So, I made it back from Germany. While it was good to actually take a real vacation for once (first time in a couple of years) it wasn't the easiest of trip.
For starters, US AIRWAYS is a fucking joke. One of the worst airlines I've ever had the displeasure of flying. And you have to understand that I've been travelling by air for 3/4 of my life! Seriously...that airline is just goddamn horrible, and I should have known better since I've done NEWS STORIES on how bad US AIR is. Yet, I didnt go with my gut on this one, and instead went with my wallet.
Here's the brief story...or as quick as I can make it. Last Tuesday, I get to the gate for my departure around 1.75 hours before my flight's schedules to leave. A huge line awaits me at the check-in counter, and they've havent seperated the flights: everyflight to every country is bunched into a single line. So, I wait for almost an hour and 15 minutes to get near the front. According to the sign above, my flight's final check in has to be one hour before the flight actually departs...that puts me 5 minutes to the close off.
Everything is going painfully slow....US AIRWAYS has THREE people working the counters for something like 200 passengers. Not an ideal situation. Luckily, I hear the woman at the counter call for 'Frankfurt Passengers'. I run up to the gate to check-in. She IGNORES ME COMPLETELY. I repeatedly ask her in a congenial voice about her call for Frankfurt passengers. Im two feet from her....she ignores me, as if Im a ghost. Nice, eh? Another passenger waiting at the same counter informs me that it is indeed the check-in for our flight. I wait for a few minutes for the counter person to respond before she picks up the phone and tells someone that the Frankfurt flight can close. WHAT THE FUCK???
I get a little heated, forcing the woman to actually acknowledge me. She says that I have to wait back in the line again. OK...OK. Things couldnt be this bad, right? So, 10 minutes past (roughtly 15 minutes past my final check in time) and I get called to another counter. The woman there says that I cannot check in with her, that I have to go back to Queen Bitch at the far counter. OK...Im a nice guy, so I do that. A few painful minutes pass, and I finally get up to QB. She gives me straight off attitude AGAIN and tells me that she isn't checking in Frankfurt passengers, that I have to go down to another line.
Well, fuck that. I kindly argue my point of line hopping before she tells me that the Frankfurt flight is closed and that she cant help me at all. Again, Im a civil and nice guy...you wont find me on that Airport reality show with the Assholes bitching and yelling like a bunch of retards for no reason, save that they've gotten a Pepsi instead of a Coke. After a discussion on the matter (no eye-contact from the Queen Bitch) she tells me that she has to help the other people behind me in line, and that she can see me after they've checked in. WTF??? I've just waited and hour and a half just to get to the front of the line, and now I have to wait AGAIN??? After arguing, I get her assurance that she will indeed help me out after the rest go through.
So, I wait with a few passengers also going to Frankfurt, and I'm listening to their horror stories about US AIR. They're not passengers leaving from Philly mind you. They're CONNECTING to Philly and leaving from here to other overseas airports. US AIR has STRANDED them here without any help. No contacts, no hotel room, no flights, NOTHING. They were waiting at the check-in counter line just to get helped AGAIN. Nice.
About 30 minutes pass, with no change in the line. At that point, my flight to Frankfurt has now been DELAYED. That's right...the flight that was closed to me because of the inordinate amount of time it took to check in HASNT EVEN LEFT. So, Im about ready to storm the check-in counter to confront QB when she and another US Air employee gets on the PA system. They quickly announce that the International Check-in Counter is now CLOSED and that they can no longer HELP ANY ELSE IN LINE. Something about calling a 1-800 number comes up (they dont actually give the whole number, btw). The counter-crew then takes off behind the TSA x-ray machines, through a security door, and away they go. People start screaming (in various languages) and all hell breaks loose. Passengers are screaming at the poor TSA folx, who are mistaken as US AIR employees, while others jump across the counter in order to chase after the counter employees. I've never seen such a situation like this EVER.
Soon, the police show up...and thankfully, they're seemingly on the side of the unruly passengers. This is especially apparent after the large group of underaged exchange student begin crying and whimpering, since US Air has just stranded them (again) without any help. These kids have no money, no food, no place to stay, and just wanted to get home like US Air promised to do when they TOOK THEIR TRAVELLING MONEY. Nice, eh?
The police get the Queen Bitch out her little hidey hole, forcing her to deal with the passengers again. At this point, I've given up. My flight is supposedly gone (it wasnt, though) and there were people in need of more help than I. My roomate came to pick me up, and I began my 5 hour phone-call journey to the powers that be on the 1-800 number (which I got from a passenger, thankfully).
At 2am, I'm back home and have been told that I can receive a full refund for my flight, since they cannot get me onto another Frankfurt plane for another TWO DAYS. Remember, you lose 8 hours with a flight, and since US AIR flys at night, Ill lose THREE DAYS ALTOGETHER. Instead of taking the money right then and there, I decide to wait it out for the morning. So, I'm up at 9am, and I start the whole process of the phone dilly-o again, just as I had the night before. This time, US AIR is telling me that they CAN get me on another flight, but that I'll have to PAY another 150 dollars BECAUSE I MISSED MY FLIGHT. That's when the sparks begin to fly. I get downright nasty on the phone, but still remain articulate.
After arguing with the phone people for another two hours, they finally tell me that my best bet is to go DOWN to the ticket counter AGAIN at Philadelphia International Airport. They dont even have the phone number there. Nice, right? So, I decide to give it a try before I opt for the full refund. I don my CBS-3 clothing, pull out my Press Badge and head down to the airport. When I get down there, and see all of the people from the night before that were stranded by US Fucking AIRWAYS. Most of them slept on the hard floors. Really great.
I get up to the ticket counter, and discuss the situation the night before calmly with the agent (Queen Bitch came to the forefront of the conversation, I can tell you). I dont throw the 'press card' at him, but I dont hide it either. He tells me that there isnt another flight he can get me on, and then walks away to the security counter. 10 minutes later, the guy shows up again and informs me that he can get me on the 4pm flight that day. Of course, I dont have my luggage with me, so I have to run home to get that stuff, take a quick shower, and call a cab. An hour later, I'm back at the airport...and it's two hours before my flight leaves. The same siutation as the night before. I'm a little worried, but there isnt' a line, so I can check my baggage. I get on my plane, and I make it to Germany for my brief 4 day stay.
OK, OK..this has gotten super fucking long. So, Ill keep it to the US Airways bit and add the actually Germany stuff later. So, I've finished my vacation, and I'm at Frankfurt airport for my return flight. I check it at the gate (they have the individual flights set up, so no massive line). I check in, and they DONT GIVE ME A SEAT. Fine...I'm guessing they've overbooked, and they're trying to get someone to cough up their seat for a voucher...something I wont take, because I'm never flying US DOUCHE-WAYS again. Ever.
I get down to the gate, and they tell me I have to wait until they call my name. Not a good sign at all. So, I wait and I wait. No call. An American West Pilot (they bought US AIR last year when it went into bankruptcy again) is waiting to fly standbye, and I discuss my tale of woe with him. The guy is blown away...and also a little worried, since he's gotten the same treatment there in Frankfurt. And he's a goddamn EMPLOYEE!
I wait another 20 minutes...they call a bunch of other people, but not me. It's now 10 minutes before the flight is scheduled to leave, and I'm getting a tad bit nervous and pissy. Finally, my name gets called. I head up to the counter, and I hand them my boarding card (with no seat). They ask me for my ticket, which I tell them I dont have since I'm flying with the magical E-Ticket. "No, no, no," the counter agent exclaims in her thick German accent, "You have to have a ticket. The computer says nothing about you having an E-ticket here." I assure the woman that I am indeed flying on an E-Ticket, else I wouldnt have been able to FLY TO GERMANY FROM THE US OR CHECK IN UPSTAIRS AT THE COUNTER HERE IN FRANKFURT. She's blown away by the situation for some fucking reason, and begins having a heated discussion with the managers at the gate (in German, of course). 10 minutes go by, and now my flight is supposed to have left. I even see my friend the pilot get on the plan, flying 1st class apparently because of the lack of seats. WTF??? Shouldn't a paying customer get on before a standbye passenger, even if its and empoyee???
Finally, the gate is now completely empty, and the franctic counter agent tells me that I will not be able to make this flight. That's when the fuse blows in my brain. Im going off like a Hawaiian Volcano (Mt. Pele, to be exact) and I want some fucking answers as to why I'm not flying. "I'm sorry sir," the german US Airways ticket again says. "There is some sort of problem with the ticket. That woman over there will help you out when she has a moment," she states in her increasingly annoying German accent.
When she 'gets a MOMENT'??? You have to be fucking kidding me. I'm about to go postal. No explanations, no appoligies, no blow-job...NOTHING. I'm not a paying customer anymore. Im a problem. A very PISSED OFF PROBLEM. Right before I completely explode, they call ANOTHER name, which no one answers too. All the meanwhile, I'm eyeing down this supposed manager that is going to 'help me' when she get the chance. She's not leaving this room without me, no fucking way.
Soon after, I get called to the counter again...and now they've found a seat. I'm not relieved at all...Im in disbelief. I want to scream at these people. Still, no rhyme or reason to what the fuck has just happened. They acted like I was some sort of standbye passenger the whole time. They were even surprised that I had checked in baggage. OF COURSE I CHECKED IN BAGGAGE! THIS IS MY FUCKING FLIGHT THAT I FUCKING PAID FOR!!!
To add to the pain of the situation, these douchebags gave up my decent aisle seat to someone else. I have to sit in the the fucking middle of the plane, cramped up. Any my DVD player cuts out after just one movie. Ugh...still, I made it home (and my luggage made it too).
So, whats the point of my writings??
Never Fly
US AIRWAYS
EVER
For starters, US AIRWAYS is a fucking joke. One of the worst airlines I've ever had the displeasure of flying. And you have to understand that I've been travelling by air for 3/4 of my life! Seriously...that airline is just goddamn horrible, and I should have known better since I've done NEWS STORIES on how bad US AIR is. Yet, I didnt go with my gut on this one, and instead went with my wallet.
Here's the brief story...or as quick as I can make it. Last Tuesday, I get to the gate for my departure around 1.75 hours before my flight's schedules to leave. A huge line awaits me at the check-in counter, and they've havent seperated the flights: everyflight to every country is bunched into a single line. So, I wait for almost an hour and 15 minutes to get near the front. According to the sign above, my flight's final check in has to be one hour before the flight actually departs...that puts me 5 minutes to the close off.
Everything is going painfully slow....US AIRWAYS has THREE people working the counters for something like 200 passengers. Not an ideal situation. Luckily, I hear the woman at the counter call for 'Frankfurt Passengers'. I run up to the gate to check-in. She IGNORES ME COMPLETELY. I repeatedly ask her in a congenial voice about her call for Frankfurt passengers. Im two feet from her....she ignores me, as if Im a ghost. Nice, eh? Another passenger waiting at the same counter informs me that it is indeed the check-in for our flight. I wait for a few minutes for the counter person to respond before she picks up the phone and tells someone that the Frankfurt flight can close. WHAT THE FUCK???
I get a little heated, forcing the woman to actually acknowledge me. She says that I have to wait back in the line again. OK...OK. Things couldnt be this bad, right? So, 10 minutes past (roughtly 15 minutes past my final check in time) and I get called to another counter. The woman there says that I cannot check in with her, that I have to go back to Queen Bitch at the far counter. OK...Im a nice guy, so I do that. A few painful minutes pass, and I finally get up to QB. She gives me straight off attitude AGAIN and tells me that she isn't checking in Frankfurt passengers, that I have to go down to another line.
Well, fuck that. I kindly argue my point of line hopping before she tells me that the Frankfurt flight is closed and that she cant help me at all. Again, Im a civil and nice guy...you wont find me on that Airport reality show with the Assholes bitching and yelling like a bunch of retards for no reason, save that they've gotten a Pepsi instead of a Coke. After a discussion on the matter (no eye-contact from the Queen Bitch) she tells me that she has to help the other people behind me in line, and that she can see me after they've checked in. WTF??? I've just waited and hour and a half just to get to the front of the line, and now I have to wait AGAIN??? After arguing, I get her assurance that she will indeed help me out after the rest go through.
So, I wait with a few passengers also going to Frankfurt, and I'm listening to their horror stories about US AIR. They're not passengers leaving from Philly mind you. They're CONNECTING to Philly and leaving from here to other overseas airports. US AIR has STRANDED them here without any help. No contacts, no hotel room, no flights, NOTHING. They were waiting at the check-in counter line just to get helped AGAIN. Nice.
About 30 minutes pass, with no change in the line. At that point, my flight to Frankfurt has now been DELAYED. That's right...the flight that was closed to me because of the inordinate amount of time it took to check in HASNT EVEN LEFT. So, Im about ready to storm the check-in counter to confront QB when she and another US Air employee gets on the PA system. They quickly announce that the International Check-in Counter is now CLOSED and that they can no longer HELP ANY ELSE IN LINE. Something about calling a 1-800 number comes up (they dont actually give the whole number, btw). The counter-crew then takes off behind the TSA x-ray machines, through a security door, and away they go. People start screaming (in various languages) and all hell breaks loose. Passengers are screaming at the poor TSA folx, who are mistaken as US AIR employees, while others jump across the counter in order to chase after the counter employees. I've never seen such a situation like this EVER.
Soon, the police show up...and thankfully, they're seemingly on the side of the unruly passengers. This is especially apparent after the large group of underaged exchange student begin crying and whimpering, since US Air has just stranded them (again) without any help. These kids have no money, no food, no place to stay, and just wanted to get home like US Air promised to do when they TOOK THEIR TRAVELLING MONEY. Nice, eh?
The police get the Queen Bitch out her little hidey hole, forcing her to deal with the passengers again. At this point, I've given up. My flight is supposedly gone (it wasnt, though) and there were people in need of more help than I. My roomate came to pick me up, and I began my 5 hour phone-call journey to the powers that be on the 1-800 number (which I got from a passenger, thankfully).
At 2am, I'm back home and have been told that I can receive a full refund for my flight, since they cannot get me onto another Frankfurt plane for another TWO DAYS. Remember, you lose 8 hours with a flight, and since US AIR flys at night, Ill lose THREE DAYS ALTOGETHER. Instead of taking the money right then and there, I decide to wait it out for the morning. So, I'm up at 9am, and I start the whole process of the phone dilly-o again, just as I had the night before. This time, US AIR is telling me that they CAN get me on another flight, but that I'll have to PAY another 150 dollars BECAUSE I MISSED MY FLIGHT. That's when the sparks begin to fly. I get downright nasty on the phone, but still remain articulate.
After arguing with the phone people for another two hours, they finally tell me that my best bet is to go DOWN to the ticket counter AGAIN at Philadelphia International Airport. They dont even have the phone number there. Nice, right? So, I decide to give it a try before I opt for the full refund. I don my CBS-3 clothing, pull out my Press Badge and head down to the airport. When I get down there, and see all of the people from the night before that were stranded by US Fucking AIRWAYS. Most of them slept on the hard floors. Really great.
I get up to the ticket counter, and discuss the situation the night before calmly with the agent (Queen Bitch came to the forefront of the conversation, I can tell you). I dont throw the 'press card' at him, but I dont hide it either. He tells me that there isnt another flight he can get me on, and then walks away to the security counter. 10 minutes later, the guy shows up again and informs me that he can get me on the 4pm flight that day. Of course, I dont have my luggage with me, so I have to run home to get that stuff, take a quick shower, and call a cab. An hour later, I'm back at the airport...and it's two hours before my flight leaves. The same siutation as the night before. I'm a little worried, but there isnt' a line, so I can check my baggage. I get on my plane, and I make it to Germany for my brief 4 day stay.
OK, OK..this has gotten super fucking long. So, Ill keep it to the US Airways bit and add the actually Germany stuff later. So, I've finished my vacation, and I'm at Frankfurt airport for my return flight. I check it at the gate (they have the individual flights set up, so no massive line). I check in, and they DONT GIVE ME A SEAT. Fine...I'm guessing they've overbooked, and they're trying to get someone to cough up their seat for a voucher...something I wont take, because I'm never flying US DOUCHE-WAYS again. Ever.
I get down to the gate, and they tell me I have to wait until they call my name. Not a good sign at all. So, I wait and I wait. No call. An American West Pilot (they bought US AIR last year when it went into bankruptcy again) is waiting to fly standbye, and I discuss my tale of woe with him. The guy is blown away...and also a little worried, since he's gotten the same treatment there in Frankfurt. And he's a goddamn EMPLOYEE!
I wait another 20 minutes...they call a bunch of other people, but not me. It's now 10 minutes before the flight is scheduled to leave, and I'm getting a tad bit nervous and pissy. Finally, my name gets called. I head up to the counter, and I hand them my boarding card (with no seat). They ask me for my ticket, which I tell them I dont have since I'm flying with the magical E-Ticket. "No, no, no," the counter agent exclaims in her thick German accent, "You have to have a ticket. The computer says nothing about you having an E-ticket here." I assure the woman that I am indeed flying on an E-Ticket, else I wouldnt have been able to FLY TO GERMANY FROM THE US OR CHECK IN UPSTAIRS AT THE COUNTER HERE IN FRANKFURT. She's blown away by the situation for some fucking reason, and begins having a heated discussion with the managers at the gate (in German, of course). 10 minutes go by, and now my flight is supposed to have left. I even see my friend the pilot get on the plan, flying 1st class apparently because of the lack of seats. WTF??? Shouldn't a paying customer get on before a standbye passenger, even if its and empoyee???
Finally, the gate is now completely empty, and the franctic counter agent tells me that I will not be able to make this flight. That's when the fuse blows in my brain. Im going off like a Hawaiian Volcano (Mt. Pele, to be exact) and I want some fucking answers as to why I'm not flying. "I'm sorry sir," the german US Airways ticket again says. "There is some sort of problem with the ticket. That woman over there will help you out when she has a moment," she states in her increasingly annoying German accent.
When she 'gets a MOMENT'??? You have to be fucking kidding me. I'm about to go postal. No explanations, no appoligies, no blow-job...NOTHING. I'm not a paying customer anymore. Im a problem. A very PISSED OFF PROBLEM. Right before I completely explode, they call ANOTHER name, which no one answers too. All the meanwhile, I'm eyeing down this supposed manager that is going to 'help me' when she get the chance. She's not leaving this room without me, no fucking way.
Soon after, I get called to the counter again...and now they've found a seat. I'm not relieved at all...Im in disbelief. I want to scream at these people. Still, no rhyme or reason to what the fuck has just happened. They acted like I was some sort of standbye passenger the whole time. They were even surprised that I had checked in baggage. OF COURSE I CHECKED IN BAGGAGE! THIS IS MY FUCKING FLIGHT THAT I FUCKING PAID FOR!!!
To add to the pain of the situation, these douchebags gave up my decent aisle seat to someone else. I have to sit in the the fucking middle of the plane, cramped up. Any my DVD player cuts out after just one movie. Ugh...still, I made it home (and my luggage made it too).
So, whats the point of my writings??
Never Fly
US AIRWAYS
EVER
VIEW 4 of 4 COMMENTS
seaniefresh:
Nice neighborhood!! What ya doin' tonight?
teena:
ya i totally understand. fuck em. stupid crappy ass airline. glad you made it back safetly.