End of month flight cancellations

[geo1004]

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On 8/1/2003 4:37:45 PM Chip Munn wrote:
US Airways and other airlines have become a commodity-based business and in the future passengers will likely seek the airline that has the lowest price and best schedule for their needs.----------------​

?????

As a US1, I fly US Airways because of the perks and the overall good customer service I experience day in and day out. Many times (more often than not?) I can get where I need to go on another carrier for less money and often times with a better schedule. Case in point: I'm heading to MSY to meet up with friends for a weekend. Three friends (not from RDU where I am) will be arriving on DL because that was the cheapest flight - then they will wait one hour for me to arrive on US. I could have arrived on the same DL flight for less money than the US flight was.

Of course, I may not be normal...

 

[PITbull]

Smartloser,

Add 2 more cents to yours.

 

[oldiebutgoody]

If you don't give folks a reason to pay more for your services, you won't get it. That's why folks are DRIVING from PHL and DCA to BWI to save money, and get where they are going (management apparently forgot that this was their goal). U's planes are showing their wear, and it seems there is no one to fix them. Crews are running out of time, and there is no one to replace them. This business is about TRANSPORTATION. If you can't move people, it's over. U should be banking money NOW to get through the next quarter, a traditionally slow period. Instead, they cancel flights because they have no crews. I believe that people look more for VALUE than just LOW PRICE. That is the problem. There is a cost of doing business, and until this management gets realistic about it, they're going to fail, and RJs won't help. Also, I don't see how a new scheduling system is going to save the company much of anything. Right now, front end crews are flying 85 hours/month, with very little claim time, if any. F/As are doing the same. 2/3rds of the reserves are blocking out, and virtually everyone is flying 70 hours or more. I don't see how a new scheduling system can realistically squeeze any more blood from this turnip.

 

[tadjr]

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On 8/1/2003 5:09:47 PM Chip Munn wrote:


I do not believe it had a huge effect on profits, passenger perception, or future performance/customer service.
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And this observation is from what vantage point? Behind the ticket counter telling all of those passengers that you cant get them home tonight or that you're going to give them a nice nonstop on British Airways cause we cant get you there on us for two days? It might not have had a HUGE impact in regards to the rest of the $ we're losing, but I thought management has been trying to squeeze EVERY PENNY IT CAN out of us and yet throwing money out the door on something controllable like this is acceptable? All I want to say is, DO NOT COME TO ME for more while blatant atrocities like this continue to go on unchecked month after month. How many times have we heard " due to snow, unusual inclement storms, etc"? There is no NORMAL operation at an airline, and US in particular. Or better yet, our regular operation is irregular. Look at PHL again today and tell me what the end of August is going to be like. Is someone maybe making some plans to not repeat this week? I doubt it...... (shaking head in disgust). Prove me wrong.

 

[thepoohbear]

I was called Weds. to start at 5am instead of 9:30am due to our 7:30 flt which was xld. So what, it was just a 37-400 loaded to the gills with passengers going to any Caribbean destination you could think of. So what if we gave all that business to our compeditors.And it happened again Thurs on another of our fuller flts. When one of the passengers got up to me the computer system had them rebooked to CUN for 2 days later.I can't wait till the Daves have their CLONE SOLDIERS I mean Kiosks to do all our work.BTW out of 4 kiosks we have only one was working.

 

[sdavis29]

while we are the subject of canceled flts and weather, we is that the marketing dept still sells flt such as this when year after year we end up rebooking and usually giving away these pax.....







US Airways


228


TPA


PHL


430P


659P


0


733


View


View



US Airways


12


PHL


MAD


815P


945A+1


0


333


View


View

 

[AtlanticBeach]

I was one of those passengers who was delayed due to a cancelled flight for my connection. No big deal for this trip as I was scheduled to arrive 4 hours before my meeting. The staff in JAX were great, letting me know about the changes. Another traveler had a tighter schedule for his meeting and they suggested flying into and driving from PHL instead of connecting to BWI.

Yes, Chip, bad weather this month. Even worse planning by management. But still salvaged by the front line people who know how to solve problems.

 

[mbmbbost]

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On 8/1/2003 5:09:47 PM Chip Munn wrote:


Did Resource Planning make a mistake and short staff flight crews? Absolutely, however, with all due respect I do not believe it had a huge effect on profits,passenger perception, or future performance/customer service. ----------------​

It's the multiplicity of these stupid decisions that'll getcha, so it's not a good idea to discount how important each one is. Just about anyone on here can think of enough of them to go on for days about. Just reading about this one stirred me up again about delays in PHL the other morning on what seemed an ideal day weatherwise...Run between flights and get a miserable breakfast on a transcon. I thought I'd have time to get something on my own in PHL, or visit the club, but NOOO, we sat on the tarmac for 25 minutes waiting for a gate, after doing a long 20 minute approach.

 

[AP Tech]

Remember folks, this is the same managment "Dave" gave the 6 mil "retenetion" bonus too so they would not jump ship!!! Still earning their money as usual.

 

[USFlyer]

I know a lot of business folks that have run TO US in the last few years, just to get away from AA, DL, UA, etc. So please don't assume that all business travelers are abandoning this airline! Also, our corporate travel dept. encourages us to book US whenever possible.

 

[ClueByFour]

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On 8/1/2003 4:37:45 PM Chip Munn wrote:

I regard to passenger ill will, I suspect this was not largely effected. US Airways and other airlines have become a commodity-based business and in the future passengers will likely seek the airline that has the lowest price and best schedule for their needs.
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Really?

I regularly BS with the guys and gals from my travel department (Fortune 500 based in the northeast/midwest) who RAN away from US on the basis of "pax ill will" amongst other things. Hows $5million a year grab you?

With all due respect, if you think that Mom and Paw Kettle who get stranded in PHL for two days are going to fly US again then you are crazy. I can't tell you how many times I've heard that mantra in the last 6 months at the baggage claim or security check or at a bar in PIT/PHL/CLT.

 

[TomBascom]

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On 8/1/2003 4:37:45 PM Chip Munn wrote:

In regard to passenger ill will, I suspect this was not largely effected. US Airways and other airlines have become a commodity-based business and in the future passengers will likely seek the airline that has the lowest price and best schedule for their needs.
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If it's a commodity you're in a lot of trouble. You better hope and pray that you're wrong about that and that Fort Fumble (especially the folks in marketing) doesn't buy this line of thinking because US Airways cannot possibly win in a commoditized market.

Unfortunately Fort Fumble probably does believe this because they don't try anything other than price to base travel choices on anymore. They've pretty much turned it into a self fulfilling prophecy.

 

[RowUnderDCA]

Guys-

I'm sorry to speculate like this, but U's lack of concern with its brand makes me think that they aren't going to keep it. Putting aside how this might come about, or how it might effect employees, it does seem to me that U management is working on getting costs down no-matter what and working on brand later (or working on a new brand- United/Star Airways?? or whatever).

I've reluctantly come to the conclusion (mind you, only based on limited experience and reading these boards) that some of this might involve U encouraging senior employees to consider that working for U isn't really worth it anymore (unpleasant and unrewarding). That sucks.

I hope I'm wrong.

 

[PITbull]

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On 8/1/2003 4:15:51 PM PITbull wrote:

Newman,

Here's my take.

Watch how this works...

Now that the staffing for f/as has been reduced beyond substandard levels for an airline like ours, the company will come out and literally "pounce" on the flight attendant who dares call in sick FOR BEING SICK. They will torture these f/as tomorrow.

This is what this mangement does, and that is why we are so upset. We were told that they are "tightening" up the Disciplines...and IMO it is to further reduce heads in conjunction with furloughs. It appears to be a "set up" (reduce staffing fiecely, and then punish those who are still here who are left on the property who have any kind of health problem because they are considered "liabilities" to this mangement, and look to terminate by setting up the "perfect environment" for employees to fail.

Pretty calculating, don't you think?

Trust me, there is absolutely no work slow down....there are just not enough f/as now, so that when there is any lost time or absence, it is magnified 10 fold.

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Thought I would add to the above post...

Well, today, as typical when you have this many furloughed f/as, crew sched has restricted the bid sheets system wide AND THEY HAVE NO FLIGHT ATTENDANTS. Why? Not because f/as get ill, but because the furloughed environment is such that the "sick" call becomes a huge big issue and is magnified 10 fold because U can't cover the trips cause they don't have enough reserve staff! So, whose problem is it? Why are we short when it is THE BEGINNING OF THE MONTH?

As I stated yesterday, they are harrassing the f/as who are even on their OFF days and assigning trips and threatening termination.

Yea, got to love this management for having great planning.

 

[diogenes]

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On 8/2/2003 1154 AM RowUnderDCA wrote:

Guys-

I'm sorry to speculate like this, but U's lack of concern with its brand makes me think that they aren't going to keep it. Putting aside how this might come about, or how it might effect employees, it does seem to me that U management is working on getting costs down no-matter what and working on brand later (or working on a new brand- United/Star Airways?? or whatever).

I've reluctantly come to the conclusion (mind you, only based on limited experience and reading these boards) that some of this might involve U encouraging senior employees to consider that working for U isn't really worth it anymore (unpleasant and unrewarding). That sucks.

I hope I'm wrong.

----------------​

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Exactly so, and a damned shame.

From the time of the mergers, the employees of U have repeatedly pullled this airline out of nosedives management puts us into. Remember when they lost "operational control of the airline" in 89 and 92? Who turned it around? THE GRUNTS!

You'd think somebody'd be smart enough to take a work force that refuses to die and build a world class operation with them. But noooooooooooooo, the plan has been to sell. Looking back, I'm not so sure that wasn't the plan since the early 90's if not sooner. And to top it off, the management types still here from the late 80's get off when they hoo-doo the troops - an infection readily transmitted to incoming management. Can anyone name anybody ranked veep or higher that gives one rat's a$$ for employees?-------------------------------
Thought not.

Breaks my heart to think what could have been with competent leadership.

Would the last one out the door pause and give some deserving Palace Guard (and their name is Legion)a well earned kick in the arse?