Irritating Airtran experience in Indianapolis

[Lewisc]

Actually Airtran suggests 90 minutes before your flight.http://www.airtran.com/policies/checkin_information.aspx

They want you checked in 60 minutes prior.

I did a google search on ATs website. Either it says 60 minutes in at least one location on their site or I need new glasses.

I don't think any of us, with just carryon bags, would get to their airport 30 minutes before our flight. Just not enough time to go through security and get to the gate 10 minutes before our flight. Take an hour to check bags and that's what AT did to the OP.

OP made their flight, not the end of the world. Passengers aren't required to check with posters on DIS or flyertalk or any website. AT says 90 minutes, the OP didn't do anything wrong.

 

[delmar411]

OP, I think you were reasonable in arriving 90mins in advance. Before they moved to the new airport we could arrive less than an hour in advance and still check bags and make the flights. Now we allot 90mins and it's fine as long as we check the bags at the curb. That was your only mistake IMO.

I would have just told the seat stealer to move it. You're in my seat, please move would be about it from me. I've been the person in the wrong seat before and there is no way I'd tell someone else that it's now my seat!

Sorry that the trip down was so problematic. The airport can be rather busy in the early mornings especially going down to Orlando and Atlanta.

 

[delilah]

Actually, it was the Sunday before Christmas. I have not only flown out of the Indianapolis airport over 100 times, I have flown this very same weekend--the Sunday the weekend before Christmas, several times. This is the week that I have off with my son at Christmas, and we have gone to WDW several times over the past 7 years or so. I have gone on several different airlines--NW, ATA and Airtran. I have never had such a negative experience at this time of year, and this includes the winter of '04-'05, when there was over 2 ft of snow on the ground when we arrived home, and there were hundreds of bags misdirected through the Indianapolis airport.

To clarify, there were four agent stations open. Two were designated for those flying without bags to check, and two for those with bags to check. Those were the only two options. There was no separate line for business class, for people like me who already had boarding passes and had already paid for our bags, or for those who were completely clueless as to what to expect at the airport. I was behind about 30 other people when I arrived. Being a courteous type of person, I waited in line until those ahead me were served. I tried to go to one of the other counters (for those without baggage), but was waved back to the one person who was actually taking care of those in my line.

I don't know what the problem with the group ahead of me that took about 45 minutes to be checked in. At one point, I saw cash being handed over. I have no idea if they were buying tickets with cash, or just paying for their luggage with cash, or if they just needed change. As I said, I was 30 people back to start. I do make the observation that the people appeared to be Asian, so, maybe language was a factor.

Indianapolis is not like O'Hare or Atlanta. It is small, about the same layout as Ft. Myers. It is bigger than the Charleston, SC airport, but, not much. I agree that the problem, to my way of thinking, was that there was no supervisory type person who could have either stepped in to take up some of the excess work on the one agent taking care of most of us with bags, or who could have told one of the two agents working with those without bags to come over and help the other two, or, gasp, jump in, roll up their sleeves, and help get the job done.

 

[delilah]

I'm still interested in knowing how busy the "no bag" lines & employees were.

Both lines were about the same length initially. The line for those with bags, of course, got longer and longer. Like I said above, the agents in the "no bags" line waived off those passengers with bags, and there was a steady flow of passengers at that station, too.

At this point, I need to interject that, while I normally follow the "rules" in terms of size and number of carry on items, not all of my fellow passengers do, and this might also be relevant to this discussion. My son and I each had a 20" carry on, which contained items we didn't want checked and a change of clothes, for in case our luggage was delayed in Florida. Had I been in a passive aggressive mind set at the gate, I could well have removed nearly everything from my bag and put it in the mesh backpack and still carried all my essentials onto the plane, and checked the empty carry on, and it still would have fit on the floor under the seat in front of me. I also had my briefcase/handbag, with my mini-laptop in it (a small 9" one). Both the mesh bag and my briefcase fit in the space under the seat in front of me. My son had nothing on the floor under the seat in front of him, because they took his bag. I have actually traveled with just this same small carry on and my brief case for trips up to 5 days or so in length. The reason I check bags has to do with liquids and toiletries, like shampoo, hairspray, etc. I make the observation that many of those traveling on that particular flight had bags on the plane that were as big or bigger than the ones I had checked. If the airlines would enforce their own rules about size and number of carry on items, this type of problem wouldn't occur as frequently as it does. It happened to somebody else on the trip back from Orlando. My son and I came to the rescue of a fellow passenger who was sharing our row. She couldn't find room in the overhead bin for her bag. He had nothing in front of him, so, she was able to put her bag in that space instead of needing to gate check it. Because I know what a royal pain in the patootie it is to gate check items from first hand experience.

 

[dudspizza]

Can anyone shed light on how many flights Airtran has per day out of Indy? The reason I ask is that maybe they had their entire staff on at the time.

Sun Country (one of my non-stop choices between MSP-MCO) has only 1 flight out of MCO. The same guy (who looked like a supervisor) checked us in at the counter AND was the gate agent taking boarding passes. I am assuming Airtran has more of a presence than that at Indy, but I am just curious. Since Indy is not a hub, I wonder if they have a bare bones staff there....

 

[delilah]

Can anyone shed light on how any flights Airtran has per day out of Indy? The reason I ask is that maybe they had their entire staff on at the time.

Sun Country (one of my non-stop choices between MSP-MCO) has only 1 flight out of MCO. The same guy (who looked like a supervisor) checked us in at the counter AND was the gate agent taking boarding passes. I am assuming Airtran has more of a presence than that at Indy, but I am just curious. Since Indy is not a hub, I wonder if they have a bare bones staff there....

I am not sure how many flights Airtran has out of Indy. I have taken non-stops to both Ft Myers and Orlando, and there is also one to Tampa. There are lots of flights that change planes in Atlanta to go all over the area served by Airtran. The Atlanta flight leaves about 6:45, and my guess that the large group ahead of us was on that flight, since they weren't on the one we were on. (We caught up to them at the security screening, and actually got through before they did; they were as clueless there as at the baggage counter. Obviously, we got into the other line).

I also know that if I had printed my boarding pass on line and had only the carry on, I could have gone directly to security screening, without going to the ticket counter. There were places where one could print boarding passes without going to the counter, but, apparently, they were not in service at that time. But, there is not line for people like us who already had boarding passes and prepaid for our bags. All people checking bags wait in the same line. I am hoping that they have changed this since December--keep us updated. Perhaps, even though I got no response from the airline, they may have taken my criticism to heart.
Other times I have gone, all 6 stations have been open, but that has been for flights later in the day.

 

[sam_gordon]

Both lines were about the same length initially. The line for those with bags, of course, got longer and longer. Like I said above, the agents in the "no bags" line waived off those passengers with bags, and there was a steady flow of passengers at that station, too.

This could explain why the "no bags" employees didn't try to take up the slack on the "bags" line. They were also busy.

I still think you were unlucky. I agree 90 minutes should have been enough. I agree there should be some place for those who have already paid for baggage to be able to check in. I disagree that it was poor customer service though.

 

[delmar411]

Can anyone shed light on how any flights Airtran has per day out of Indy? The reason I ask is that maybe they had their entire staff on at the time.

Sun Country (one of my non-stop choices between MSP-MCO) has only 1 flight out of MCO. The same guy (who looked like a supervisor) checked us in at the counter AND was the gate agent taking boarding passes. I am assuming Airtran has more of a presence than that at Indy, but I am just curious. Since Indy is not a hub, I wonder if they have a bare bones staff there....

Airtran has 10-15 flights out of Indy just to Atlanta/Orlando every single day. Pretty much non-stop flights leaving all day into the night.

 

[Polydweller]

About the 90 minutes before flight rule, over decades of flying I've learned that the safest way is to count that as before the first boarding call and that is usually about 20-30 minutes before departure. That makes arrival at the airport about 2 hours prior to flight time. Sometimes that's more than needed but often there are issues at counters, security etc and the extra time really helps to ensure getting on the plane as easily as possible. It's even more important to be earlier in peak travel times.

 

[dudspizza]

About the 90 minutes before flight rule, over decades of flying I've learned that the safest way is to count that as before the first boarding call and that is usually about 20-30 minutes before departure. That makes arrival at the airport about 2 hours prior to flight time. Sometimes that's more than needed but often there are issues at counters, security etc and the extra time really helps to ensure getting on the plane as easily as possible. It's even more important to be earlier in peak travel times.

That's a good way to look at it. To many people see their departure leaves at 7am (or whatever) and think that is when they need to get to the gate. Boarding starts 30 minutes before that, so you should be in the gate area by that time....

This has nothing to do with OP or this thread, but when people talk about cutting it too close it reminds me of my friends last year. They called us to ask a question about 1.5 hours before their flight..... It was a quick answer and then we asked them how long they had been at the airport...... their response, "what do you mean.... we are still home"! AHHHHHHH. My wife and I felt panic, and we were not flying. It is 45 minutes, in perfect condtions to get to MSP. That would leave them 45 minutes to check in, get thru security, and get to the gate. Long story short, the pleaded with the people at the check point and were allowed to cut the line. They are my friends, but I wouldn't have been letting them cut the line, at least knowing it was their own incompetence that caused them to be late.....

Duds

 

[Hoopfamily]

So OP, lesson learned in the future, book another airline. Also show up 2 hours before flight to give you some wiggle room in case there is a problem. I know it says 90 minutes, but always early NEVER LATE. To be clear on this, if the airport and the airline recommend you show up 90 minutes prior to your flight and you do, it's not 90 minutes early, it's on time. If you want to show up 90 minutes early for a flight, get there 3 hours before your flight. I honestly can't remember a time when I wasn't one of if not the first person at the gate. Even with other people having issues, I leave enough cushion that short of a national disaster I'm at the gate 90 minutes before my flight.

 

[lisa3635]

Sorry you had a bad experience. We fly out of Indy about 5 times a year and always get to the airport 1.5 hours early and have NEVER had a problem. We usually check our bags and are at the gate in about 25 minutes, although it helps that we have a toddler and usually go through the family line in security which usually seems quicker for some reason.

 

[Lewisc]

A few years ago a poster said anyone who's never missed a flight has wasted too much time in airports. I don't agree with that statement but planning to arrive at an airport 3 hours before your flight is excessive for many people.

Stuff happens. The OP made her flight. I just don't agree with the posters who didn't think AT had service issues.

 

[WDWisTheBest]

A few years ago a poster said anyone who's never missed a flight has wasted too much time in airports. I don't agree with that statement but planning to arrive at an airport 3 hours before your flight is excessive for many people.

Stuff happens. The OP made her flight. I just don't agree with the posters who didn't think AT had service issues.

I agree with the OP's thread headline that there was an irritating experience in Indianapolis. The airline used was Air Tran. There was a service issue at the particular time of day that the OP was using Air Tran.

 

[keishashadow]

jmh experience when flying AT out of PIT

they are aggressively whiping out measuring tapes for most large luggage (even the business class dedicated checkin line). I understand they need to make $ in fees to be solvent, etc.; but just wish once your bag was measured by them they could put some sort of identifying mark to verify it's within the allowable limit to speed things along.

after nearly missing a flight, we've taken to arriving an extra 1/2 to 1 hour early when embarking on AT early am weekend flights; as it seems that most of the casual flyers are heading out of town with oversize & overweight bags.

 

[dudspizza]

jmh experience when flying AT out of PIT

they are aggressively whiping out measuring tapes for most large luggage (even the business class dedicated checkin line). I understand they need to make $ in fees to be solvent, etc.; but just wish once your bag was measured by them they could put some sort of identifying mark to verify it's within the allowable limit to speed things along.

after nearly missing a flight, we've taken to arriving an extra 1/2 to 1 hour early when embarking on AT early am weekend flights; as it seems that most of the casual flyers are heading out of town with oversize & overweight bags.

I am wondering how they are at MSP and MCO. I bought a rolling duffel that is a total of 60.5, according to Eddie Bauer's website. When I measure, I swear I come up with 62 or 63, because I am including the wheels....... I am not going to chance it this trip..... Airtran is 61 inches or smaller while most are 62 or smaller.... that 1 inch can make them some money in a hurry!

 

[Lewisc]

I am wondering how they are at MSP and MCO. I bought a rolling duffel that is a total of 60.5, according to Eddie Bauer's website. When I measure, I swear I come up with 62 or 63, because I am including the wheels....... I am not going to chance it this trip..... Airtran is 61 inches or smaller while most are 62 or smaller.... that 1 inch can make them some money in a hurry!

Return it. Airlines count the wheels. Industry standard is 62" and you measure the bag at 63". I'm sure you're giving yourself the benefit of any doubt.

 

[maxiesmom]

jmh experience when flying AT out of PIT

they are aggressively whiping out measuring tapes for most large luggage (even the business class dedicated checkin line). I understand they need to make $ in fees to be solvent, etc.; but just wish once your bag was measured by them they could put some sort of identifying mark to verify it's within the allowable limit to speed things along.

I wish more airlines would do this. Though I like to think they are doing it so those of us who have a regulation sized bag don't end up having to gate check it, beause someone hogged a bunch of space with their beast of a carryon.

I think of Airtran as the strict moms and dads of airlines. At least when I have flow on them they seem to crack the whip. Multiple announcemnts prior to boarding that each family member, even children, have to hold their own passes. Multiple announcements on the plane to put your luggage up and quickly move out of the aisle.

Then there was the guy who, while we were waiting to take off on the runway at Atlanta, decided he needed to use the potty. All of a sudden the captain was on the intercom, telling us how busy Atlanta was and how it could be a bit of a wait to take off. And that there was no way the plane was moving until everyone was in their seats with their seatbelts on!!!! I thought it was kind of funny.

 

[azdizzymom]

Actually, it was the Sunday before Christmas.
Indianapolis is not like O'Hare or Atlanta. It is small, about the same layout as Ft. Myers. It is bigger than the Charleston, SC airport, but, not much. I agree that the problem, to my way of thinking, was that there was no supervisory type person who could have either stepped in to take up some of the excess work on the one agent taking care of most of us with bags, or who could have told one of the two agents working with those without bags to come over and help the other two, or, gasp, jump in, roll up their sleeves, and help get the job done.

I apologize for getting the day of week wrong. Same difference though. The weekend before Christmas...Saturday or Sunday not a huge difference.

I did find a bit of info that is interesting. Indy is WAY BIGGER than Charleston and that is very misleading to those not familiar with the IND airport. I found this info based from 2006...a quick search.

Airport size ranking based on passengers boarded:

IND is 44 with approximately 4,000,000 passengers
Charleston is 90 with approximately 945,000

It is actually comparable to Fort Myers which was 47 with 3.8 million.

Houston Airport is very close with 4.1 million passengers for those who know that airport.

Guess point is IND is a fairly big airport. We can all argue till we turn blue how early we should arrive at airport. Say airline say arrive 90 minutes prior to flight, it takes you 30 minutes to get to airport so you leave 45 minutes prior so you can park and walk in to airport with about 90 minutes to get in line, check bags, get through security and get to gate. BUT you didn't factor in any extra time for that traffic jam on freeway, accident that cause extra traffic to be diverted on the road that normally has none, the flat tire or car trouble you had OR more importantly the large tour group of high school kids traveling for the first time going to Disney World to play in the parade. There are 25 of them and they all have to check in.....individually show ID and pay for bags, plus there are the other 20 passengers in line behind this group who is at ticket counter. Guess it is a gamble we all take....are we allowing enough time to get there, enough 'extra' time for things we don't expect like the large groups or slow moving lines. Also, what if flight before was canceled and reps working to rebook those passengers on another flight...that could add to line also. THESE SCENES COULD BE AT ANY AIRPORT!!!

We will still arrive at IND with a minimum of 2 hours....as I stated it paid off for us last summer. If we hadn't been there 2 hrs 15 minutes prior to our flight which was canceled (this was day after Memorial Day so flights full due to everyone leaving 500) we never would have made it to a graduation in Arizona. Delta had NO open seats with on flights with connections to PHX. Only way to get out that day was to drive to Cincinnati .... if we had been 1 hour later we wouldn't have made that flight and had to leave the next day. Took agent about 10 minutes to work through that situation with us and when we turned around there was a long line...passengers on our flight who they had to rebook....then those also mixed in who had flights around the same time!

We can all do whatever we want....just thought the airport info was interesting. As long as everyone makes it to their destination that is great...but don't whine if you almost miss your flight because you don't allow enough 'extra' time.

 

[maxiesmom]

We can all do whatever we want....just thought the airport info was interesting. As long as everyone makes it to their destination that is great...but don't whine if you almost miss your flight because you don't allow enough 'extra' time.

Exactly. If everything goes smoothly, 90 minutes should be enough time to do what you need to do at the airport. But that is a pretty darned big IF. Way too many things can pop up and slow you down. The OP gambled that everything would go perfectly and showed up at the bare minimum time AirTran suggests. That turned out to be a mistake. The OP made the choice to show up without allowing for any issues, and they are very lucky all they suffered was some late luggage.