Doctor P
<font color=navy><font color=navy>Chocolate covere
- Joined
- Jan 24, 2000
- Messages
- 6,550
Since there was a discussion about the new airline policies on changing flights via a standby, I thought I would relate my experience from today. I was on a UAL 4:00 pm flight back to Chicago from Columbus and got to the airport very early as a result of catching a ride at the same time as one of my colleagues was going to the airport. I got to the airport at about 12:55 PM and went to check in. I just mentioned that I knew I was very early and didn't say anything else (but I knew there was a 1:50 PM flight). The ticket agent processed my boarding pass and my baggage check in and then asked if I wanted to standby for the earlier flight. I asked if there would be a charge, and he said no, not yet and not under these circumstances. He gave me a card (I think it was called a load management card or something like that) and then he put a big orange ticket on my luggage so that it would follow me on whatever flight I ended up on. To make a long story short, I was the last one they let on the earlier flight and it was full. But my luggage was there when I got back to Chicago, it was a short flight (thank goodness, with a middle seat) and I made it back comfortably to get ready to teach tonight (I probably would have just made it , but things were going to be real tight with the later flight). Sooo.....sometimes things will just continue to work the same way as before even with the nominal changes in the rules. Just thought I would give a first hand report, because I was really curious as to how it was going to work.
