US Airways

[136368]

So, what's the good word? Brilliant airline or one to avoid?

 

[DawnCt1]

So, what's the good word? Brilliant airline or one to avoid?

Brilliant enough to have had a Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger when a US Airways plane crash landed in the Hudson River. I fly US Air and have from the days it was known as Allegheny Airlines.

 

[Octoberbride03]

Sully retired. Honestly, the last time i flew US Airways was the LAST time. Just not the level of service that should be there in my opinion. But if Sully were still flying and they GUARANTEED he'd be my pilot I'd reconsider just on that.

 

[136368]

I ask because I'm offski to Florida early next year and am trying to decide which carrier to take. At the moment I'm heavily leaning towards Virgin Atlantic; BA is out of the question as the service has been terrible the last few times I've flown with them and because they seem to love striking.

 

[Green Tea]

fly Virgin if you have the chance. I would never select a legacy US carrier if I had another choice.

What is offski, by the way?

 

[laurie31]

I just flew US Airways for the first time last month. We usually fly Delta or Southwest. After I booked the tickets, I read lots of horrible reviews (bad service, dirty planes) but I must say that I had a great experience.

The flight attendants were very nice and were very helpful in moving us to better seats. This was their idea - we did not complain or ask to move, but we were on the very back row, and DD11 and I both get very airsick that far back. We didn't tell the FA this though; she just looked at us and said, "Oh goodness! You don't want to sit way back here! I'll find you something better!" I was impressed. They even helped us move our carry-on bags to the (much better!) seats.

We didn't find the level of service overall or the cleanliness of the plane any different than any other carrier than we've flown (we've also used American, and a couple of others in the past). Actually, I'd have to say the service was better than most.

Based on my experience last month, I would consider them ahead of Delta next time. Southwest is still our favorite overall, but they don't make long flights.

 

[HsvTeacher]

If you'd asked this question a month ago, I would've said I would NEVER fly with US Air again. We had a bad experience that involved them losing our dog and threatening to have us arrested when we wanted them to find him.

However, my DH and I were voluntarily bumped from our Delta flight on October 2 in exchange for $400 in vouchers and an earlier flight on another airline. Sleepy me didn't hear them say we would be on US Air, or I would've declined.

Getting seat assignments was a nightmare, because they were shorthanded on desk agents due to our early, early flight. They actually assigned someone else to my seat, and thankfully I caught it right before we started boarding. (The lady was standing in front of me, and I saw her boarding pass.) The flight, though, ended up not being that bad, and we were able to avoid a layover in Atlanta.

 

[DawnCt1]

Sully retired. Honestly, the last time i flew US Airways was the LAST time. Just not the level of service that should be there in my opinion. But if Sully were still flying and they GUARANTEED he'd be my pilot I'd reconsider just on that.

Very few of the airlines have the level of service that we all used to get. I usually fly Delta because that is where we accumulate miles, but US Airways is no better nor any worse than any of them. We have received a couple of very nice bumps from US Air that netted us a free trip to LA and another trip to Fla. I don't have a problem with overbooking.
We are flying them for our cruise out of FLL. They have the most flights with the best schedule in and out from BDL, plus we had enough miles for two award tickets and just had to buy one.

 

[Art 1]

I've never had a major problem with them.

 

[DebbieB]

I have flown them alot in the past but not so much recently since they pulled most of their flights from Pittsburgh (after a huge terminal was built for them). They are not my favorite. They pulled all the in flight entertainment out of their domestic planes a couple of years ago, so no movies or short clips on flights to the west coast. They started charging for soft drinks, coffee & water but recinded it when no other airline went along with them. No free snacks. I've flown first class on upgrades or award tickets and their first class is not near as nice as other airlines I've been on. I reluctantly flew them in August to Richmond via Charlotte and I ended up 2 hours late for my meeting (delayed flight waiting for a part to be flown in).

I had some miles left with them so I checked for flights PIT-SNA for Disneyland next May. They wanted 60,000 miles for a coach ticket! But get this - 50,000 for first class! It was a fluke that no low season coach tickets were left but they did have low season first class! So I booked first of course. Hopefully their service has improved.

Whatever you do, stay out of Philadelphia. Only time I ever had my luggage lost overnight. Always delayed there.

 

[Disney Daniel]

I flew US Airways in August from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Newark with a connection in Philadelphia. It was the first time that I had flown with them, however I would put the experience on par with United, Air Canada and other North American Star Alliance members so nothing special, but at the same time no complaints either as the flights were on time and my luggage arrived on time as well.

 

[pansmermaidzlagoon]

we have always flown US Air and have never had a problem (other than a slight delay once in a while). My DH flies US Air often for work.

the only airline we have had major problems with is Delta.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I used to fly them all the time, but don't anymore. Their costs are just too high.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

I never fly them. Horrible customer service, horrible and expensive flights also. We have been delayed and late everytime we have flown with them. Our last straw was an incident when we were flying back from Jamaica. Lots of disgruntled employees from all the lay-offs, paycuts and restructuring.
They really stuck it to Pittsburgh too after pulling the majority of their flights out of here.

 

[momrek06]

I ask because I'm offski to Florida early next year and am trying to decide which carrier to take. At the moment I'm heavily leaning towards Virgin Atlantic; BA is out of the question as the service has been terrible the last few times I've flown with them and because they seem to love striking.

Just curious but what do you mean by "offski" ?

My family used to fly USAir allot years ago but haven't in sometime. Most of my flights recently have been w/United. All really coming down to schedules and layovers.

 

[SunnyP4Disney]

Living here on the Eastern Shore, they are the only carrier within a 2.5 hour radius. They fly exclusively out of Salisbury, which is only a 20 minute drive for me, compared to 3 hours to Philly and 2.5 to Baltimore. They only take you to their hubs, Charlotte or Philly and then you transfer. It's not great, but it's doable for the convenience of being nearby.

The service is what I expect these days, not much. But I travel with my dog as a carry on and they always do something special when I have her with me.

 

[LukenDC]

I have flown with US Airways many times and usually they are comparable to the other major carriers. I do not, however, like their Philadelphia hub and try to avoid flying through Philly.

On our recent flight down to MCO, my partner and I upgraded to first class. Now mind you this was a two hour flight and the upgrade cost $100. It was worth it for the extra leg room and larger seats, but the service was nothing special. There was a standard drink service that did not differ from coach and the flight attendant came around with a basket containing sample sized packages of cookies, crackers, and peanuts. I certainly was not expecting a meal, but I was surprised by the scant offerings.

 

[DawnCt1]

Dh flies no more than 8 times a year on US Air to go to Fort Bragg. He is always automatically upgraded to First Class for no additional fees from BDL. I think that they are pretty generous with their upgrades when there is space available. Domestic First Class is not what it used to be on any airline. Since he is retiring from the Army next month, we cashed in our dividend miles for two tickets to FLL. He will be accumulating them a lot slower now since his company doesn't use US Airways very often.