. They are the most unorganized plane service I have ever seen. Terrible service --no customer service. You get delayed for hours and don't expect to talk to a person. Call corp office and don't expect to talk to a person. You have to write a letter to talk with them : (

 

[goofy4tink]

Don't waste your time flying with this airline. They are the most unorganized plane service I have ever seen. Terrible service --no customer service. You get delayed for hours and don't expect to talk to a person. Call corp office and don't expect to talk to a person. You have to write a letter to talk with them : (

Everyone is entitled to their opinion here. But, I will say that I have had some questions and called DirectAir and have had very good experiences. Rest assured..I will be back after my flights with them in two weeks and let everyone know how it went. The vast majority of people that I have talked to, who have flown out of Worcester Mass to Sanford, have had good experiences with them.

 

[dsnygrl21]

Hey everyone! I have never flown with Direct Air but I did just get accepted as a flight attendant for them!

They are a family owned and operated company.

I can't talk about how they were in the past but the future looks very bright. They will hopefully be opening another base soon.

I hope to run into some LGM's on board!!

 

[happy1happy1]

Direct Flights has, far and away, the worst worst customer service I have ever incountered. They refuse to discuss any concerns I have and have told me this is policy. They will not acknowledge anything I send them in e-mails (I have sent several). I am so disatisfied with what they have done I am going to pursue it with the Better Business Bureul and Visa.

 

[fitmom3]

My friend flew with Direct Air last month and had a good experience. She has already booked again for next year. We booked for March 2012. I am looking forward to using smaller airports.

 

[rct07231969]

I have some information to pass on at this point about this company. I have had problems from the start and haven't even gotten to the flying part. I booked for my daughter and a friend under the age of 15 to travel (put their birthdates in to the website when booking) and nothing came up about unaccompanied minors. I then went in after paying to find out the exact location of the airport, and found the unnacompanied minor information. I then had to call to pay additional fees (after I booked which was too late to then decide not to do it) which were more than the actual tickets. I then received an email on the same day listing the flights sale prices, so I called back later in the evening to find out why I didn't get the rate they noted in their marketing email. I first was put on hold by the customer service rep (and I use that loosely) so long that I finally hung up. When I finally got a live person again, I asked to speak to a supervisor. I was told that none was available until the next morning. Then I told that "gentleman", again the term is used loosely, about the reason for my call and he was extremely rude and said that it wasn't his fault that I "received an email like that". When I asked for his name so that I could mention it when I contacted the supervisor in the morning, he said he wasn't at liberty to tell me. I then went on the website to contact another number and found the public relation number. When I contacted that number, it kept rolling back into a queue where no one was answering. I am extremely concerned that if this "joke" of an airline cannot even handle a customer service issue, how can I trust them with a flight??? I am extremely unhappy and cannot believe in this day and age that a company is staffed by what appear to be complete morons.

 

[DebbieB]

Several first posts on this thread and they all seem to say the same thing.........

 

[goofy4tink]

I have some information to pass on at this point about this company. I have had problems from the start and haven't even gotten to the flying part. I booked for my daughter and a friend under the age of 15 to travel (put their birthdates in to the website when booking) and nothing came up about unaccompanied minors. I then went in after paying to find out the exact location of the airport, and found the unnacompanied minor information. I then had to call to pay additional fees (after I booked which was too late to then decide not to do it) which were more than the actual tickets. I then received an email on the same day listing the flights sale prices, so I called back later in the evening to find out why I didn't get the rate they noted in their marketing email. I first was put on hold by the customer service rep (and I use that loosely) so long that I finally hung up. When I finally got a live person again, I asked to speak to a supervisor. I was told that none was available until the next morning. Then I told that "gentleman", again the term is used loosely, about the reason for my call and he was extremely rude and said that it wasn't his fault that I "received an email like that". When I asked for his name so that I could mention it when I contacted the supervisor in the morning, he said he wasn't at liberty to tell me. I then went on the website to contact another number and found the public relation number. When I contacted that number, it kept rolling back into a queue where no one was answering. I am extremely concerned that if this "joke" of an airline cannot even handle a customer service issue, how can I trust them with a flight??? I am extremely unhappy and cannot believe in this day and age that a company is staffed by what appear to be complete morons.

Interesting. I have had nothing but good experiences when dealing with DirectAir. We flew with them in April and I am looking forward to flying with them in Oct. I had several occasions to talk to a CSR on the phone...again, very good experience. I had worse interations with Delta CSRs!!! Much worse.
While I acknowledge that everyone has a right to their opinion, others may very well have had a completely different opinion. And as already noted on this thread...there seem to be a surfeit of first time posters coming along to just rip DirectAir apart. And believe me, while your experiences may very well be exactly as you state them, it means more when long time posters post their experiences or, in your cases, you come back and continue the discussion...rather than to register to post, post a really negative post and then take off.

 

[Turbo38gn]

I am sorry to post this, but feel compelled to share what I believe is terrible business practices. I hope others won't make the mistake I made, it was costly, DA had $700 of my hard earned money and I have nothing. As someone stated in an earlier post, "this is a family owned and run business", too bad they don't exhibit any flexibility or family values. I purchased $700 worth of tickets, when events beyond my control made it impossible for me to use my tickets, I asked for an extention on the time limits and was told "absolutely not". Not much of a family in my book. I have flown them before and when their schedule wasn't on time, due to events out of their control, we sat patiently without a word, not one complaint since they were "family" for several hours. Our flight was probably one of the worst flights and most uncomfortable flying experiences I ever had, but I didn't say a word, except a few prayers that we would land safely. After all, weather conditions aren't controlled by DA. I have always flown Delta primarily, thinking I was saving a few bucks was the draw, what a joke. In the end, I have had better service, better prices and better flights with the old reliable airlines. Don't be fooled with this company, they only want your money and when they have it, they obviously don't care about their customers. I could go on with other examples about this company, but I think you get the message. I'll never fly Direct Air again.

 

[goofy4tink]

I am sorry to post this, but feel compelled to share what I believe is terrible business practices. I hope others won't make the mistake I made, it was costly, DA had $700 of my hard earned money and I have nothing. As someone stated in an earlier post, "this is a family owned and run business", too bad they don't exhibit any flexibility or family values. I purchased $700 worth of tickets, when events beyond my control made it impossible for me to use my tickets, I asked for an extention on the time limits and was told "absolutely not". Not much of a family in my book. I have flown them before and when their schedule wasn't on time, due to events out of their control, we sat patiently without a word, not one complaint since they were "family" for several hours. Our flight was probably one of the worst flights and most uncomfortable flying experiences I ever had, but I didn't say a word, except a few prayers that we would land safely. After all, weather conditions aren't controlled by DA. I have always flown Delta primarily, thinking I was saving a few bucks was the draw, what a joke. In the end, I have had better service, better prices and better flights with the old reliable airlines. Don't be fooled with this company, they only want your money and when they have it, they obviously don't care about their customers. I could go on with other examples about this company, but I think you get the message. I'll never fly Direct Air again.

Thanks for your review. It's always good to get both sides of the issue. A few thoughts from me...
I refuse to fly DA between Nov and March. Weather in our area is way too unpredictable and with no other flights out it would be very difficult to get to my destination if there were to be 'weather'. With only two or three flights out each week, could be an issue.
Those 'special' fares??? The problem is that you do have to use them within a set period of time. If something happens and you can't use them, you're out of luck. But, not so different than an actual booking with a regular airline and then not being able to fly that day....you aren't getting much from them either!
I have booked buy one, get one free fares, I've booked Family and Friends fares. And I have sat on tenterhooks waiting for my dates to come up so I could jump on them and get them booked at those fares. Only so many seats are available for these fares. Once they're gone, they're gone.

I will say that we had very good customer service interaction when we flew in April. And the flights themselves were as good as any others we have had. We are flying them again in Oct, with friends who are more than a bit hesitant about flying them out of Worcester Mass. Hope that experience is like our April experience and not like the above posters!!!