Just curious ... last night I flew UA to SEA since all of US's flights were booked solid (of course, though, US continues to pull down capacity in SEA). Ironically, I was listening on UA's Channel 9 and we were immediately behind the US flight I normally take. Then got to thinking ... how much effort is it to implement a "from the cockpit" feature? Why is UA the only carrier to do this? If US were to do this, how much effort would it really take to do per aircraft? Any thoughts?
Effort To Add "channel 9"?
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Light Years
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That would be great, its a neat feature. I would think the audio IFE would have to be reactivated, but maybe not. Aviation entusiasts and frequent flyers find it interesting, but the general public would not. I think it only works as a part of a broader offering of audio entertainment. It would certainly be odd to ONLY offer Channel 9.
"Ladies and gentlemen, a complimentary copy of the award winning Attache magazine is located in your seat pocket. For entertainment today you may purchase a headset for $5 to listen to our pilots talk to air traffic control, or chat quietly with your seatmate. We will be coming through the cabin shortly to try and sell you food. Welcome aboard."
"Ladies and gentlemen, a complimentary copy of the award winning Attache magazine is located in your seat pocket. For entertainment today you may purchase a headset for $5 to listen to our pilots talk to air traffic control, or chat quietly with your seatmate. We will be coming through the cabin shortly to try and sell you food. Welcome aboard."
i spoke to a pilot about that and he said that it could be done , but that most pilots probrably won't go for it. i guess for security reasons. they don't want passengers to here the blunders they make somethimes in the cockpit. i on the other hand would love this feature onboard. i fly united quite a bit cause my wife is a f/a for them and its a cool thing to have.
Light Years
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etops1-
On United its at the captains discretion whether or not they want it on on a particular flight. I'm sure we could do the same- you know there are some of them that LOVE to talk 😱 .
I've flown on United a few times recently and I'm sure you'll agree that our product just feels alot cheaper. They are still in Chapter 11 but have not compromised thier product as much as we have. If I was a paying customer, I wouldnt choose to fly on US. Flying from the East Coast to DEN, DFW etc with zero IFE is poor.
On United its at the captains discretion whether or not they want it on on a particular flight. I'm sure we could do the same- you know there are some of them that LOVE to talk 😱 .
I've flown on United a few times recently and I'm sure you'll agree that our product just feels alot cheaper. They are still in Chapter 11 but have not compromised thier product as much as we have. If I was a paying customer, I wouldnt choose to fly on US. Flying from the East Coast to DEN, DFW etc with zero IFE is poor.
Let me add my two cents about US vs. UA in terms of service. So I'm a US1 and have upgraded I think every mainline flight except about two over the past few years. Since the codeshare started, I have had the opportunity to fly UA in F about 3-4 times, both short and long haul. Last night I flew IAD-SEA in F, which is nearly the same as PHL-SEA in F, a trip I make almost every week. Here are the differences I noticed:
1) UA uses glassware instead of plastic cups.
2) UA uses real silverware -- except for the knife -- instead of plastic silverware.
3) UA provides nuts (not warmed) in a cup instead of a bag of cashews.
4) UA provides a tablecloth to cover the tray.
5) UA provides a menu instead of having the F/A read off the meal selections. (Some US F/As do ok with this, others have no idea until someone in the first row corrects them. Then going forward they're usually good to go.)
6) UA follows some crazy way of taking orders. As a US1, which did show on the seating chart, I was the last person to place my order in a near full B757 F cabin. It's unclear what order she did follow, though, as not everyone was an elite UA member in that cabin.
7) UA offered an ice cream sundae with after dinner drink selection. They actually used a cart like US does (or did) in Envoy (haven't flown Envoy in several years).
8) UA provided a meager salad; US does a much better job with this.
9) UA seems reluctant to hand out bottles of water; this is something US F/As do that I've grown quite used to and really prefer.
10) UA's cabin was cleaner but had the same issues as US does ... mainly normal wear and tear after years of use.
11) UA's meal service took about an hour longer than US's.
12) UA offers music and Channel 9 IFE.
13) UA offers headrests on the seats, yet UA seems to offer less legroom in bulkhead seats (especially when compared with the US Airbus fleet).
Now, with all of this being said ... here's the bottomline from my standpoint: UA puts the finishing touches on its F product (and from my experience its Y product as well). But, I still prefer US's product in the end. When I'm traveling for work, I honestly don't want all the fanfare of F class nor do I want the headache of Y class. I almost like US's rough around the edges style. The US F/As also have a more low key attitude, which is so much more relaxing when traveling for work. I kept feeling on edge last night, as the UA F/As clearly had a very rigid agenda as to how the F cabin was to be serviced. UA does a great job, yes, and many people want the finer touches of F class, but for as long as US sticks around I'd rather fly them on transcons. (This being said, I almost wonder if US should market the F cabin differently altogether ... but that's a whole different topic for a different day.)
1) UA uses glassware instead of plastic cups.
2) UA uses real silverware -- except for the knife -- instead of plastic silverware.
3) UA provides nuts (not warmed) in a cup instead of a bag of cashews.
4) UA provides a tablecloth to cover the tray.
5) UA provides a menu instead of having the F/A read off the meal selections. (Some US F/As do ok with this, others have no idea until someone in the first row corrects them. Then going forward they're usually good to go.)
6) UA follows some crazy way of taking orders. As a US1, which did show on the seating chart, I was the last person to place my order in a near full B757 F cabin. It's unclear what order she did follow, though, as not everyone was an elite UA member in that cabin.
7) UA offered an ice cream sundae with after dinner drink selection. They actually used a cart like US does (or did) in Envoy (haven't flown Envoy in several years).
8) UA provided a meager salad; US does a much better job with this.
9) UA seems reluctant to hand out bottles of water; this is something US F/As do that I've grown quite used to and really prefer.
10) UA's cabin was cleaner but had the same issues as US does ... mainly normal wear and tear after years of use.
11) UA's meal service took about an hour longer than US's.
12) UA offers music and Channel 9 IFE.
13) UA offers headrests on the seats, yet UA seems to offer less legroom in bulkhead seats (especially when compared with the US Airbus fleet).
Now, with all of this being said ... here's the bottomline from my standpoint: UA puts the finishing touches on its F product (and from my experience its Y product as well). But, I still prefer US's product in the end. When I'm traveling for work, I honestly don't want all the fanfare of F class nor do I want the headache of Y class. I almost like US's rough around the edges style. The US F/As also have a more low key attitude, which is so much more relaxing when traveling for work. I kept feeling on edge last night, as the UA F/As clearly had a very rigid agenda as to how the F cabin was to be serviced. UA does a great job, yes, and many people want the finer touches of F class, but for as long as US sticks around I'd rather fly them on transcons. (This being said, I almost wonder if US should market the F cabin differently altogether ... but that's a whole different topic for a different day.)
correct me if i am wrong but the reason why ua has not dwindled on thier f/c service is because the star alliance does not let them. once us joins the alliance you will see a better product being offered. infact, i think that us is doing this already on transcon flts.
ClueByFour
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US transcons are not nearly what they once were, from a service standpoint.etops1 said:
When I see the ice cream back on the way to LAX or SFO, I'll believe that *A is having some kind of impact on US' service levels.
Just a curious question for someone in inflight.
Took the redeye last night US46 LAX-PHL. They did not show the movie on this flight (I was actually looking forward to seeing Scrubs, as I know the exec producer). They ran the safety and level off videos, so I assume IFE was working. Have we stopped showing stuff on the redeye?
Took the redeye last night US46 LAX-PHL. They did not show the movie on this flight (I was actually looking forward to seeing Scrubs, as I know the exec producer). They ran the safety and level off videos, so I assume IFE was working. Have we stopped showing stuff on the redeye?
That's because UA gives us BIG bottles of water, so we don't get one for each person. Otherwise, we would love to give them out.
I will make a note of this: USFlyer likes his nuts warmed.
Tell me about it.....we take them in order of status and the lucky guy or gal sitting next to him usually gets asked also. I prefer front to back orders but they haven't asked me for my opinion.
So...United's service has all the finishing touches but you prefer US service? I don't get that at all. :huh: But THANKS for the comparisons 🙂
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Don't know how long this has been going on, but over the last couple of years whenever I've taken the redeye on U, there has been no movie. I prefer it this way. Seems to me that most people want to catch some sleep. Typically, I've flow in F and they've provided a good meal - then it's been off to sleep for me and most of the cabin, I believe. This has worked out very well for me and I've made a point of taking the red-eye on my return trips from the west coast.N628AU said:
LOL, not sure how I should even respond to this. (And, no, I could care less about the nuts pre-meal ... I don't eat them anyway ... too fatty. ;-))Fly said:
Also, FWIW, read why I like US better. Plus, US gives me unlimited upgrades and I can upgrade Y/B tickets at time of ticketing. If UA did both, I'd switch to you guys in a second since I live in the DC area. UA really would be more convenient for most of my travel.
ITRADE
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I have to echo USFlyers comments. I've had the chance to do several transcons in F on both UA and US.
IAD-LAX, SFO-IAD, PHL-SAN, SAN-CLT (red-eye), etc.
In general, UA's food service is a bit better. The presentation is better (glassware, metal flatware, better dessert, etc.).
However, I much prefer US's leather seats to UA's cloth seats. Maybe its me, but the seat contour on US's A321s, A319s, and 737-400s is much better than on UA's 757s and A320s.
One major addition that US should consider to their F class product is the addition of foot rests. They do not have to be built into the seat but can resemble those found in Business class on Amtrak or the old Thai Airways fleet.
IAD-LAX, SFO-IAD, PHL-SAN, SAN-CLT (red-eye), etc.
In general, UA's food service is a bit better. The presentation is better (glassware, metal flatware, better dessert, etc.).
However, I much prefer US's leather seats to UA's cloth seats. Maybe its me, but the seat contour on US's A321s, A319s, and 737-400s is much better than on UA's 757s and A320s.
One major addition that US should consider to their F class product is the addition of foot rests. They do not have to be built into the seat but can resemble those found in Business class on Amtrak or the old Thai Airways fleet.
ITRADE
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It certainly makes for interesting listening.etops1 said:
UA pilots - on most domestic flights - operate it.
UA pilots - most all transoceanic flights - do not operate it.
On my first flight from PEK it was interesting to find out that part of the reason fro the 75 minute delay was the fact that the pilot requested added fuel, the fuel was added, but the weight calculations did not agree with the reported quantity of fuel that was added. It took a while to straighten the issue out.
ZMAN777
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FWIW,ITRADE said:
While I can't speak for all Int'l flights, I do know that at least out of IAD on the 777 that most Captains in fact do use it, only up to the oceanic entry point. Shortly past that point we're normally monitoring the emergency freq. (121.5) on the #1 radio and air-to-air common on #2. So at that point we normally turn CH 9 off as there usually isn't any chatter on that freq anyway. We routinely will select it back on as soon we exit oceanic airspace and again are in VHF with center control (i.e. Shannon heading to Europe, Gander heading home, etc.)
It's particuarly helpful when we're being held by ATC or deviating for WX as it's the fastest way the pax in the back can get the same info as we up front have it. Great tool to keep everyone in the loop. If there's anything of a security nature we'd rather not have everyone listen in on we'll just simply turn it off. Hope this clears up any questions as to how/when it's used.
Cheers,
Z B)
