Who's flown ATA?

[Beast2Prince]

I can get tickets on ATA for around half the price of Delta. I have only flown Delta so I was wondering how good ATA is. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

We fly ATA Chicago Midway to MCO three or four times a year. Chicago and Indianapolis are major ATA hubs (home office is in Indianapolis), so you can fly non-stop to a number of vacation destinations at reasonable fares (including LA, San Francisco, and Las Vegas). ATA is a good, no frills airline. They fly 757s along with smaller 737s. Many of their planes are quite new, and all appear to be in excellent condition. Express check-in kiosks at Midway and Indianapolis speed the trip through the airport at busier times. The only shortcoming we've found has been somewhat slow baggage handling (at both MCO and MDW), particularly compared to what we've experienced on Southwest. This is not a big enough problem to make me go back to flying United out of O'Hare. I would definitely suggest you give ATA a try.

Ralph

 

[inkkognito]

We do 6 to 8 Disney cruises every year, and we usually end up on ATA due to the excellent fares. We've never had a major problem with them. Their on-time record has been great...only two delays that I can remember. One was because they couldn't get the baggage door closed (really!), which delayed takeoff for about 45 minutes. The second wasn't their fault...they weren't allowed to leave MCO for several hours due to a snowstorm in Chicago. They have never lost our luggage, although as they previous poster stated, they are often very slow in delivering it. They used to be really picky about the size of carry-on bags, but they have eased up on that lately. I love the comfy stretch 757's, which we usually end up on...they have seats with the extendable head rests, and you can buy a pair of headphones for $2 to watch the entertainment that you keep to use on future flights, too. I love the eticket kiosks at Midway, and they recently added them at MCO too. You can even change your seats at the kiosks.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[drusba]

As a discount airline, it is fine and I have had no real problems with it except that it does not yet have e-ticket check in machines at all its major destinations (it does at some) and thus check in can be slow. Frankly, I have also flown Delta quite a bit and you won't notice that big of a difference (and may think ATA is an improvement).

 

[sgtdisney]

I have used ATA numerous times to and from Florida from Chicago. I have never had a bad experience with them. As another poster mentioned they have recently undergone a fleet renewal and now fly 757-200 and 757-300 as well as 737-800 aircraft. They do have a few L1011s remaining in their fleet but they are used primarily for very long haul flights and charter operations.

They are somewhat of a 'no-frill' airline, but then again, who isn't nowadays. What I mean by this is they have no first class section and rarely serve meals on flights, never serving meals to and from MDW to Florida.. They do have a drink service like everyone else. As inkkognito mentioned they do have inflight entertainment including music and short subject movies.. A very nice feature to pass the time.

One other nice thing about ATA is that they do have pre-assigned seating, which I prefer. They are also one of the only airlines so far to get a loan approval from the US government, so you know their financial plan is pretty tight. Give them a try, you can't beat them for the money...

 

[Beast2Prince]

Thanks everyone! I booked the ATA flight and it saved me $175! I'm glad I waited to see if prices came down.