An Embarassing Airline

[N924PS]

What say you front line employees as you face the customers daily? You know, the people that pay the fares that ultimately migrate to your paychecks.

Are you not mightily embarrassed every day you work having to apologize for things like the SHARES changeover, lost baggage, inaccurate or non-existent FLIFO, no jetway drivers, no marhallers/wingwalkers, meager catering, missing supplies, Mesa and the F Concourse "Hood", the E Concourse at CLT, fuel stops, Airbus reconfiguration, the web site.......

Please jump in if I've missed anything.

 

[2BorNot2B]

What say you front line employees as you face the customers daily? You know, the people that pay the fares that ultimately migrate to your paychecks.

Are you not mightily embarrassed every day you work having to apologize for things like the SHARES changeover, lost baggage, inaccurate or non-existent FLIFO, no jetway drivers, no marhallers/wingwalkers, meager catering, missing supplies, Mesa and the F Concourse "Hood", the E Concourse at CLT, fuel stops, Airbus reconfiguration, the web site.......

Please jump in if I've missed anything.

:angry: Indeed they are ... and I suggest you direct your anger at the Management of USAIRways ... not the "Frontline" Employees that you take to task! They are only working with the Tools provided by Management! BTW, what is your "working life" like? What controls do you have over the Company you work for??

Also, since you are using a PSA "tail number", are you ex-PSA or what? Just curious ....

2B

 

[N924PS]

:angry: Indeed they are ... and I suggest you direct your anger at the Management of USAIRways ... not the "Frontline" Employees that you take to task! They are only working with the Tools provided by Management! BTW, what is your "working life" like? What controls do you have over the Company you work for??

Also, since you are using a PSA "tail number", are you ex-PSA or what? Just curious ....

2B

I believe you misread my initial post. I am not taking the frontline employees to task. They are the mortar between the bricks that has held USAirways together throughout the travails since the PSA-PI-USAir mergers in the '80's. And throughout two BK's and all that went along with that.

Catch Our Smile. Our Smiles Aren't Just Painted On. PSA Gives You A Lift. Need I say more?

 

[2BorNot2B]

I believe you misread my initial post. I am not taking the frontline employees to task. They are the mortar between the bricks that has held USAirways together throughout the travails since the PSA-PI-USAir mergers in the '80's. And throughout two BK's and all that went along with that.

Catch Our Smile. Our Smiles Aren't Just Painted On. PSA Gives You A Lift. Need I say more?

Yes indeed, I did not mis-read, but mis-interpreted your Post, as I suspect many, many did. If you are appealing to fellow co-workers, do it out-right! What is happening to "My" Airline angers the H**l out of me, and I am Retired! This is not the fault of 'Frontline employees", it is "Doggie-Do".

My neighbors cringe when I tell them who I worked for, as does everyone else I mention it to!

2B

 

[Harry Callahan]

Yes indeed, I did not mis-read, but mis-interpreted your Post, as I suspect many, many did. If you are appealing to fellow co-workers, do it out-right! What is happening to "My" Airline angers the H**l out of me, and I am Retired! This is not the fault of 'Frontline employees", it is "Doggie-Do".

My neighbors cringe when I tell them who I worked for, as does everyone else I mention it to!

2B

I just refuse to tell anyone.

 

[FM2436]

As I am currently sitting in the Boston Logan US Airways Gate B9 I have to say US Airways has preformed above and beyond the calls of duty. All Kiosk are down but the ticket counters are well staffed and the line of passengers waitng the check in moved quite well. The passengers are not in revolt and I'm pleased. My wife and I were suppose to leave BOS to SBY much later this evening, but wanted to fly standby and get home sooner. The CSA booked us with no problems and confirmed seats (3667/4255) so we'll be home around 2:30 this afternoon instead of 11:40 tonight. Interesting, our trip from SBY to BOS resulted in a mechanical at PHL and required an aircraft and gate change from gate B5 to C31 resulting in a near 3:00 delay. Passengers were surprisingly well behaved. It could have been very ugly. All and all, I and my wife have been pleased. Thank you US Airways.

 

[OldGuyinPA]

It's totally depressing. Time to leave, and find something else. It used to be fun and we all looked forward going to work, hanging with the smile. This ship will never be the same.

DoUgIe needs to be replaced immediately. Dump the pig QIK/Shares.

Maybe the boys in Tempe need a quick lesson on how not to run a airline into the dumps.

 

[acmech]

It seems everybody has a gripe about one airline or another. This character who started this thread is no different.

The problems at USAirways are no different than American or Delta or United or Northwest. They are epidemic in an industry that is cut-throat where everyone wants to be like the proverbial Southwest or the darling Jetblue. Even Jetblue had a meltdown of sorts in recent weeks.

Lets blame the management for all the woes. No lets blame the everyday front-line folks... No wait, lets blame the weather.

 

[Seatacus]

.....as you face the customers daily? You know, the people that pay the fares that ultimately migrate to your paychecks.

Are you not mightily embarrassed every day you work having to apologize for things

When I worked there that was the hardest thing to do. Knowing that everything you apoligized for was making your career less secure. Giving the customers what they wanted and paid for felt good. Disappointing them........not so good. Do I miss the times when we were giving customers what they wanted and times were good? YES. Do I miss the times when customers were disappointed and only flew US because of price was right or no other choice? Not so much....

 

[Fly4Free]

What say you front line employees as you face the customers daily? You know, the people that pay the fares that ultimately migrate to your paychecks.

Are you not mightily embarrassed every day you work having to apologize for things like the SHARES changeover, lost baggage, inaccurate or non-existent FLIFO, no jetway drivers, no marhallers/wingwalkers, meager catering, missing supplies, Mesa and the F Concourse "Hood", the E Concourse at CLT, fuel stops, Airbus reconfiguration, the web site.......

Please jump in if I've missed anything.

Yeah, isn't it all awesome? I love my job!

 

[WestCoastGuy]

The problems at USAirways are no different than American or Delta or United or Northwest. They are epidemic in an industry that is cut-throat where everyone wants to be like the proverbial Southwest or the darling Jetblue. Even Jetblue had a meltdown of sorts in recent weeks.


This is true. It seems collectively, the major airlines are turning the travel experience for the public into an ordeal at every trip. AA UA charging for skycap service, buy on board meals on just about everyone, full planes and more seats than ever crammed on the aircraft. I suspect it's only a matter of time until the public outcry provokes government intervention and more regulation. There is no room for "cutomer service" at any of the airlines, it seems. But the public got want it wanted, cheap fares. But it came at a price. poor service.

 

[jerseyfinn]

. . . I suspect it's only a matter of time until the public outcry provokes government intervention and more regulation. There is no room for "cutomer service" at any of the airlines, it seems. But the public got want it wanted, cheap fares. But it came at a price. poor service . . .

The last thing I want to see is political whores in Congress stepping into the aviation quagmire. The Jet Blue fiasco certainly gives them an excuse to meddle. I'd rather allow the industry an opportunity to come up with its own P&P.

The problem in the American aviation market remains capacity overflow, irrational pricing schemes, and a public that can't tell you up from down and complains only when their nipples get tweaked ( which is frequently in today's aviation market ).

To their credit, airlines are attempting to scale back overcapacity and improve routing and loads -- but it's taken years and several bankruptcies for them to finally smell the coffee. Truth is, that's the easy part and that's why US has turned to profit so impressively.

But there remain too many carriers and somebody else has to fall in order for American aviation to begin the real process of adapting itself to the real market that's out there.

The part that all carriers continue to get wrong is gauging the kind of customer that is really out there. Sure, I admit that a good-sized chunk of the market are the cattle car vulgar masses who react only to lowest price fares ( and an occassional twist and pull on their pecker ).

But markets and consumer tastes are diverse and just like any other commodity, there's a good-sized market of value conscious flyers who won't pay F or Y prices, but are very willing to swim upstream like dutiful salmon if someone steps up with an value-added mid-level product. Problem is, you're not gonna get their loyalty with the sort of stripped down product that LCC's putting out there. Yet US had just that sort of customer base within its grasp if it would have pursued a less absolutist model of strip the cabin down and pack it with no-pitch coach seats.

So I and thousands of other FFers are screwed at the moment as the entire industry continues to whack off in pursuit of a short term dollar without asking where things will be in just a few short years. One or two carriers will indeed figure this out in time. And that's who I'm gonna fly with.

Mr. Parker would be wise to rethink and refine the LCC greased pig method and look instead towards an added value concept that can take some seats out, but put the dollars back onto the ledger sheet. If US doesn't out-WN WN, they could be on the outside looking in.

Barry

 

[luvn737s]

It's totally depressing. Time to leave, and find something else. It used to be fun and we all looked forward going to work, hanging with the smile. This ship will never be the same.

That's nostalgia. Things will never be as good as you remember, even if you had the ability to go back and live each day over.

DoUgIe needs to be replaced immediately.

Never gonna happen. Look how long Franke stayed and the wreckage he left behind. Maybe you could call Mr. Bronner.

Maybe the boys in Tempe need a quick lesson on how not to run a airline into the dumps.[/quote]

Who do you recommend? Wolf, Gangwal, Siegel, Lakefield? Tell me which one of them ever tried to pull off anything of the magnitude that Parker has done. Parker had the tools he needed to slash US to the bone and sell of the pieces. He chose not to.

He's not perfect, nor the perfect nemesis. He's just a CEO with ambition to try and build something out of the scraps of a formerly good (not great, bit solidly good) airline. I think everyone wishes he would address their grievance, but he set the priorities and will get to everyone eventually (wow, that's a loaded comment).

When the kinks are ironed out, I think US will be a solid airline. It won't be a wonderfully high-paying slot machine, but it will be stable and offer a reliable, if meager paycheck. If you're up for that, great. If you want to close your eyes, click your heals and wish you were back in 1980, then let me know how that works out for ya'.

 

[luvthe9]

I agree this place sucks A-West is running this place into the ground.

 

[BuffaloJoe]

I agree this place sucks A-West is running this place into the ground.

Effective April 1, US will be the first airline with in-flight refueling. DoUgIe Parker contracted with the US Air Force to Lease/Rent 4 KC-135's. This will enable to fly many more jets to the West Coast, and can offer some extended RJ service from cities such as MDT-LAS, ORF-SAN, CHS-SFO all with the luxurious CR9 RJ.