new high in lows for AirTran

[Suellen]

That's Southwest's business model. Nobody preselects seats. If enough people start paying for early bird check in, that will likely affect later passengers' abilities to be seated together. That wouldn't be an issue for a family with small children, since, even in relation to Orlando, a parent would be allowed to board with a child (usually) four and under between the A and B boarding groups. Extended family - i.e. a grandparent - would still have to board with their proper group.

Southwest no longer allows parents with children to board first. At least they didn't last time we flew.

I'm relatively certain PanAm is once again defunct. If not, at the VERY least, they pulled out of their very short stay in Portsmouth several years ago.

What does that have to do with anything???

Mm, yes. They probably talked with several passengers who had paid in advance to select their seats and so were reluctant, or apparently entirely unwilling, to give up the seats for which they'd paid extra.

No ~ I spoke to several EMPLOYEES about our seats. And really? You think we were the ONLY people on the entire plane who didn't pay to select our seats?


And by they ~ to the PP who said they don't ask they age.... no they do better ~ they ask for the DATE OF BIRTH. Unless that can't figure out the age by the year a person was born. So perhaps you yourself have not flown Airtran.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I will be traveling with my son who will be 3yo in the fall, and I would also fully expect that if I didn't preselect my seats, that they would seat him and I together. I would NEVER board a plane that he was not sitting beside me,

That generally IS an option for passengers finding themselves in this situation, however, the actual policy or practice varies by airlines. There are DISers who travel alone who've voluntarily removed themselves from flights when seating they need is not available (and departed later - granted, at their own expense since this was their own choice).

 

[NancyIL]

This is also why I don't fly airtran. They suck. All of the nickle and dime charges, the changing and canceling of flights, and the charge to change reservations is not worth the low prices. I paid like 64 bucks for a flight once, decided I didn't need it, and they tried to charge me money to cancel it. They wanted 11 dollars from me. I wasn't expecting my money back that I paid, I was simply giving them the chance to rebook my seat. So I told them nevermind and just didn't show up. I will never fly with them again.

Sure, they might be doing what they need to in order to save money, but how much money will it save them when they lose their regular customers. Thats the nice thing about flying, there are other planes to fly on. I'm a Southwest girl now, thats for sure!

AirTran's change fee is $75/ticket. That's a LOW change fee, as at least several of the legacy carriers (American, Delta) charge a $150/ticket change fee. They shouldn't have tried to charge you a cancel fee, since the value of your ticket was less than the change fee.

As to the OP's complaint about not getting seats together, that's the chance you take on AirTran if you choose not to pay for assigned seats.

 

[Suellen]

Just to be clear.. OP's complaint was schedule changes. I was just commiserating the pain of dealing with Airtran.

 

[NancyIL]

Just to be clear.. OP's complaint was schedule changes. I was just commiserating the pain of dealing with Airtran.

Oops - sorry!

 

[Suellen]

FWIW ~ they now advertise the seat assignment purchase to include "sit together" which was NOT there when I booked my flight about 18 months ago.

I am guessing that I am not the only one with this problem.

 

[Inkmahm]

FWIW ~ they now advertise the seat assignment purchase to include "sit together" which was NOT there when I booked my flight about 18 months ago.

I am guessing that I am not the only one with this problem.

I am sure you are NOT the only one. I posted this week about the issue when I flew Airtran home from MCO:

I thought of this thread today when I flew on Airtran to get home from WDW. A family of mom, dad and 2 sons were split up and sat all over the plane in middle seats. The oldest son seemed to be maybe 10 or 11. He sat in about row 16 and complained to his mom at the end of the trip that the fat woman next to him put up the armrest and took about a third of his seat space so he was squished. The younger son looked to me to be about 4 years old. He was seated in the middle seat of row 19. The mom was back a few rows and the dad was somewhere in the very back of the plane. When the mom dropped off the younger son to his seat, I heard her apologize to the two men already seated in the window and aisle seat that her son would be sitting there because "they split us up all over the plane." To her credit, she was NOT asking anyone to switch seats and no one offered to switch, either.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I paid like 64 bucks for a flight once, decided I didn't need it, and they tried to charge me money to cancel it. They wanted 11 dollars from me. I wasn't expecting my money back that I paid, I was simply giving them the chance to rebook my seat. So I told them nevermind and just didn't show up. I will never fly with them again.

I think I'm confused. You purchased a nonrefundable airfare, then changed your mind, then got upset when the airline attempted to charge you their standard - and as NancyinIL indicates, surprisingly low - fee to which you agreed by purchasing that nonrefundable ticket? I guess I'm how that's the airline's fault, as well as why you object to patronizing a business that enforces its own rules?

 

[Aristocath]

FWIW ~ they now advertise the seat assignment purchase to include "sit together" which was NOT there when I booked my flight about 18 months ago.

I am guessing that I am not the only one with this problem.

No, I am quite certain that has been advertised for over two years. We've flown AirTran several times in the past few years because of their low prices and we've always paid extra to choose our seats next to our three children.

What I don't understand is people who want the lowest price and the highest service. When I fly a discount airline I just don't expect as much from them.

 

[Dennfamily4]

I'm so glad I didn't book with them. My cousin just had a miserable experience with them as well. She went online to check her flight and they rescheduled her for the middle of the night with a layover as well. She needs to catch a cruise ship so she's really miffed.

Hope it all works out for you.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Did your cousin call AirTran to see if there's an alternate, more convenient flight to which they can move her at no charge to her because they changed her flight time? I know you're going to be skeptical, given the tone of this thread, but they really ARE customer-oriented.

Unless your cousin is leaving, like, tonight - she should go online and find a flight or flights that work better for her. Armed with this information she should call AirTran and calmly discuss her options with a customer service rep, remembering - as I'm sure she would - that the CSR didn't personally change the flight schedule.

 

[maxiesmom]

FWIW ~ they now advertise the seat assignment purchase to include "sit together" which was NOT there when I booked my flight about 18 months ago.

I am guessing that I am not the only one with this problem.

I flew Air Tran last July, and I did pick and pay for my seat assignments.

 

[Halle]

I've posted before about the horrible Air Tran experience. We paid for our seats when that was a new thing to do and then were be-littled by the gate agent when we wouldn't give up our seats to a family who had not prepaid their seats. The agent told us that our boarding passes were invalid since they were obtained at the BWV and asked us if we had arrived on 'Liar Express'. I then reminded Dh that not only had we prepaid our seats but that we also had to pay a rebooking fee to obtain the seat assignment. We were over $100.00 each into this seat assignment. DH is self employed and had to get home. BTW we were travelling and paying for 7 kids and spouses on the same flight! We have never flown Air Tran again. Nor have our 4 kids and their spouses. Great customer service!!

 

[Suellen]

No, I am quite certain that has been advertised for over two years. We've flown AirTran several times in the past few years because of their low prices and we've always paid extra to choose our seats next to our three children.

What I don't understand is people who want the lowest price and the highest service. When I fly a discount airline I just don't expect as much from them.

I guess I don't view sitting next to my very young child ~ who still needs assistance with everything the highest service Were the strangers sitting next to her expected to help her buckle and unbuckle her seat belt and assist her with her little TV and when she could and couldn't get up?? I think I were the the person seated next to a basically unaccompanied child I wouldn't be too happy to be expected to care for someone else's child.

And really it ISN'T the lowest after you add in all the nickel and diming.

It wasn't there when we bought your tickets... I specifically remember the examples being "window, aisle or extra leg room".

 

[Suellen]

I flew Air Tran last July, and I did pick and pay for my seat assignments.

We purchased tickets for this Flight in Sept 2008. Like I said... about 18 months ago.

Now I know ~ but like I said ~ it makes it more expensive than our other options anyway. Even Delta is cheaper than Airtran. Pretty sure they will end up being run out of Maine.

Especially when they take a flight you paid for to be non stop and just elminate that flight and stick you on one with two layovers that now takes 10 hours as opposed to the 3 hours it should have taken.

And to the PP who was mocked by the gate attendant for you not wanting to change your seat... that is basically how I was treated by them ~ over and over again for at least an hour.

 

[kaytieeldr]

And really it ISN'T the lowest after you add in all the nickel and diming.

It wasn't there when we bought your tickets... I specifically remember the examples being "window, aisle or extra leg room".

But by not opting to pay for seat selection, you made a concious decision NOT to be nicke-and-dimed. And, by your own admission, seat locations were examples given by AirTran. Most likely, they expect parents traveling with young children to reason out that if they feel their own seat location needs to be adjacent to their child, that the parent would realize they have to pay for that option.

 

[Suellen]

Yes I chose not to be nickeled and dimed thinking I didn't care WHERE my seat was. I had no reason to believe it wouldn't be near my MINOR child.

Why would I reason that I would need to buy my seat location if I really didn't care what row (not and exit row), if it was aisle or if it was window? Why would I pay an extra 100+$'s ~ not caring about any of there examples of why I might want to?

And my biggest decision to not be nickeled and dimed was to now fly a different airline who is family friendly and turns out it is cheaper.

 

[Elmo007]

Never flew with Airtran but SW and Jetblue put out schedules in short bursts and I have never had a flight route switched. I have had it happen on AA but that was only as to time (w/n 1 hour). and once on Delta but that was back after 9/11 and things went crazy.

I like JB as there is no seat tension. I EB on SW to make sure things work out. Once on spirit (never again - different thread) i did not payd when I was alone and then paid on the return when had kids.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Location as in window/middle/aisle matters to MANY more passengers than does location in any other context, in that there are, overall, more adult passengers than families with children.

However, location doesn't JUST mean window/middle/aisle. AirTran reasonably apparently expects its family passenger to realize that 'location' can also mean who you sit next to - and to choose to pay for seat selection accordingly. While it's great that you've found an airline that serves your needs better at a - for now - better fare, it's not the airline's fault that you refused or neglected to pay for seat selection, or even that you misunderstood the option.

Just so you know, if that other airline is Delta, they're not NEARLY as cooperative when it comes to allowing passengers to change flights due to Delta's own schedule change. AirTran is GREAT about that. And if you need to cancel, or even change, a nonrefundable ticket? Delta's going to charge you $150 per ticket, compared to AirTran's $75 per ticket.

 

[Suellen]

guess I'm just dumb. It's okay I am not afraid to admit it.

I'm not worried about the "for now" because Airtran (in our market) is losing a lot by their antics with flight changes. They won't be here long is my guess.