Broken Seatback

[audrey2001]

Hi...I figured the professionals are the ones to ask about a situation like this so in case it happens again, I know what recourse I have.
I flew America West from Las Vegas back to Chicago and the person in front of me had a busted seatback that reclined a full 2-3 inches further back into my lap than all the other seats. This was a full flight. My knees were literally being CRUSHED.
I asked the flight attendant, after showing her the difference between the guy in front of me's full recline vs. the seats next to him in full recline) They REFUSED to ask him to put it up a bit into the normal recline position and simply shrugged and said there was nothing they could do.

I don't buy that. I have never experienced such an uncomfortable flight by such an uncaring and unresponsive crew--and I've flown all over the world. I don't mind the person reclining but this was a seat that was clearly malfunctioning.

I wrote your airline and got NO response...total blowoff.

Anyone have any thoughts?

 

[AKA_trvlr64]

I had the exact experience on a flight from PHX to SAN. This was a first class seat too. Since I noticed it I chose not to recline back and squash the person behind me. If the F/A chose not to ask the passenger infront of you, you should have asked that person yourself and explain the situation. I wouldn't have flown that way then entire flight.
But the F/A should have done something about it. He/She was just not concerned for you. Don't fly HP again.

 

[goodstew]

here's a thought audry...did you think to ask that person yourself?

too bad you didn't bring your mother on the trip with you. She could have helped you in the lav and cut the crusts off your sandwich for you.

Flight attendants are not the chair police...unless you are an unaccompanied minor I would expect you to exibit some personal responsibility for your comfort.

The person in front of you didn't take your whining seriously, the F/A didn't take your whining seriously, America West didn't take your whining seriously. see a patern?

What did you hope to accomplish by your letter to the company? Compensation for the 2 1/2 inches you lost on the flight because you were a weenie? Give me a break.

 

[FL370]

There is a new device that attaches to seat back tables that prevents the seat in front of you from reclining. It is available online. However this device will not work in first class since the tables are not connected to the seat back.

www.kneedefender.com

 

[NWA CSA]

here's a thought audry...did you think to ask that person yourself?

too bad you didn't bring your mother on the trip with you. She could have helped you in the lav and cut the crusts off your sandwich for you.

Flight attendants are not the chair police...unless you are an unaccompanied minor I would expect you to exibit some personal responsibility for your comfort.

The person in front of you didn't take your whining seriously, the F/A didn't take your whining seriously, America West didn't take your whining seriously. see a patern?

What did you hope to accomplish by your letter to the company? Compensation for the 2 1/2 inches you lost on the flight because you were a weenie? Give me a break.

Another blowoff... great attitude "goodstew" -- would you consider that good service? The passenger has an issue and it appears it is a result of a defective seat...you defend the actions of the crew who could have simply pointed out the problem to the customer in the broken seat...they are in a better position to do so and had the customer said something, it might turn into something more ugly...and without a FA present, who knows what might happen...unlikely, but possible.

Isn't it a FAA requirement that seats lock upright? Otherwise they should be blocked and unused until repaired...if the seat was in fact broken, this apparently wasn't done or wasn't a concern.

 

[goodstew]

yeah, I guess I could have...when i had a minute with me and my ONE other co-worker (our third is in 1st class by herself) dealing with the other 130 people and all their particular 'special needs'. this on top of all my regular duties of preflight inventory of catering supplies, for sale items, post flight inventory and paperwork(if I am $5 off from headset sales, liquor sales, in flight cafe meals I get a complementary trip to the supervisor on my day off) providing a drink, meal and seconds on drink to said 130 people. While I am in the aisle with my ONE other coworker I get to watch 3-4 people milling about in the back galley 'stretching thier legs' while the seat belt sign is on. Mind you they are opening cabinets and touching the door handles and sitting on slide bustles and I am trapped between two carts. I don't know what the hell they are doing and then right in the middle of the service while I have 2 call bells going off, might be a spilled diet coke, might be a heart attack, might be someone wondering..."what is that lake down there and will I make my connection, you never asked me if I wanted fresh ground pepper on my cafe meal..." Of course I don't know what it is for because the only flight attendants are 1. trapped between 2 carts in the aisle and 2. gone to the front galley to get other catering supplies we ran out of and to check to see if anyone has slit the front f/a throat. The First Officer then comes out to use the lav and one of us is required to go into the cockpit for security reasons. Now I am still only half way through the service and I am alone with 145 people who may want to kill me and 10 of them need something 'right now'.

Then I get to do it all over 2 more times that day!

See how an simple request to take care of her own problems by Audrey makes her a Big Girl who gets to travel by herself?

I stand by my 'personal responsibility' mantra. If she had asked the person in front of her to move his seat back forward and got no satisfaction, I am more than willing to help. If he refused my request (happens all the time) I can't make him.

Either way Audrey needs to suck it up and take care of herself.

 

[Dc10hound]

Flight attendants are not the chair police...unless you are an unaccompanied minor I would expect you to exibit some personal responsibility for your comfort.

Yeah, but the FAA is. Last time I looked, a broken seat back is a safety of flight item (due to evac concerns). The person sitting in the broken seat should have been moved to another one, if available, at least for landing.

For the next flight, the seat should be repaired, or placarded inoperative per the MEL.

 

[AKA_trvlr64]

Sounds like GOODSTEW needs a Pamparin!!

Guess what? Your job requires a lot of stress. So does everyones. Deal with it. I just got off the phone with a friend of mine that is a F/A for another airline. He stated he DOES tell passengers to move their seats forward when there is a problem as stated by the original poster. So yes you have to "police" a lot of problems on a plane. We all do in our jobs to some extent.

But where else but in the airline industry could someone work their alotted hours and then have 23 days? So you get time away from those pesky passengers once in a while. Wish I could say that about my job. I'd be done working all my hours in 1 week lately. How nice it would be to have the rest of the month off.

 

[audrey2001]

Well--I think Goodstew's attitude is the reason why, when we went to Vegas, the cab drivers there said "Oh, you were on America WORST! That's what everyone around here calls it."

I DID ask the passenger in front of me and got a rather snide response and frankly, with all the air rage going on these days, wasn't going to push it. So I asked for the FA to step in.

Goodstew--you're pathetic. Your attitude is pathetic. It's clear you despise your job and your customers.

Do us all a favor and apply at McDonald's. Just be sure to stay in the back mixing mayo or cleaning the kitchen sink. You should NEVER have contact with the public again.

 

[mga707]

Well--I think Goodstew's attitude is the reason why, when we went to Vegas, the cab drivers there said "Oh, you were on America WORST! That's what everyone around here calls it."

Remember what happens when one assumes.
Nowhere in any of "goodstew"s posts on this topic has he/she stated or even hinted that he/she works for HP.

 

[motnot]

Remember what happens when one assumes.
Nowhere in any of "goodstew"s posts on this topic has he/she stated or even hinted that he/she works for HP.

Exactly, mga. First off, AWA doesn't serve meals in coach, which goodstew said she did. Secondly, she complained of pax opening cabinets in the galley. I've NEVER seen or even heard of anyone doing that. Also, goodstew talked of people complaining of fresh ground pepper on their meals. No US airlines offer fresh ground pepper in coach, let alone FC.

Exaggeration? Hyperbole? Perhaps. But it doesn't lend any credibility to the poster.

On the other hand, goodstew may have been only trying to ask if the passenger had asked the offending pax about the broken seat, although goodstew lacked any sort of manners.

Few flights are completely full, and even fewer passengers would actually be so inconsiderate of a fellow passenger that they would knowingly recline to hurt another person. And many people who complain on message boards about bad service on airlines tend to be exaggerating themselves.

Furthermore, if this person actually complained to AWA, AWA tends (rightfully) to not blow people off, as the poster said happened.

A lot of strange claims all around. If this is a legitimate complaint, the best course of action would be to contact AWA again. Customer service -- in any industry, at any company -- tends to be as good as the person providing it.

 

[NWA CSA]

Goodstew - everything you listed is part of your job, if you don't like your job or you can't handle your duties, there are plenty of FAs on layoff from most airlines that will gladly take your spot. Taking what would probably be less than a minute to request something of a passenger in the name of comfort of another is part of the service you are there to provide -- your duties: 1) safety 2) service. Could Audrie ask the person herself? Sure...but in many circumstances she may not feel comfortable doing so and if the seat is broken, it certainly needs to be reported and written up -- to be shrugged off is UNACCEPTABLE. I'm not bashing AWA in particular... this could have happened at any airline, my own included...there are too many people still working with less than service-oriented attitudes while many good employees are in the unemployment line.

 

[TransWorldONE]

I think "Good" stew must work for AA

 

[AAmech]

God, I hope not!!!!

 

[HPearlyretiree]

Back when I worked with the flight attendants at HP, we used to joke: "What is the difference between an AWA flight attendant, and a 737 engine?"

"The engine stops whining when it gets to the gate"

Actually had to pay for a r/t ticket to Vegas on Southwest, the horrors! (gonna try to nonrev back and get a refund for the return!)