4/09/2008 at 11:18 AM
Tags: American Airlines, Airlines, MD-80, Travel Hell, Airline Hell (all tags)
So it's not just the brand new planes that are sitting on the tarmac. American Airlines continues to keep truckloads of its MD-80s grounded as it performs safety investigations on wheel well wiring. The carrier says the hundreds of cancellations are affecting "some" travel.
You can check on your flight by going to AA's status page. You can also set up mobile alerts there, which will ping your phone via SMS or email with any changes to your gate or departure time.
As for when the mess will be sorted out, it's anyone's guess. After nixing about 460 flights yesterday, American has canceled 850 today, though some freshly-inspected MD-80s are already back in service.
Have a report from the front lines? Let us know or send us a tweet.
Related Stories:
· AA Cancels 850 Flights as Inspections Continue [DMN]
· AA Cancels 850 Flights [Reuters]
· American Airlines coverage [Jaunted]
by pbb
3/27/2008 at 9:55 AM
Tags: Spirit Airlines, Customer Service, Airline Hell (all tags)
An anonymous concerned Spirit Airlines customer (or is that ex-customer?) has written in to Jaunted to share his (her?) grievances after a recent booking gone horribly awry:
In pure frustration, I thought I would pass this info to you......I made a reservation for me and my family (a total of 7)......everything was fine, until I had to choose our seat assignment on the day I was told (90 days prior)....that went well.....Then I received an e mail from Spirit saying that the itinerary had changed, and to re-confirm the seat assignment, which I did.............then received another e mail a week later saying the itinerary had changed once again, and to re-confirm the seats.........THATS WHEN ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE.....
MORE...
by djk
3/17/2008 at 3:05 PM
Tags: Lists, Airline Hell (all tags)
Are flight crews getting a little eject-happy? After reading "Ten ways to get kicked off a plane" in the UK Times, our paranoia about getting tossed off a flight has only increased. Smelliness? Not paying attention during a security briefing? Wearing a T-shirt that could offend someone? We've done all those things. (Sorry, Mom.)
The trouble is, once airline crews start ejecting people for bad behavior, it's tempting to wish that every in-flight offense could result in an "unscheduled change of plans." We wouldn't begrudge the "Bye bye, plane!" 19-month-old of his seat, but continuing to make phone calls despite bad reception should be a ticketable offense. If it doesn't work the first time, send a text and take a hint!
For those times when we've managed to snag a precious aisle seat on an international flight, getting up from a middle seat every 10 minutes should sentence squirrely passengers to a shift cleaning the lavatories. (We're looking at you, 15-year-old Russian girl on Air France who pretended she couldn't speak enough English well enough to say "please.")
And for bringing a carry-on you can't lift into an overhead bin by yourself, you should be sentenced to the galley of Richard Branson's next venture. Be forewarned!
Related Stories:
· Ten Ways to Get Kicked off a Plane [UK Times]
· Airline Hell coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: artesea]
by egw
2/28/2008 at 4:50 PM
Tags: Josh Hartnett, LAX, Celeb Travel, United, Airline Hell (all tags)
Josh Hartnett got to fly coach when his United flight left LAX after the Oscars. The "30 Days of Night" actor ended up at number 55 (!) on the upgrade list, and had to roll in steerage with his adoring fans. Or whoever.
At least the flight wasn't overbooked. Airlines are at an 11-year high when it comes to bumping folks. And you're at the greatest risk of getting denied a seat on smaller, regional airlines. These tips should help out if you get left behind.
As for that trouble-making rule 240, you know our advice. Don't act like some industry insider unless you are one. Just ask nice and smile, and you'll get where you're going--even if you're not a movie star.
Related Stories:
· Stuck in Coach [NYP]
· Celeb Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo of United's coach seats Josh: IMDb]
by pbb
12/31/2007 at 10:30 AM
Tags: 2007 Jaunted Travel Awards, Airport Hell, Airline Hell (all tags)
This year, it was all about Getting Trapped on the Tarmac. JetBlue started the trend way back in February with the Hostage Crisis at JFK. (We got lucky and spent our delay at JFK at the airport bar.) Those who weren't so lucky got together and started a movement--and a blog, natch.
As the summer of delays wore on, more and more passengers got trapped by airlines, including the rabble-rousers on Continental Flight 1669. (We can't imagine spending 14 hours on the ground, like some poor souls on a Royal Air Maroc flight.) The worst of the tarmac horror stories involved backed up toilets and other nastiness we'd rather not think about this early in the morning.
All that said, get ready for an interesting 2008. New York State's new passenger bill of rights goes into effect tomorrow--and is sure to spark some litigation. Fun!
Related Stories:
The 2007 Jaunted Travel Awards
by Jaunted
12/28/2007 at 12:30 PM
Tags: 2007 Jaunted Travel Awards, Airport Hell, Airline Hell, New York Area Airports (all tags)
Must. Not. Mention. Kyla Ebbert. Oh no!
While the Girls of Southwest debacle was fun, there was a much bigger story line this year, and the travel media did a great job covering it for the most part. Airport Congestion, particularly at New York area airports, created delays across the country, cost airlines gobs of money and infuriated passengers who sometimes got stuck on taxiways for hours on end. It was, as it turned out, the worst year ever for delays, as problems affected everyone from soccer moms to Nick Nolte.
The story got so big that President Bush got involved, though his proposed fixes didn't do much. That left it up to the travel media, us included, to keep reminding you to avoid New York's airports whenever possible.
[Photo: Ho-Yeol Ryu, via NYM]
Related Stories:
The 2007 Jaunted Travel Awards
by Jaunted
12/27/2007 at 9:30 AM
Tags: Airline Hell, Skybus, Flight Reviews (all tags)
We didn't jump on the story of Skybus canceling flights when it first broke because, well, airlines cancel flights all the time. But the Skybus situation is quickly turning into something much bigger because the carrier only has seven planes. When not one but two suffer mechanical problems, cancellations cascade through Skybus' schedule.
One of the damaged A319s flew to BFM in Mobile, Alabama--as Skybus flight 5002--for repairs at a major maintenance center there. And without planes available for flights, passengers were stranded at Port Columbus International and around the country waiting to get home from their Christmas trips.
One flyer trapped in Biloxi wrote in to us, and we have his horror story, after the jump
MORE...
by pbb
11/19/2007 at 4:30 PM
Tags: President Bush, Airline Hell, Travel Hell, Thanksgiving (all tags)
Struggling to regain the good graces of passengers during the worst year for airline travel, airlines and now even President Bush, are scrambling to prepare for this week's impending travel crush. Last week, W proposed a plan to improve travel during the holiday season, but will it really work? Not likely, say aviation experts.
Airline industry analyst Michael Boyd told the New York Times that the plan calls for improvements that are still contingent on the assumption that the holiday season will be without bad weather:
What's all this rah-rah about the holiday season? What's changed? We're just going to stagger on the way we've been doing for the past year, vulnerable to any glitch in the system, vulnerable to any weather issues.
And Boyd isn't the only one who thinks things could get ugly. Atlantic correspondent James Fallows writes about the president's widely-reported initiative to free up military air space:
It's not worth explaining all the details here, but the main point is: There aren't that many "special use" areas near the big East Coast airports. If New York City were where Camp Lejeune is, in North Carolina, then military airspace might be an issue. But, umm, it's not. The NY-area special airspace that looks biggest...is way out over the ocean anyway.
In other words, look out for bad weather and get ready for ground delays--and don't believe the hype.
Related Stories:
· About That Plan For Thanksgiving Air Travel [Atlantic]
· On Time? Late? Here We Go Again [NYT]
· Holiday Travel Gets Some Help [Jaunted]
· Travel Hell coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: Christopher Althouse Cohen]
by pbb
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