Inflight service announcement

[NoMoreKoolAid]

Seems even AirTran got it. Oh no...but not Tempe and our marketing wonders. This was a quote from AirTran today in MarketWatch about it:

"We always thought it was a bad idea," said Tad Hutchenson, vice president of marketing at Orlando-based AirTran Holdings , which owns AirTran Airways.
"We tested charging for [sodas] quite a bit, but what I took away from the focus group was that it's kind of like inviting me into your home and then charging me for something to drink," Hutchenson said. "They expect and a complimentary drink ... and customers got really upset when they get charged for it."

 

[boeingtamer]

Seems even AirTran got it. Oh no...but not Tempe and our marketing wonders.

This reminds me of a long list of management blunders during my career at US Air(ways).

Like:

• Buy PSA- then pull out of the west
• Install Business Select- dump it
• Start Metrojet- kill metrojet BWI ops
• park the 737 200 basics- bring them back
• codeshare with British Airways- dies as BA likes AA better
• merge with United- deal dies
• $2 billion stock buyback- stock becomes worthless
• kick off customer F100- park the F100's
• start the FLL mini-hub- pull out
• merger with Delta- oops... they say no
• merger US-AWA - can't complete integration

I thought of these just sitting here a few moments. I'm sure there are many more that others can list. The point is that these represent $billions of losses due to bad decisions, mostly ideas that some management puke made and later reversed. As a Captain I get nailed if I scratch an airplane (or even get a DUI). Name one of managers that made these great decisions that either hasn't already or will in the future leave here with a major golden parachute. The problem is that the decision makers have no ultimate financial accountability. Sure they may fail but they walk away financially secure and as far as I know, even Siegel still has a job somewhere (after screwing up Gate Gourmet too). The line workers have their pensions stripped in Bankruptcy, have everything to lose if the company fails, and so they keep working hard to institute the latest management "brainstorm" only to come back and clean up (and pay for) the mess later. Change for change sake. It's like a hamster on the cage wheel.... a never ending task with no reward.

 

[Be Careful What You Wish For.]

Change for change sake.

After initially welcoming new blood and new thinking I would now agree with you.

Instead of reinventing the wheel over and over why not take someone like Alaska and just copy what they do. You would think we would have more potential than the semi-regionals pasted together on a map that we are.

Instead of testing testing testing just go to someone who has experienced some degree of success,relative to Us, and copy it!

Buy what UAL buys, get a discount.

Do what UAL does and conform to a consistent product within the * A.

Don't like UAL, pick someone else- the innovations have been a bust on at least two fronts.

To suggest that we would have had successful ideas if only the rest of the world had agreed with us is bankrupt thinking and insulting to the readers intelligence.

 

[NAPAUS]

Wouldn't it be great if ALAKSA mgmt took over at US...now they know how to run not RUIN any airline. The bottom line is noBODY in mgmt at US knows how to run an airline. This i change IS necessary- too many mistakes means the whole mgmt team needs to be replaced ASAP.

 

[flybynite]

I wish that when they made the announcement about the drinks, that they had made it effective immediately. If they had done that, there would have been a big hooray from the pax.

Now I'm getting fussed at for not going ahead and letting the passengers have their sodas for free now.

 

[Whatnow?]

I wish that when they made the announcement about the drinks, that they had made it effective immediately. If they had done that, there would have been a big hooray from the pax.

Now I'm getting fussed at for not going ahead and letting the passengers have their sodas for free now.

Problem with that is they removed too much product off of all the airplanes that you wouldn't have enough to give out complimentary drinks to all the passengers. Which in turn would back fire, because then the passenger would complain because we ran out of drinks :angry: .....the company needs at least a week to return product to all of the airplanes and once again change out those galley pack-outs for the millionth time to be like they were before all of this started last August. :unsure:

 

[galley princess]

We're all very happy that this decision was reversed.

Can we talk about the cup now?

K-eep
I-t
S-imple
S-tupid

Flight attendants are not immune to the idea of cost cutting, but you have to have a modicum of sense. The reason F/As give out the can more often than not is because that cup IS basically a can. Shrink the cup and we'll pour, hence save US money.

This is easy stuff. . . sigh.

 

[USstew23]

We're all very happy that this decision was reversed.

Can we talk about the cup now?

K-eep
I-t
S-imple
S-tupid

Flight attendants are not immune to the idea of cost cutting, but you have to have a modicum of sense. The reason F/As give out the can more often than not is because that cup IS basically a can. Shrink the cup and we'll pour, hence save US money.

This is easy stuff. . . sigh.

You know I was thinking the same thing.. although this is a small thing in the grand scheme. Anyway maybe a cup the size that AA has.. it's not like the old small ones we used to have but not as big as that thing we have now.. it's right in between.

 

[Travelpro72]

I along with a few others mentioned a while back that the "party cup" that worked for so long at good ol' America West was over sized. I got shot down left, right and sideways. Ya know, for a company ran by a management team that takes apart every aspect of the company spending millions to save a penny I'm surprised. It's basic Logic that a smaller cup means the can can be split between two glasses and a splash for the third. Not everyone will hound you for more ice or beverage. Again it's not reinventing the wheel. You can keep it simple and change to a more suitable cup. How about when your doing those express bevs. You can drain a whole sleeve of coke, diet coke and sprite just filling 9-hole trays. It's silly since each cup is shy of a can. Am I alone here? :blink:

A quick after thought was that smaller cups mean smaller stacks. It creats less trash volume especially when doing good refuse management when collecting. Again a no brainer.

 

[Toothy Grin]

I along with a few others mentioned a while back that the "party cup" that worked for so long at good ol' America West was over sized. I got shot down left, right and sideways. Ya know, for a company ran by a management team that takes apart every aspect of the company spending millions to save a penny I'm surprised. It's basic Logic that a smaller cup means the can can be split between two glasses and a splash for the third. Not everyone will hound you for more ice or beverage. Again it's not reinventing the wheel. You can keep it simple and change to a more suitable cup. How about when your doing those express bevs. You can drain a whole sleeve of coke, diet coke and sprite just filling 9-hole trays. It's silly since each cup is shy of a can. Am I alone here? :blink:

A quick after thought was that smaller cups mean smaller stacks. It creats less trash volume especially when doing good refuse management when collecting. Again a no brainer.

I think you are all being chintzy and cheap like management. A cup with ice holds 1/2 can of juice or soda. A cup without ice holds one entire can.

What is the reason that you want to GIVE passengers less? If the cup size looks to BIG then maybe rethink your marketing abilities. Most anyone would probably hope that you would want to create the illusion of giving the pax more, not less. you have your opinions about what the cup conveys...without proof no less....

Your idea about filling a hole sleeve from one can is everything cheap and stingy this management vamps too...and there you are right along with them. Congrats. I'm curious what your interpretation of generous hospitality looks like? Your choosing cups to suit your needs...please try to choose a cup that suits the people who are buying the ticket and their OVERAL enjoyment of the inflight experience...this will probably include asking for seconds - and i'd hate to see how you handle that request.

Put the puzzles down folks get out there and mingle.

AND stop being a bunch of cheap asses with the product we serve and with your shining personalities

 

[poplockanddropit]

Oh man, I am so glad I can just fill up the cup with ice sit on top of the can and hand it to them... No time for this pour crap.. That would drive me nuts.

 

[FA Mikey]

Wouldn't it be great if ALAKSA mgmt took over at US...now they know how to run not RUIN any airline. The bottom line is noBODY in mgmt at US knows how to run an airline. This i change IS necessary- too many mistakes means the whole mgmt team needs to be replaced ASAP.

Didnt they lock out all there union ground workers and replace them with contractors? Be careful what you wish for.

 

[LCC_#1]

I think you are all being chintzy and cheap like management. A cup with ice holds 1/2 can of juice or soda. A cup without ice holds one entire can.

What is the reason that you want to GIVE passengers less? If the cup size looks to BIG then maybe rethink your marketing abilities. Most anyone would probably hope that you would want to create the illusion of giving the pax more, not less. you have your opinions about what the cup conveys...without proof no less....

Are you a f/a?

 

[700UW]

Didnt they lock out all there union ground workers and replace them with contractors? Be careful what you wish for.

In SEA they did but the IAM wont he arbitration case in the matter.

 

[galley princess]

Cheap?

It has mystified us (f/as) that this one area is where AWA is just a spendthrift.

We never had a cup that big on East. We were perplexed by the silly thing when it showed up. I thought it was just one of those "for today" things at first.

At no time has that cup been industry standard. Even when US had a "hand out the can" policy we didn't have a ridiculous cup like that. Nor has the customer ever recognized that cup as being larger than another carrier's. This is a "loss for no reason" situation. When you hand a customer a can with the cup, THEN they appreciate it. Alone, it's just a cup. There is zero recognition for its being larger. Which is why most F/As hand out the can. It simply defies sense not to. The fact that AWA doesn't get customer perception is at the base of most of its errors. As usual, F/As have to clean up for bean counters who have zero people skills and apparently a lack of common sense.

Shrinking the cup is the fiscally responsible thing to do, especially when reversing course from a very unpopular program. You have no where to go but up anyway. Do I like pouring? Not particularly, but we used to do it all of the time pre-merger. Like I said, F/As are not adverse to cost cutting when it makes sense.

This is a no brainer. However, the human brain does have cerebral fluid surrounding it, and I think it must dry out a bit in the desert, therefore impaired functioning may incur. Surely they have humidifiers somewhere?