Do I have a legitimate gripe with JetBlue?

[mskayjay]

First off I have to say I love JB. I try to travel them whenever I can and rarely have issues but my last trip to care for my Mom was a nightmare.

We had a 6AM flight so we arrived at the airport in Syracuse at 4:30 AM (mid-size airport so you don't need 2 hours for check in that early in the day). This required that we leave our home at 3:30AM. As soon as we arrived, we were informed that the flight was not leaving till 8AM because the flight the evening before had gotten in late due to weather in NYC and the pilots had to have so many hours of downtime. I asked why they hadn't done the auto call-outs and no one knew but okay.....what can you do. They tell us they "hope" we can make a later in connection in NYC to get to West Palm later in the day.

Okay, 7:30 they call for boarding and on we go. 8AM still waiting....no sign of a pilot, no air conditioning running, its hot, no TVs which is okay except it is a big deal with JB that they have TVs and absolutely no explanations from the crew that is there. 8:45 they start handing out water but there is still no air flowing and it is getting miserable. They state the plane cannot be started without a pilot/copilot on board so no air flow, but that we can use restrooms if we need to. 5 minutes later a supervisor comes on and states that "we don't have a pilot for this flight right now. The pilot who was supposed to take out this flight apparently didn't know he had this flight today and will be unable to fly the plane. We have a pilot on his way and hope to have him here at around 9:30" (that is of course not verbatim but pretty close.). A few minutes later someone who is part of the maintenance crews or something (did not have a pilots uniform on) did come on and start the plane and got the air moving.

The pilot shows up at 9:50ish, goes in and does his checks, etc, says hello and all to everyone, and we still sit. We finally push back from the gate at 10:10AM, a full 2 hours and 40 minutes after boarding. We got pushed to another flight in NYC and arrived several hours late which really is okay, but to sit on that plane that long.....ugh.

So, my questions:
-why didn't they do the auto call-outs and let us know we were delayed?
-how can a pilot not know he was supposed to fly?
-is 2 hours and 40 minutes sitting on a plane for a non-weather related delay a legitimate gripe?
-if you were in my situation what would you do?

Incidentally, my return flight was awful totally due to weather delays and I got in 7hours late after multiple bumps and reschedules. I am fine with it. I wasn't forced to sit on a stuffy plane for over 2 hours! lol

I'm going to send JB an email now that I am finally home and have computer access and would like to know your thoughts. As a regular customer I have some thoughts but would like to hear what you think.

thank you in advance for your input
K

 

[Karlzmom]

I am surprised at the number of "unfortunate events" you went through....the one that would tick me off the most is making people stay on the plane when the know its not going anywhere soon....I'd send a letter.....

 

[mskayjay]

I am surprised at the number of "unfortunate events" you went through....the one that would tick me off the most is making people stay on the plane when the know its not going anywhere soon....I'd send a letter.....

That is really what I am upset about. Everyone makes mistakes although not knowing you had a flight scheduled is pushing it! lol But why make us sit there? I thought that wasn't allowed anymore.

We pulled out to take off in WPB three hours late and then they made us pull to the side of the runway and wait another 30 minutes but that was due to the stacking up going on in NYC due to storms. We also circled outside NYC for 30 minutes when we got up there due to traffic. That happens....

Thank you for your input.

 

[pjpoohbear]

Doesn't Jetblue have a written delay policy, Customer Bill of Rights?

"DEPARTURE DELAYS
Customers whose flight is delayed for 1-1:59 hours after scheduled departure time due to a Controllable Irregularity are entitled to a $25 Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue.
Customers whose flight is delayed for 2-4:59 hours after scheduled departure time due to a Controllable Irregularity are entitled to a $50 Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue.
Customers whose flight is delayed for 5-5:59 hours after scheduled departure time due to a Controllable Irregularity are entitled to a Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue in the amount paid by the customer for the oneway trip (or $50, whichever is greater).
Customers whose flight is delayed for 6 or more hours after scheduled departure time due to a Controllable Irregularity are entitled to a Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue in the amount paid by the customer for the roundtrip (or the oneway trip, doubled)."

AND/OR

ONBOARD GROUND DELAYS
JetBlue will provide customers experiencing an Onboard Ground Delay with 36 channels of DIRECTV®*, food and drink, access to clean restrooms and, as necessary, medical treatment. For customers who experience an Onboard Ground Delay for more than 5 hours, JetBlue will take necessary action so that customers may deplane.
Departures:
Customers who experience an Onboard Ground Delay on Departure for 3-3:59 hours after scheduled departure time are entitled to a $50 Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue.
Customers who experience an Onboard Ground Delay on Departure for 4-4:59 hours after scheduled departure time are entitled to a Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue in the amount paid by the customer for the oneway trip (or $50, whichever is greater).
Customers who experience an Onboard Ground Delay on Departure for 5 or more hours after scheduled departure time are entitled to a Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue in the amount paid by the customer for the roundtrip (or the oneway trip, doubled).

Not sure if either of the above apply but, Head here and see if you have compensation coming to you.

Pj

 

[uva185]

So, my questions:
-why didn't they do the auto call-outs and let us know we were delayed?
-how can a pilot not know he was supposed to fly?
-is 2 hours and 40 minutes sitting on a plane for a non-weather related delay a legitimate gripe?
-if you were in my situation what would you do?
K

#1 - Don't have an exact answer but even if they called you to inform you of the delay you should still go to the airport for your scheduled departure time. A few weeks back I got a call from Delta telling me my flight was delayed 2 hours. I decided to go to the airport at my normal time anyways. Just as I am pulling up (40 mins before departure) I get another call telling me the flight is back on time. I would have missed it if I listened to the first call.

#2 - They could have called in a reserve pilot and that took time. So technically he may have not been scheduled to fly and just been "on call"

#3 - Yes. Especially since you were waiting for the crew. (As opposed for waiting for weather to clear or a takeoff slot from ATC.)

#4 - Write a letter to Jet Blue. Don't whine and complain, just state the facts and why you are disappointed in the service they provided you and what compensation (if any) you want.

 

[mskayjay]

Doesn't Jetblue have a written delay policy, Customer Bill of Rights?

"DEPARTURE DELAYS
Customers whose flight is delayed for 1-1:59 hours after scheduled departure time due to a Controllable Irregularity are entitled to a $25 Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue.
Customers whose flight is delayed for 2-4:59 hours after scheduled departure time due to a Controllable Irregularity are entitled to a $50 Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue.
Customers whose flight is delayed for 5-5:59 hours after scheduled departure time due to a Controllable Irregularity are entitled to a Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue in the amount paid by the customer for the oneway trip (or $50, whichever is greater).
Customers whose flight is delayed for 6 or more hours after scheduled departure time due to a Controllable Irregularity are entitled to a Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue in the amount paid by the customer for the roundtrip (or the oneway trip, doubled)."

AND/OR

ONBOARD GROUND DELAYS
JetBlue will provide customers experiencing an Onboard Ground Delay with 36 channels of DIRECTV®*, food and drink, access to clean restrooms and, as necessary, medical treatment. For customers who experience an Onboard Ground Delay for more than 5 hours, JetBlue will take necessary action so that customers may deplane.
Departures:
Customers who experience an Onboard Ground Delay on Departure for 3-3:59 hours after scheduled departure time are entitled to a $50 Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue.
Customers who experience an Onboard Ground Delay on Departure for 4-4:59 hours after scheduled departure time are entitled to a Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue in the amount paid by the customer for the oneway trip (or $50, whichever is greater).
Customers who experience an Onboard Ground Delay on Departure for 5 or more hours after scheduled departure time are entitled to a Voucher good for future travel on JetBlue in the amount paid by the customer for the roundtrip (or the oneway trip, doubled).

Not sure if either of the above apply but, Head here and see if you have compensation coming to you.

Pj

Thank you very much. I can't imagine anyone sitting on those planes for that long! I was getting claustrophobic with the heat, people were so angry and upset because they knew they were going to totally miss flights and no others were available. I felt so bad for one family going to Aruba who was no way going to make it that day. This is all so unlike JetBlue...... I noticed that in the complete bill of rights that do note that they will call and contact you about delays. I'll call and then follow up with a nice (and yes, I do mean nice and polite) letter. I really do love traveling this airline and find that by and large I get better service, friendlier folks, etc. and when something goes wrong they do try to address it. They really dropped the ball this time though.

 

[mskayjay]

#1 - Don't have an exact answer but even if they called you to inform you of the delay you should still go to the airport for your scheduled departure time. A few weeks back I got a call from Delta telling me my flight was delayed 2 hours. I decided to go to the airport at my normal time anyways. Just as I am pulling up (40 mins before departure) I get another call telling me the flight is back on time. I would have missed it if I listened to the first call.Isn't that amazing how they do that? Had you missed that flight, wouldn't they have had to rebook and compensate you or no? I don't know how that works in that instance.

#2 - They could have called in a reserve pilot and that took time. So technically he may have not been scheduled to fly and just been "on call"No, they literally said it was the pilot from the night before and he "didn't realize" he had this flight as well and "couldn't fly". I'm betting he went out and had a few after the cruddy flying with the weather the evening before! lol The person we waited for was a fill in and was even funny enough to come on the speakers when we landed and said "FINALLY!!!!!" lol Either way they knew at 11PM that the flight was going to leave late and I really felt they should have called.

#3 - Yes. Especially since you were waiting for the crew. (As opposed for waiting for weather to clear or a takeoff slot from ATC.)Thank you. That is what I thought as well.

#4 - Write a letter to Jet Blue. Don't whine and complain, just state the facts and why you are disappointed in the service they provided you and what compensation (if any) you want.I'll start with a call and follow up with a letter. I don't know what compensation to ask for other than asking them to stick to their own bill of rights. That would be fair, don't you think?

Thank you for your thoughts.

 

[uva185]

Thank you for your thoughts.

They would have rebooked me but they would not have been required to give compensation. My delay was due to a late arrival as well, however in my case they did find a reserve pilot and thus eliminated the delay.

It is possible the pilot tought (or was told) Jet Blue would get a reserve pilot so the flight could leave on time and he then assumed he wouldn't have to fly. Then if Jet Blue couldn't get a reserve pilot he would still be obligated to fly after his mandated rest period. Definitely some mis-communication somewhere.

I'm not trying to make excuses, just provide an insight into the issue.

For the problem you faced I would ask for $100 for the inconvenience. The delay itself guarantees you $50 but you were stuck on a plane without a crew. Frankly I'm surprised the boarded the plane without a captain and first officer.

 

[mmmbop]

Howdy Neighbor!

I don't have too much to add, but I fly out of SYR as well, and prefer JB. Good luck getting this situation resolved

 

[kaytieeldr]

I don't know what compensation to ask for other than asking them to stick to their own bill of rights. That would be fair, don't you think?

That would be fair - and that's all that would be fair. I'm actually writing an anonymous e-mail to JetBlue to let them know about something that happened on a flight but I don't want compensation

-is 2 hours and 40 minutes sitting on a plane for a non-weather related delay a legitimate gripe?

A legitimate gripe, sure. Valid for invoking the Passenger Bill of Rights? Nope. That starts after 3 hours onboard the plane. However, your flight departure was delayed between 2 hours and 4:59 hours due to a Controllable Irregularity (not having a pilot available!), so you're entitled to a $50 voucher.

But honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if JetBlue automatically attached or attaches the voucher to your TrueBlue account. Everyone on one of my last flights got one because we had to land mid-route to refuel (expected/announced/weather-related) and another one because the TVs weren't working properly - I'm guessing a couple of stations didn't come in? No idea.

 

[strmtroopr96]

For the posters who fly out of Rochester, how crowded is SYR early in the morning? We haven't flown out of there in years and instead have been flying Southwest out of Albany where it is totally dead in the mornings.

I am wondering how early we should be getting to the airport? Our flight is at 6:15 am and on US Air. We are about an hour East and will be traveling the thruway.

Also, any opinions on where to park? Any cheaper alternatives to parking right at the airport? Thanks!!

 

[AllyBri]

The OP will be hearing from JB but it takes few days.

 

[bicker]

Please don't be too disappointed if things are not quite what they seem: Note that the Customer Bill of Rights uses the term "Controllable Irregularity" (capitalized like that), which is explicitly defined elsewhere on that page (referring, even, to yet other definitions for terms used within the definition of "Controllable Irregularity"). It is possible that the pilot issue was due to an FAA-mandated rest period*, and possible that the conflict between that FAA-mandated rest period and the flight schedule due to the late arrival the night before, which could have been caused by either weather or air traffic control, either of which would result in the entire delay being due to a force majeure event, and therefore the Customer Bill of Rights would provide for no compensation.

Or.... you could get a coupon in the mail for your next flight.

___________________
* That's regardless of what the gate agent told passengers -- the cause of the confusion could still have been the fact that the scheduled pilot was unavailable due to FAA-mandated rest, which could have been due to a force majeure event, as indicated above. What the gate agent was talking about may therefore have been their efforts to acquire the services of a sub once the force majeure event occurred.

 

[seashoreCM]

Include a specific amount of compensation in your request. I would consider lack of air conditioning a reason for more compensation.

 

[rflorek]

But honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if JetBlue automatically attached or attaches the voucher to your TrueBlue account. Everyone on one of my last flights got one because we had to land mid-route to refuel (expected/announced/weather-related) and another one because the TVs weren't working properly - I'm guessing a couple of stations didn't come in? No idea.

Every time I've had something that falls under their Bill of Rights (and even some that don't) I received an email a few days later stating that a voucher had been added to my JB account.

 

[goofy4tink]

Sometimes 'stuff' just happens. I know that last Dec, when we flew SW from Ft Lauderdale to Providence, we were unable to land at TF Green. Seems there was an issue with equip there. BUT...we did find out, later, that many flights landed right around that same time..they just flew in circles for 15 mins. We didn't. We headed to Philly...where they told us they would 're-evaluate' the situation and see if they could then get back into TF Green. Yeah, right. They told us that the airport had not reopened yet, so they were heading back to Florida. Our options were...
1. get off the plane, with no checked luggage (that was going back to Florida!), get a room for the night and fly out to Prov in the morning. They (SW) would not charge for the extra flight, but food and room was not their responsibility
2. fly back to Ft Lauderdale, get our luggage, stay overnight somewhere and get on a flight to Providence the next day...again, no compensation from them.

We sat, at the gate in Philly, for an hour, while they 'allowed' us to get off the plane, grab something to eat at the gate area, then get back on the plane. Dh in the meantime, got on his Blackberry, and booked our flight home in the morning. It was miserable. Seems that SW only cared about getting it's crew back to Ft Lauderdale that night, rather than getting it's passengers to Providence, which they could have done....we know because we checked how long the airport was closed..about 20 mins, if that long!!!
Add to this that it was New Year's Eve, and we had to scrounge to find a hotel for the night. Missed all our fun plans that night. We should have landed at about 1pm, but instead, found ourselves headed back to Florida.

I know that JB didn't alert my dh to the fact that his 5pm flight from Boston to MCO was cancelled..not moved, just outright cancelled. He checked it before leaving the house at 2:00. It was fine and on-time. By the time he got to Logan, 45 mins later, it was gone!!! They told him that they could get him and dd on a flight at 7...made it a little tough to make the connection to that last flight out of NY at 6:30 though!! Which meant they would have had to spend the night in NY, rather than meeting me in WDW!!! DH complained, they rushed them to the gate to put them on the 3:10 flight that was just finished boarding!!! They closed the door as they entered the cabin.
I'm not at all sure the airlines are all that great about keeping us updated on any changes. It's up to us to double check.

I would most certainly write a letter to JB....way too many things occurred on your travel day. If it had just been one thing, I would be tempted to just say 'oh well, stuff happens' but not all that. Yes, I'm sure a lot of it was on the up and up, but still. JB give people credit vouchers if their TVs don't work properly during the flight!!! If passengers are forced to sit for hours, on a hot/steamy plane, with only water (now you now why most of us travel with food in our carryons!!), no TVs..nothing, yes I would expect some kind of compensation. But don'twhine or rant and rave....just state the facts simply.
Let us know what transpires.

 

[mskayjay]

Thank you all for your feedback. I thought I was going in the right direction with this but also knew that if I was "whining without cause" the gods and goddesses of the transportation board would tell me to "quit my #itchin"! Really appreciate it!
K

 

[onelilspark]

I agree that sometimes "stuff" happens. I wouldn't really complain about not getting a call about a delayed flight. I don't ever expect that (even if it's a service they offer, I don't rely on it.)

However, there is absolutely no excuse to have you sit on a plane with no air flow if they know the pilot is not even at the airport. And they knew that. They should have deplaned everyone and told them to please stick by the gate so they can board at a moments notice. That way, you could have gotten off the flight and re-routed yourself because you knew you were going to miss your flight. Oh, if I had been on that flight, I would have caused a ruckus. I don't care if a plane is delayed, there are some things you can't avoid. But to have me sit on a plane for over 2 and half hours at the gate? That's unexuseable. You absolutely have a right to complain and I wouldn't even stick to their bill of rights. That's just plain 'ol customer service. You don't do that to people.

As for the person who asked about people who fly out of Rochester...I fly out of Rochester or Buffalo usually. Occasionally out of Syracuse. Syracuse is the smallest of the three, so it's definitely the easiest to get through. Even with lines at Rochester, you can check your bag and get through security in about 20-30 minutes max. Buffalo is pretty quick too. I usually only give myself and hour and a half flying out of any of the three if I need to check a bag, an hour if I'm not. (I live 15 minutes from the Rochester airport.)

 

[bicker]

I believe a lot of things that are not necessarily comfortable for customers are a reflection of containing costs, so that businesses can better satisfy both their obligations to their owners and those customers' fervant demands for the lowest possible prices.

 

[DoctorK]

For strmtroopr96, the airport parking lots are really your only alternative, unless you want to do a sleep-and-park with a local hotel.