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Flyer Beware (Reply to this comment)
by cjrmar
Unfortunately, my first (and last) experience with AirTrans (f/k/a Valujet of the Everglades crash fame) was not as tolerable. I would not recommend this airline to anyone, nor would any other prior passengers I have spoken to since. If one thing goes wrong, i.e. weather, it sends the whole airline cascading into inept poor customer service mode. Considering that many flightsfrom Florida go through Atlanta (one of the busiest hubs in the nation), weather is often a factor.
My recent journey to Colorado started off ok at curbside check-in. I was the only one in line. I asked for and received a "window seat" only to discover upon boarding the plane that row 14 had a wall instead of a window, which quadrupled the absolutely cramped seating situation. The flight was delayed, which later I learned was due to Tropical Storm Cynthia.
Eventually, we were allowed to board and everyone settled into cramped quarters and prepared for the flight. I couldn't help but notice upon boarding the plane three hefty passengers that looked like they might require the jaws of life to pry them from their seats upon the conclusion of the flight -- if they could hold their breath that long. They were sitting directly in back of the First Class, which did have leather seats.
Upon backing away from the gate, we felt a huge jolt as if we had driven over the baggage cart or a small plane. The passengers all let out a collective gasp and then fell silent until the crew announced the cause of the jolt. Of course I couldn't see a thing because I was plastered up against the windowless wall. Apparently, the "tug" that was pushing our plane backwards slipped out of gear. I couldn't help but wonder if this abrupt jarring caused damage to the plane or landing gear, but we immediately resumed our journey to the runway only to sit and wait and wait. I kept my brother in Denver updated since he could not find a way to look up the flight status online.
Finally, we were told that despite the beautiful weather in Tampa, we could not depart due to severe weather in Atlanta associated with Tropical Storm Cynthia. After an hour of waiting, we rolled back to the gate debarked the plane and waited for updates.
Over an hour later we jammed back onto the plane. We were told that we were "pushing off" so that we'd be in line and ready to roll once we were cleared for takeoff within about 20 - 40 minutes or so.
After another hour plus of sitting, we returned to the gate again and got off the plane. It was late by now and rumor had it that a tornado had touched down by the Atlanta airport. This of course was not the fault of the crew but the inept handling of passengers that followed after this dissolved any patience displayed by even the most docile of passengers.
By this time, the other plane(s) that were scheduled to leave behind us were in the same dilemna (they just had not been in it as long). You could feel tempers disintegrating as the frustration was building. It was clear that the situation called for a well thought out gameplan and expert customer service in order to keep the peace, neither of which are qualities associated with this airline. Quite the opposite indeed.
Unsure as to whether we'd get off the ground that night, hundreds of passengers formed a line at the counter to change their flight arrangments. It was first come, first serve so the most sought after flights went fast. By that time, I had resigned myself to stand in line with hundreds of others to avoid arriving at 3:00 in the morning in Denver, if at all. I feared I might get stuck in Atlanta (which I later learned would have been the case AND that for those that had gotten stuck, the airline refused to pay for a hotel room, which they DID NOT TELL US UP FRONT!).
I was about 30th in line and was told along with the others around me to leave my ticket with the gate agent and that they would call my name to finalize the changes. I was told I'd probably have to take the same flight the following day, which I agreed to do. Then I obediently sat down and listened for my name to be called.
After awhile, we were informed that Atlanta had cleared all planes for takeoff. Some people with no connections decided to go ahead. Thankfully, I didn't change my mind to depart because I heard from other passengers that while Atlanta let planes arrive, it wasn't allowing flights to depart from its airport. I watched the planes depart carrying my luggage, which I could do nothing about except have faith that the airline would get it to my destimation and keep it safe and secure.
Soon, it became clear that the gate agents had changed the rules and began reassigning seats for those that had been in the back of the line instead of calling our names as they had promised. This riled the passengers that had been faithfully following prior instructions. Many people tried to complain to the gate agents who would refused to do anything to remedy the situation. Passengers were yelling at each other and mad as H*!!. Despite my exasperation, I actually found it in my heart to feel sorry for the crew and gate agents because the airline clearly had not put into place procedures or an effective manager to properly handle the situation.
One agent, when approached by a mob of angry passengers demanding to know why the gate agents had abruptly changed the rules, simply backed away with her head in her hands exclaiming that she didn't know what to do and that she hated her job. The longer they made us wait, the madder everyone got because the people in the back of the line were getting the advantage of first come first serve. No effort was made to resolve the situation by the gate agents despite several complaints until finally only about 10 to 15 people remained. We were allowed to go ahead of them after the gate agents could no longer tune out our complaints being that most people were gone. By that time it was after midnight.
My complaints were met with the response that they got confused (despite our repeated efforts to alert them to the mistake). None of us received an apology or even an acknowledgement that the whole thing had been handled poorly.
The next day I was able to fly despite another weather delay. This time I requested a window seat with an actual window. However, the flight was miserable. I am 5'4 and felt like I had Michael Jordan's stature. I quickly became aware of my knees bumping into the seat ahead of me as there was very little legroom. Which brings me to the small child that sat behind me and gave me a deep tissue massage the entire leg of the flight. Due to the flimsy thin seats, I felt every punch. There was no inflight entertainment (except for the message). Also, I found myself having to turn sideways and lean up against the window to avoid becoming intimate with the woman sitting next to me who, although did not appear to be a big fat giant, did not seem to mind spilling her entire being into my seat with reckless abandon. The air conditioning was pathetic adding distress to an already claustophobic situation. I don't even think they had the air on when we were waiting to get off the plane.
The reverse was true on the way to Denver. It was an icebox and they didn't have enough blankets to accommodate every passenger. I had asked the gate agent to let me know when the plane would arrive in Denver due to the delay. She told me 10:30 which I relayed to my people who were waiting for my arrival. I decided I would just catch the 11:10 p.m. shuttle. It turns out she was wrong and there were no in flight updates. I didn't arrive until 11:00 and ended up having to take a 12:10 a.m. shuttle. I was glad my family was waiting for me at the airport. That really burned me up.
Then, I got home and unpacked and discovered that the digital camera I had packed is missing. My guess is that my bag was not safe or secure on its independent journey. Whatever the cause, it turns out I did not save any money in the end.
Like I said, never again....
Happy travels.
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Jul 09 '05
3:16 pm PDT
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Re: You Just Keep Getting Better! (Reply to this comment)
by jetbluefan1
Hehe...Tina wouldn't have enjoyed it anyway...right? I think she's a bit too young to understand any of the attractions. Most likely we'll take her next year. That will be her second big vacation. We took her to California in 2002 - big mistake.
Thanks for stopping by!
Anthony
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Dec 17 '03
11:51 am PST
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You Just Keep Getting Better! (Reply to this comment)
by ruby950
great review, Jet! But don't tell me that you left little Tina at home while you visited Mickey!
Shame on you! Only kidding........
Ruby~
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Dec 17 '03
6:13 am PST
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